Time is Running Out for First-Time Home Buyers to Save in 2024

Owning a home, once almost considered a right of Canadian citizenship, has become a more distant dream for millions. The high cost of housing, coupled with a desperate shortage of supply, has turned the notion of home ownership into a near impossibility for many Canadians and those who have arrived in our country more recently.  The Tax-Free First Home Savings Account (FHSA) can help but it’s important to open an account before December 31, 2024 to create and preserve the contribution room.

The most recent statistics released in August tracking bankruptcies, paint a grim picture of business reality in Canada.  While there is some good news - bankruptcies decreased in June over the month before – it is clear that 2024 has been a difficult one especially for small businesses.  Did the CEBA loan repayment requirement last month push many over the edge?  That and other factors are to blame, and tax and financial advisors are well poised to help.

The August 12 draft legislation released by Finance Canada brought welcome changes to the trust filing requirements for 2024 for many routine family planning matters, including  title holdings on principal residences  for an elderly parent or for the purposes of obtaining a mortgage for an adult child.  However, new rules for 2025 have narrowed the scope but not entirely eliminated the need to file T3 returns and Schedule 15 Beneficial Ownership Information of a Trust.   

Knowledge Bureau is delighted to announce the winners of its 2024 Distinguished Advisor Awards at the Acuity Conference for Distinguished Advisors (DAC) November 10 – 12 in Montreal.  The star-studded ceremony, being held at the exclusive St. James Club, will kick off the three day educational conference – Canada’s only multi-disciplinary conference, featuring 20 thought leaders who will focus on the theme,  Safe Havens: Secure Financial Futures & Wealth Potential.   Winners will be honored in the following categories and contacted under separate cover for ceremony details:

Clients are looking to financial advisors for more tax planning as accountants are inundated with compliance work. The RWM™ is a critical designation that delivers the knowledge you need! Differentiate your practice with new credentials that introduce an integrated approach to growing your business, while building a natural referral network as an RWM™. Join us for a live, virtual discussion with practicing members of the Society of Real Wealth Managers™ August 28 at Noon CT.

The turbulent 2020’s are almost behind us, from a business planning point of view. Building relationships that will amplify results, simply requires a new approach, according to Brian Mennis, author Average to Awesome of Harbourfront Wealth Management  who is leading a session on Building Scaleable Practices at the Acuity Conference for Distinguished Advisors (DAC) on November 11. Mentorship of both new advisors and new clients is a challenge; he says, because what people want is just different. The question is: do you have what it takes to thrive and build your business under such an environment?  If not, what’s the cure?

Would you like to earn the coveted FDFS™ designation?  These Distinguished Fellows are honored for their distinguished services as influential thought leaders, who have demonstrated a commitment to the noble cause of teaching and writing by engaging others in the high standards of knowledge they share. In doing so, they have also demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to shaping the future of the tax, accounting and financial services industries. Here’s how you can get involved: