Archive by tag "life style"

A “Just in Case File”

February 3rd, 2011

In January, 2009, Good Times magazine printed an article written by Lillian Newberry, titled “Your Just in Case File”. The article talks about her husband’s sudden death and a binder that he had put together in the event that something like this happened. This article, click here, has been reprinted with permission from Good Times.
The [...]

Downsizing (Part Two)

January 21st, 2011

My wife and I continue our discussions about our next move. What is of major importance to us, is to be able to lock the door and leave for months at a time with a minimum of inconvenience, such as meeting house insurance occupancy rules. We have satisfied ourselves that either an apartment or a [...]

Our Shopping List

January 4th, 2011

After looking at several condos and townhouses in the city, Mary and I decided that it would be a good idea to put together a list of the attributes and features of a desirable location. There are several reasons to do this. The first is to start our negotiations long before we plunge into the [...]

“For Everything There is a Season”

August 25th, 2010

The core of our practice has been using mathematical models to help people make financial decisions such as whether to take a commuted value or a deferred annuity when leaving a defined benefit pension plan or deciding whether to buy back eligible past service. We now find ourselves helping different groups of people facing major but predictable transitions in their lives. We help them sort out the both the financial and the lifestyle issues to enable them to make the most appropriate decisions in the circumstances.

“Real Life” Stories about Downsizing

August 19th, 2010

Downsizing is an important issue facing our clients, friends and indeed us, personally. In the case of my wife and me, we need to downsize from the house that we have lived in since 1984. I was therefore struck when I saw Gary May’s article “The Downsizer’s Dilemma” in the July 23rd edition of the Globe [...]

Considering A Move?

July 19th, 2010

My wife and I live in a house that has 25 steps from street level to the first floor and 15 steps from the first floor to the second where the master bed room is located. We are very aware that the time will come when we will no longer be willing to, or in [...]

Decluttering – A Personal Experience

April 28th, 2010

My father died in June 2005. This left my mother living in her home by herself. She was adamant about not moving. In August, I started sorting through my father’s belongings, deciding what to keep, what to give away and what to throw out. It is important to know that my parents had lived in [...]

How Long Will You Drive?

November 8th, 2009

Independence and autonomy are understandably very important for seniors, and as a result, driving is often a touchy issue which you may have already encountered with your parents.As much as we would love to be able to drive forever, is it really a realistic assumption for retirement planning purposes?

Mobility Important When Planning Housing

April 8th, 2009

I recently attended a professional conference on retirement issues where one of the presentations really gave me something to think about. The presentation concerned the new Building Code in the United Kingdom where all new homes are now required to have a bedroom on the main floor AND an accessible bathroom. With this single change, the UK will make a significant step toward making sure that there is adequate, suitable housing available as the population ages