Should I focus on paying down my student loan or maximize my RRSP?

Warren Baldwin, vice-president of T.E. Financial Consultants, has the answer.

Warren Baldwin 29 May, 2003 | 1:00PM
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Dear Expert:

I have a student loan that I am working hard at reducing as fast as possible. I was going to take an RRSP loan this year, but am wondering if this is a smart choice when I have outstanding debt? I am hoping to use my RRSP savings as a down payment on a home in a couple of years, which was why I thought it may be smart to take out an RRSP loan while at the same paying off my student loan. Any suggestions on how to prioritize this?

Expert Answer:

First, you need to consider the relative cost of an RRSP loan compared to your student loan. You need also to consider how much tax refund you would receive now compared to what the refund might be in a couple of years when your income is higher and you could deduct the RRSP contribution at a higher tax bracket. However, for the purposes here, I'll assume that your income is pretty good now and will get better over the next several years but not put you in a tax bracket that is dramatically different by then, so that there is not much benefit in saving RRSP deductions for the future.

In a perfect world, you would borrow for the RRSP (at very favourable rates) and use all your cash and the tax refund to pay down a high cost student loan. The interest on the RRSP loan is not deductible but you may find the rate is quite a bit lower than the student loan cost. You should make sure the bank will not be upset and block you from making the homebuyers withdrawal if the RRSP loan is still outstanding when you want to make your home purchase. Ideally, at the time of your purchase, your student debt would be reimbursed (and so the payment would not interfere with your ability to qualify for a mortgage) and the RRSP loan that had been taken out for as long a term as possible would be carried on a low-cost interest basis.

With a little bit of work and a co-operative, flexible banker, this structure could be quite rewarding. Best of luck.

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Warren Baldwin

Warren Baldwin  

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