Canadians are unfazed investors, purposeful procrastinators and they’re OK with debt in retirement. These are just some of the findings from the latest round of polls and surveys released by financial services institutions in the lead-up to RRSP season.

Although many attitudes toward RRSPs remain consistent with those of recent years, there were a few noteworthy findings.

RBC Asset Management Inc. ’s 18th annual RBC RRSP poll found, for example, that the majority (60%) of RRSP investors surveyed aren’t letting market volatility affect their decision to contribute to RRSPs this year.

“That was the big surprise for me,” says Kim Buitenhuis, vice president, RBCAM in Toronto.

In fact, the number of Canadians planning to contribute to an RRSP is unchanged from last year, remaining steady at 49%, she says. And, among the 40% polled who did express concern over market volatility, more than half (54%) still took a wait-and-see approach, making no changes to their investments. It’s clear Canadians aren’t letting uncertain market conditions override common sense when it comes to investing. “It’s good that the message has gotten through,” Buitenhuis says.

However, not all is rosy. Although the message to sock money away each year seems to be getting through, only one in three Canadians make regular contributions through a plan, according to Buitenhuis. It would seem that many clients prefer to procrastinate when it comes to contributing to their retirement savings.

In fact, the same survey found that one-third of RRSP investors have built procrastination into their strategies, planning to get their contribution in just under the deadline. “Who plans to be in at the last-minute?” she says. “I had to laugh when I saw that.”

Not so comical is the apparent laissez-faire attitude Canadians have when it comes to retiring with debt. According to the sixth annual RRSP Investment Intentions poll from Winnipeg-based Investors Group Inc. , more than one-third (35%) of non-retired Canadians plan to carry up to $100,000 of debt into retirement. That’s quite a contrast to conventional wisdom, according to Debbie Ammeter, vice president of advanced financial planning at Investors Group. It also conflicts dramatically with a finding by RBC that 91% of investors felt it was important to be debt-free when they get to retirement.

Investors Group’s Ammeter points out that there are several reasons why baby boomers might be more comfortable with debt than previous generations: low interest rates, a strong dollar and strong market performance. But it’s worrisome from a financial planning point of view, she says. Close to half (45%) of those planning on carrying debt into their retirement say it will be in the form of credit cards, lines of credit or personal loans, according to the study. In other words, they’re already thinking that they’ll be carrying so-called “bad debt” into retirement.

Advisors need to help clients address this issue as soon as possible, according to Ammeter.

“It’s a good time for a retirement reality check,” she says. Meanwhile, 28% say that their debt will consist of the mortgages on their primary residences.

Home equity is a confidence-booster for many Canadians heading into retirement. According to a survey conducted by the organizers of the Financial Forum & Wealth Management Expo, about half (49%) of those surveyed believe that real estate values will continue to rise over the next two years, despite what’s happening in the U.S. market.

Investors Group found that one in five (19%) of those surveyed plan to use home equity to generate retirement income. Of those, 40% believe the increased value in their home will make up 10%-20% of their retirement incomes. Advisors have to help their clients work out a strategy to realize that value, according to Ammeter.

The study found that home equity-happy Canadians were considering several strategies: 54% plan to downsize, 22% hope to take out a line of credit, 15% want to look at reverse mortgages and 7% plan to rent.

This means advisors will have to understand the advantages and challenges of each strategy, depending on where the client hopes to live out his or her retirement, she says.

“Planners will have to be more proficient at looking at exactly how you can [cash in on home equity] and pointing out the financial consequences that such a decision might entail,” Ammeter says.

@page_break@A reality check is also in order for spending habits after retirement, according to a study by Montreal-based Desjardins Securité Financier. The majority (66%) of Canadians over age 40 surveyed do not have any idea how they will spend their retirement dollars. They haven’t considered the effect of inflation on their spending plan and very few (8%) have even an inkling of factors such as average life expectancy.

The Desjardins study also found Canadians were complacent about retiring with debt, with more than 80% of respondents anticipating that they would carry debt into retirement.

The debt-is-OK attitude might have something to do with a revamped idea of retirement. According to the same study, retirement no longer means what it used to, with one-tenth of today’s retirees continuing to work in some capacity and more than half (54%) of tomorrow’s retirees (those over 40) planning a gradual retirement.

Investors Group also unearthed some changing attitudes about retirement involving the language used, especially when that language carries negative connotations.

Although a solid majority (92%) of those already retired are perfectly happy being called “retirees,” baby boomers appear reluctant to take on this label, with fewer than half (45%) of those aged 55 and older wanting to be called retirees once they stop work for good.

“Maybe it’s viewed as being similar to ‘senior’ or some other older-person term,” says Ammeter.

Rejecting labels that imply age seems more critical to boomers than their younger counterparts, however.

Younger Canadians appear less concerned, with 59% of those aged 35-44 saying they’ll be comfortable with the designation once they hit retirement.

“There was that dichotomy,” Ammeter says. “The younger people didn’t seem to have as much of a problem with it.” IE