The Physicians Story

Lex and Maggie are married specialists, a surgeon and psychiatrist, respectively, in their early forties with three children, aged eight to twelve. Life is busy – very busy. With sixty hours working each week for both, it is challenging to find time for what they truly want to do – wrangling their kids, being active, and possibly seeing a few friends here and there.

They have invested so much into their education, and it has been worth it, work is rewarding from the perspective of meaning – they are making a difference in people’s lives – and they have a healthy cashflow to enjoy life. Although it does not feel that way.

While travel is something they enjoy as a family, there is little time for it. Maggie is concerned about their debt and it bothers her that despite their high level of income, they still owe money. And education means so much to both, private school is expensive, and university is ahead – they want to know their kids are prepared for life as best they can. Will they ever get ahead of it all?

It seems at times that their colleagues are all ahead of them and they are falling behind. Their cashflow has increased significantly, they do not want to spend it all although they want to enjoy life and not worry about where it is all going. A friend’s mother is a physician still working into her seventies due to poor advice and they do not want to be there.

And they both incorporated which just seems to add piles of paper to their lives, and a layer of complexity that often does not make sense. Their accountant tells them what to do, but there are other things to do as well like getting three kids to three different sporting events on the same night. 

Lex and Maggie know they are in a good position and want to be serious about what they are doing with their money.

At this point, they are frustrated with their procrastination. Did they even make contributions to an RRSP last year? And where is it if they did? And why is CRA sending them notices of payments missing? It feels embarrassing at times that they cannot get it all under control. It makes Lex feel vulnerable at times – they are paying a lot of income taxes, interest charges, and should be further ahead. They should not be hassled by insecurity at this stage.

Talking to colleagues always ends up making them feel like they were behind, and they should be doing more. They do not want stuff, living the big life, they just want to live today without pressures and know they are building the wealth they need to be secure over time. It just should not be this difficult.

And then – boom!

Lex opened the mail and found a letter from CRA regarding a late payment fee of $40,000 on unpaid corporate installments. This was the last thing they needed as private school fees are due as well. How did this happen and why were installments not paid, and on what company?

Something needs to change.

Several of their colleagues had encouraged Lex and Maggie to speak with David and David at Bluteau Caseley Wealth Management Group. Maggie said now was the time. They were both tired of moving papers around and not knowing what was due when and why.

Maggie said, “We need our own pension!”. Or something like that.

They arranged a time to meet with David and Darren and when they arrived, the team all seemed to know who they were and offered coffee and it was nice to sink into the chairs for a moment and relax. Maybe it would all come together. Maggie foraged in her bag for papers and worried about having everything they needed and then worried again about would they look like they were disorganized, not responsible. 

They went in to see David and Darren and it was comfortable. They talked about their lives and the guys listened and were interested. There were easy questions about what they wanted to live on, how much they needed, and where they wanted to be. The papers were fine, and Darren said not to worry about it, they would put it all in order. They felt respected and heard – they were not crowded in a cubicle or unsure of who they were meeting. This was professional, friendly, and organized.

David and Darren outlined the steps and how they would put everything together and coordinate all the corporate payments (big sigh) and ensure CRA got onside. Someone on the team would manage all the payments and keep everything current, and, even better, provide a plan to keep the taxes lower on their income. 

They felt confident and optimistic for the first time in ages. As their friend, a radiologist had said, “I feel like we are finally getting ahead, without a list of things we have to spend our free time doing, it is all done for us – David and Darren, and their team, take the list and handle everything, reporting back, and keeping us up to date, so we can go biking.”

Lex and Maggie decided then and there to move ahead and started the process of working with us. A few months later, Lex said that he finally knew with clarity and honesty, where they were and where they were going. It all made sense although he did not have to wade through piles of documents or be put on hold for forty minutes trying to find someone at CRA to answer a question. And Maggie said when she called David and Darren, she was never shunted around from person to person like at the bank, whoever on the team answered knew her and took care of what she needed to be done. She felt a sense of confidence in seeing progress, everything on one page, debt being paid, investments building up, and spending to enjoy lie. Maybe a cottage … or maybe not, just another house to clean.

With their decision, both Lex and Maggie, like other clients we work with, feel lighter. They gained control over their financial life while freeing up their time for what is most important, being active and enjoying their family and friends. They are relieved as things are not as bad as they thought, and decisions make sense, and they feel the right choices are made. They know what is happening, and why it is being done, but do not have to do anything.

And the meetings are conversations, sharing stories about their lives, what is going on with their kids, and focusing on the things they can control – how much they spend, how much they save, and how they are using their time. They stop worrying about the thing they cannot change.

They found the right place.