Additional planning detail.
Investment advice connected to your financial plan
Every client arrives with a different mix of goals, timelines, tax questions, family priorities, and risk comfort. Stiller Financial helps organize those details into a practical investment conversation, so accounts are reviewed in the context of the life decision they are meant to support.
The work can include portfolio review, account organization, risk-management conversations, and investment implementation discussions where appropriate for clients in Stratford, London, Oakville, and surrounding Ontario communities.
When this path fits
Investment conversations are usually most useful when you are trying to answer a specific question, not just when you want to discuss market headlines. Common starting points include:
- You have accounts in several places and want to understand how they fit together.
- Retirement income is getting closer and the account withdrawal order is unclear.
- You are comparing your current advisor, bank, or investment setup.
- You inherited or sold an asset and want to slow down the next decision.
- Tax timing, insurance, or estate details may affect how accounts should be reviewed.
What we review
- Account types: RRSP, RRIF, TFSA, non-registered, corporate, RESP, RDSP, LIRA, and LIF
- Asset mix and risk level
- Time horizon by account
- Fees and product structure
- Tax location of investments
- Income needs and withdrawal timing
- Concentration risk
- Whether the portfolio still matches the purpose of the money
What to bring
- Latest account statements
- Fee or annual cost reports
- Recent tax slips if non-registered accounts are involved
- T5008, T3, T5, or adjusted-cost-base details where relevant
- Insurance policies connected to the same advisor relationship
- Pension, RRIF, LIF, or withdrawal details
- Any current advisor service agreement or fee disclosure
How investments are reviewed
The investment review starts with the job your money needs to do: retirement income, emergency liquidity, long-term growth, tax efficiency, estate goals, or business-owner flexibility. Product selection comes after that.
The review should explain what each account is meant to do, how much risk is being taken, what fees or compensation should be understood, and whether the account structure fits the tax, income, beneficiary, and time-horizon context.
Stiller Financial does not build the conversation around stock tips or market headlines. The focus is the role of the portfolio inside the broader plan.
What this is not
This is not a stock-tip, market-timing, speculative-trading, or product-first conversation. Investment changes should not be recommended until the purpose of the account, tax consequences, fees, income needs, time horizon, risk level, and estate or beneficiary implications are understood.
How account roles are reviewed
Account roles by purpose
Investment review starts with what each account is supposed to do.
RRSP / RRIF
Taxable retirement income, withdrawal timing, RRIF minimums, estate tax.
TFSA
Tax-free flexibility, later-life reserve, emergency liquidity, beneficiary planning.
Non-registered
Capital gains, dividends, interest, tax slips, adjusted cost base.
Corporate
Owner-manager context, retained earnings, liquidity, accountant coordination.
LIRA / LIF / pension
Income floor, restrictions, survivor options, fixed versus flexible dollars.
RESP / RDSP
Purpose-specific planning, grants, timing, beneficiary or family support.
Cash reserve
Near-term spending, tax instalments, emergencies, planned purchases.
Fee, cost, and compensation review
Before recommending changes, the review should identify which costs are direct, which may be embedded, what service is included, and whether moving assets could create transfer fees, tax consequences, missing adjusted-cost-base information, or administrative friction.
If the review is really about the advisor relationship, use the Advisor Review Scorecard before transfer paperwork. It helps separate portfolio questions from fees, service, tax records, insurance, estate, documents, and transfer friction.
How the conversation starts
The first step is not a product recommendation. It is a clear review of what you are trying to accomplish, what already exists, what decisions are time-sensitive, and what should be coordinated with tax, estate, or insurance planning.
That usually means naming the purpose of each account, identifying where risk and cash flow matter, and deciding which documents are actually worth gathering before a deeper review. A cleaner account list often makes the rest of the planning conversation easier.
Investment products and services are offered through Investia Financial Services Inc. The Stiller Financial conversation should explain the relevant account, product, cost, and implementation structure before an investment decision is made.
Questions worth bringing
- What is this money meant to do?
- Which accounts are for retirement income, reserve funds, education, disability support, or future family needs?
- Are there accounts, fees, beneficiaries, or ownership details that need to be reviewed?
- Are investment decisions being made separately from tax, estate, or insurance decisions?
- What would need to be true before changing anything?
- What fees, costs, or compensation should be explained before implementation?
