Leave a commentPay Down Your Mortgage, or Contribute to an RRSP?
Which option is better for a person with a 30% marginal tax rate:
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| Mortgage Term(yrs) @interest rate 7.5% |
# Months Investing in RRSPs |
Monthly Amount Invested in RRSPs |
Monthly Tax Savings Invested in RRSPs |
Total in RRSPs at end of 25 Years at RRSP returns of: |
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| 5% | 7.5% | 10% | |||||
| 1. | 10 | 15 yrs x 12 = 180 | $ 1,187 | $ 356 | $ 399,549 | $ 483,608 | $ 588,299 |
| 2. | 25 | 25 yrs x 12 = 300 | $ 448 | $ 134 | $ 333,341 | $ 474,779 | $ 686,887 |
We’re assuming that you don’t have credit card debt – this should definitely be paid off right away!
You are better to pay off your mortgage first if your mortgage interest rate is equal to or higher than the rate of return on your RRSP. However, if the rate of return on your RRSP is consistently higher than the mortgage interest rate (can you guarantee this?), you would have more money by paying the lower amount on your mortgage, and investing the difference in an RRSP.
If you pay down the mortgage faster, you have a guaranteed savings. If you have or plan to have children, you should try to ensure that the mortgage on your home will be paid off before your children enter university. This will free up funds for their education.
In order to get a better rate of return in your RRSP than the interest rate you are paying on your mortgage, you would have to take on riskier investments, which will not have a guaranteed rate of return. We believe you can make a return of 9% per year on your RRSPs. See TaxTips.ca Save and Invest webpage for the strategy to achieve this. See also TaxTips.ca’s RRSP vs Mortgage Calculator.