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Olympic anthem doesn’t represent Canadian music
Three days before the Olympics began I had already lost count of how many times I heard I Believe.
The song, sung by 16-year-old Montreal phenom Nikki Yanofsky, must have been on three or four times a night, so you can understand, after 11 days of speed skating, hockey and skiing, just how deeply lodged that track (and its equally epic variations) is in my head.
We can debate whether or not the...
Outlook 2010: Can this bull market continue?
Two months before the last federal election, Stephen Harper sat down with CBC’s Peter Mansbridge and uttered a line that he’d quickly regret: “I think there’s probably some great buying opportunities emerging in the stock market.” Many Canadians didn’t want to hear it; jumping into the TSX in October 2008, in the midst of the worst recession in decades, seemed ridiculous, to say the...
How long should you leave your house on the market?
Ever wonder why that house on the corner of your street has been on the market for two years? So does everyone else.
Keeping a “For Sale” sign parked on your lawn for more than three months is a mistake, says Gary Bachman, a real estate agent in Winnipeg. “People start saying, ‘What’s wrong with the house?’”
In Toronto, where homes, on average, don’t sit beyond 27 days, people start...
Homes: Renovate or relocate
There comes a time in every homeowner’s life when he needs to upgrade. Starter homes aren’t meant for long-term living, and when the kids arrive, things quickly start to feel cramped.
At one time, that meant it was time to move, but that’s not the only option. More and more homeowners are opting to build additions instead. Some are even razing their homes and rebuilding from scratch. All...
How to spot weasel words that can sink your portfolio
Let’s face it — the last thing most investors want to do is read a bulky 200-page annual report. Sure, you might flip through a few pages, but most shareholders have never read a report from front to back. However, a new study shows that certain phrases in corporate filings can provide important warnings about trouble ahead. Looking for these phrases — something that is much easier to do...
Winners & Losers 2009: Comebacks & flameouts
Nominated for a 2010 National Magazine Award in the Best Editorial Package category
We were too quick to write off some of these embattled icons, but others crashed hard.
The comebacks
1. Michael McCain
Last year’s listeria outbreak could have ended Maple Leaf Foods CEO Michael McCain’s decade-long career at the company. But instead of hiding behind his lawyers, McCain faced the press and expressed...
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Mortgages: Befriend your bank
It’s been a busy year for Dan Mass, a Calgary-based broker with Canada First Mortgage. Besides his usual workload, he’s had to deal with a number of clients who have either had their homes foreclosed or have concerns that they won’t be able to pay their mortgage bills. “We’ve seen defaults rise this year for sure,” he says.
While Canada isn’t facing U.S.-style delinquency rates—the...
Bryan Borzykowski is a Toronto-based writer and editor working mainly for business and entertainment publications. He regularly contributes to Canadian Business magazine, Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, PROFIT, MoneySense and the Advisor Group. Bryan's the editor of Review magazine and is a senior editor with Connected for Business magazine. He's also a contributing writer with Hello! Canada and was once a weekly music columnist for Metro News. He's been nominated for several National Magazine Awards and recently co-authored