Many persons with disabilities and parents of children with a disability are missing out on up to $90,000 in federal government savings grants and savings bonds, as well as the opportunity to earn even more income from decades of investment growth.
It’s a tremendous financial loss many don’t realize, often due to barriers of access or misunderstanding about the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP).
The money available to individuals and families seems “almost too good to be true,” according to Deon Hancock, president of Hancock Financial Solutions Inc. and an expert on the RDSP program.
Despite the availability of the RDSP since 2008, he says a mere 23 per cent of persons who are already eligible in Newfoundland and Labrador have opened their RDSP account.
Why are so few people signing up? Deon says there’s often confusion about where and how to access the program. Unfortunately, he adds, “Many advisors are not familiar with the RDSP program.”
To address this problem, Hancock Financial Solution has developed a one-stop solution for persons and families to access information about the RDSP and to open up their RDSP accounts. Not only is there access to “free” government money, but Deon pointed out that, “We do not charge for the services we provide.”
When Betty Hounsell heard about the RDSP program shortly after it launched, she thought it sounded perfect for her son, Darryl.
“I reached out to an advisor and said ‘Should we be doing this?” recalls Betty. “And the response I got back was, ‘No, I don’t see a big benefit in it for you guys.’ So I left it at that.”
Deon says Betty’s experience is, sadly, not unique. The RDSP is “a little more complex” than some of the other federal programs, such as the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) or Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA, so Deon provides RDSP guidance to clients across the province — travelling from his firm’s offices in both Corner Brook and Labrador.
Because of Deon’s knowledge of the RDSP program and how it can help families in Newfoundland and Labrador, he has a lot of success helping clients with the Disability Tax Credit application process and setting up RDSP accounts. In the last year alone, Hancock Financial Solutions has seen its number of RDSP clients double.
Deon worked with Betty to help her set up a life-changing nest egg that will help provide a secure future for her son, Darryl — something for which she says she’ll be forever grateful.
“Deon helped us get through some of the hard decisions we had to make by giving us options we didn’t even know we had.”
If you are a person with a disability or a parent with a child with a disability, Hancock Financial Solutions can provide a no-charge review of an existing Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) or guide you through the process of setting up an RDSP. Visit hancockfinancialsolutions.ca, call 1-866-634-0071, or email [email protected] to schedule your free consultation.
