The Rule of 30

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With the cost of buying a home or renting an apartment soaring to previously unseen heights, how canGen Y even begin to think about saving for retirement? Are your knees knocking? Are you nervously biting your nails? Maybe you don’t need to be.

In The Rule of 30, personal finance expert Frederick Vettese provides a surprising — and hopeful — answer to balancing the costs of living with the costs of saving for retirement. Through conversations between a young couple and their neighbour, a retired actuary, the couple and the reader discover:

How the future investment climate will differ from the recent past and why it requires a different approach to saving
The problem with saving a constant percentage of pay
The Rule of 30 and why it is a more rational and personalized way to save
Whether investing in real estate is a viable alternative to investing in stocks
The impact renting versus owning your home has on your retirement savings

The Rule of 30 changes the mindset from saving the same flat percentage of pay to saving when it is most convenient to your situation. In most cases, it means less saving early on while mortgage payments are high and children are costly, and more saving later when our earnings are at their highest and expenses at their lowest.

Saving for retirement is a high priority, but it is not the only priority in life. It is time to dispense with old and often unrealistic myths like “just save 10% of your take-home pay.” The truth is we should save differently throughout our pre-retirement years — and The Rule of 30 is a road map for doing so.

AUTHOR

Frederick Vettese

Frederick Vettese was chief actuary of Morneau Shepell for 27 years before turning his attention to the challenges faced by Canadians as they approach retirement. Vettese has written over 100 articles and op-eds for the Globe and Mail and the National Post alone. He is also the author of The Rule of 30. He lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Reviews

“Vettese’s superpower is to look at personal finance from a new perspective. In The Rule of 30 he strikes again, offering up a new, empowering and action-oriented approach to retirement savings.” — Bruce Sellery, CEO, Credit Canada and Money Columnist, CBC Radio
“The Rule of 30 offers new ideas and timeless wisdom for retirement saving, conversationally delivered by the friendly retired actuary next door. This is a must-read for anyone wondering how they can possibly save enough for retirement.” — Ben Felix & Cameron Passmore, Hosts, The Rational Reminder Podcast
“Do you want to retire comfortably? Start planning and executing now. Fred’s book, The Rule of 30, is a good blueprint to follow and reads like a story. Your future self will thank you.” — Robin R. Speziale, National Bestselling Author, Market Masters
“The Rule of 30 answers the question we’ve all been asking about expensive housing: How will young couples with big mortgages and daycare bills carve out room for retirement saving?” — Rob Carrick, Personal Finance Columnist, The Globe and Mail
“An accessible read that offers a fresh perspective on saving and investing for retirement.” — Money We Have