Amanda Ashwood | Crawford • Ashwood Financial

You buy house insurance to protect your home, auto insurance to cover your car, and life insurance to ensure your family and loved ones will be financially cared for after you’re gone. But what about protecting your ability to pay all the expenses associated with becoming seriously ill? Unfortunately, most of us know someone who has been affected by cancer, heart attack, or stroke. Having enough money to see you and your family through the hard times is not always easy. Critical illness insurance is a type of protection that can provide you with a lump sum payment if you…

Some experts say that new parents spend $10,000 during their first year in parenthood. You knew having kids wasn’t cheap, but that’s a lot of money on top of your regular living expenses. You would need to come up with $250 a week for nine months to save that amount of money ahead of the baby’s arrival. That’s around $1000 a month! The key is to start early. Start early. If you are planning on starting a family soon, and have a couple of years to build up the resources required, you might need only $96 a week. A Tax…

Every parent wants the very best for their child. Life changes as soon as a new baby comes into this world, and parents are on cloud nine (and probably sleep deprived). There is so much to learn as a new parent and setting up savings plans for your new child’s future education is an important one. We urge you to do your due diligence before signing any contracts for RESPs or Scholarship funds. There are companies who obtain names of new parents/babies and call you to offer their help with setting up a new plan within weeks of your baby’s…

So you’ve just bought a house! Congratulations. This is an exciting time in your life, and it is important to ensure you protect this big purchase. But what kind of protection do you need? Mortgage insurance is easy, convenient, and covers you for just the right amount. Life insurance offers many options for you to consider. I find many people don’t know the differences between mortgage insurance and term or permanent life insurance. Let me break down some key differences for you. Payout With insurance you get from your bank/mortgage company, the amount of coverage and subsequent payout if/when you…

The Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is a tax-sheltered plan that can help you save for a child’s post-secondary education. We all know that education costs are raising every year, and many parents, grandparents and other family members recognize the need to save long before the money is required. The major benefit to the RESP is the government grants that assist you to grow the account more quickly. Free money from the government, you say? Why wouldn’t you take advantage of that? Canadian Education Savings Grant (CESG) For an eligible beneficiary under the age of 18, the government matches 20%…

Let’s start with the Tax Free Savings Account (or TFSA). A lot of clients we talk to seem to have the misconception that you get a TFSA at a bank, and make a percent or two in a high interest savings account (if you’re lucky). The fact of the matter is that a TFSA is just another vessel to invest your money, just like an RRSP. Think of it as another hat to put mutual funds, stocks, bonds, and high interest savings accounts into. A TFSA seems to be advertised as a short term or emergency savings vessel, but that…

As we celebrate the end of 2013, we reflect on the past year. We hope that you have enjoyed the beginnings of our blog project, and we look forward to the next year of education and interaction with our readers. We also invite you to share your ideas on topics you’d like to see covered in the coming year. A new year brings new dreams, new visions, new resolutions, new opportunities. Kay, Marilyn and I wish our clients and readers all the best for a very prosperous New Year.

So you’ve just accepted an offer for a new job, or received a nice promotion. Congratulations! With extra money coming in, it’s important to know how to take care of it properly. What are your goals? Does this extra income put you in a good spot to check something off your list? Maybe it’s finally moving out of your parents’ house, and getting your own place. Maybe it’s buying a new car, or maybe it’s saving for something special, or maybe, just maybe, you actually want to start putting more into your long term savings plan. The first course of…

Kay and I are excited to begin this fun, educational resource for you (our clients), your families, and any friends that you think would enjoy visiting. Our hope by starting this blog is to create a source for information that is important to your financial lives, and an easy way to share such information with other people you care about. Given the complexity of many financial matters, we will attempt to present our contributions in a manner that can be easily understood, and not yawn worthy (although we can’t promise you will be as excited as us on some topics).…

Author Archives: Amanda Ashwood

Critical Illness Insurance

Staying home with baby?

RESPs vs. Scholarship Funds

Mortgage Insurance vs. Life Insurance

Education Savings

TFSA vs. RRSP

Happy New Year

A New Job

Hello World!