Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) investors looking to give themselves a passive income raise this year may wish to put their latest $7,000 TFSA contribution to work in some cash cows. Indeed, Canada is home to some pretty bountiful high-yielders. Whether we’re talking about 7%-yielding telecoms, 6.5%-yielding real estate investment trusts (REITs), 6%-yielding pipelines, 4-5%-yielding banks, or even some 3-4%-yielding insurers, Canadian securities are quite hefty on the yield, especially compared to their counterparts south of the border.
Indeed, with the weakening loonie, it’s not hard to imagine many U.S. income investors feeling the temptation to put some money to work here in Canada. While there are still options down south, I believe there’s more income to be had for less on the TSX Index. In this piece, we’ll look at a few passive-income ideas that I’m interested in considering this summer for a TFSA income fund.
As always, don’t just chase yield. Do the homework and ensure the fundamentals (as well as valuation) are still in a good spot before doing any sort of buying, especially when it comes to your TFSA. You’re only allowed a fixed sum (it was $7,000 for 2025) to contribute to your TFSA every year. So, don’t waste it!
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CT REIT
CT REIT (TSX: CRT.UN) is a retail REIT I recently added to on recent strength, while the yield was still around 6%. Indeed, CT REIT is best known as the real estate play behind Canadian Tire stores. It’s not only a well-known Canadian-born tenant, it’s one that has a rock-solid balance sheet and the means to take share, especially as more Canadians opt to shop local for the duration of this awful trade war with the U.S. Despite mixed performance from CTC.A stock so far this year, CRT.UN shares have provided a relatively steady ride. It’s a way to play Canadian Tire’s ability to pay its rent, rather than its ability to keep driving up earnings.
Quarter to quarter, Canadian Tire is bound to have its ups and downs. Regardless, CT REIT will collect and payout a generous amount to shareholders. Though I’m not against buying Canadian Tire shares if you’re a massive fan of the direction of the retailer, I’d personally much rather play the REIT behind the Canadian icon. And yes, it’s because of the higher yield and lower beta.
I will admit Canadian Tire’s 4.3% yield is pretty attractive, with more in the way of total returns upside for investors looking for a deep-value stock that can thrive once Canada’s economy is ready to boom again, perhaps once a new trade deal is in place.
TD Bank
I’m so glad I didn’t give up on TD Bank (TSX: TD) shares last year, when the headlines were going on about the aftermath of the money-laundering fiasco and seemingly nothing else. That’s old news, and after a couple of quarters, investor focus is now back on the bank’s growth. For 2025, shares are up close to 35%, and the 4.1% yield is still quite tempting. Though Jefferies hiked its targets on the broad basket of big banks, it was TD that got one of the biggest bumps.
Despite the upgrades, though, Jefferies analysts remarked on the higher stakes going into the next (third quarter) round of bank earnings. Indeed, there’s a lot on the line as the numbers come out. But for TD, I think the bar is low enough that there’s more room for gains. The stock trades at just 10.6 times trailing price to earnings (P/E), quite a discount to its banking peers.
