RESP? | General financial discussion | Discussion forum

Please consider registering
guest

sp_LogInOut Log In sp_Registration Register

Register | Lost password?
Advanced Search

— Forum Scope —




— Match —





— Forum Options —





Minimum search word length is 3 characters - maximum search word length is 84 characters

sp_Feed Topic RSS sp_TopicIcon
September 15, 2019
10:58 am
dommm
Member
Members
Forum Posts: 155
Member Since:
November 15, 2018
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

I'm a new grandpa & want to open an RESP account shortly. Any suggestions & or ideas on the best FI & account? Thanks

September 15, 2019
12:53 pm
Loonie
Member
Members
Forum Posts: 9214
Member Since:
October 21, 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

Congratulations, gramps!

There were several good threads on this topic in the past. I suggest you try to find them although I know the search function can be less than adequate. Do not act in haste. There is a lot to be wary of, although it can be a useful vehicle.

If you have a more specific question, you'll likely get some responses.

September 15, 2019
1:09 pm
Norman1
Member
Members
Forum Posts: 6679
Member Since:
April 6, 2013
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

How about earlier discussion RESP recommendations pls?

The discussion also refers to two earlier discussions Global RESP and RESP with "Knowledge First Financial".

September 15, 2019
2:36 pm
Dean
Valhalla Mountains, British Columbia
Member
Members
Forum Posts: 1895
Member Since:
January 12, 2019
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

In the past, I heard some real horror stories about Group RESP's.

Do they still exist now?

sf-cool " Live Long, Healthy ... And Prosper! " sf-cool

September 16, 2019
4:19 pm
Doug
British Columbia, Canada
Member
Members
Forum Posts: 4201
Member Since:
December 12, 2009
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

Dean said
In the past, I heard some real horror stories about Group RESP's.

Do they still exist now?  

I assume you mean the scholarship plans, Dean, as opposed to a "group RESP" (which I'm not sure exists, but assume would be similar to an employer-sponsored group RRSP). I don't think they're all bad necessarily in terms of performance, but they do tend to have higher than average management fees, ancillary fees, and, crucially, lock-ins with penalties for early withdrawals.

They definitely still exist and you can look up their plan documents on SEDAR (KnowledgeFirst is one; Heritage is another).

Best bet would be to go with a robo-advisor as they often have no minimum account balance for new RESPs and will even waive management fees until you have up to $5,000 in your account. Beyond that, go with a discount brokerage.

Also, anyone can start an RESP for someone, but you have to be a certain type of relative to start a "family RESP" that can be transferred to another beneficiary. So, for example, if my sister had decided to have a baby with her partner, I could start an RESP (if I had the baby's SIN) for her hypothetical baby; however, as a hypothetical uncle, I could not start a family RESP for multiple hypothetical babies. sf-cool

Grandparents, on the other hand, are one of the familial relation types that can start a "family RESP" as I understand it.

As a courtesy, it's recommended that you discuss beforehand with the baby's parents who will be claiming the government grants as each child is only eligible for one set of grants.

Cheers,
Doug

Please write your comments in the forum.