{"id":534637,"date":"2026-03-13T22:44:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T22:44:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534637\/"},"modified":"2026-03-13T22:44:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T22:44:08","slug":"how-to-build-your-own-pension-using-canadian-dividend-stocks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/534637\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Build Your Own Pension Using Canadian Dividend Stocks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Work pensions are becoming harder to come by these days. Arguably, it\u2019s no longer the expectation when one applies for a new job. Of course, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.ca\/investing\/what-is-an-rrsp\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)<\/a> matches may very well be the \u201cnew,\u201d cheaper way for companies to add a bit of sweetener to an employee\u2019s retirement path. And while the RRSP match is a must (it\u2019s pretty much free money from your work), if you can get it, the main takeaway is that it\u2019s on investors to make their own income streams or workplace pensions.<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to your RRSP or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.ca\/investing\/what-is-a-tax-free-savings-account-tfsa\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA)<\/a>, there are a ton of different securities you can pick up to produce an income stream that can help add to your retirement. If you\u2019re still young, it might make sense to go for growth (think appreciation over higher-yielding names), but if you\u2019re about ready to shift gears from growth to value and yield, it might be time to give some of the market\u2019s cherished dividend payers (and growers) a closer look.<\/p>\n<p>With the broad market\u2019s rotation from growth to value (tech has taken a hit while almost everything else has looked quite resilient), perhaps it\u2019s time to construct your own pension-like vehicle to supplement your income, whether you\u2019re ready to retire or enter some sort of semi-retirement or sabbatical.<\/p>\n<p>At this juncture, I\u2019m a big fan of the higher-yielding real estate investment trusts (REITs), the steady utility plays (some also have newfound share price momentum riding behind them), the telecoms, and, of course, the pipeline and energy producers. SmartCentres REIT\u00a0(<a class=\"tickerized-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.ca\/company\/tsx-sru-un-smartcentres-real-estate-investment-trust\/372340\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TSX:SRU.UN<\/a>) stands out as a great option for yield and value, while\u00a0Telus\u00a0(<a class=\"tickerized-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.fool.ca\/company\/tsx-t-telus\/373104\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TSX:T<\/a>) is also a strong contender for a passive-income portfolio.<\/p>\n<p> <img fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" alt=\"senior couple looks at investing statements\"  nitro-lazy- nitro-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/cdn-cldmb.nitrocdn.com\/VAGmOrWIwfBjPmHRpJuycUJiCtpuZaiW\/assets\/images\/optimized\/rev-35ce602\/www.fool.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2048193663-1200x800.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-post-image nitro-lazy\" decoding=\"async\" nitro-lazy-empty=\"\" id=\"NTMxOjg2NQ==-1\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;nitro-empty-id=NTMxOjg2NQ==-1;base64,PHN2ZyB2aWV3Qm94PSIwIDAgMTIwMCA4MDAiIHdpZHRoPSIxMjAwIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjgwMCIgeG1sbnM9Imh0dHA6Ly93d3cudzMub3JnLzIwMDAvc3ZnIj48L3N2Zz4=\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n<p> SmartCentres REIT <\/p>\n<p>In my humble opinion, SmartCentres REIT looks like one of the best yield deals in the market. The yield stands at just shy of 7%, and it\u2019s very well-supported by strong fundamentals. Whether we\u2019re talking about the high occupancy rate or the potential to expand upon funds from operations (FFOs) via expansion into mixed-use properties, I\u2019d stick by the retail REIT, even if others might have doubts about the durability of retail properties in the face of downturns. <\/p>\n<p>After a 5.5% plunge from 52-week highs, I\u2019m starting to think it\u2019s last call for that 7% yield. And while shares might be choppier than most other REITs, I think there\u2019s also upside if rates were to continue on the downtrend. For now, though, we\u2019re facing a rate pause, but as oil prices rocket and food inflation remains overheated, I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if a hike is in the cards once the pause is over. That might rock the REITs, but for long-term investors, that might be an opportunity to get more yield for less!<\/p>\n<p>  Telus <\/p>\n<p id=\"h-telusneed-a-massive-income-boost-telus-is-one-of-the-go-to-names-for-many-given-its-yield-is-above-the-9-level-of-course-such-a-towering-yield-isn-t-without-its-risks-though-i-suspect-management-is-committed-to-keeping-it-alive-there-s-no-doubting-that-the-commitment-is-hefty-and-it-makes-the-job-of-turning-the-business-around-that-much-harder\">Do you need a massive income boost? Telus is one of the go-to names for many, given its yield is above the 9% level. Of course, such a towering yield isn\u2019t without its risks. Though I suspect management is committed to keeping it alive, there\u2019s no doubting that the commitment is hefty, and it makes the job of turning the business around that much harder.<\/p>\n<p>Either way, the rise of satellite connectivity and a capital expenditures cliff for the industry might be relief enough to allow investors to have their cake and eat it, too. In short, don\u2019t depend on Telus\u2019s yield uplift too much, and you won\u2019t be disappointed if a dividend cut (some think there\u2019s a growing chance of this) does happen. In terms of value and turnaround potential, though, I like the name for those who know what they\u2019re getting into.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Work pensions are becoming harder to come by these days. Arguably, it\u2019s no longer the expectation when one&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":106587,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[45,49,48,133,131,132],"class_list":["post-534637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-finance","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=534637"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534637\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/106587"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=534637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=534637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=534637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}