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Saving for retirement and funding one are different problems.

The accumulation years have a simple instruction: save more. The decumulation years do not. Which account do you draw from first, how much is safe, and what happens if you live to ninety-six?

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RRSP conversion
By the end of the year you turn 71
An RRSP must be converted to a RRIF or annuity, or withdrawn, by the end of the year you turn 71 under current federal rules.
Government benefits
CPP and OAS timing is a choice
When you start CPP and OAS changes the amount you receive for life. The right timing depends on health, other income and tax.
Annuities
Income for life, irreversibly
An annuity converts capital into guaranteed income. The trade is flexibility for certainty.

What we work through together

We map every income source you will have — CPP, OAS, workplace pensions, RRSP/RRIF, TFSA, non-registered savings — against what your retirement actually costs. Then we work on the order of withdrawal, because that order is worth real money in tax.

For pre-retirees and retirees planning how the money actually comes out.

  • What retirement actually costs you

    Not a percentage of your old salary. Your real spending, with the mortgage gone, the commute gone, and healthcare and travel added back in.

  • Withdrawal order and tax

    Which account to draw down first, how to manage the OAS clawback threshold, and how to smooth taxable income across years.

  • Guaranteed income

    Where an annuity makes sense — covering fixed essential costs with certainty and leaving the rest invested for flexibility.

  • Longevity and health risk

    The plan has to survive both a long life and a bad year of markets early on. We stress-test the withdrawal plan for both.

Your options

Three ways to fund a retirement

Most retirement income plans are a blend of these. Getting the proportions right matters more than picking a winner.

Flexibility and control

Systematic withdrawals

Keep the capital invested and draw a planned amount each year, adjusting as markets and spending change.

  • You keep control of the capital, and what is left passes to your estate
  • Income is not guaranteed and depends on market performance
  • Vulnerable to poor returns in the first years of retirement
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Certainty over the essentials

Annuity income

Convert a portion of capital into a contract that pays a set income for life, regardless of markets or how long you live.

  • Income is guaranteed for life by the insurer
  • The capital is generally no longer yours to access or leave behind
  • Often used to cover fixed costs so the rest can stay invested
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Most retirees

A layered plan

Guaranteed income sources cover the non-negotiable bills; invested capital funds everything discretionary.

  • Essentials are covered no matter what markets do
  • Discretionary spending flexes with performance
  • Requires knowing your real fixed costs, precisely
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Is this for you

When it helps, and when to wait.

We would rather tell you this is not your priority right now than sell you something you do not need. If the right-hand column describes you, say so on the call.

Worth a conversation if

  • You are within ten years of your intended retirement date
  • You have savings across several accounts and no plan for the order of withdrawal
  • You are deciding when to start CPP or OAS
  • You are approaching 71 with an RRSP to convert

Worth pausing if

  • You are early in your career — building the savings rate matters more than optimising withdrawals
  • You have no protection in place and dependants who rely on you

Retirement planning — questions

Good questions to bring to the call.

These are the ones that come up most on this topic. Yours is welcome even if it is not here.

Taking it earlier means a smaller payment for life; deferring means a larger one. Which is better depends on your health, your other income, your tax situation and whether you need the cash flow now. It is a calculation worth doing properly rather than defaulting to age 65.

Read next

Everything on this page describes how these products generally work in Canada. Figures, terms, definitions and availability vary by insurer and by policy, and nothing here is a quote, a rate, or a guarantee of coverage or approval. Any strategy should be reviewed against your own situation with a licensed representative before you act on it.

Free protection review

Talk through retirement planning with someone who explains it.

Fifteen minutes on your situation and the options that actually apply. No cost, no obligation, and nothing is recommended on the first call.

  • About 15 minutes
  • Phone, video or in person
  • No cost, no obligation
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