In 1991, barely one third of Canadians were considering investing in RRSPs to help fund their retirement. Twelve years later, the 13th annual RBC Financial Group RRSP Poll shows that RRSPs have become the preferred retirement investment vehicle for Canadians.

The latest poll shows that over the past 13 years, there has been a 53% increase in the number of Canadians planning to contribute to their RRSPs. Nearly half of all Canadians (49%) are planning to invest in a RRSP this year, versus just 32% in 1991.

The average amount Canadians plan to contribute to their RRSPs has also risen significantly, to $4,964 per person this year, from $3,411 per person in 1991.

“Investing in a RRSP may not have been the first choice for investors in 1991, but fast forward to 2003 and RRSPs have become a major part of Canadians’ financial portfolios,” says Matt Varey, senior VP, RBC Investments, Financial Planning.

RBC says a $5,000 RRSP contribution in 1991 in a conservative investment, returning an average of 5% per year, is now worth close to $9,000, an increase of 80% in value of the.

It adds that an RRSP investment of $5,000 made in the S&P/TSX Composite Index in 1991, which has grown an average of 9.3% per year, is now worth more than $14,500. In this case, the compound growth has led to returns of nearly 200%.

These survey findings are from an RBC/Ipsos-Reid poll conducted between October 6 and October 24, 2003. The telephone survey is based on a randomly selected sample of 1,205 adult Canadians.