CKUA

[johnlw]

everybody thinks its so great out there spending like no tomorrow will see it all hit the skids

Canadians are decent savers after all

John Morrissy
CanWest News Service

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

OTTAWA -- We're not the crazed spenders we may have thought we were, according to new studies that show record numbers of Canadians owning RRSPs and more than half regularly tucking money away in bank accounts.

"Contrary to the opinion that Canadians are no longer savers," says a study released by online banker ING Direct, "good old-fashioned savings habits are alive and well in Canada."

ING's study shows that 55 per cent of Canadians save regularly, and another by financial services company Investors Groups shows even more putting money into RRSPs.

In fact, RRSP ownership has grown by a startling 50 per cent over the past four years, Investor Group says in its sixth annual poll of RRSP investment intentions.

Such an increase means three out of every four adults, or 75 per cent of all Canadians, now own an RRSP, up from only one in two in 2003.

"We were at a low in 2003 of 50 per cent in September 2003," Debbie Ammeter, vice-president of advanced financial planning at Investors Group, said in an interview. "So it's been growing steadily since that time, but particularly in the last two years of polling we've had very high increases."

On top of that, Canadians are keeping up a steady pace of contributions. Three out of four will contribute the same or more this year than they did in 2006.

The survey was carried out in a Harris Decima online poll of 2,055 adults in early September.

Ammeter said the expansion in ownership likely stems from strong financial market performance in recent years.

"It may also have something to do with demographics," she added, citing the growing number of baby boomers approaching retirement. "We find that people tend to view retirement as a more pressing priority when they are five years away from it."

Yet young people seem to be paying the matter more attention, with 60 per cent of those between 25 and 34 years of age indicating they have an investment portfolio, the survey says.

The ING survey mirrors that shifting trend, with 57 per cent of respondents saying they opened their first savings account before they reached their 15th birthday.

Rising inflation may be catching up though, as 34 per cent of those polled saying it's getting harder to save and half saying they wanted to save more but didn't have enough left over.
© The Vancouver Sun 2007