The Smith Manoeuvre: A Beginner’s Guide

While researching various financial strategies, you may have come across the Smith Manoeuvre—or Smith Maneuver, if you prefer the American spelling. Originally popularized by financial advisor Fraser Smith, the Manoeuvre has become a well-known method of lowering tax costs for Canadians; Mr. Smith even wrote a book on it!

But how does it work? To understand the Smith Manoeuvre, we first need to understand how mortgages in Canada are different from those in the U.S.

A mortgage is a loan taken out to help pay for a house, condo, or other residential property. For most people looking to buy a home, paying the full amount upfront is not feasible. Instead, they will pay what they can—this original amount is the down payment—and then take out a mortgage to help pay off the rest at a gradual pace. The loan is secured on the property, meaning that if the legal agreement is broken, your mortgage lender has the right to take your property. 

In paying off a mortgage, you must make principal and interest payments. Mortgage principal refers to the outstanding balance of your mortgage. In other words, it is whatever is left of the original loan you took out. Interest is the additional amount owed, which accumulates on top of your original loan at a set rate. Canada and the U.S. treat mortgage interest differently; in the U.S., you can write off payments made towards mortgage interest on your tax returns, provided that it is your primary residence, while here in Canada, you cannot. 

This is where the Smith Manoeuvre comes in. 

To use this strategy, you first must have a readvanceable mortgage. These mortgages have lines of credit attached to them, which increase with each payment made towards the principal (original loan). Each mortgage payment pays partly on the principal and partly towards interest. So, if your monthly mortgage payment is $4,000, you might add $2,000 to the available credit in your line of credit with each payment.

Here’s where it gets interesting—you can invest money from this line of credit and deduct the interest on it on your tax return, provided you are investing it in an investment that could pay income. Essentially any stock market investment is usually fine, since they could pay a dividend (even if it doesn’t now). You can also pay the interest on your tax-deductible credit line from the credit line, so it does not affect your cash flow. This is called “capitalizing” the interest. In other words, you have now made a portion of your mortgage tax-deductible by creating a tax-deductible credit line from the money you borrowed to invest.

By doing this consistently and carefully, you can begin to build up your investments and create a “nest egg” to keep yourself financially secure. Because of its slow-building nature, the Smith Manoeuvre is best considered as part of your retirement plan. It allows you to invest without affecting your lifestyle, and has the added benefit of being easy to implement—you can start saving for your retirement now, and not in 20 years.

This strategy has the potential for some serious returns, too. In fact, the typical net expected benefit of the Smith Manoeuvre over 25 years is the amount of your current mortgage. So, if you currently have a $500,000 mortgage, you could clear $500,000 net gain after 25 years.

As with any borrowing-to-invest strategy, the SM is inherently risky, and should only be considered if you have a high risk tolerance and a long time horizon. The risks decline over time, and you should be prepared to stay invested through short-term market crashes. Best advice is to commit to doing it for at least 20 years. The most effective strategy is to use it as long as you own a home, even through your retirement.

When it comes to the Smith Manoeuvre, I’ve helped hundreds of Canadian families implement it professionally and properly. Remember Fraser Smith’s book? I am recognized as an expert on page 82.

If you believe this manoeuvre might be suitable for you, consider discussing it further with your financial planner. It might just be the boost your retirement plan needs.

4 Strategies to Combat Debt in 2024

Debt isn’t new, nor is it something that will be going away anytime soon. In fact, overall debt has continued to increase in recent years.

A new report from Equifax Canada—a consumer credit reporting firm—stated that credit card delinquencies have risen to record highs. This comes alongside a 14% increase in total outstanding balances since last year.

These issues don’t just come from nowhere. Rising living costs and growing unemployment rates have had significant impacts on Canadian households, which have been exacerbated by the rise in personal loan rates. Between January 2023 and July 2024, average personal loan rates climbed from 10.37% to 12.38%. These rising rates make it very hard to pay off debt, which can have serious repercussions on our lives. 

Combatting debt starts with educating ourselves on what it is, and how to deal with it. Below are a few suggestions on how to get started.

1. Make sure to have an emergency plan

You should always aim to maintain a safety net of funds you can access in case of an emergency to avoid incurring even more debt. An unused credit line can be the most effective, as long as you have the discipline not to use it.

Life is full of surprises! Whether you lose your job, have a sudden medical emergency, or your car suddenly breaks down, many things can become a sudden money sink. Having access to a reserve of money stashed away can make navigating these problems much easier, and can help you to avoid accumulating even more debt.

2. Pay off debts with higher interest rates first

Debts come with a variety of interest rates, from low (think student debts or mortgages) to high. The lower the interest rate, the slower it will accumulate. Aim to pay off high interest rate debts first, since those can get very big, very fast. Getting those paid off quickly will mean that you’re saving money in the long run. 

3. Look into debt management tools

There are a variety of tools and systems that can help you to combat your debt. Of these, the ones that help you combine debts are especially useful. These will often let you refinance debt as a personal loan or  a credit line with reasonable interest rates, which can be helpful for two reasons. For one, if you have high-interest-rate loans (like credit card debt), the refinanced debt can actually have lower rates and be easier to pay off. Second, the terms of personal loans have shorter terms than credit cards, so you’ll be able to know when your last payment will be.

There are also tools to help you make a plan. There are several sites and apps dedicated to making projections and optimizing debt pay-off plans, including many of that are completely free. So, look into them! It’s definitely worth it.

4. Make a long-term plan

If you’re still paying off debt, continue to use the tools and tips mentioned above and keep working at it. Try creating a long-term, sustainable budgeting plan to stay on top of both savings and expenses. These can help you increase your awareness of where you are spending your money and where you could be saving a bit more.

If you’ve managed to pay off your debts, congratulations! It’s not easy to get to that point.

Now that you’ve made it though, it’s important to change your focus to building long-term wealth to achieve your retirement life goals and financial freedom. Instead of thinking about getting out of the hole, start think about moving up.

As always, remember that there are many resources—such as financial planners, credit counseling agencies, and more—to help you. You don’t have to do this alone! 

Business News: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Business news is very much geared towards trends, predictions, and opinions. Much of what is predicted does not usually come to pass. However, true Black Swan events are hardly ever predicted accurately; for instance, Irving Fisher’s insistence that the market would boom shortly before the 1929 crash, Ravi Batra’s prediction that the 1990s would herald a Great Depression, and Alan Greenspan’s prediction on interest rates. In each case, the opposite happened: the Fed cutting money supply and government interference with the “New Deal” in reaction to the 1929 stock market crash led to a crushing Great Depression, and the 1990s were a period of economic stability with interest rates at historic lows in comparison to Greenspan’s predictions. 

The gist of this is:

• The stock market over time rises with profits of all the companies. Politics and news actually have minimal effect.
• The news tells you what today’s market prices are based on, not which way they are going. News that is strongly favourable or unfavourable is more likely to be a contra indicator and the market moving the opposite way if actual facts end up being slightly less positive or negative than expected.
• You never really can tell what is going to happen. But you should always be prepared for what might happen.

With this in mind, here are four observations on how the news affects markets. I will also give my take on what the mood of the market is right now. 

Don’t Overreact to the News

As I write this article, BNN Bloomberg’s website features headlines like “Wobbling Trump trades, Harris rise have Wall Street rethinking bets”. However, this bit of news will not tell someone what stock is best to buy on Inauguration Day 2025. It is important to remember how the 2016 election went. All predictions pointed to a Clinton presidency, but a Trump presidency is what we got. All predictions were that a Trump win would lead to a market crash, but instead the market took off the next morning and 2017 was a boom year. 

We’ll now have had two one-term Presidents in the U.S. following a period of political stability since 1993. Hedging bets and buying stocks based on another unpredictable American election is not advisable. 

Swings in the Market 

Massive drops and increases in the market are especially deceptive. This past summer the S&P and NASDAQ both had their worst days since 2022. News outlets all saw this as a herald of a coming recession. However, the predicted recession has so far not panned out. Stock markets normally rise during recessions anyway. What is needed is a measured, non-panicky way of looking at the markets and a long-term view and confidence, not an overreliance on business news. 

Current Economic Mood 

The current climate in the financial markets seems to be cautious optimism. Many investors are waiting with bated breath to see what the American presidential election and the subsequent Canadian elections bring for business in general.

All in all, news sources are good for talking about, but not an indicator for investing decisions. Having a long-term confidence in your investments and completely ignoring the news is usually the best advice.

How Does Money Help Reveal Your Inner Motivations?

Money has an emotional and psychological hold on virtually everyone in modern society. But when you ask people what their thoughts are around money, or wanting and needing more money, their answers are wildly different. Some view it as essentially, money comes, money goes, while others are much more thrifty, hanging on to every penny if they don’t need to spend it. What you do with your money is an important expression of your core values and of how you view yourself and the world. It’s a big part of what makes up your inner motivations.

I’ve polled many people over the years with the question, “What’s important about money to you?”, and the most common answers are the following:

• Security, or Peace of Mind

• Freedom; Fun; and Happiness

• Independence. 

Security, or Peace of Mind

This answer has topped the polls overall. When thinking about security, money is usually the first thing on your mind. The people who give this answer most likely own their own home or plan to soon, and spend most of their money on their family. They like safer investments because they want to make sure that they’re ready for anything that may affect their family’s security.

Freedom, Fun and Happiness

For a lot of people, money means having the means to enjoy freedom, fun and happiness. Things like international travel, living in the middle of cultural hubs, and affording expensive toys and accessories are what motivates this group. There’s not the same amount of forward thinking – the big priority is flexibility and spontaneity. These are usually the aggressive investors. They often have little to no savings or long-term investments. 

Independence

Not only does having extra money allow you to be spontaneous and feel secure, it can grant you independence. Financial dependence on anyone comes with strings attached. But independence means you have a reliable income and your very own nest egg. You’re free of being a burden on someone else should anything happen. You may want to be the one to make all the investment decisions, but you’re most likely better off leaving it to the pros. 

By analyzing the emotional side of investing and your approach to money, you can better determine how you want to set your goals and use your money to meet them. 

Investing for Beginners

When you make the decision to invest, your first question is likely around where to find the best information. The answer to that depends on a few factors that you should consider when defining who you want to be as an investor.

1. Most people start off by asking themselves “what should I invest in?” But the better first question would be, “What am I investing for?” It is easier to make investment decisions when you determine the goals you want to work towards. It’s not wise to immediately search for the “next big thing” and pour most of your resources into it. Most people invest to save up for retirement, and this requires long-term planning with reliable long-term growth.

Investments for retirement are best being part of a financial plan that details your life goals and the optimal way to get there. Your financial plan is the GPS for your life. Investing with a financial plan is like driving in a new area with a GPS. Investing without a plan is like driving without a GPS.

2. The next question should be around defining your motivations for making money through investing. What is the emotional reason behind it? Is it the financial freedom you will have? Is it the thrill factor? Is it the need for a security fund to fall back on? Clarifying your motivations will help you with setting goals in the financial planning process. 

3. After you consider these first two questions, the next step is simple: start investing. The adage ‘the sooner the better’ is nowhere more aptly applied than to investing. Maybe you can’t invest as much as you’d prefer right now, but starting small is worth it. Make regular contributions to your investments to help it grow, and discover the wonders of compound interest over time. 

4. Work on your investment strategy. After you’ve determined your goals and how much you can invest, spend time determining the process and methods for investing that work best for you. Speaking with a financial planner is always a prudent way to go, and it allows for on-going financial planning advice for you, plus a more hands-off approach to managing your affairs and optimizing your assets. You can explore robo-advisors, which manages assets through an algorithm and will adjust your account according to the goals you set. The other option is to go it alone and choose your own investments. You’ll have total control over the process, but you’ll also bear all the responsibility for monitoring and adjusting your strategies. 

5. The other wise advice is to be patient. Give your investments time to accrue value. If you’re constantly moving things around, you’ll find you’ll miss something that’s experiencing slow but steady growth. Your portfolio should be built through careful research and ideally will only have a few changes over many years.  

I hope these tips will give you the courage to begin, which is usually the hardest part. Be sure and invest for the long term, and avoid temptations around the next big thing. Good luck! 

The Thing Most People Forget About Credit Cards

Something that drives me bonkers about our nation’s education system is the lack of financial literacy taught in schools. I’m not knocking teachers, mind you, because, let’s face it, they are overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated as it is. 

However, it’s no secret that financial literacy is tricky. Unfortunately, many people don’t learn it until later in life.  This is especially true when it comes to credit cards. In a recent blog, I spoke about how important it is to read the fine print on your credit card to avoid financial debt, so consider this a companion piece. 

I think a fundamental problem with credit cards is that most people forget what they really are. This is especially true for people who are getting their first card. I’ll give you a quick example: one of my friends has a son named Peter. Peter is now in his 40s but got his first credit card at 19; it had a $500 limit. The thing is, then, within a year, he gets a second credit card with a limit of $10,000. The problem here is that my friends weren’t really financially literate and basically nobody explained to Peter what that card really is.  A loan.  Peter and countless others like him looked at the available credit limit and nothing else. So he looked at the card like it was free money. His parents tried to advise him to practice good habits, but they were in credit card debt. As a result of this collective financial ignorance, you can probably guess what happened next. He spent a bunch of money, got himself deep into debt, could barely make the minimum payments, destroyed his credit, and is still in debt. Keep in mind, much of what he is still paying off is just the interest on that ten thousand dollar loan.

If you are looking to get your first or even your fifth credit card, I cannot stress this enough: Credit cards are not free money! 

I get that it seems like a basic fact to many people. Ever since the first recognized credit card launched in 1950, a shocking number of people still seem to not understand this fact. 

What’s frustrating is that according to an Equifax report released in 2023, consumer debt (e.g., debt increased from consumer purchases) hit a staggering 2.5 Trillion Dollars in the latter half of 2023! Of that, 104.7 billion dollars was just total combined credit card debt. Breaking it down further, this means that, on average, people are carrying about $21,131 in personal non-mortgage debt. 

Remember, that’s not factoring in other debts a person may have, like student loans. 

The one upside to those numbers is that credit card delinquency hasn’t skyrocketed as analysts expect. The problem is that it’s like a snake eating its own tail.  One of the major reasons why credit card delinquency isn’t as high as people would have expected is because of the new credit card customers who have yet to reach those levels of financial peril. 

Credit cards have a “gotcha” in their fine print. If you do not pay your monthly bill in full, they charge you 20+% interest on all new purchases from the date of purchase. If you pay your bill in full, you get a grace period for about 6 weeks until your next bill is due with no interest charge. One client left $10 outstanding on their bill and then charged a $10,000 vacation. The interest for one month on that $10 was $200!

And for as great as credit cards are, now more than ever, financial literacy is important. It can help you have a good credit rating, which is a valuable asset, and manage your debts effectively.

This way, credit cards will hopefully fight off that impending dopamine rush from spending money and instead really ask the question: “Can I really afford to spend this money right now? Can I really handle the potential debt?”

If the answer is “no,” then put the card away and save it for another day. 

Are You Using Your TFSA to Its Full Potential?

A Tax-Free Savings Account is an invaluable financial vehicle that can help you to achieve your individual financial goals. These goals could range from saving for a downpayment on a home, saving for retirement, planning your education, or even putting together a rainy day fund. However, year after year, the financial lives of Canadians are getting more complex. Let’s take a look at whether you are using your TFSA to its full potential. This way you can maximize your savings and reach your goals! 

Know Your Contribution Room 

Although the standard annual contribution limit is $7000 dollars, the personal contribution limit is different. It consists of the standard annual limit in addition to any unused contribution room from past years. So the bottom line is: you want to make sure you can contribute as much money as you can to your TFSA. This is why it is key to know your true personal TFSA contribution limit. You can do this by inquiring with your financial institution, Revenue Canada or or the Tax Information Phone Service. 

Be Wary of Overcontributing 

An essential step to using your TFSA to its full potential is to be aware of any pitfalls that could occur. One of these is the dangers of over-contributing. This could occur in three ways: 

• Pre-Authorized Contributions: If you have set up your account so that regular contributions are made on a pre-authorized basis you might run the risk of making too many contributions, not knowing how much contribution room is left. It is therefore prudent to keep an eye on these pre-authorized sums. 
• If you have more than one TFSA with different banks and have not kept an eye on the contributions towards each account, you might also over-contribute. 
• If you misread your contribution limit on the MyCRA portal, overcontributions might also result. Note that CRA does not typically update your TFSA contribution room until about May each year, so figures before that may be wrong.

The most likely consequence is that the Canadian Revenue Agency will slap you with a one percent penalty tax for each month excess funds exist in the TFSA. It is best to take any extra funds out of the account to avoid this tax. 

Keep Up to Date on Current Events that Affect Your TFSA 

While we all do lead busy lives, it is prudent to keep an eye on the current events that affect our savings and investments. For instance, a recent decision from the Federal Court of Appeals determined that trading stocks within your TFSA does count as taxable income. Hence, if you trade marketable securities in your TFSA the CRA might consider this business income and hit you with business taxes. So, make sure you read the Financial pages of your newspaper (whether print or online) as they contain news gems that affect your financial wellbeing! 

Invest Your Discretionary Income

Although this option might not work for everyone, if you have discretionary income you don’t need and you have contribution room consider putting it in your TFSA. This way it can contribute to your savings tax free. Money you could earmark for this purpose could be excess income from mutual fund distributions, Canada Pension Plan or Registered Retirement Income Fund payments, or Series T Funds. By doing this you are in a way supercharging your TFSA savings potential. 

Hopefully these tips will help you take a look at ways you can make sure you are getting the most out of your TFSA (while avoiding any pitfalls that you might encounter). Whether you’re just beginning your financial journey or planning for retirement, a TFSA is an invaluable tool to build wealth. 

Ed 

Invest a Lump Sum or Bit by Bit, Which is Better?

Investing in a lump sum or bit by bit – which is actually better? Let’s say you have a lump sum of cash and the market is pretty turbulent, do you invest all at once or little by little?

Maybe you got a bonus, or you have an RRSP contribution to make – should you put it in all at once, or should you spread it out?

What you’ll learn today is what method is better.

Dollar Cost Averaging – the official term for investing bit by bit.

There is a bit of beauty here. Say you’re investing $1,000 per month, your advisor might say you’re guaranteed to outperform your investment because you buy more units when it’s down and fewer when it’s up. Your average cost will be lower than the average price of the investment.

That isn’t 100 per cent true. What really happens is you are guaranteed to outperform your investment if you invested the same amounts at the average price of the investment. But it’s actually quite a cool thing. If you invest every month and that investment makes 10 per cent, you are guaranteed to outperform it. There is something to this strategy.

Dollar Cost Averaging protects you on the downside. This is the main reason why people don’t want to invest. You may have $100,000 or $500,000 to invest but may be afraid of what will happen if you invest and the market crashes the next day and you take a 20-30 per cent drop. Now, that’s quite unlikely, but it’s possible. Dollar Cost Averaging may protect you from this.

However, it doesn’t completely protect you. If the market crashes right away, most of your money is not invested yet and you invest at a lower price. However, you could still invest your lump sum bit-by-bit and the market crashes right after the last amount goes in.

The real risk from this strategy is risking missing out on potential growth, such as putting money in and seeing it skyrocket. If you’re putting only a little bit in, you could miss the upside.

Growth-focused investing – or lump sum investing

Growth-focused investors are the kind of people who want to make the biggest difference in their lives. They learn how to develop that risk tolerance and become more comfortable and successful. They also tend to prefer a lump sum. The sooner you get your money invested, the sooner it can start growing for you.

There are two kinds of risk: the wrong risk and the right risk. The wrong risk is trying to avoid all market declines. For example, if the market crashes but goes back up again, there wasn’t really risk. We know historically that the market has recovered from all declines and will probably continue to do so.

The right risk is all about your long-term growth and achieving your life goals. If you have a financial plan, you’re setting a goal and you’re trying to achieve it. The only way to retire comfortably is to have a good rate of return between 8-10% per year. When you choose an investment, how can you be confident you’re going to get an 8% return? You have to focus on the long game. Learn how to tolerate risk and have more equities. The lump is probably the best choice for growth. Do you want to learn more about this subject? You’ll be happy to know that I go into much greater depth on the subject over on my YouTube channel. I invite you to join me over there to learn more about which investment strategy is better for you.

Small Print “Gotcha” in Credit Card Interest

The small print “gotcha” in credit card interest. You probably think your credit card interest is pretty high, but trust me, it can be higher. If you or someone you know is struggling with credit card debt, or if your kids are learning about finances, this is the blog (and video) you need to read. 

Credit card debt is usually the place Canadians get stuck on the most and they can’t seem to get out of it. It’s even harder to get out of it slowly, so you have to do something quickly. It’s a big issue, so I recommend you don’t get caught up in it in the first place if you can help it. 

I’m going to tell you a quick story about Charlotte. Charlotte only had a ten-dollar balance on her credit card and she was about to go on vacation. She figured: “It’s only ten bucks. How much can the interest possibly be?” So, she went on that vacation and didn’t bother to pay the bill.

A month later when she got her statement, do you know how much she owed thanks to interest? $170! Naturally, she figured that this has to be wrong. There’s no way a ten-dollar bill amassed that much in interest. She called the credit card company and they confirmed that was in fact her bill. To be sure, she called me to see if this was legitimate, and sure enough, that was the correct amount of interest. 

When you get a credit card statement, you’re going to be reading a lot of garbage until you eventually find “interest and other calculations.” It’ll usually state that you have a 21-day interest-free grace period on new purchases, but it’s actually probably closer to six weeks. Let me explain. 

It’s from the date of purchase until the statement date and then three weeks from receiving the statement date. You can avoid interest entirely by paying that balance before the due date. 

However, if you owe anything at all, even $1,you lose the 21-day grace period on all your new purchases. They’ll charge you interest from the date of purchase, not the statement date, and continue to charge you interest until you pay the full amount. That’s why credit card debt can be so astronomical. 

How to eliminate credit card interest fully is to always pay your credit card in full every month. The trick is this: set up automatic payments. You can call them up or set it up online and always set it to pay the full amount by the due date. That way you never miss a payment and completely avoid credit card interest. 

However, sometimes you don’t have all of the money to pay those expenses. Even if you have to borrow from a credit line or set up an emergency fund, that’s a better option than paying that inflated interest rate. 

If you’re stuck on credit cards, don’t think about paying them off slowly. Find a way to pay it off right away, such as getting a loan or credit line. Get rid of all the credit cards and make a vow that you won’t pay credit card interest ever again. All credit cards are convenient ways to make payments. Only use credit cards on things you can pay off right away. They are meant for convenient purchasing. They aren’t meant to be used for financing. 

Paying off your credit card is very worthwhile. It doesn’t make sense for you to start investing if you have outstanding credit card debt. Credit cards have to go so you can eliminate that 20% (or much higher) interest rate. 

How To Own a New Car For Less

If you’re trying to save money, cars are an easy way to save a lot of money. Of course, we all may consider how a car makes you look. Let me tell you, there is zero connection between net worth and the type of car you drive. Having a super nice car can just be a sign of a spender, not necessarily a wealthy person.

Most wealthy people live in regular neighborhoods and drive regular cars. They’re regular people. Driving a regular, older car is often an easy way to save money.

Cars don’t grow in value, they decrease in value over time. How do you decide how much you can afford in terms of a car?

My general rule of thumb is I want to buy a car for half of what it would cost if it was new. Then I want to own it for about 8-10 years. To buy it for half price, you usually have to buy it 3-4 years old. That’s a great way to save money.

However, I do sometimes get the question: I’ve had my car for a few years, when is it cheaper to buy a new one? The answer to that is typically never. If you’re using whatever is cheapest, it’s better to just keep fixing it up than it is to buy something new. Even replacing the engine costs less than the depreciation in your car’s value from driving it home from the dealer.

Now, there is a point where you can afford a new car and you want one, which is fine, but it isn’t the cheapest option.

The #1 Secret to car ownership

One of the best things you’ll ever do in terms of car ownership is finding a good mechanic. Find one who is good, honest, and who you can trust. Try to avoid big garages if you can to avoid being up-charged. It’s better to go to a private, honest mechanic than it is to rely on a warranty where you could potentially be having to pay inflated labour costs.

Half the value

When you go to buy a car, let’s say it’s retail price is about $25,000. How many years old does it need to be to get it for $12-13,000 with low mileage? You own it for about 8 years, and it costs about $1,500 per year. As your wealth grows, you can spend more, but aim for half price. That can help you save a lot of money.

Leasing vs. owning a car

Should we lease or own a car? A lease is just a form of financing. The problem with a lease is that there are a lot of hidden costs involved. The other problem is that leases come with mainly new cars and if you want to save money, the way to do it is to go with a used car. I generally recommend not leasing, it’s cheaper to buy for half price & own. With a lot of clients, we add it to their mortgage to finance the car at a low interest rate.

Electric cars

Electric cars are becoming very trendy. But the problem is that we frugal people usually don’t want to pay the price. The benefit of them is that they cost less to charge and typically require less maintenance due to having fewer mechanical moving parts. But the disadvantage is that replacing the electric car battery usually costs quite a bit. 

The main issue with electric cars for now is it’s difficult to find a used model for half the price. There isn’t really a used market – yet.

Owning a nice car doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. 

Check out my YouTube video here to hear me expand more on the subject.