A smaller number of Canadians contributed to their RRSP, finds a BMO survey.
Fifty-seven percent of Canadians made a contribution to their RRSP for the 2014 tax year, which is lower than both the 2013 tax year (65%) and the previous year (62%).
Of those who did contribute this year, their reasons for doing so included:
- it’s the responsible thing to do (43%);
- for the tax refund (38%);
- it makes me feel good about myself (33%); and
- I am worried I will not have enough money saved for retirement (25%).
Read: RRSP contributions rise
Of those who did not contribute this year, their reasons included:
- I do not have enough money (38%, down from 46% in the 2013 tax year);
- I have other expenses that take priority (25%, down from 31% in the 2013 tax year); and
- I used other types of investments, i.e. TFSA (21%, up from 19% in the 2013 tax year).
However, the study also finds Canadians contributed an average of $3,737 this year, which is more than what was contributed in the past two years ($3,518 in the 2013 tax year and $3,544 in the 2012 tax year).
“While it’s great to see that a majority of Canadians contributed this year and that the average contribution size is higher than in previous years, it’s a concern that the percentage of those who put money towards their RRSPs is down,” says Chris Buttigieg, senior manager, wealth planning strategy with BMO Financial Group.
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