Join Retirement Loop

Retirement Loop

Retire Each Year,
Not Once

Build a Canadian retirement plan that shows what you can spend, which account to draw from, and when to take CPP and OAS. Then update it every year.

$470/year CAD plus tax, locked in

Doors close Monday, Nov 30 at midnight ET

For Canadians retired or within 10 years of it. The 21-Day Retire Each Year Challenge starts December 1.

Join Retirement Loop See the 6 Upgrades

500+ Canadian members · Retirement coaches · 60-day money-back guarantee

Built by Mike Heroux, financial planner and private banker for 10 years. Questions? Read the FAQ

The same questions come back every year

I spent 10 years as a financial planner and private banker, from the 2008 crisis to a long bull market. Every year, people brought me the same questions:

  • Do I have enough?
  • When do I take CPP and OAS?
  • How do I pay less tax?
  • What if the market crashes?

The questions stay. The answers move.

Your balances change. Tax brackets and the OAS clawback threshold change. Inflation moves. Your spending shifts. Build a plan once, leave it in a folder, and it runs on old numbers.

A one-time plan is a photograph. Retirement is a movie.

So you retire each year. Once a year, you sit down as if this were your first year of retirement, and you run the loop.

1 2 3 4 Retire each year
  1. 1
    Build the planPensions, savings, CPP, OAS, and lifestyle, year by year, in one place.
  2. 2
    Improve withdrawals and taxesWhen to take CPP. Which account first. How to keep RRIF withdrawals from pushing you into a higher bracket.
  3. 3
    Stress test itA crash in year one. A spouse passing early. Living to 100. Inflation running hot.
  4. 4
    Do it again next yearUpdate your numbers, run steps 2 and 3 again, and set next year’s spending. This is the step everyone skips.

6 retirement upgrades to make this year

These come from my free webinar. Each one starts with a question I hear every year. Watch the webinar

1

Do I have enough?

Upgrade: financial projections

Only your own projections answer this. Think in decades, use conservative numbers from FP Canada, and ask what if. Over 35 years, 2008 is a blip.

2

How do I pay less in fees and taxes?

Upgrade: lower fees and a stable average tax rate

Start with what you control. Compare your fees to low-cost options. Then run scenarios so you stop triggering tax for nothing and stop building a tax bomb.

3

How do I create income, and from which account?

Upgrade: retire each year

Look at every source of income, set your withdrawal sequence, and prepare your cash reserve before you need it. Then do it again next year.

4

How do I spend more and still have enough?

Upgrade: an agile budget

Spend more in the go-go years, less in the slow-go years, and plan for the no-go years. You may be richer than you think.

5

What if the market crashes?

Upgrade: stress tests

Test the ugly scenarios on your own numbers: a crash the year you retire, years of poor returns, higher inflation, one spouse passing early. Then size your cash reserve.

6

How do I know I’m okay?

Upgrade: a plan before Christmas

Stop carrying this alone. Run the 21-Day Retire Each Year Challenge, ask other Loopers, and have a retirement coach review your spreadsheet.

What the upgrades did for William and Amy

William and Amy are the couple I walk through in the webinar. They lowered their fees, changed their CPP and OAS timing, moved to an agile budget, and tested their plan against a crash.

Before
After
Net estate value
$575K
$1.2M
Go-go year spending
$90K
$100Kup to $109K
If the market crashes
No room for a market drop
Covered in the stress tests

An illustration from the webinar. It is not a promise or a forecast. Your numbers will differ, and markets do not follow projections.

Included when you join by November 30

The 21-Day Retire Each Year Challenge

Tuesday, December 1 to Monday, December 21

Finish before Christmas with a written plan for the year ahead: your life goals, an up-to-date spreadsheet, and one action booked. Build your first plan or review the one you have. One prompt a day, one line to post, and the whole community doing it with you.

Days 1 to 8: Mindset and momentum

  • Your retirement in twenty words
  • Experiences to book in the next 36 months
  • Your ideal week
  • Your #1 concern, named

Days 9 to 13: Build the plan

  • Open or update your spreadsheet
  • Set your return assumptions
  • Read the dashboard
  • Run optimizers and scenarios
  • Write your withdrawal sequence

Days 14 to 21: Action and accountability

  • Portfolio tune-up and your rule for a 30% drop
  • Your cash reserve
  • One risk, one guardrail
  • Will, beneficiaries, and power of attorney
  • Day 21: live wrap-up with me
Bonus

Private workshop with me: Selling Units and Shares to Generate Income in Retirement

Dividends and distributions may not cover your whole budget. At some point, you sell. Most people reach that day with no rule for it, and every sale feels like a mistake.

  • A selling routine: what to sell, how much, and when
  • How your cash reserve keeps you from selling in a crash
  • How it works with ETFs and with individual stocks

Private, for Retirement Loop members. Included when you join by Monday, November 30. Date announced inside the community.

Join Retirement Loop

What you get inside Retirement Loop

Know what you can spend

The RL retirement projections spreadsheet, built for Canadian accounts and taxes. It runs on your computer, so your numbers stay with you.

Have a person check your plan

Retirement coaches review your projections one-on-one and show you how to use the tool, even if spreadsheets are not your thing.

Stop figuring this out alone

A private community of 500+ Canadian retirees and soon-to-be retirees, on the web and in a mobile app. Nobody here is selling you a product.

See how other plans work

The Loopers Show, a monthly live event with case studies, member discussions, and special guests.

Keep learning

A monthly newsletter, written by a former financial planner, and videos on taxes, budgets, and stress tests.

Get it done this December

The 21-Day Retire Each Year Challenge and the private workshop on selling units and shares, when you join by November 30.

A plan once, or a plan every year

A retirement plan from an advisor

$2,500 to $5,000

one time

  • One plan, built for the day you buy it
  • Need an update? You pay again

Retirement Loop

$470

per year CAD, plus tax. Your price never increases.

  • A plan you update every year
  • Coach reviews of your spreadsheet
  • 500+ Canadians to compare notes with
  • 21-Day Challenge and private workshop
Join Retirement Loop

Doors close Monday, November 30 at midnight ET. The next opening is in May.

60-day money-back guarantee. Join today and take 60 days to decide. If Retirement Loop is not right for you, email us and we refund your payment, no questions asked.

You need a valid Excel license (2010 or newer) and a device that runs macros to use the spreadsheet.

What Loopers say

“A free, private consult on the spreadsheet. What’s not to love?! Thanks Mark, we’ve got it all figured now – at least until next year.”

Peter, Retirement Loop member

“I just had the opportunity to review the projection spreadsheet with Mark. He was extremely helpful and patient and answered all of my questions. I found it very useful and highly recommend that you book a session with him. Even if you are not proficient with spreadsheets Mark will walk you through it.”

Kevin, Retirement Loop member

“I did a review with Mark yesterday and found the meeting to be very useful. I appreciated the details of the spreadsheet and Mark’s comments. The feeling I had of being lonely in my endeavor is disappearing rapidly with Mark, Mike, Vero and the team. Thank you.”

Retirement Loop member

“Spending an hour with Mark reviewing our spreadsheet is invaluable to say the least. It would take months for anyone to even understand how to make even the simple calculations let alone all of the in depth scenarios you can run with this tool. I highly suggest you try to get a session with Mark to better understand what it is capable of doing. Value beyond cost is easily realized.”

Brian & Adri, Retirement Loop members

“I just completed a review of my spreadsheet with Mark. He walked through all the key data points. He is very knowledgeable and helpful. We tried different scenarios in real time. It may seem overwhelming at first but the more you work with the spreadsheet the more comfortable you will feel. I highly recommend that every Looper spend the time to complete their spreadsheet and do a review with Mark. You won’t regret it!”

Denise, Retirement Loop member

“Thank you so much for taking the time to review our projection spreadsheet with my husband and I, and showing us how to use some of the advanced features. The one on one was very helpful and gave us the guidance that we needed. We now feel more confident about using the tool. Also, think it is an amazing tool that is so sophisticated, yet fairly easy for us to use. I thank you for developing it and sharing it with us, so we can manage our retirement as our circumstances change.”

Retirement Loop member

Is Retirement Loop right for you?

It is built for you if

  • You are Canadian and retired, or within 10 years of it
  • You manage your own investments and want a process instead of an opinion
  • You have an advisor and want to understand and verify your own numbers
  • You are single, a couple, divorced, or widowed

It is not for you if

  • You want someone to manage your money for you
  • You want stock picks (that is what Dividend Stocks Rock is for)
  • You do not live in Canada, since everything is built on Canadian tax and pension rules
  • You cannot run Excel with macros on your computer

Loopers in a nutshell: 66% are retired and 34% are retiring soon. 38% hold $1M to $2M, and 32% hold more than $2M.

Mike Heroux

Why I built Retirement Loop

I spent 10 years as a financial planner and private banker. Hundreds of Canadians sat across from me with the same question: “Do I have enough?”

What they got from the industry was a product pitch and a one-time plan. What they needed was a system they could run themselves, every year, with people who had done it before.

In December 2024, I created Retirement Loop to be that system.

I also quit at 35 to travel, so I know this part too: retirement is a long trip. You need the big plan, then the itinerary, then you adapt when the road changes.

Mike Heroux
Founder, Retirement Loop

Mark Young

Mark Young, Retirement Coach. An early retiree and former software developer with an interest in projections, taxes, and benefits.

Veronique St-Pierre

Veronique St-Pierre, Host. She makes sure you have the best experience inside Retirement Loop.

Questions I get before people join

Do I need to be good with Excel?
No. You enter your numbers. The formulas and macros are already built, and a retirement coach walks you through it if you get stuck. It can feel overwhelming at first, so plan real time for your first build.
What do I need to run the spreadsheet?
A valid Excel license, version 2010 or newer, on a device that runs macros. You do not need a powerful machine.
Where does my data go?
Nowhere. The spreadsheet runs on your computer. Your numbers are not stored in the cloud or inside Retirement Loop.
Will the spreadsheet handle my situation?
It covers semi-retirement, a holding company, a surviving spouse, and term life insurance. It has limits too: it does not support RESPs, you pick one province for the whole projection, and it influences the withdrawal order instead of letting you set it by hand.
I’m single. Is this for me?
Yes. Singles, couples, divorced, widowed. The planning, the tax work, and the stress tests apply the same way.
I already have an advisor. Do I still need this?
Many Loopers have advisors. They join to understand their own numbers, verify the plan, and ask better questions.
I have Dividend Stocks Rock. Isn’t this the same thing?
No. DSR is the toolkit for your portfolio: what to buy, hold, and sell. Retirement Loop is the toolkit for your plan: how much to spend, which account first, when to take CPP, and whether the plan survives a crash. About 60% of Loopers use both. Others hold ETFs. Retirement Loop does not teach stock selection.
What if I can’t keep up with the 21 days?
Every day stays up. Finishing in February still counts.
Is this a free trial?
No. You pay $470 CAD plus tax when you join. You then have 60 days to ask for a full refund, no questions asked.
What happens after the first year?
You are billed yearly at the same $470, and your price never increases while you stay a member. If you cancel after the first 60 days, your membership stays active until the end of your billing period.
Why do the doors close?
We open twice a year so we can focus on the members inside. This opening closes Monday, November 30 at midnight ET. The next one is in May.
Is this financial advice?
No. Retirement Loop is education, tools, and a community. You build your own plan and make your own decisions.
Is the content in English?
Yes. All content is in English.

Another question? Reply to any of my emails. I read every one.

Your plan deserves a review before 2027

Build it or refresh it this December, with coaches and 500+ Canadians doing the same work. Then do it again next year.

Doors close Monday, Nov 30 at midnight ET

Join Retirement Loop

$470/year CAD plus tax · Price locked in · 60-day money-back guarantee

Retirement Loop provides education, tools, and a community for Canadian DIY investors. Mike Heroux is not a registered financial advisor. Nothing on this page or inside the membership is personalized investment, tax, or legal advice. Coach reviews help you use the spreadsheet and understand your own numbers. Projections and case studies are illustrations, not forecasts. Investing involves risk, dividends are not guaranteed, and past performance does not predict future results. Do your own due diligence. Disclosure and terms of use.