News Releases

Are Dreams of Travel, Tennis & Time-off Disappearing? It's Time Canadians Take Charge of Retirement

TORONTO, July 30, 2009 – Over 90¹ per cent of Boomers have said they want to spend some or most of their retirement travelling, yet 60 per cent of Canadian Boomers have not taken the steps to put a financial plan in place to help make this retirement dream and others a reality. As well, few have considered how these dreams may be impacted by other responsibilities such as caring for an ageing parent or a decrease in their retirement savings. This scenario is a common predicament for many of the millions Canadians nearing or already in retirement,

In light of this, BMO has introduced a personalized interactive online tool (www.bmo.com/TakeCharge) to help Canadians plan for their retirement goals.

Based on BMO's highly successful Take Charge of Your Retirement workshops held across the country, the online tool features Dr. Amy D'Aprix, BMO Retirement Transition Expert, guiding users through a series of questions about the four key elements of retirement and the often overlooked financial considerations associated with common retirement goals.

Using a picture analogy, with the four corners of the picture representing the ‘who, what, where and how' of retirement, users are able to put together a personalized retirement picture in under 10 minutes, and start thinking about some of the key considerations associated with what they want for their future.

Examples of these financial considerations include:

• WHO?

If planning to retire with a spouse/partner, do you know how much income you and your spouse will receive during retirement? If your retirement years include caring for an ageing parent, have you considered how it may affect your own health, time, family and finances?

• WHAT?

If travelling is something you want to do in your retirement, have you thought about the rising cost of out of country health insurance as you age? Have you considered how fluctuations in foreign exchange impact the cost of travel?

• WHERE?

If you plan to downsize where you live in retirement, have you calculated the total cost of moving including agent's commission, closing costs and land transfer taxes and how this will impact your retirement income? Home modifications and ongoing home maintenance costs must also be considered.

• HOW?

Have you considered how changes in your health, or the health of anyone you may need to care for, could affect your retirement? While you may be in good health prior to retirement, planning for things like possible long-term care expenses, and understanding if your expected post-retirement health benefit coverage will be enough are key to retirement planning.

“After receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback from BMO clients across the country who have attended Dr. Amy's Take Charge of Your Retirement workshops, BMO is now offering Canadians access to planning a personalized retirement picture through a new online tool,” said Caroline Dabu, Vice President, Head of Retirement at BMO Financial Group. “This unique tool allows pre-retirees to think about their retirement in greater detail so they are not caught off guard by circumstances that could have been planned for. Thinking about retirement in more granularity is more relevant given recent economic turmoil which has forced many individuals to reshape their retirement plans. “

“As Boomers, many of us feel much younger than we are and therefore we may not feel the need to plan for our golden years in great detail. But thinking through the financial considerations associated with the who, what, where and how of retirement is key to taking charge of your future and feeling more confident about achieving your retirement goals.” added Dr. Amy D'Aprix, BMO Retirement Transition Expert and host of the BMO Retirement Group interactive online tool.

Once you have completed the online tool, you are able to save and print your results and bring them in when meeting with a BMO Financial Planner who can help put your personalized retirement plan into action.

About the Retirement Market Group

The Retirement Market Group is a member of BMO Financial Group's Private Client Group. The Private Client Group provides integrated wealth management services in Canada and the United States and had total assets under management and administration and term investments of $273 billion as at April 30, 2009.

______________________
¹ BMO Retirement Study, 2005

- 30 -