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902-496-1155
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BMO Nesbitt Burns
1400-1675 Grafton St
Halifax, NS
B3J 0E9
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BMO Nesbitt Burns
Nova Center
1400-1675 Grafton Street
Halifax, NS
B3J 0E9
Contact Us
Transition Planning
Dealing with Employment Transitions
Even positive career transitions are not easy
You’ve
just been offered an early retirement package. While you’ve always
thought it would be great to retire early, you’ve never been certain you
could actually afford it. Even now, with the company offering you a
sweetened package, you are still not sure what you should do.
Or
perhaps you’ve lost your job due to corporate restructuring. Even if it
wasn’t a complete surprise, it’s a difficult time. While you are trying
to adjust to all of the personal ramifications, you are also being
asked to make some important financial decisions that will affect your
future security. Your company has given you an outline of your options –
maybe you’ve even attended a seminar – but you’ve still got more
questions than answers. The problem is that even though you’ve been told
your choices, you aren’t sure which one is right for you.
Whether
you’ve lost your job or been offered an early retirement package, you
need someone who can show you how the termination options integrate with
your other financial resources. Once you have the complete picture, you
can decide whether you’ll need to find another job or have the
resources to go back to school, launch a second career, start your own
small business or begin a leisurely retirement.
It’s the whole picture that is important
Whatever
your situation, if you are at a career transition point, we can help.
We understand that you are facing many decisions which are difficult to
make unless you can see the big picture. We also understand that not all
of the decisions are about money. However, once your financial
situation is clear, you can begin to resolve the other issues.
BMO
Nesbitt Burns Investment Advisors have both the professional skills and
analytical tools to help you make informed decisions. Your BMO Nesbitt
Burns Investment Advisor will analyze your various termination options
and show what impact they will have on your overall personal financial
situation.
A severance or early retirement package usually
includes several elements – everything from your sick pay credits and
company savings programs to retiring allowances and complicated choices
about what to do with your pension plan. Each element will have income
tax as well as current and future cash flow implications. Your net worth
and the value of your estate may also be affected. By working with your
Investment Advisor to complete net worth and cash flow statements, you
will gain a greater insight into the implications of making various
choices.
Your Investment Advisor will also show you the
difference between your various pension plan payment options, purchasing
a life annuity, or rolling the commuted value of your pension into a
Locked-in Retirement Account (LIRA), Life Income Fund (LIF), Locked-in
Retirement Income Fund (LRIF) or prescribed RRIF. This will help clarify
your options and allow you to make an informed decision about which
alternative would be best for you.
Invest wisely to protect your future
Once
you’ve determined how much money you will be receiving from all sources
and whether the various segments will have to remain tax sheltered or
not, your next major decision will be how to invest the funds you
receive.
If you’ve been laid off and have some concerns about
paying the bills or are unsure what your future plans may be, you’ll
want to maintain investment flexibility until you see how things sort
themselves out. Your Investment Advisor can provide you with advice on
secure, liquid investments that offer better rates of return.
If
your path is more certain, this is the ideal time to completely review
your investment strategy. You may want to review your longer term goals
and then integrate your new financial situation into your investment
program to ensure that your goals will be met.
If you are unsure
whether your present investment strategy is appropriate, your Investment
Advisor will review your portfolio in light of your current
circumstances. An important step in reviewing your investment program is
to determine how you should allocate your investments among the various
asset classes: cash, bonds and equities. Asset allocation takes into
account the current economic environment and the outlook for the economy
and investment markets, then overlays your objectives and investment
temperament.
If early retirement is a possibility, you will want
to incorporate all of your current and future sources of retirement
income into your overall investment plan. Your Investment Advisor can
help you integrate your government and company pension plans, RRSPs,
TFSAs and other investments, tax rates and inflation into your analysis.
You need to be sure that there will not be a shortfall between your
lifestyle expectations and your financial ability to support them.
You only have one chance to make the right decision
Whether
you are taking an early retirement or have been displaced by corporate
restructuring, you have a lot of important decisions to make. Your BMO
Nesbitt Burns Investment Advisor can help take the guesswork out of your
transition planning. Together, you can determine a plan that is right
for you.
Talk to your BMO Nesbitt Burns Investment Advisor to learn more.
Disclaimer:
® "BMO (M-bar roundel symbol)” is a registered trade-mark of Bank of Montreal, used under licence.
® "Nesbitt Burns” is a registered trade-mark of BMO Nesbitt Burns Corporation Limited, used under licence.
™/® Trade-marks / registered trade-marks of Bank of Montreal, used under license.