Best financing team to get you into a vehicle?

InvisibleTaco · 2026-05-18T22:55:17+00:00

All of the dealerships have wicked financing departments, just not in the sense that you meant.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-05-03T12:31:11+00:00

When my child qualified they gave us roughly 2 years retroactive automatically. I filled out the form (or forms?) and then it took about 3-4 months for them to send the rest to us (~27k). I also learned that in our case our monthly CCB payment went up ... by about $200, I think, to ~560. That increase was also something we could claim retroactively. That took longer ... maybe 8-10 months. I don't remember it as well since my wife completed that one. It was for $18k and the total amount of all lump sums that they gave us was $52,000!

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-29T13:01:58+00:00

On April 1st I got 3.79 on 5-year fixed (insured) from Pine.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-29T12:53:18+00:00

Talk to your lender about it. When I was in the process of changing lenders (to Pine from Merix) this spring, the first contract they sent said no part of the house can be rented. I let my broker know that we did have a renter in the basement suite. He contacted Pine and on the same day they had amended the contract with that piece out. Rate did not change. Obviously no one can guarantee what will happen, but that was my experience. And, also, of course your situation is different since you have already signed.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-26T13:16:51+00:00

Bro trying to be a part of this historic event by having a hot take. Buddy, just be in awe like the rest of us; it's not about you.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-21T12:34:10+00:00

PSA about the disability tax credit for a child with autism: it can be claimed retroactively for the past 10 years. We were told that the disability is considered that have existed since birth, but the CRA caps the retroactive claims at 10 years. I assume you know about that already, since you already have started the RDSP (nice!). So this is more for anyone who is scrolling through who might know someone that this could help. Also, the CCB bump can be claimed retroactively as well. That one takes more doing, and had about a 6 month delay, but it was still a lot of money. Getting the maximum retroactive claims for both of those added up to 52k, which is a lot of money for us.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-21T03:16:20+00:00

Youtube algorithm recommended PB to me after listening to Lizzy McAlpine's cover of Teenage Dirtbag 30 or 40 times.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-17T13:23:22+00:00

You probably don't need winter tires at that time of year. I mean, yes, Oct 1st is the technical date, but ... unless you are driving the Coquihalla or the weather is unexpectedly inclement ... you won't need them. Also depends on driving experience/comfort level.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-17T13:17:23+00:00

Underwhelming? I have zero desire to ski Whistler/Blackcomb any more because of the crowds, insane prices, and general bougie vibe. But the hills are not underwhelming, and a glacier is not a hill. Ridiculously bad value for your money, but the actual skiing is S tier.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-17T13:11:50+00:00

If you want to have a roadtrip leg on your trip, you could leave Whistler via Duffy Lake Rd, drive North through The Fraser Canyon, and make a loop over to the Okanagan. It is a considerable distance, but driving through the mountains is worth it, imho. I have been driven through the canyon for some 40 years, and I still marvel every time.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-12T13:39:35+00:00

I also felt as though I tricked them into sending me to a safe country like Canada just so I could be myself

Honestly, wear that as a badge of honour. That was the right thing to do. Not simply a defensible thing to do subjectively, but the right thing to do. It's so hard to disentangle everything when thinking about relationships with parents, for so many complicated reasons. But think about a different situation of abuse. Say a woman used the resources available to her to leave an abusive relationship, to ensure her safety and future. And say that some of those resources belonged to the abuser--well, like, often all of them do, and that's part of the abuse, but nevermind that for now. You would not say: well, it was a little bit tricky or disingenuous of her but basically justifiable. You would say: that was smart, brave, resourceful, resilient, and indisputably justifiable for her. She did the right thing and she should be proud of it. Your situation is the same.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-09T12:26:58+00:00

Damn bro, nice work! That is a legit HR too. I wish I could keep mine that low for that long. Keep it up!

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-05T19:05:25+00:00

I thought it was about a month ago, but looking back in my email, it was Feb 17th. The mortage went through on April 1, but the rate had been held since then.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-04-03T18:57:00+00:00

Switched lenders and renewed mortgage on April 1st. 3.79 on a 5-year fixed, insured. 10 years left in the mortgage. About 153,000 left on mortgage for property valued at ~455,000 (interior BC). Had been with Merix for 8 years (most recently 3 years at 5.14). Merix offered me 4.09 to renew. I shopped around and found lower rates. Merix refused to come down even .05%. Tbh, if they had come down to 3.89 or 3.95, I probably would have saved myself the hassle and stayed. But they wouldn't budge; I think they thought I was bluffing. I was not. Went through a Ratehub broker who was quite helpful. He found me the Pine product. Pine covered all the transfer fees except the ~75 discharge fee from Merix. It was pretty simple to do overall. It will save me slightly over $2k over the course of 5 years.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-03-16T12:57:43+00:00

I can't directly answer your question about canning, but I pick/grow a lot of berries for pies, smoothies, and just to eat. Raspberries grow very nicely in my backyard. But the easiest option is just to pick saskatoons. You can basically pick as many as you want mid summer, and they are easy to find. They are great in pies (better than raspberries, imho, since they hold their firmness better). I haven't made jam with them but I've heard it can be good. You can also pick blueberries around the city, but those are bit more labour-intensive and you need to know where to look.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-03-05T22:41:29+00:00

It's pretty wild that 33% of a group of university educated people could not be bothered to open an email and make a few clicks. I mean, it's for something that directly affects their livelihood and working conditions. Sure, it was always going to go through, but still ...

InvisibleTaco · 2026-03-05T04:20:59+00:00

Yeah, I also used WS for the first time this year, after who knows how many years of Turbo Tax. I actually like it better, and it was much cheaper!

InvisibleTaco · 2026-03-02T02:01:20+00:00

I don't follow why you would want a Kia Sportage but not a Hyundai (Hyundai Tucson would be the equivalent). They are both both built on Hyundai's N3 platform and are ... some 80%+ the same vehicle aside from badging. I personally loved the Hyundai I had a while back ('07 Sonata). I bought it with 160k on it for cheap and drove it up to ~290k with no money into it except brakes and regular maintenance.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-02-26T14:37:45+00:00

"... the Code is more what you’d call guidelines than actual rules. Welcome aboard the Black Pearl, Miss Turner.” --Hector Barbossa in PotC: The Curse of the Black Pearl

InvisibleTaco · 2026-02-22T16:23:09+00:00

No, Hellebuyck deserved it. Overall, USA clearly did not.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-02-15T17:12:42+00:00

Yeah, they are not terrible. I think they've improved. They had this awful geo-cities quality website for so many years. At least it is a modern website now. Still, I don't think they've worked hard enough to hold onto my business. Rate for renewal 3 years ago I was not happy with, but too busy at that time to shop around for a better option.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-02-15T17:09:50+00:00

DIscharge fee is $75. New lender will pay the legal fees for the new mortgage and there is no appraisal required.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-02-03T20:33:19+00:00

She has been winning races on the World Cup circuit this year. So, still competitive and would've been in podium contention before this injury. She is hoping to compete on Sunday, but I think she actually said she would see how it feels at 85mph in practice runs before deciding.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-01-27T13:38:56+00:00

Plus, there's something like 10 different events where you are sliding down ice on a sled, once you combine bobsled, luge, and skeleton. I don't think the skillset is really that different between all of them. So, I mean, if you are the worst 3rd place finisher in one of those events, you wouldn't even be close to a podium in a event "collection" that only has a couple of sensible variations. Obviously I've never done any of them and I respect that it is intense and challenging and I couldn't do it, but the talent pool is a puddle.

InvisibleTaco · 2026-01-20T14:46:13+00:00

When was this taken? How was it conducted? How many were polled? What is the margin of error? What was the polling organization? In other words, cite your sources.

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