Andrew Tricomi Financial Planner

06/24/2026

The Canada Disability Benefit provides monthly financial support for working-age Canadians with disabilities. See if you qualify and how much you could receive.

06/22/2026

As falling home prices leave more Canadians underwater on their mortgages, experts explain the refinancing and renewal options available.

06/19/2026

Even women who have built significant wealth often feel financially insecure. The gap is not driven by income. It is driven by identity.

06/17/2026

After consulting with small businesses for years, the author realized the biggest reason companies fail isn’t bad advice — it’s that most owners never fully commit to executing the changes needed to grow.

06/15/2026

Here's how the brain's attention filter turns your focus into your reality — and the search query rewrite that changes what you find.

06/12/2026

Many people who feel intellectually uncertain—slow to form opinions and quick to question their own conclusions—may actually have a cognitive edge.

06/10/2026

“Just add your child to the title. It avoids probate.”

It’s one of the most common pieces of estate planning advice in Canada. It’s also one of the most frequently regretted.

Joint ownership and beneficiary designations are both legitimate ways to pass assets outside your estate. Both can save time and fees. But here’s what people often don’t realize until it’s too late:

When you add your child to the title, you lose control.

You can’t sell, refinance, or mortgage the property without their consent. If your relationship changes, you may find yourself in a difficult position with no easy way out.

The property is exposed to your child’s creditors.

Divorce. Bankruptcy. Lawsuit. If any of these happen to your child, their interest in your home could be at risk.

It may not even avoid probate.

The Supreme Court of Canada has established that when a parent adds an adult child to a property title, the law presumes the child is holding it in trust for the parent. Without clear documentation that a gift was intended, the asset may still go through probate anyway.

And there are tax consequences.

Adding a child to the title is treated as a disposition at fair market value. If the property has appreciated, you may owe capital gains tax immediately, not when you die.

Beneficiary designations on RRSPs, TFSAs, and insurance work differently. They’re generally simpler and safer. But they come with their own considerations, especially the fact that RRSPs and RRIFs are fully taxable at death unless rolled to a spouse.

The families who navigate this well are the ones who coordinate their decisions. Joint ownership, beneficiary designations, and wills need to work together, not in isolation.

And yes, you still need a will. Even with perfect beneficiary designations on everything.
This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, or legal advice. Consult a qualified professional before making financial decisions.

Expert financial advisor servicing Ottawa, Stittsville, West End Ottawa & Kanata. Specializing in personal and corporate financial planning, retirement income, wealth management, insurance, tax & estate planning. Fee-for-service plans available.

06/08/2026

There’s a critical aspect to consider when job hunters, no matter how desperate, evaluate the total compensation on offer.

06/05/2026

Now is a good time to prepare for the bull market’s eventual downfall and displacement by its nemesis, the bear market, characterized by persistently lower prices and souring investor attitudes.

06/03/2026

Food delivery, grocery apps, and other modern conveniences can quietly drain your budget. Here’s why Canadians are spending more than they realize.