Christmas Giving

By Sarah Chisholm, BA

Financial Advisor, O’Farrell Wealth & Estate Planning | Assante Capital Management Ltd.

The Christmas Season is a time for family gatherings and celebrations, good food and presents. We all get joy from giving to our loved ones and those in need. Let’s grab your favourite cup of tea or coffee and discuss ways to give in 2022.

As parents and grandparents, we often find it challenging to come up with ideas for gifts for our children or grandchildren. Do they really need more clothing or toys? Consider making an investment into their Registered Education Savings Plan. RESP contributions up to $2,500 per year (subject to CRA guidelines) are eligible for a 20% Canada Education Savings Grant. Giving your grandchild $100 for their RESP account could earn them an additional $20 in government grant.

What about gifts for our adult children or our siblings? Our adult children or our siblings are often named the executors of our estates. While they are often willing, being an executor can prove to be quite complicated for our loves ones when we eventually pass. One major hurdle of estates can be the presence of physical share certificates. A loved one may have passed away while still holding those shares and the executor is then faced with a mountain of paperwork to have the shares re-issued in the name of the estate. This includes working with a brokerage to deposit the shares before being able to sell or distribute those shares to the beneficiaries and file the realized capital gains or losses with the CRA. If you have physical share certificates filed away in a safe or lock box, take the time to pull them out and get them deposited into an investment account that is easier to manage. Dealing with stock certificates now will save your executors a major headache down the road – a truly wonderful gift.

We all have family and friends who truly need nothing. Consider making a charitable donation in their name. Take the time to consider what charity or foundation they truly value and then send in your donation. Many charities will then send a notification to your loved one to let them know a donation has been made in their honor. For tax purposes, make sure your donation is made before December 31, 2022 so you can claim the tax credit on your 2022 tax return.

Finally, as you cross the final items off your list for this holiday season, consider making those purchases from locally owned businesses. Our community has an amazing wealth of products and services – spread some cheer and support the local community.

We welcome questions so please reach out! See our ad in this week’s North Grenville Times and follow us on Facebook @OFarrellWealth.

Sarah Chisholm is a Financial Advisor with Assante Capital Management Ltd. The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of Assante Capital Management Ltd. Please contact her at 613.258.1997 or visit ofarrellwealth.com to discuss your circumstances prior to acting on the information above. Assante Capital Management Ltd. is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada.