You would think poor stock market returns and/or job losses would be perceived as the No. 1 threat to retirement security these days. Not so: that spot is claimed by high taxes, according to a recent survey. Inflation was not far behind.

Gail Bebee, personal-finance speaker and author of No Hype - The Straight Goods on Investing Your Money has issued an succinct summary on whether or not to contribute to an RRSP or TFSA or both. Entitled, TFSA or RRSP? Seven rules to help Canadians decide, it goes as follows:

In my column on the Tax Free Saving Account (TFSA), I ranted on about i) fees charged by TFSA providers, ii) growing complexity of the government’s registered savings plans system, and iii) the cost of the bureaucracy needed to administer the plethora of plans. Just give us a simpler tax ...

Beware RRSP investors. You could get hit with unexpected charges on your RRSP if your holdings have declined below the minimum balance required by your financial institution. Let’s illustrate with an example.