# Where to start putting my Money at 22 years old



## Chadd (Sep 30, 2015)

Hi, I'm new to the forum, this is my first post. I just have a few questions and am looking for some guidance. I'm 22 years old and am working full time. I have no debt and about 10k saved up that I would like to put somewhere better than a savings account. I'm not sure where to start and have not opened up a TFSA or RRSP yet. If i do, which should I do and how do I go about it? Also I'm looking to have access to the money within the next 1-2 years for the possible purchase of a home. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!


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## CalgaryPotato (Mar 7, 2015)

Savings accounts... not very sexy are they?

But if you are looking for your money in 1-2 years that is what your money should be... anything more volatile is pure gambling. That said you can open up the TFSA and put the savings account in there, to save a few dollars on taxes.


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## Chadd (Sep 30, 2015)

Does it matter what TFSA i use? What are ny options for that? Also if i can get my employer to match money into my rrsp is that something I should look in yo?


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> I'm looking to have access to the money within the next 1-2 years for the possible purchase of a home


 if you won't keep your money not in Saving account/GIC, it's likely that in 1-2 years , you will be able to purchase not home, but tent 
Check with Tangerine, they ofter have promotion rates on Saving account.... if you want to open Tangerine account and get $50 bonus , sne d me PM and I'll give Orange key


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> That said you can open up the TFSA and put the savings account in there, to save a few dollars on taxes.


 All depends on current rates and tax brackets... Currently i get more interest on cash saving in Tangerine, that I'd get on TFSA including tax break



> Also if i can get my employer to match money into my rrsp is that something I should look in yo?


 yes


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## 0xCC (Jan 5, 2012)

+1 on the TFSA side of things. You could even consider putting some or all of it in a RRSP and use the Home Buyer's Plan (HBP) to borrow it back from your RRSP to buy your first house. There are problems with the HBP (see below) but if you understand what you are getting into it could work out.

The other thing to consider is whether you really, really 100% need the money in 1-2 years. If you are totally committed to needing the money in that time frame then the most sensible answer you are going to get is GIC's or high interest savings accounts (HISA). If you are willing to delay the house purchase based on how much money you actually have then you might get some different answers. The sticky part will be that if you put the money into something other than a GIC or HISA it would probably be better to be a real estate buyer if your investment shrinks vs. if your investment grows. If your investment shrinks that probably means that interest rates are low and the real estate market is not booming. If your investment grows then it could been that interest rates are higher and the real estate market is higher and maybe your larger investment account only buys what you would have been able to buy with a low risk investment anyway...

Back to the HBP. The downsides of the HBP are that you have to pay back to your RRSP what you took out of it over 15 years. This basically increases your mortgage payment because not only do you have to make your regular mortgage payment you also have to pay your RRSP. And you don't get any tax deduction on the HBP repayment you make to the RRSP because you got the tax credit when you originally made the contribution.


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## 0xCC (Jan 5, 2012)

Chadd said:


> Does it matter what TFSA i use? What are ny options for that? Also if i can get my employer to match money into my rrsp is that something I should look in yo?


For the TFSA it only really matters what you want to do with the cash. You can open a TFSA at Tangerine or PC Financial or a bunch of others (check www.highinterestsavings.ca for the current rates on a bunch of accounts). If you want to put the TFSA money to work in the market you need to open a TFSA account at a brokerage.

If you can open an RRSP with your employer and they will make a contribution for you then that is probably something you should consider depending on the details of your employer's plan. It is free money after all. Depending on what you can put the RRSP money into and what the transfer/withdrawal rules are with the plan it could make sense to use it as part of the HBP I mentioned above.


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> Depending on what you can put the RRSP money into


 if employer matching contribution, it's not really matter 



> If you can open an RRSP


 similar to TFSA, frequesntly RRSP has lower interest than HISA


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Any money needed short-term, 1-3 years, should likely be in cash or a GIC.

You don't want this money to "go down" in value since you will be needing it short-term. To hold cash or GIC, you can use your TFSA. RRSP is for long-term, 5+ (more like 30+ years of saving).

Just my take!


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## Butters (Apr 20, 2012)

with 2 years time frame, better to keep it in very safe investments... regular e-savings or a TFSA should do!

always take free money if your employer matches RRSP... use homebuyers to help your downpayment, use a safer investment

over 5 years you can throw money into the market


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## lonewolf (Jun 12, 2012)

The longer money is on the table the longer the time is to lose it.


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## Freedom45 (Jan 29, 2011)

Chadd said:


> Also if i can get my employer to match money into my rrsp is that something I should look in yo?


Absolutely. Employer matching is free money.


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## Eclectic12 (Oct 20, 2010)

0xCC said:


> For the TFSA it only really matters what you want to do with the cash.
> 
> You can open a TFSA at Tangerine or PC Financial or a bunch of others (check www.highinterestsavings.ca for the current rates on a bunch of accounts). If you want to put the TFSA money to work in the market you need to open a TFSA account at a brokerage.


For specific investments such as individual stocks, ETFs or MFs - then yes, the brokerage account typically is best.

The lines are blurring though so matching up what one wants to what is easy isn't as clear as it used to be. 

For example, the PCF TFSA used to only allow GICs or cash savings accounts. Now the link indicates MFs are available. Similarly, most people who talk about a brokerage TFSA mean the version that allows stocks/bonds/ETFs/MFs etc. where in several cases, one can open with the broker an MF only TFSA or the full blown version.


Cheers


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## 312073 (Sep 22, 2015)

You could start by opening a TFSA Savings account at Peoples Trust which has the best permanent interest rate at 2 %.


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## KaeJS (Sep 28, 2010)

How much money are you earning from your employment as an after tax net figure on a monthly basis?


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## Ahii (Oct 10, 2015)

*TFSA and RRSP*



Chadd said:


> Hi, I'm new to the forum, this is my first post. I just have a few questions and am looking for some guidance. I'm 22 years old and am working full time. I have no debt and about 10k saved up that I would like to put somewhere better than a savings account. I'm not sure where to start and have not opened up a TFSA or RRSP yet. If i do, which should I do and how do I go about it? Also I'm looking to have access to the money within the next 1-2 years for the possible purchase of a home. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!


Hi CHADD,

I am a newcomer to this forum as well. That is awesome to have 10k saved at your age.
I think both TFSA and RRSP are great vehicles to park your savings. TFSA is tax free and flexible on withdrawal and I usually take advantage to max it out every year. RRSP is great as a tax shelter fif you have income tax every year. I would take advantage of both.


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## My Own Advisor (Sep 24, 2012)

Freedom45 said:


> Absolutely. Employer matching is free money.


+10.


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## tk826 (Oct 19, 2015)

*Interesting Video*

Here's an interesting blog forum video that might be able to help you get some information:
https://champion.ca/2015/06/15/its-make-its-save/


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