Debt Free In 30

With many Canadians facing a cash crunch during the COVID-19 lockdown, a quick-fix solution has been to defer debt payments. Deferring a debt payment can provide you with funds in the short-term to pay for needed expenses. But what you may not realize is that a deferment will raise the carrying cost of your debt overall. On today's podcast, Ted Michalos and Doug Hoyes explain how much more expensive a mortgage, car loan, and credit card can get if you defer payments and offer practical advice to avoid getting overwhelmed by debt. They also remind listeners of the tax implications of the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). Tune in to this episode, filled with lots of practical tips.   Related Posts:    Voluntary Surrender: Should I Hand My Vehicle Back? https://www.hoyes.com/blog/voluntary-surrender-should-i-hand-my-vehicle-back/  You Can Now File a Consumer Proposal and Bankruptcy Online in Canada: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/you-can-now-file-bankruptcy-online-in-canada/​

We've heard from the economists, statisticians, and politicians but what's really going on with everyday individuals and the state of their finances after several weeks of lock-down? On today's podcast Scott Terrio returns to talk about what he's seeing “on the ground”. How are people's stress levels? Are credit limits being reduced as a result of CERB? Who is calling in for debt help? Is there a rise in homeowner bankruptcies? Tune in for a lively discussion, including the answers to our Twitter followers' questions.   Related Links:   Ontario Bankruptcy and Consumer Proposal Statistics: https://www.hoyes.com/press/consumer-insolvency-statistics/ Hoyes Michalos Homeowners Bankruptcy Index: https://www.hoyes.com/press/homeowner-bankruptcy-index/ You Can Now File a Bankruptcy or Consumer Proposal Online in Canada: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/you-can-now-file-bankruptcy-online-in-canada/ Why You Should Bank at More Than One Bank: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/why-you-should-bank-at-more-than-one-bank/

Canadians are carrying a record level of debt, and while we are off work during the pandemic of 2020, many of us will pile on more debt. Small businesses and contractors will take on debt to pay rent while they generate little or no revenue. Consumers will take on additional debt to make their mortgage payment or pay rent, buy groceries, and pay for necessities. Unfortunately, much of this debt will be of the high-interest sub-prime variety. Payment deferrals may help in the short term, but will only add to the debt load post-COVID19. For some, the result will be an insurmountable amount of debt — more than they will ever be able to repay. It's no surprise then that people are calling for a Debt Jubilee. A debt jubilee is exactly what it sounds like: debt gets wiped out. But is this a good idea? How would it affect the economy? Would it be fair? On today's podcast, Doug Hoyes gives us an in-depth analysis of how a debt jubilee would look in 2020 and whether that's the answer to our collective debt problem. En

On episode 295 last week, Ted Michalos and Doug Hoyes said that collection agents are not making as many phone calls as they used to due to COVID-19. While that's true, there are still calls being placed. So what can you do in this crisis if you get a collection call on overdue debt? Are collectors open to a deal in these times? Enter Blair Demarco-Wettlaufer, COO at Kingston Data and Credit. On today's podcast, Blair explains how collection agencies are operating during the lock-down and shares advice for how you can negotiate realistic debt repayment. He also discusses how debt deferrals will potentially impact our credit reports and gives insights on how the collections industry will change going forward. Lots of practical tips & advice in this show so tune in!   Helpful Links:   Stop The Collection Calls: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/stop-the-collection-calls-advice-from-blair-demarco-wettlaufer/ Collection Agents: How Did They Find Me?  https://www.hoyes.com/blog/collection-agents-how-did-they-find-me/

COVID-19 is making Canadian’s financial situations increasingly precarious, and high interest lenders are seizing this chance to market their services to those in need of fast cash. Not knowing their options, desperate borrowers take the bait and get sucked into a never-ending cycle of debt servitude. On today's podcast, Doug Hoyes and Ted Michalos explain what alternative lenders are doing to present themselves as being helpful to borrowers; and what borrowers can do to make ends meet without resorting to high interest loans. Doug and Ted also talk about what happens to unsecured debt levels and personal insolvency rates in a recession, with lots of charts and data presented throughout the show, so tune in!   Related Links: Why Bad Credit Financing Loans are Seldom the Answer: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/why-bad-credit-financing-loans-are-seldom-the-answer/ You Can Now File a Bankruptcy or Consumer Proposal Online in Canada: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/you-can-now-file-bankruptcy-online-in-canada/

If you're facing an income shortage, what can you do if you need to defer your rent payment? And what's going to happen to the rental market now that more AirBnB units are being listed as long-term rentals? On today's podcast, our guest is Rachelle Berube, owner of Landlord Rescue, a property management company helping landlords find and manage tenants. Rachelle shares the dos and don'ts of requesting a rent deferral from your landlord. She also talks about how COVID-19 has impacted the rental market, the death of the AirBnB industry, and why landlords will have to set more manageable rent prices going forward. Tune in; you won't want to miss her insights! Related Links: Tenant Guide - No Rent! Negotiating https://landlordrescue.ca/tenant-guide-no-rent-negotiating/ Rachelle on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LandlordRescue Advice for Tenants Renting a Property with Bad Credit: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/advice-for-tenants-renting-a-property/

How has COVID-19, job loss, declining income, and physical distancing impacted the mortgage industry? And how are home values going to be affected by all this? Enter Ron Butler.  Ron is a seasoned mortgage broker and a first-time guest on the Debt Free in 30 podcast. On today's show, we discuss the current real estate market and what will happen when the lockdown is over; why banks are tightening HELOC availability for borrowers; and why now may not be the best time to refinance your mortgage if you are carrying unsecured debt. Ron also provides insight into the 'death' of the private mortgage industry and describes the new world of mortgage lending. There's lots to learn from this mortgage insider.  Enjoy!

Ben Rabidoux was the guest on podcast episode 266 in October 2019 where he correctly predicted lower interest rates, deflation and a weakening economy, and that was even without t foreseeing COVID-19. On today’s show he has many new predictions, including: Lenders will, very soon, lower HELOC borrowing availability, and likely convert HELOCs to regular loans requiring payments of interest and principal each month. He also predicts that residential rents will fall by 10%, and perhaps more in many markets. Many investors in second mortgages will be wiped out. Population growth will slow dramatically, and that, combined with a 95% reduction in Airbnb bookings will reduce house prices (but not immediately, because the real estate market is essentially frozen, with less buying and selling).​ It's a jam-packed episode with lots of insight and probably our longest show yet. Enjoy!   Time Stamps (if you want to skip ahead) 4:37 – The numbers are staggering; employment insurance claims could be as much as 20 times nor

The Hoyes Michalos Team is working from home, so today’s podcast was recorded yesterday morning in my guest boardroom, so the sound quality isn’t studio quality, but we wanted to get the information out to you; here’s the rundown of today’s show, with time stamps: Dealing with Creditors during Coronavirus: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/dealing-with-creditors-during-a-financial-crisis-like-the-coronavirus/ 1:15 All HMA offices closed to in person meetings, but we are working from home by phone or video 2:25 Limitations Act of Ontario suspended – creditors have more time to sue you 3:40 Right of offset – don’t bank where you owe money 5:30 How to deal with your landlord if you can’t pay your rent 6:22 Mortgage deferral – what it really means 7:24 Should I worry about my credit score? – Equifax and TransUnion offering free credit reports Links: https://www.consumer.equifax.ca/personal/products/credit-report/ and https://secure-ocs.transunion.ca/secureocs/credit-agree.html 10:58 Canada Emergency Response Benefit –

We normally record Debt Free in 30 weeks in advance, but today, given the rapidly changing situation, we decided to record a special COVID-19 episode.  We discuss what is happening right now (all 22 Hoyes Michalos offices are closed for in person meetings, but our full team is available by phone and video conference), how COVID-19 will impact the finances of Canadians (“public facing” workers for small businesses will be hardest hit), we predict how this will impact the number of bankruptcy filings, we give our practical advice for dealing with collection calls, and we end the show with why, after we get through the next few months, we are optimistic for the future.

Beau Humphreys appeared on episode 147 back in June, 2017; he shared his struggle with a gambling addiction, and that episode is one of our most downloaded episodes ever. Beau filed a consumer proposal with us in 2009, paid it off in three years, became a financial coach, and is now a fully accredited credit counsellor here at Hoyes Michalos. On today’s show Beau explains his approach to credit counselling, and he gives lots of practical advice on how he uses insolvency counselling to give our clients a fresh financial start.

Have you ever made a decision that seemed like a good idea at the time, but ended up backfiring? Today credit counsellor Diane Cunha returns, and she’s got lots of examples of bad credit decisions that can backfire, including debt consolidation loans (that don’t actually reduce your debt), high car payments, “do not pay for 24 months” deals, making multiple loan applications in a short period of time, and many more.

Should you pay someone to do your taxes, or should you just do them yourself? Simple question; what’s the answer? Scott Schaefer is here, and we’ll discuss four factors to consider: Complexity, expertise, time, and who you hire.  There is a lot of practical advice on this episode, and we end with a warning NOT to use cash back (it’s too expensive in most cases).

How do you strike a balance between your finances and your personal happiness? Enter Melissa Leong – financial expert and author of Happy Go Money. In her latest book, Melissa combines psychology and personal finance to provide an easily digestible guide to spending, budgeting, and investing. On today’s podcast, she joins Doug Hoyes to discuss why more money in the bank doesn’t correlate with happiness, how you can revamp your relationship with money, and other practical financial advice for listeners. This is a “must listen” podcast.  Enjoy!

Once a year we crunch the numbers and release our annual Hoyes Michalos Joe Debtor Bankruptcy Study.  It’s the only study that exists that looks at real numbers from actual people (it’s a study, not a survey) so every year it generates a lot of media attention.  Today’s podcast is the only interview Ted and I do together on Joe Debtor, and we explain the four key trends we identified this year: Income are up (but not because our clients are getting big pay increases). Expenses are also up, so there is less cash available to pay debt. As a result the credit profile of our clients is deteriorating, leading to more payday loans and high interest instalment loans. The student loan crises is leading to more younger people going bankrupt or filing a consumer proposal. Full explanations and more on today’s show. Full details with all of the charts can be found here: https://www.hoyes.com/press/joe-debtor/

On today’s show we have a first time guest, Richard Moxley, who explains how to win at the credit game.  He explains why the credit score you buy is not the same one your lender uses, why age matters, and what practical steps you can take to rebuild or improve your credit.

I have no idea whether or not we will have a recession soon, but whether we do or not, there are some steps you can take to prepare.  On today’s show Scott Terrio returns to discuss what causes a “personal recession”, and what steps you can take to prepare for whatever happens.

Ted Michalos returns to discuss loan scams, including advance fee loans, savings loans, and “pay off your consumer proposal” loans.  Listeners may quibble with our characterization of these loans as “scams”, but we explain why we believe they should be avoided, and we give our suggestions on better alternatives for people who want to improve their credit and are tempted to get these types of loans.

Kelley Keehn returns after a three year absence, and on today’s show we discuss some of the many interesting ideas she has in her new book, Talk Money to Me. We discuss the impact of low interest rates, whether or not she thinks budgets are a good idea, why she thinks the fourth asset class is your career, and what we need to know about the reciprocity rule. That and lots more on today’s show!

On today’s show first time guest Alexandra Macqueen, CFP explains what a reverse mortgage is, how they work, and who qualifies.  More importantly, Ms. Macqueen does not sell reverse mortgages; she’s a financial planner and university educator, so she has no vested interest in whether or not you get a reverse mortgage, so she is able to offer unbiased advice on this increasingly popular borrowing option for home-owning seniors.  Are they a good idea? That answer and more on today’s show.