Canadian Personal Finance News | November 2015

"When it comes to money, treats aren’t the problem, habits are the problem.

Habits are things we spend money on without really thinking about it. They’re the lunches we grab without any thought to what they are, the coffees we buy that we don’t really want, and the donuts we buy two of only to forget about them fifteen minutes later.

Habits suck. Not only do they suck the money out of your account, but they suck the pleasure of spending that money on something special. Something fun. Something that you actually want!"

If you're a millennial, your definition of financial risk should be based entirely on the likelihood of losing your job or heading down the wrong career path. Stock market volatility should literally be the last thing on your mind.

"Every advisor or investment firm assumes that they have the best asset allocation for their clients. A dirty little secret in the industry is that most allocations with similar stock market exposure will get you to roughly the same place (before fees). The ability to stick with a stated allocation matters much more than the allocation itself in most cases."

Cliff Asness on Bloomberg TV yesterday: "I used to think being great at investing long-term was about genius," Asness said. "Genius is still good, but more and more I think it's about doing something reasonable, that makes sense, and then sticking to it with incredible fortitude through the tough times."

"Many young workers — your parents’ generation — would rather rent. Join them, and you will gain freedom from leaky roofs and faucets, the ability to move wherever and whenever you please. But you will lose something, too, something that goes beyond the question of your finances and building equity. And you should understand what that is."

October's list of the best Canadian personal finance news, articles, and blog posts from around the internet, expertly curated for interest and relevance. You can follow this list right here in List.ly, by following me on Twitter (@sandimartinspf), or by signing up for Spring in your inbox here: https://springpersonalfinance.com/contact/