I Gotta Save Up Just to be Broke

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,794
460
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Strongly recommended regularly using a budgeting app that is linked to your account. Categorize everything and stay disciplined about how much you spend.

Sure, revenue is great but people don't realize how much better off they can be with a little restraint.
 
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Hoof Hearted

House Member
Jul 23, 2016
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This is very true. It's not how much you make, it's how much you spend.

But I imagine many Canadians have taken out Personal Lines of Credit on their homes just to keep up with the rising costs of day-to-day living. I think many people (seniors included) are 'house rich' but 'cash poor'.
 
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bob the dog

Council Member
Aug 14, 2020
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Can't believe how the banks and their computer algorithms get away with beating the stock market down. Values are 20% of two years ago. Some worse.

Anything to do with the great resignation and people starting to pull funds? Very disheartening for the guy who worked hard and saved up.

No big deal if you have a great pension I guess.
 

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
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Can't believe how the banks and their computer algorithms get away with beating the stock market down. Values are 20% of two years ago. Some worse.

Anything to do with the great resignation and people starting to pull funds? Very disheartening for the guy who worked hard and saved up.

No big deal if you have a great pension I guess.
If your pension plan isn't in hot water because of poor investments. It happens. Except for government employees. Their pension plan is billions in uncovered liabilities, but the taxpayers will be forced to bail it out.
 
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Dexter Sinister

Unspecified Specialist
Oct 1, 2004
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If your pension plan isn't in hot water because of poor investments. It happens. Except for government employees. Their pension plan is billions in uncovered liabilities, but the taxpayers will be forced to bail it out.
That’s not correct. The Public Service Pension Plan is a professionally managed investment fund worth about $18 billion last time I looked, pensions are paid from investment returns, which were about 15% last year, and member contributions. Average payout per year to retirees is about $18K each, not quite the gold plated pension plan people think it is. There’s no taxpayer liability. A career public servant who spent 35 years or more in the job and rose to at least the first level of management can do fairly well out of it, but that’s not most of them.
 
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The_Foxer

House Member
Aug 9, 2022
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The Public Service Pension Plan is a professionally managed investment fund worth about $18 billion last time I looked, pensions are paid from investment returns, which were about 15% last year,
Wow - i did not know that. Are you confident in that number or is that just from memory, it seems really high. Not impossible of course but 15 percent returns is pretty spectacular for a fund that's traditionally low risk.
 

The_Foxer

House Member
Aug 9, 2022
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Haven't really followed the public pension topic for quite some time, but just looking at a few things now i found this from 2017 that was interesting for those who want to know what some of those pensions are worth or at least how they're calculated.


And this which actually notes a 12.5 percent return (2017), so 15 percent isn't crazy high after all. And it shows the average pensions. Interesting stuff.


However - it does appear there is an unfunded liability. Sort of.

It notes that the total pensionable obligation is 276 billion, while invested assets are about 136 billion. Now - they're not paying out all those pensions, that will include pension money accrued by currently working members who will get their pension down the road but who are contributing right now. And it doesn't take into account all the interest that investment will earn between now and when all those pensions are paid out. So there is no real reason to believe that public money will need to top up the pensions - BUT... it is possible. Theoretically at least. Doesn't seem very likely at the moment.
 

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
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Haven't really followed the public pension topic for quite some time, but just looking at a few things now i found this from 2017 that was interesting for those who want to know what some of those pensions are worth or at least how they're calculated.


And this which actually notes a 12.5 percent return (2017), so 15 percent isn't crazy high after all. And it shows the average pensions. Interesting stuff.


However - it does appear there is an unfunded liability. Sort of.

It notes that the total pensionable obligation is 276 billion, while invested assets are about 136 billion. Now - they're not paying out all those pensions, that will include pension money accrued by currently working members who will get their pension down the road but who are contributing right now. And it doesn't take into account all the interest that investment will earn between now and when all those pensions are paid out. So there is no real reason to believe that public money will need to top up the pensions - BUT... it is possible. Theoretically at least. Doesn't seem very likely at the moment.
That is sort of in line with what I read a while back.
 

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
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LOL -well that sounds like a good reason to be pretty confident :) I'd love to know how they manage that kind of rate of return.
Our union plan has a good return. Seems to be well managed. Defined benefits and no unguided liability.
 

The_Foxer

House Member
Aug 9, 2022
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Our union plan has a good return. Seems to be well managed. Defined benefits and no unguided liability.
Well generally i'm not above bashing the unions (in the same way the ocean is not above the sky) but if they're managing to get their people that kind of return on their retirement savings then they're definitely giving them something of value at least. Individually it would be very hard to obtain those kinds of returns without taking significant risk.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
113,368
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Low Earth Orbit
That’s not correct. The Public Service Pension Plan is a professionally managed investment fund worth about $18 billion last time I looked, pensions are paid from investment returns, which were about 15% last year, and member contributions. Average payout per year to retirees is about $18K each, not quite the gold plated pension plan people think it is. There’s no taxpayer liability. A career public servant who spent 35 years or more in the job and rose to at least the first level of management can do fairly well out of it, but that’s not most of them.
Several Ontario Union pensions lost their shirts in 08 and have been bankrolled by taxpayers.
 

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
3,716
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Well generally i'm not above bashing the unions (in the same way the ocean is not above the sky) but if they're managing to get their people that kind of return on their retirement savings then they're definitely giving them something of value at least. Individually it would be very hard to obtain those kinds of returns without taking significant risk.
Not all are created equal. Guys that had money in Rock&Tunnel union lost all their money and merged into iLunia.