Debt Free In 30

Many seniors are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet. Our 2017 Joe Debtor study showed that the total number of debtors who are seniors is now 12%, up from 2015's 10% and up again from 2013's 8%. With fixed incomes, potential long-term care options and adult children to think about, there are a lot of ways seniors can end up in debt. My guest today is Vanessa Benedict, a Wealth Advisor with one of the largest banks in Canada. Vanessa's job covers everything from estate planning, financial planning and investment portfolios. Vanessa has many seniors as clients and is always surprised when someone in their 60's still has significant mortgage debt. These are people who saw their parents live so frugally and wanted more for themselves, and for their children. But how much is too much, and who do you turn to for advice? All that and more on today’s show.

Struggling financially is difficult for anyone. It can be exceptionally stressful if you're a single parent trying to juggle your finances, work, and parenting all on your own. Without a partner you're solely responsible for the fate of your family. My guest today is here to talk about how going through insolvency as a single parent feels, and how she overcame her debt. Her name and personal information are kept anonymous for confidentiality reasons so we'll call her Joan. Joan was a working professional with a job on Bay Street. Like many Bay Street positions, Joan was making a very good salary. Shortly after Joan celebrated her 50th birthday, work at her office was slow and she was downsized. On today’s show we hear her story, and how a consumer proposal helped her deal with her debts.

Welcome to the second edition of our Debt Free in 30 News You Can Use round table. Our first one aired in January 2017 and covered Walmart vs. VISA, 2017 Debt Repayment Predictions, Bank of Canada Warnings and Paid Promotions vs. Personal Finance Advice. This month we have a whole new panel of experts and a whole new stock of stories to cover. Today's guests are Blair Mantin from Sands & Associates in British Columbia, Daniel Budd from M. Diamond & Associates in Montreal, and Ian Penny from Janes & Noseworthy in Newfoundland & Labrador. As you might have guessed from the firm names, we are all Licensed Insolvency Trustees. Specific bankruptcy details vary from province to province and we're all facing different economic factors depending on where you are in the country. Our panel of experts today provides insight from coast to coast.

My guest today is Shamez Kassam, a financial advisor based in Calgary who has just published his first book, Your Money’s Worth: The Essential Guide to Financial Advice for Canadians. Shamez wanted to write a book that acted as a road map for how the Canadian financial advice industry worked. There's only so much you can learn within the traditional educational institutions. Shamez himself tried learning on his own before losing it all in the tech bubble. That's when he decided to go back and do his MBA in New York. The Millennial Conundrum Younger generations or anyone who is just starting out have a lot of challenges to overcome to succeed financially. Debt loads are high, job security is low, and student debt is higher than ever. Our Joe Debtor study found that millennials are the most likely of all age groups to use payday loans. So they're not only operating within unsecured territory, but they're adding volatile, high-interest debts to their list of challenges.  We discuss this and more on today’s show.

Earlier this week, our firm Hoyes, Michalos & Associates launched our 2017 study of Joe Debtor. Joe Debtor is a report on the average insolvent Ontarian that we publish every two years. This year marks our sixth published study, which means we have a lot of comparative data and can identify trends. We're increasingly seeing a certain type of Ontarian filing insolvency. Although we have Ontarians from all income levels filing either a consumer proposal or bankruptcy, there are certain vulnerable debtors who are more likely to declare themselves insolvent. Key findings from our study: Joe Debtor's take-home income is 41% below the median Ontario household income He is using most of his income to pay for necessities, not luxuries Joe Debtor has just $302 a month available for unsecured debt repayment - but that debt carries an estimated interest cost of $960 a month Who Are the Vulnerable Debtors? We're seeing an increase in certain demographics based on our findings year-over-year. We'll post demographic-

On Debt Free in 30 I interview many debt experts, but I don't often have the opportunity to speak with someone who has actually dealt directly with their own debt issues. We have conversations with clients every day, but it's very rare that one wants to open up about their story and help others from one debtor to another. My guest today is Dana Pharant. Dana operated a successful business that was doing more than a million dollars in sales. The business unfortunately experienced three major catastrophes, including a large customer stiffing her on the bill, and Dana turned to her personal credit to support her business. With more personal debt than she could handle, Dana reached out to the professionals at Hoyes Michalos in January 2012. We discussed her options with her and she decided to file a consumer proposal. Dana is pleased to report that in just a few months her consumer proposal will be paid in full. Like most clients, Dana weighed her options before making the decision to file.  On today’s show she d

My guest on show #131 was Victoria Ryce, co-author, with Gail Vaz-Oxlade, of a new book, CEO of Everything: Flying Solo and Soaring, that deals with how to cope with becoming suddenly single. On that show we talked in detail about the emotional aspects of becoming separated, divorced, or widowed, and Victoria had a lot of practical advice for either the person who is now single, or for people who have loved ones who are suddenly single. Click here to listen to show #131. In many relationships, one person manages the money while the other is happy simply being kept in the loop or ignoring the money completely. This is very common, so one of the challenges when you become unexpectedly single is that you are now in charge of everything. Your first priority will be to "take stock" and make sure you have access to funds for day-to-day living. But what's the next step? What if you get a life insurance payout, or a divorce settlement? What should you do with the money? Victoria has some surprising advice: the correc

In 2016 the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) received 77,348 mass marketing fraud complaints with a total reported dollar loss of $99,198,188. That's a big number, but CAFC believes that fewer than 5% of victims file a report. It's likely that because of the unreported instances, victims lost approximately $2 billion in Canada due to mass market fraud in 2016. Fraudsters keep coming up with new scams, so it's important to be aware of the new scams, and understand how to protect yourself and your loved ones. To find out how to recognize the new scams and protect yourself, I'm pleased to welcome Kelley Keehn back to our show. Kelley was my guest back on show #75 where we discussed a book she wrote for the CPA Institute Protecting You and Your Money: A Guide To Avoiding Identity Theft and Fraud. Kelley has published eight books, co-hosted a TV show, regularly contributes to publications like The Globe & Mail, and has had numerous TV appearances including as the personal finance expert on The Marilyn Denis S

How could you cope if, due to divorce or the death of your partner, you became suddenly single? That question is the theme of a new book, CEO of Everything, Flying Solo and Soaring, co-authored by Gail Vaz-Oxlade and my guest today, Victoria Ryce.  As they say in their book, the biggest adjustment when you become suddenly single is that: Everything in the house is now your job: when the smoke alarm starts beeping, when the water stops flowing, when the microwave blows ups, you must act.  Grass will grow and you will cut it.  Snow will fall and you will shovel it.  The cat will puke on the carpet and you will clean it up. As a suddenly single person you worry about what people will think, whether or not you will lose your friends, and whether or not you will always be alone.  Sudden changes are emotionally draining. What's Victoria’s advice to stay sane and regain control?  All that and more on today’s show.

We have a crisis and it's called payday loans. At Hoyes Michalos we believe payday loans are a real problem because all too often they create a vicious cycle of debt. We also don't believe that recent efforts by the Ontario Government have been enough to deal with the hidden truth behind payday loans:  already indebted Ontarians are borrowing multiple payday loans, from multiple payday lenders at the same time, and this is contributing to a record rate of payday loan induced insolvencies. How we know this is because every two years we analyze data from actual insolvencies to find out why someone files insolvency.  We call this our Joe Debtor study.  Part of our study includes a detailed dig into payday loan use by Joe Debtor so that we can isolate the behaviour and profile of the average insolvent payday loan user. Our data points to four startling findings: 1 in 4 insolvent debtors had at least one payday loan at the time they filed a bankruptcy or consumer proposal. The average insolvent payday loan borrow

Sean Cooper returns to the podcast today to talk about his new book, Burn Your Mortgage, to be published on March 1, 2017.  Sean worked up to 80 hours a week for many years to save for a down payment, and then he managed to pay off his mortgage in less than four years.  He held a mortgage burning party that was covered by the CBC, and that's where the fun began.   Some people applauded his frugal lifestyle, but others said that it's not realistic to work that hard just to pay off a mortgage quicker, earning him a lot of online haters, which is where I got involved in the story when I was interviewed by the CBC in a follow up article. I believe that some of Sean's strategies will work for some people; the key is to listen to his ideas and apply what you are able to do, given your financial situation.  As Sean Cooper says, the starting point is "setting a goal, because for so many people what keeps them from being homeowners is they're not able to come up with that down payment." On today's show Sean Cooper t

Is it true that if you just ignore an old debt it will go away? Not exactly. There are a few misconceptions about the Ontario Limitations Act. This week's Technical Tidbits edition of Debt Free in 30 will help separate the fact from fiction. Let's start with what we know We all know that if you don't pay a debt, you will get collection calls and, perhaps, have your wages garnisheed. So yes you can ignore a debt, but it may lead to collection actions. Doing nothing isn't generally a good option. If you don't have a job, you don't need to worry about wage garnishments. But that doesn't mean that you can simply ignore a debt and have it go away. Full details on today's Technical Tidbits edition of Debt Free in 30.

Losing a job is very difficult. Whether you're a single adult or have a family that relies on your pay cheque, job loss can be devastating. The most important thing you can do for yourself, and for your finances, is to move past it. Today's guest provides practical steps to move ahead financially and put yourself in the best possible position. David Trahair is a Chartered Professional Accountant and author of several books. You may remember David from shows #25 and #90 where he discussed some of his previous books. His newest book Survive and Thrive, Move Ahead Financially After Losing Your Job, discusses job loss from all levels. Emotional, psychological, financial, and educational challenges that recently unemployed people face. CPA Canada sees a need for this book and has decided to finance it and give it away free. No cost to it, you just download a free PDF version of the book. Share it with whoever you think may need it.

Welcome to a special edition of Debt Free in 30. This week, instead of featuring one industry expert we're giving you four (including myself, of course). In today's show our panel of experts will answer questions on four recent issues within the personal finance realm. Each expert brings something different to the table, which gives us a well rounded view at these issues from all angles. Today's guests are Barton Goth, a Licensed Insolvency Trustee. Barton is joining us today from Edmonton, Alberta where he owns and operates his firm Goth & Company. We have personal finance expert Robert Brown, author of Wealthing Like Rabbits joining us from Ajax, Ontario. Lastly, we have my Hoyes Michalos co-founder Ted Michalos joining me here at our head office in Kitchener, Ontario. Today we discuss four stories in the news: Walmart vs. Visa CIBC Survey: Will Canadians Pay Down Their Debt in 2017? Bank of Canada Issues Warning to Consumers Paid Promotion and Financial Advice

If you are like most Canadians, you dream of a long and enjoyable retirement. Is it possible to retire early and achieve that by the age of 48?  While it is an anomaly, my guest today did just that. Bob Lassaline worked for 30 years and retired when he was 48 years old. He is 80 years old today, so he has been officially retired for longer than he was employed. How did he do it? Full details are in the podcast.

This is our last show before Donald Trump officially becomes the President of the United States of America. That’s a scary thought for many people. I have no opinion on whether he will be a great President or a great disaster – I’m a Canadian, so that’s not my worry. I am interested in how President Trump’s policies will impact Canada. Even the experts don’t know what will happen; how could they? None of them predicted that Trump would win the election, so the future is uncertain. We made some predictions on last week's podcast. My guess is that interest rates will increase, trade with the U.S. may become more difficult, and that may impact Canada. The prudent course of action is to reduce your debt now, so that you are protected from higher interest rates. Of greater interest to me, as an observer from Canada, is how Donald Trump used various tricks to convince Americans to vote for him. These tricks are the same tricks that advertisers use to get us to buy their products, so learning these tricks can help

Canadians have always had a strong relationship with our southern neighbours. We escape the winter, they explore new places, and we support each other's economy. We also partake in cross-border shopping. Americans hop the border with their strong dollar and purchase goods from Canada. Canadians cross over and grab great sales at major U.S. retailers, but depending on how we pay, we're racking up U.S. debts. Some of these purchases are made on our own Canadian credit cards, but some are made using U.S. store credit cards. Those who live closer to the border have an even stronger relationship with the U.S. Depending on their industry, some Canadians work in the U.S., but live in Canada. When the U.S. has a strong dollar, it makes sense for Canadians as their take home pay is higher than what they would make in Canada. This is great if the U.S. economy stays strong, but when it waivers, it's not so good. Today we discuss what happens with U.S. debts when you have financial problems in Canada, with my guest, Lice

2016 was a year we won't soon forget, and early indications are that 2017 will also be very eventful, so it's time to review the events of 2016 and make our predictions for 2017. Consumer debt reached record levels in 2016, and so did the Toronto real estate market.  As Ted Michalos says on today's show: There is no capacity to save, there's no capacity for anything to go wrong. It's just a dangerous scenario waiting to unfold. We discussed the trends that we see with our own clients. A lot of the people we meet are working multiple jobs, just trying to make ends meet. Jobs in Canada have increased in 2016, but the growth was in part-time positions. From November 2015 to November 2016 Canada added 214,000 part-time positions, but full-time jobs declined by 30,500. They're incurring more debt to make up the difference in the fact that their expenses have gone up but their income hasn’t kept pace. So, what can the average Canadian do to help keep themselves in the black? That’s what we discuss on today’s podcas

It’s the holiday season, so today we have no industry experts, and we won’t talk about numbers.  Instead, our focus is on real people with real financial problems. Money problems are nothing new.  In fact, back during the Great Depression, financial problems were rampant, and that’s when a song written in 1930 became very popular. Brother, Can You Spare a Dime tells the story of man who was building a dream, but the dream ended.  What happened?  That’s our story today on Debt Free in 30.

Our guest today is Georgia Graham, Programs Manager of WEST (Women's Enterprise Skills Training). Their mission is to improve the employability of women in Windsor-Essex County. WEST completed their own study which focused on identifying their community's financial needs, and whose results paralleled our own. The study Women's Financial Preparedness: Bridging the Divide in Windsor-Essex found that women were less knowledgeable than men when it came to financial products and financial indicators. WEST's Needs Assessment Study concluded that there were three main vulnerable groups within Windsor-Essex. These vulnerable groups of women struggle to not only become, but to maintain a moderate level of financial preparedness.