He revealed this on his widespread The Rich Barber podcast on June 10, 2026, which you could find right here. Later that month, Globe Advisor reporter Deanne Gage devoted a full column to his retirement (paywalled).
Chilton introduced he plans to “shut down” on the finish of 2026, together with the now-two-year-old weekly podcast. However he’ll “proceed to pump out our social media content material” till early 2027. His fundamental platforms are primarily visible media like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Fb, though he additionally has a presence on X, the previous Twitter.
I interviewed Chilton for this Retired Cash column early in August. He informed me the podcast’s success was primarily generated by video shorts on Instagram and Fb: “A few of these shorts will get half one million, 600,000 views. It’s loopy.”
A who’s who of Canadian private finance
Whereas the podcast does properly on YouTube, the audio model will get extra site visitors on Spotify and Apple Music. In typical self-deprecating trend, Chilton quips it’s as a result of “individuals don’t wish to see me.” Nor has his group tried to monetize it: “We’ve by no means taken promoting cash.” Initially the podcast was each second week, however it quickly moved to weekly (on Tuesdays). Up to now, greater than 70 episodes have aired, with maybe one other 20 scheduled earlier than it shuts down. His company are a who’s who of Canadian monetary specialists, however he has additionally interviewed a couple of Individuals, together with Motley Idiot alumnus and writer Morgan Housel.
Chilton makes some extent of mentioning key members of his group: his assistant Mo (Maureen Ross), who has been with him 30 years, and Aidan Stride, the driving pressure behind the podcast.
Chilton followers have yet one more likelihood to see him on the talking platform: he’s embarking this fall on one final main nationwide media tour for personal corporations about “key classes I’ve realized all through my profession.” There may even be numerous meet-and-greet guide signings at Indigo shops.
Seeing because the Massive Chill—as a mutual acquaintance calls him—is sort of a decade youthful than me, I have to admit my preliminary response to his imminent retirement was one in every of shock. In spite of everything, Chilton has been maybe Canada’s preeminent private finance guru ever since he printed his pioneering monetary novel, The Rich Barber, again in 1989. That guide, which weaved monetary recommendation right into a story format, spawned a number of imitators, not least my very own, equally named The Rich Boomer.
Milking his one nice thought
Chilton was 25 when he bought the thought, wrote it up and printed it at 27. The guide launched Chilton on a profitable four-decade profession as an writer and public speaker, with a stint in enterprise capital through the CBC’s Dragon’s Den. Between the varied editions (U.S. and Canadian) and the next The Rich Barber Returns, Chilton says complete North American gross sales are between 4 million and 5 million.
Final yr he launched a very rewritten Canadian version of the unique guide, largely catering to the infant boomers’ youngsters determined to seize a spot on the primary rung of the home housing ladder. That I can relate to as one in every of them is our daughter, now nearing 35. Venture Flip, the audio model of the revised guide, will proceed indefinitely.
Clearly, Chilton is greater than financially able to retire however I didn’t press him on particulars. He’s divorced with two youngsters and in a brand new relationship. We didn’t go into his personal monetary steps to implement his private retirement. He’ll in all probability practise what he and his sources usually preach and delay Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Previous Age Safety (OAS) funds till 70. He doesn’t have to convert his registered retirement financial savings plan (RRSP) right into a registered retirement earnings fund (RRIF) but however he’s bought loads of time earlier than calculating the optimum time to take action. In his video with retired actuary Fred Vettese, there’s a dialogue about annuities: Vettese normally says annuities could make as much as 10% or 20% of complete retirement earnings, however Chilton is reluctant to get pinned down on all-purpose suggestions on them: “Annuities in some cases ought to be checked out. Canadians for some cause, and infrequently their monetary advisors, don’t embrace them in any respect.”
One quip within the re-creation is usually humorous and made at his personal expense. On the again cowl is a blurb by Bob Chilton, Dave’s dad, who’s now in his 90s: “Over 30 years in the past, Marjorie and I informed David, ‘You received’t be capable of simply hold milking your one and solely good thought endlessly.’ Seems we have been incorrect.” As David informed Gage, “I solely had one good thought in my life. I’m fortunate I had it once I was younger.”
Why retire now? Well being, family and friends
One cause I used to be stunned by his looming retirement was that I had the impression Chilton actually loved the profession the guide spawned, one thing he confirmed each in his podcast and within the interview with Gage. When she requested Chilton how lengthy he had been pondering of retiring, he replied, “It’s not one thing I’ve been occupied with in any respect,” as “I had instinctively felt I’d all the time work as a result of I get pleasure from my work immensely.”
Why the change of coronary heart? He cites two main causes, one good and one unhealthy. One is his rising realization that the well being of family and friends can’t be taken as a right indefinitely, and by extension his personal. As he mentioned on a podcast episode entitled Dave’s Retirement he merely needs to spend extra time together with his mates whereas they’re nonetheless round and wholesome.
This calls to thoughts a weblog Fritz Gilbert printed in The Retirement Manifesto, which I republished alone website. On Your 12 Good Years, fellow blogger Dan Haylett estimated 12 years is “how lengthy the common wholesome 60-year-old has earlier than their mobility, vitality, and independence begin to considerably decline. Not earlier than they die… earlier than life will get noticeably tougher.” So if you wish to journey and take pleasure in varied sports activities and actions, you’d finest begin doing so earlier than the 60–72 window closes endlessly. (As I’ve noticed earlier than, I personally am already exterior that window.)
With 65 looming, Chilton is correctly making the transfer nearer to the start of that optimum window for getting essentially the most out of retirement. Quickly after this column is printed, his daughter will make him a grandparent for the primary time, which is the “good” cause he talked about.
Chilton says the information “is admittedly getting fairly strong supporting the truth that it’s 72. Not everyone, however the overwhelming majority of persons are going to start out working into vital well being points.” That doesn’t imply they’re going to die then however he’s seeing well being points come up in lots of his mates, a number of of whom are older than him. “That undoubtedly performed a task in my choice. I wish to not solely reap the benefits of the time myself, however I wish to spend time with extra of my mates and colleagues.”
