Having fun with my multiple Tax-free savings accounts and why TD Waterhouse is not that bad after all

Because they are getting pretty good at dealing with people like me! And I will go through it all in this post.

I got sooo confused on the Tax-free savings account. I taught I had understand it all – but just one little thing that I didn’t understand correctly – I taught that withdraws made during the year could be reinvested during the same year in the Tax-free savings account. But unfortunately for me, withdraws can only be reinvest during the next year following the withdraw – and never on the same year the withdraw were made. Here was my mistake.

Back in January of this year, I open a Tax-free savings account at RBC. And in it, I transfer some of my non-RRSP investment. They were mutual fund investments and in total, the money I transfer in the account was very close to 5 000$ - which is the limit authorize for 2009. I was very happy with the transaction. Everything went well and smoothly, without any problems... until… I got this bright idea.

A couple of weeks pass – it was time to invest in my RRSP and I suddenly realize I didn’t have planned anything for my 2008 RRSP. What I did was the following: I took some of my investments I had in my brand new Tax-free savings account at RBC and transfer them into RRSP. Everything went fine, well not perfectly fine, but I post previously about this, let say “learning experience” with bad agents of RBC trying to make money out of me.

Anyhow, a couple of weeks after, I decided to open another Tax-free savings account, but this time with TD Waterhouse. I complete the form and a few days after, the Tax-free savings account was from my TD Waterhouse. Once I call to see if the account had been created (I barely connect to the Internet on weekdays as I am running from 9 to midnight at my jobs) – the agent at TD told me that the Tax-free savings account was now from my TD Waterhouse account. All happy that I was, I ask him to immediately transfer my Crestsreet Alternative Energy Fund in it. But I didn’t talk to him about what I had done previously at RBC. The agent proceeds. I really taught I was doing right, until I contact RBC later on – asking what was left from my Tax-free savings account and than – but only at that time – I begin to ask question and I find out that well, I have to say it, I had done a mistake lol.

After what, I call TD Waterhouse, telling them all about what I done. And I suggest if it will be better just to get the Crestsreet Alternative Energy Fund out of the Tax-free savings account and the agent told me no. That was during a weekday’s afternoon.

Later on during the evening, I call back RBC to confirm the information of what I had been told during the afternoon and after – once again I call TD Waterhouse and the answer was still the same – I didn’t have to take off the Crestsreet Alternative Energy Fund from my Tax-free savings account. How confusing! And than, I ask the courageous agent if I could had move my Sprott Canadian Equity Fund into the Tax-free savings account at TD (like I never get enough or something lol) but he told me… NO… lol

I still do not understand in date of today – why it’s ok for me to leave Crestsreet Alternative Energy Fund into my Tax-free savings account at TD. I just hope things will turn all right. I am kind of having confident in them now.

But what I dislike about TD Waterhouse and main reason I keep “bitching” after them most of the time is that even if I ask for general info, the agents – but not all of them – keep asking for my name, my account number… And one time, I get very mad and I told the agent that I didn’t want to provide the info since I was just asking for general info. But it never works… I had to identify myself.

And by the way, their TalkBroker do not work in French but exists in French… Like anything cannot be perfect.

(and especially not at TD Waterhouse lol!!!!!!!!!!)