Articles & Resources
Estate Planning & RESPs
Registered Education Savings Plans (“RESPs”) are a common tool for saving for your child’s post-secondary education. Under the RESP contract, the “subscriber” is the person or persons who have opened and contribute to the RESP. There may be a sole subscriber or joint subscribers. The “beneficiary” of a RESP is generally your child or your […]
How Much Cash is Too Much?
Having lots of cash is never a bad thing and can sometimes be hard to imagine after a very challenging year like 2021. However, for the purposes of the Income Tax Act (Canada), having too much cash inside of a farming corporation can be a problem and can result in the loss of certain tax […]
Protecting the homestead from a family property claim
The home quarter is an integral part of most farm operations. Not only do you typically find the farmer’s homestead on this quarter, but the quarter may also contain key buildings or fixtures. So, what happens to the home quarter if the farmer is going through a separation or divorce? Generally, family property legislation in […]
Rearranging Ownership
I’m sure you’ve heard of someone who decided to add their adult child’s name to a parcel of land, or bank account to “ease” the estate planning process and to “save probate fees”. There are pros and cons to taking this step – and it is so important to ensure that a statement of intention […]
Gift-Giving 101
One would think that it would be very simple to know whether someone had given you a gift. Not necessarily. It is amazing how easily there can be a difference of opinion on the topic. Consider the following example – Mom and Dad gave $100,000 to Child 1. Mom and Dad subsequently died, and Child […]
New year resolutions – making sure your estate planning is in order
As we enter into a new year many people turn their mind to those tasks that may have gotten pushed aside in the previous year. Making sure your estate plan is in place is one task that should be on your to do list for the new year. Putting together a plan for what will […]