by Chris | Apr 19, 2016 | Taxes
*I am not a tax professional. This is meant to be educational and NOT a recommendation. Each personal situation is different and there’s a lot of grey area in self-employed deductions. If you have questions (even just little ones) … talk to a tax expert.*
There are obvious perks to working from home. You can avoid the perils of wearing pants and you’re always in close proximity to the fridge.
Well, those perks continue at tax time. The CRA lets you claim a deduction on your home office/workspace under a few conditions…
Do you qualify for the ‘Workspace in your home’ Deduction?
The CRA website breaks it down thusly:
“You can deduct expenses for the business use of a work space in your home, as long as you meet one of the following conditions:
- it is your principal place of business; or
- you use the space only to earn your business income, and you use it on a regular and ongoing basis to meet your clients, customers, or patients.”
(more…)
by Chris | Apr 18, 2016 | Taxes
I have not done my taxes.
I have not really thought about doing my taxes.
But now that we’re 2 weeks from the due date (which is April 30th #taxfact) it’s time to get in a tax frame of mind.
So here are 10 tax ‘tips’… a culmination of all the wisdom I gained by doing the opposite of every single one of these things.
Take what you will from them, but please remember… I’m not an accountant, or a tax expert. Everyone’s situation is different and if you’re not sure… check with a professional. (more…)
by Chris | Mar 22, 2016 | Artist 2 Artist, Debt, Getting Started
*The following is part 2 of a year-long series. If you want to start from the beginning, learn about who Lindsay is and check out how much debt she’s starting with… check out PART 1.
Alright my friends! The first month of my debt-paying challenge is over, and let me tell you, it’s been a roller coaster.
Like the start of any good financial challenge, it began by my going on a 4-day juice cleanse, and taking a purely personal trip to New York City for my birthday.
Wait… what?! (more…)
by Chris | Mar 16, 2016 | Making Money
This is part 3 of a series documenting my attempts to make money on the internet… if you want the whole set up you can find it HERE, and if you’re curious how I earned my first dollar (and also 10 more after that) go HERE.
2 dollars. That was my goal for February.
In month number one of my income making experiment I shattered all my hopes and dreams and came in 1100% over target. That’s a lot of pressure to be taking on as I headed into my second month.
Did I make it? Well, before I let that cat out of the bag…. (more…)
by Chris | Mar 2, 2016 | Retirement, Saving, Taxes
If you’ve been in Canada over the last month you’ve probably seen a ton of ads and ‘reminders’ (they’re also ads) to put money into your RRSP.
DO IT! PUT MONEY IN IT!
DID YOU KNOW THAT MOST PEOPLE DON’T?? DON’T BE MOST PEOPLE! JUST PUT THE MONEY IN.
Ughhhhhhh.
That’s because we’ve just come to the end of what wonderful finance nerds the country over call ‘RRSP season’. It’s the time of year when lots of people are making contributions, topping up accounts, and looking to get their tax efficiencies in order.
But most of us… we’re just trying to get through another Canadian winter.
Actually, I think a lot of us just don’t really understand what an RRSP is… yet.
I sure didn’t.
I thought I did… but if I’d been asked to explain it… it would have probably sounded like this…
“Oh ya, an RRSP… um.. You just get one, and it’s for retirement… and you should really have one… but I don’t have one… I guess I should do that.”
I mean… why would you even need to read the rest of this post?? I think that definition is pretty clear.
But in case it’s not, today we’re going to break it down, and I mean really break it down. We’re going to talk about what an RRSP actually is, how it works, and whether it’s the right tool for YOU and your life.
Because let’s be honest… RRSP’s are great, they’re an amazing and pretty powerful tool for long term savings, but after I learned how they worked… I stopped contributing to mine.
It wasn’t the best tool for me, and it might not be the best tool for you either! (more…)
