When Hudson Jean-Michel arrived from Haiti at the age of 14 with his father and brothers, he quickly had to take responsibility and work, especially as a street hawker for Press. He learned at a very young age to spend within his means. Since 2003, he has been making his budget and he bought a first property in 2004. He now also invests in the stock market. The one who has just turned 50 plans to stop working in three years to be more present at home for his 8 and 5 year old children. “It’s really my priority today. ”
But retirement at 53 does not come from the sky! To get there, not only must a budget be made, but it must also be respected. “The most important thing is not to budget the money you don’t have”, explains Hudson Jean-Michel who, as an IT consultant, is well aware that it can take several months between fulfillment of a mandate and payment.
His wife, who is employed, however ensures a certain stability in the inflows of income. But sticking to a budget means making choices every day. Fancy a swimming pool? No question of buying it on credit! “It will have to be budgeted for,” says Hudson Jean-Michel.
Especially since his wife’s parents live in France, so it is very important for the small family to visit them regularly. “There are four of us, so it’s a minimum of $ 4000 for plane tickets, and you always have to be ready to go. ”
Take advantage of government programs
One motivation to save for Hudson Jean-Michel is to benefit from government initiatives. He quickly started contributing to his Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) to reduce his tax bill. Then, he used the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP) to buy his first duplex in 2004. Now also the owner of a house, he still has several expenses related to this income property, in addition to those for children who are tax deductible. Every year, around mid-November, he goes to see his accountant to take stock.
“He looks at where I am with my income and my expenses, he tells me how much to invest in my RRSP so as not to have to pay taxes and in the months that follow, I save more. ”
He also always contributes the maximum to his children’s registered education savings plan.
“It’s a super interesting plan because, in addition to the return on investments, it makes it possible to obtain government subsidies, that is to say 20% at the federal level and 10% for the provincial for the first tranche of $ 2,500 paid per year by child, ”explains Vanessa Houghton, financial planner at National Bank.
Investing in the stock market and real estate
At his bank, Hudson Jean-Michel has a risky investment portfolio and for the past two years he has been investing his new savings himself in listed companies.
My rule is to only invest the money that I don’t need. You have to do a lot of documentation, but I like it!
Hudson Jean-Michel
He is also thinking of buying another income property.
“When investing, you have to make sure you always rebalance your portfolio to ensure you maintain a good asset allocation and good geographic and sector diversification while respecting your investor profile,” says Vanessa Houghton. A financial planner can do this work in addition to the retirement plan to see if the income will be sufficient. ”
Hudson Jean-Michel and his friend with whom he founded a computer consulting firm plan to stop working in three years.
“We will continue to keep the company going by hiring employees,” he says. I will be able to take care of my investments while being more present for my children. ”