Financial Planning Simplified
I’m Robb — the guy behind Boomer & Echo. I’ve been a personal finance blogger since 2010 and an advice-only financial planner since 2015. I help regular Canadians with regular problems make smarter decisions about their money — without selling them a thing.
My philosophy is simple: Money shouldn’t be complicated.
You don’t need 17 bank accounts, 12 ETFs, or a side hustle to retire comfortably. You just need a good plan, grounded in what really matters to you.
By reading this website you're joining more than 250,000 people who stop by here every month to get tips on how to save money, invest well, and retire comfortably. And, if you choose to subscribe and receive new posts by email, you'll join a growing list of more than 12,000 email subscribers who are the first to get these tips sent straight to their inbox.
New Articles from Robb
Why 54% Is All You Need to Be a Great Investor (or Tennis Champion)
Robb Engen | June 11, 2026 |
A client emailed me recently after a rough week in the markets. She's a new DIY investor, still getting used to watching her portfolio in real time for the first time after years of never even logging into her old managed accounts. “I've been checking the app almost daily – maybe not a good thing,”…
Weekend Reading: I Have Concepts Of A Plan Edition
Robb Engen | June 6, 2026 |
During my recent interview with Dave Chilton on The Wealthy Barber podcast, we got into a question I hear often: when's the right time to start working with a financial planner on retirement? Our answer wasn't 65, it was roughly 10 years before you plan to retire. Of course, you can also be too far…
How Our Advice-Only Financial Planning Practice Works
Robb Engen | May 30, 2026 |
My wife Lindsay and I run an advice-only financial planning practice from our home in Lethbridge, AB. We work with clients virtually across Canada, mostly by email and video call. Clients pay a flat fee of $3,600 + GST for a comprehensive financial plan, investment plan, and detailed retirement income plan — designed to maximize…
Retirement Planning for Regular Canadians on The Wealthy Barber Podcast
Robb Engen | May 26, 2026 |
I am beyond thrilled to share this latest episode of The Wealthy Barber podcast with David Chilton. I was invited back as a return guest to talk about retirement planning for regular Canadians, why retirees struggle to turn off the savings taps and turn on the spending taps, and how my advice-only financial planning model…
Weekend Reading: The Worried Wealthy Edition
Robb Engen | May 15, 2026 |
I work with a lot of clients who have done everything right. They saved diligently throughout their careers, paid off their mortgage, maxed out their registered accounts, and arrived at retirement with more money than they ever expected to have. And yet they're worried. Not about whether they can afford to retire – they clearly…
Weekend Reading: Money Makes Money (Sort Of) Edition
Robb Engen | May 8, 2026 |
I read a Globe and Mail piece by RBC senior portfolio manager Nancy Woods this week, one of those “investing basics” explainers aimed at people just getting started. The hook was a herd-of-cows analogy: your money is the herd, dividends are the milk, price appreciation is the baby cows (the herd growing over time). The…
