A Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) is the ideal registered account for building retirement savings. All income earned in the account is tax-free. However, any withdrawal is treated as income and taxed accordingly.
In your core earning years, you’ll want to accumulate and invest your RRSP (and collect the sweet tax credit). In retirement, you may want to withdraw from your RRSP if your income is lower.
If you’re retired (or nearing retirement) and want to tap into your RRSP soon, it makes sense to reduce risk in your portfolio and focus on more defensive stocks. You want to make sure your RRSP income lasts as long as possible.
If you’re wondering what types of stocks are worth holding in the RRSP, Fortis (TSX:FTS) and Granite Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:GRT.UN) are two core holdings to consider.
A top utility stock for an RRSP
With a market capitalization of $36 billion, Fortis is one of the largest pure-play utilities listed on the TSX. It has nine regulated utilities diversified across Canada and the United States. The diversification protects the company from overexposure to a particular regulator, province or geography.
Likewise, with 94% of its business being transportation and distribution, the company has very little exposure to commodity fluctuations or energy demand variables. It provides services (such as electricity or natural gas) that people and companies need. Customers have no choice but to accept electricity/gas that runs through the infrastructure.
Fortis’s regulated activities limit growth to some extent. However, Fortis still expects the interest base to increase by 7% annually in the coming years. The capital plan has a low risk and is relatively easy to implement.
After a strong year (the shares are up 19% in 2025), the return has fallen to 3.6%. This may be a case where you have to pay for quality. Fortis has a 52-year track record of increasing its dividend annually.
The company expects compound annual dividend growth of 4-6% over the next five years. Fortis may not be growing quickly, but it’s a good bet for stable, growing revenues.
A top real estate investment trust for income in a registered plan
With a market capitalization of $4.7 billion, Granite REIT is the largest industrial REIT on the TSX. It owns 60 million square feet of manufacturing, logistics and warehousing space in Canada, the US and Europe.
It has a high-quality tenant base with long-term leases (over 5.5 years). Occupancy rates have increased by more than 97% this year, supporting cash flow per unit growth of 8% in the first nine months of the year.
The REIT is very conservatively managed with low leverage and an industry-leading balance sheet. That has supported fifteen years of consecutive distribution increases.
The payout ratio has fallen in recent years, leading Granite to recently increase its dividend at a faster pace than before. Today, granite yields 4.4%. The stock is trading below private market value, so it still seems like an attractive time to add to an RRSP.
The RRSP takeaway
When you build your RRSP, you can own some higher-risk bets. However, when you’re retired and plan to withdraw income from the RRSP, you’ll want stable, solid stocks for dividends and capital preservation. Stocks like Granite and Fortis are a good fit for investing for retirement in your RRSP.
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