Each day, Greg Saunders goes to work as a firefighter in northern Ontario, getting emergencies under control.

But when he returns home with a paycheque, he and his wife Veronica battle another urgent problem: paying off their mortgage as soon as they can.

"Debt is debt, and debt is bad," said Mr. Saunders, a 37-year-old resident of North Bay, Ont.

"We've got a young family, we want to provide the best for my daughter, and having $164,000 owing to somebody scares the hell out of me. So we're trying to pay it down as quick as we can."

His mission to extinguish his mortgage seems to have worked so far. Two years after buying their home for about $220,000, and watching it appreciate in value, the Saunders estimate they can pay off the balance in 11 years.

But that's the tricky part: if they keep on at this rate, how do they address other goals, such as saving for two-year-old Maggie's education? The Saunders earn a combined $130,000 annually, and their salaries are roughly equal.

But what if they have another baby, Greg wonders? And do they really need their RRSPs, if both of them have pensions?

Veronica, a nurse, has an RRSP of about $4,000. Greg's is at $60,000, which he estimates has lost five per cent a year for longer than he cares to remember. He recently moved to cash, and is considering a drastic move -- using the money to pay down the mortgage.

"I've done so poorly on my own, I could make 5.25 per cent in putting the money in my mortgage," he said. "It's something I would really consider."

While the Saunders are doing well, they are making a few mistakes -- but keeping Greg's RRSP isn't one of them, according to three certified financial planners interviewed for this article.

Cashing out his investment is a bad idea because it will put Greg into the highest income tax bracket for this year, meaning he'll lose a pile of money, said Patricia Lovett-Reid, senior vice-president at TD Waterhouse.

Even so, "he can stop putting money in," said John De Goey, a senior financial adviser with Burgeonvest Securities. "When you only have a little bit of RRSP contribution room, and you hate your mortgage and you hate the way your RRSP is performing, then put the money towards the mortgage," said Mr. De Goey, who is also the author of The Professional Financial Advisor II.

Bruce Armstrong, managing director of investment savings programs at Scotiabank, took a different tack. The Saunders, he said, should definitely keep the RRSPs and keep contributing, so they're "doing a little bit of everything." Also they should avoid have a big imbalance in retirement savings, or one spouse will pay more tax than the other in retirement. On the whole, he adds, they're in good shape.

"They have all the fears and hopes of many couples in their life stage. I noticed they're hugely uncomfortable with debt. But if you really look at it, beside one car on a lease, they have no bad debt -- no consumer debt," he said. "If you're buying something that decreases in value like cars, like most of the things we put on our credit cards, it's not debt that you want to have. But mortgages? Fine, you can pay them down quickly but I wouldn't get fussed about it."

But there are some gaping holes in the Saunders' financial plan, he added.

"They need a will immediately. He is in a high-risk job," Mr. Armstrong noted. "They need to set up guardianship for the child. Should something happen and both of them pass away, the child needs to be looked after."

Without setting up a will, Mr. De Goey explains, a person's estate is looked after by the courts, which are bureaucratic, slow, and sometimes don't make the best decisions for an individual family. Instead, for about $500 in lawyers' fees, the Saunders can have peace of mind. Assets can be equally prorated to all children, and it won't be left up to the courts to possibly split children from each other, or have them live with an unsuitable relative, Mr. De Goey said.

"It's the Clint Eastwood question: Do you feel lucky? Or do you feel trustworthy? No one is going to care more about the welfare of your children than you," he said. "If you just leave that to chance, I've got to believe the government will do something you didn't want or expect."

Mr. De Goey also recommends critical illness insurance, and Mr. Armstrong advocates having a living will. Extra life and disability insurance should be considered in case the employers' plan isn't enough, because firefighters and police officers are considered for coverage on a case-by-case basis, said Ms. Lovett-Reid.

The Saunders aren't saving for any major expenditures. Greg has no big dreams for retirement, aside from paying for his kids' education.

The Saunders have no debt aside from their mortgage, which is at a five-year variable rate, paid every two weeks to lessen the total cost over time. They each drive a car, one of which is leased for $425 a month. About $700 a month goes to other bills. Veronica pays many of the bills from her pay cheque and puts any extra money into their daughter's RESP, which they just opened with $3,000 in savings. The goal is to contribute $2,000 annually to get the maximum government grant of $400.

Even so, the education savings payments aren't automatic, and should be, Mr. Armstrong said, adding that this will ensure the Saunders meet their goals.

By saving $2,000 a year in the RESP and qualifying for the maximum government grant, the Saunders will be in good shape to handle what will likely be close to five-figure tuition fees by the time Maggie graduates from high school, Ms. Lovett-Reid said.

At an average annual return of 6.7 per cent, that gives Maggie $18,800 a year for four years of university, she calculated. And to ensure Maggie develops a healthy attitude toward money, Ms. Lovett-Reid said the family should encourage her by offering incentives, such as matching the sums saved in a bank account, or offering payment for special work around the house.

For now, Greg is concerned about his own financial knowledge.

"We're still learning. I've done a terrible job with investing, with small caps not panning out. It's not something they do a good job of teaching in school. I wish I understood more about investing when I went into it," he said. "I would like to start talking to someone about managing my money and I don't know if they would take a portfolio as small as mine seriously."

Indeed they would, said Mr. Armstrong. He recommends that Greg look for a certified financial planner, interview several people about what to do with his money. and choose the one with whom he feels most comfortable.

As for what to invest his RRSP in, the planners' views differ.

Mr. Armstrong recommends at least 60 per cent in equities, possibly higher, given Greg's previous tolerance for risk with small cap companies. Mr. De Goey recommends equal parts of Canadian, U.S. and international stocks, because the Saunders already have fixed income via their pensions.

And Ms. Lovett-Reid would like to see the Saunders invest in a mixture of bonds, corporate bonds, and blue chip stocks across a wide variety of sectors to balance risk.

"To me, it's a family that's on the right track," Ms. Lovett-Reid said.

"There's only so much money. I think . . . he's putting more pressure financially on himself than he should, instead of celebrating the successes that he has -- a home, a family. He's on the right path."

Theresa Ebden is an associate producer for Report on Business Television.