2026 August Weekly Q&A - Financial Planning
In the month of August 2026, we answered the following questions on Financial Planning.
- I am a business owner / incorporated professional. Shall I withdraw funds from the corporation to invest in my individual accounts, or shall I invest directly in the corporation?
- I want to help my adult children financially. But I worry my support will have unintended outcomes that compromise their financial independence. What shall I do?
- My children graduated from university and started working this year. I hope they can start planning and accumulating wealth as soon as possible. But they feel they are too young and have nothing to plan for. How shall I approach this topic with them?
- I have benefited from working with an advisor. But my child does not see the value. They think they can manage it with the information and technology tools available. I worry they may learn some costly lessons along the way. Do younger generations still need advisors?
1. I am a business owner / incorporated professional. Shall I withdraw funds from the corporation to invest in my individual accounts, or shall I invest directly in the corporation?
As a business owner, you can use a corporate account for investment and accumulating wealth, an option that individual investors don't have. This is a valuable option, but it comes with a layer of complexity that is worth understanding before using it.
When you withdraw money from your corporation to invest in personal accounts, it triggers tax at the personal level. Depending on how you take it out, as salary, a dividend, or another form of distribution, the tax consequences differ, and the money that reaches your personal account is reduced. On the other hand, investing directly inside the corporation lets you deploy the full amount without triggering personal tax first. This can feel like an obvious advantage, but with conditions.
The catch is that investment income earned inside a corporation is treated differently than active business income. It is taxed at the high flat corporate rate, and if the aggregate passive income surpasses $50,000 in any year, it will begin to reduce the corporation's small business deduction limit, increasing the tax rate on its active business income in the subsequent year.
The principle of tax integration in Canada's tax system is designed to limit the advantage of using a corporation as an investment vehicle, equalizing the ground between business owners and individuals. This complexity does not fully diminish the use case of using a corporate account to invest, but it means business owners and their advisors need to be tax-conscious and selective on the investment allocation in the corporate account versus the individual accounts.
Beyond tax, there are many other considerations from a business perspective, such as the business and corporate structure, the future exit options, possible succession planning within the family, and many more. It is a decision that sits at the intersection of business planning, corporate and personal tax, and financial planning, which is exactly why it is worth bringing professionals from different fields together to discuss and formulate a strategic and comprehensive plan.
2. I want to help my adult children financially. But I worry my support will have unintended outcomes that compromise their financial independence. What shall I do?
Many parents focus on how much they want to support their adult children. An equally important question is how to make that support most meaningful, without compromising the children’s independence, confidence, and good decision-making.
First and foremost, consider your own retirement and financial security before offering financial assistance. One of the best gifts you can provide is ensuring that you remain financially independent later in life.
Next, think about your objective. Are you helping with a home purchase, education, debt repayment, or simply providing a stronger financial foundation? The purpose of the support often matters as much as the amount.
How that support is delivered is critical. Every parent hopes to avoid the familiar saying, “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations”. Families that successfully preserve wealth across generations often focus less on transferring money and more on passing along values, knowledge, purpose, and responsibility.
This principle applies regardless of wealth. The most valuable contribution is often not just a cheque, but financial education, guidance, and open conversations about money. Teaching children to use money as a tool to support a meaningful life, rather than using life solely to pursue money, can have a lasting impact long after any financial gift has been received.
Every family is different. The key is finding the right balance between providing support and allowing adult children the opportunity to build their own confidence, responsibility, and financial resilience. Thoughtful discussions and planning can help ensure that generosity strengthens both family relationships and financial outcomes across generations.
3. My children graduated from university and started working this year. I hope they can start planning and accumulating wealth as soon as possible. But they feel they are too young and have nothing to plan for. How shall I approach this topic with them?
Congratulations to them on completing a major milestone. They are now surrounded by new friends, colleagues, and activities, with very little savings. Planning feels a bit far-fetched. Here is what we would say to them.
The early years of a career come with a financial privilege that is easily overlooked: TIME, because it is invisible. The decisions made now on how to manage cash flow, which accounts to use, and how to approach debt and savings don't just shape the moment; they compound quietly in the background, for better or worse, over the decades that follow. That compounding works in your favor when you set up the foundation right and early, and against you when you don't.
Someone who begins saving at 22 will accumulate significantly more by retirement than someone who starts at 32 with the same deposits. Not because they earned more but simply because their money had more time to grow. That wealth accumulation gap cannot be recovered later by contributing more. Time, unlike capital, cannot be replaced.
Planning can also help us understand ourselves better, our values, objectives, dreams in life, and how to make our finances work towards that. It is less about developing a complicated plan and more about getting informed about the available options, establishing the right behaviors and habits, and being conscious of our decisions and their impact early on. For example: what registered accounts are and how to use them, how your employer benefits work, and what financial habits will serve you well as you progress.
Make time and the compounding effect your best friends by starting to make informed and deliberate financial decisions early; it will serve you extremely well in the future.
4. I have benefited from working with an advisor. But my child does not see the value. They think they can manage it with the information and technology tools available. I worry they may learn some costly lessons along the way. Do younger generations still need advisors?
We have worked with many younger generation clients, such as Gen Z. They value advice no less than previous generations. They are simply more selective and prefer to work with someone who genuinely understands and cares about them, and who can provide unbiased, trusted guidance.
Technology has made investing easier, faster, and more accessible than ever. The availability of information is no longer an obstacle. Instead, the challenge is assessing the quality of that information and advice. Good judgment remains scarce. Financial decisions compound over time, both positively and negatively.
We want to be clear that not everyone needs an advisor, just as not everyone needs to manage everything on their own. This is a choice based on individual circumstances. Any generic, one-sided conclusion is often self-serving.
Many younger investors are capable of managing their own finances, particularly when their situation is straightforward. However, the complexity of personal finance, including investments, retirement, tax, insurance, and estate planning, tends to grow alongside income, wealth accumulation, major life events, and rising uncertainties. Professional advice can help identify risks, opportunities, and blind spots that may otherwise go unnoticed.
The value of an advisor is not simply selecting investments or executing transactions. It is helping people make better financial decisions over the course of their lives.
Information is abundant. Wisdom, context, and discipline are harder to find. High-quality professional judgment and guidance will become increasingly valuable. The challenge is learning how to identify them in an age of information overload.
We encourage everyone to take the time to evaluate and select the professionals whom they want to work with over the long term, whether in wealth management, tax, law, or other areas of life, where trusted advice and relationships can make a meaningful difference.
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