A practical guide to investing at every life stage

As your financial needs change from early career to mid-life to pre-retirement to retirement itself, so, too, should the way you approach your investments.

Setting foundations and leaning into growth

Even though retirement is likely decades away, getting started with investing when you’re in your 20s or early 30s is one of the best money moves you can make. You’re likely embarking on your career, so you’ll have a steady source of income. But more importantly, you’ve got decades to go until you’ll need to access your retirement funds, which gives you more leeway to weather ups and downs in the market. 

In this stage, you should consider not only setting up your retirement funds, but also about setting aside money that you may need in the medium term, whether you’re saving for a house or car, or planning for a family.

Investing focus: Diversify and grow

If you invest early, even with modest contributions, you’ll have a major advantage over people who wait: time. 

For your retirement fund, you can get started with an equity-focused mutual fund or exchange-traded fund (ETF). Both options may give you access to a broad swath of the stock market without having to actually buy individual stocks. You can start small and set up pre-authorized contributions that can help your investment grow over time. (At Tangerine, these are called Automatic Purchases, which can be set up for any of their 13 investment portfolios.)

For investments that you expect to use within the next 6–10 years, consider a more conservative approach, with funds that lean more heavily on predictable income such as bonds or GICs, which offer regular interest income and return your initial investment if held to maturity.which offer regular interest income and return your initial investment if held to maturity. These are considered less risky than stocks, though the stock market has historically performed better over time.

Accounts to consider: TFSAs & RRSPs

As a young adult, you might want investments that offer flexibility and tax-free growth. Take a look at a TFSA to get started. You can contribute up to the federally mandated annual limit (which accumulates each year) and have access to your funds if you need to withdraw them at any point. (Note, however, that if you store something like a GIC in your TFSA, you will still need to wait for the maturity date to access your money.)

The registered retirement savings plan (RRSP, also called an RSP) is the other big one to consider. As the name suggests, it’s designed to be used in retirement. Like the TFSA, there are annual contribution limits. Like the TFSA, there are annual contribution limits. What’s different here is that your contributions are tax-deductible, meaning they can reduce the amount you pay in income taxes today. Instead, you’ll pay tax on the money when you withdraw it, likely in retirement when you will likely be in a lower tax bracket. 

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Both TFSAs and RRSPs can hold a variety of savings and investing vehicles, including mutual funds, ETFs, stocks, bonds or savings accounts. You can set up and manage your portfolio yourself or have an advisor/portfolio manager handle it for a fee, adjusting as you see fit over time.

Balancing career and family

By the time you’re in your 30s and 40s, your income may have risen, but you may also have taken on more debt and may even be caring for older relatives. At this point, you’ve got competing priorities: saving for retirement, putting down money on housing or paying down a mortgage, and supporting family.

Because of these demands, you may be a bit more risk-averse with your investments than you were in your 20s. Instead of taking chances on investments with large growth potential, you might favour moderate-risk investments with steady returns or even an additional source of income, such as bond interest or stock dividends.

Your investing focus: Balance

Your primary goal during this stage of life may be maintaining your portfolio’s growth while starting to reduce risk. Instead of relying primarily on high-growth (and higher-risk) investments, consider introducing more moderate-risk options, balancing out your stock portfolio with bonds, money market funds, and other less volatile investments. 

In other words, you may want to adjust your mindset from chasing returns to balancing your portfolio.

Accounts and programs to consider: RRSP & FHSA

You may already have an RRSP that you’re contributing to (perhaps in addition to a TFSA). During this stage of your life, consider prioritizing your contributions so the account becomes the backbone of your retirement savings. This means contributing the maximum amount allowed each year if you’re able.

If you’re also at the point where you’re buying a home, look into a first home savings account (FHSA). This registered savings account allows you to contribute up to $8,000 per year to a maximum lifetime limit of $40,000. Your contributions are tax-deductible and eligible withdrawals are tax-free, giving you a nice lump sum towards a down payment.

What about the Home Buyers’ Plan?
The Home Buyers’ Plan allows you to withdraw funds from your RRSP, up to a maximum of $60,000 tax free, if you’re a first-time homebuyer or haven’t purchased or owned a property in the last four years. This can be a useful strategy if timing, eligibility, or cash-flow constraints make the FHSA less practical, or when you already have money sitting in an RRSP.

Shifting towards stability and income planning

As you enter your 50s and 60s, retirement is likely on the horizon. You may be thinking more about protecting your investments and trying to figure out how your savings will translate to actual income once you retire. At the same time, you may also be in your peak earning years, so protecting your money from taxes is still important.

Your investing focus: Cautious growth and preserving capital

In your 50s you may still want to grow your savings as much as possible to ensure you have enough to fund your retirement—but not to the point of putting your investment at risk, so tread carefully.

In your 60s, as retirement looms even closer, preserving capital with more conservative investments may become top of mind.

If you haven’t already, it’s time to start estimating how much annual income you expect to need to live on in retirement, and sketching out a realistic budget for age 65 to 90 or beyond. Doing so can help you pinpoint when retirement is financially viable and move forward with greater confidence.

Investing doesn’t stop upon retirement. You have accumulated a lifetime of savings after all. But at this point keeping your initial investment intact—and making sure it keeps up with inflation—is of utmost importance.

Accounts to consider: RRSP and RRIF

Keep on maxing out your RRSP contributions, if you can, for as long as you keep working. That will help keep your taxes down. Once you retire and need to start withdrawing from your investments as income, you will convert your RRSP to a registered retirement income fund (RRIF or RIF). As a rule, you will need to do this by age 71.

How to keep your investment strategy on track at any age

Once you have an investment strategy in place, you might be tempted to sit back and let the money manage itself. While that’s certainly an option, here are some tips to help keep your strategy on track:

• Revisit your portfolio after major life events. For example, you might realize that you need to contribute more to account for a growing family or temporarily reduce your contributions if you’ve lost a job. 
• Honestly reassess your risk tolerance. Set your emotions aside and genuinely consider how risk-averse you are, especially as you get closer to retirement. 
• Keep your long-term goals front and center. When the market is volatile, you might think it’s time to adjust your investments to minimize loss. But before you do, remind yourself of your long-term objectives. Part of long-term investing is staying disciplined so you can reach your financial goals.
• Consider managed investments for simplicity. If you don’t have the time, interest, or confidence to manage your portfolio, professionally managed portfolios can handle day-to-day investment decisions for you — for a fee. You’ll still set your goals, risk tolerance, and timeline, while the portfolio is managed and adjusted on your behalf.
• Select investing solutions that evolve as your life changes. Target-date retirement funds, for instance, gradually adjust your portfolio as retirement nears. 

For advice customized to your situation, Tangerine’s licensed advisors can help you craft a plan that works for you.

Your age matters—but your plan matters more

These age-based strategies can help guide your investment journey, but remember: age is just a benchmark, not a rule. If you find yourself behind where you’d like to be, remember that it’s about progress, not perfection. What matters is taking steps now to grow your investments and get ready for the retirement you want.

With access to knowledgeable support and user‑friendly digital tools, Tangerine Investments can help you every step of the way.

For more information about investing with Tangerine, including legal details, visit Tangerine.ca.

Read more about investing:

• A simple guide to investing your first $500
• In planning for retirement, worry about longevity rather than dying young
• Why Canadian investors should avoid MLPs 
• Can you hedge against a market crash with ETFs?
  
  

About Jessica Gibson

Jessica Gibson is a personal finance writer with over a decade of experience in online publishing. She enjoys helping readers make informed decisions about credit cards, insurance, and debt management.

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