debtcare.ca

Author: mgoldenberg@debtcare.ca

  • Back to School Debt Series: Global News Talks Paying off Student Loans

    Student LoansWith the back to school season in full swing, it is easy to forget what lies at the end of the tunnel in the midst of all of the excitement and anticipation, especially for those individuals taking on a post-secondary education. But what comes at the end of the road to educational betterment is often coupled with bills that can have a major impact on a person’s financial future. As the fourth and final contribution to our back to school debt series we thought we’d share an interesting article that we found that deals specifically with student debt.

    The recent Global News report, “Student debt shackles young people for years, study finds,” shed some alarming light on the status of recent graduates in Canada, and how student debt can be crippling when it comes to financial stability. The report, which looked at the impacts of the continually increasing tuition costs to students after graduation, found that “young adults owing student debt trail way behind their peers when it comes to wealth accumulation.”

    Both recent graduates in Canada and the United States are dealing with these hikes: “1 in 8 Canadian families has student loans with a median value of $10,000, only slightly less than our neighbours to the south. In 2012, Canadians owed $28.3 billion in student loans, up 44.1 per cent from 1999.” These numbers demonstrate just how vital dealing with student debt has become.

    If you are struggling to make your minimum payments on your student debt, or find yourself unable to cut down the amounts you owe even after months of payments, please contact DebtCare today. We can discuss options with you to get you out from under the shadow of that debt and get you back on the road to financial stability. Call us today at 1-888-890-0888.

  • Back to School Debt Series: Keeping Your Student Debt Down

    Student DebtLast week we started our back to school debt blog series with a blog for parents with some money saving tips for back to school. This week, we thought we’d help out those students who no longer rely on their parents for school lunches or freshly-made beds. Whether this is your first year of post-secondary education or you are a tried and true vet, use this second blog to help keep your student debt down.

    Tips and tricks to help keep your student debt down:

    1. Buy used textbooks. University and college bookstores often charge an arm and a leg for new textbooks, so check out kijiji or the bulletin boards around your school to see if anyone is selling last year’s text for less. Also, sometimes the bookstore will offer used books for less, so always try and go that route when possible.
    2. Investigate student rates on things like cell phones, banking, etc. Many institutions provide discounted rates for students, so find out – this can save you a ton of money.
    3. Avoid the cafeteria if possible. When it comes to post-secondary life and you live off-campus, one of the biggest costs is food, especially if you are in a dorm room that doesn’t have its own kitchen. However, as convenient as it might be to just head to the food court, these costs can quickly add up. Check out the shared kitchen facilities and invest in a mini-fridge. Also, if you are close enough to home, rely on those care packages to keep your belly and your wallet full.
    4. Carpool. Heading home for the weekend or into town for errands, etc.? Find someone else who is also going your way and share the driving and the gas costs.
    5. Search out cheap/free entertainment. Many educational institutions offer free entertainment to students, such as movie nights, seminars, discounted pub crawls or other such entertainment. Always keep an eye out for these offerings. Grab a group of friends and make a night of it.

    Sometimes it is easy to ignore the growing costs of post-secondary education. Tuition seems to increase at an alarming rate, and sometimes the choice to stay at home and study locally is not as attractive as moving out, and therefore the only option is to bite the bullet and watch those amounts climb. That being said, take some time to consider the ways that you can keep your costs down using the above noted tips.

    Struggling to keep your student debt down, or dealing with the debt now that school is over? DebtCare can help. Call us today at 1-888-890-0888.

  • Back to School Debt Series: Money Saving Tips for Parents on a Budget

    Money Saving TipsThis time of year often ranks up there with Christmas as far as outright spending, and for many parents, the back to school season can take a major toll of the current standing of your bank account. This is especially true for those trying to get out of debt or looking for debt relief. So, to help you out, we’ve compiled a list of our top 5 money saving tips for back to school shopping! Good luck.

    Money Saving Tips for Parents on a Budget:

    –        Shop at home first. Often a great deal of what your child needs for the back to school season you already own. Get creative and repurpose old items to make them new again.

    –        Buy in bulk and make brown bag lunches. Go big on veggies and fruit as these are often cheaper and go farther than boxes of pre-packaged snacks. This is also a healthier alternative compared to having kids buy snacks or lunch at school.

    –        Wait to find out what kids need before purchasing what you assume to be the essentials. Many teachers will send home list of what is required, but if they don’t, send a note along with your child and ask. Also, make use of last year’s items, including pencils, pencil crayons, calculators and backpacks. And always shop around. The big box stores may not actually offer the best prices. Check the dollar store – after all, a pencil is a pencil no matter where you buy it.

    –        Check flyers for back to school shopping deals. Also, even though you might be tempted and kids are anxious, it can sometimes save you money to buy after the initial back to school rush. Buy end of season articles that are on sale and limit big ticket items as much as possible.

    –        Hold a shopping swap. Trading clothes with parents of like-aged kids, especially the younger ones that outgrow clothes so quickly, can also be a great way to save. Check social media and join online swap groups in your area – chances are you are not the only one looking to save money at this incredibly expensive time of year.

    Don’t let the back to school season cause you any undue financial stress. Use these tips to cut costs and keep everyone happy.

    For more money saving tips, for back to school shopping or at any time of the year, please contact DebtCare Canada today by calling 1-888-890-0888.

  • Debt Relief: Creating a Weekly Financial Checklist

    Debt ReliefWe can all use a little help sometimes, and when it comes to financial planning, some of us are more likely than others to need that helping hand. If you are struggling with debt and need some debt relief, there are countless ways that this can be done – but sometimes it starts with a little push at home. Thinking about debt relief and actually finding it are often two different things, and so it is helpful just to have a starting point.

    Here is that starting point. Use this debt relief weekly financial checklist for September and see just how much you can accomplish on your own! Take some time at the beginning of each week and work through these points.

    First week of September: Sit down and create a budget. Include all of your monthly expenses (and we mean all) and all of your monthly income. Make a chart that will help you better determine where your extra cash is going, and think about the best ways to bring that expense number down. Set out jars with cash for each category of expense and live strictly on cash for the month, setting aside the amount that meets your expenses, but on a budget.

    Second week of September: Check your credit report. When you start to pay off debt and subsequently rebuild your credit, one of the most important things that you can do is check your current credit status. This is actually something that you should do a few times a year, not only to see where you stand credit-wise, but also to ensure that all information contained within your credit report is accurate. If it is not, you need to deal with discrepancies immediately.

    Third week of September: Devise a long-term plan to pay off your debt. If most of your debt is in the form of credit cards, think about paying off the one with the highest interest rate first – after all, it is the one that is actually costing you the most money.

    Fourth week of September: Go back to that chart created at the beginning of the month and see how well you were able to stick to it. Take any money accumulated from leftovers in the jars and put it right onto your debt. Give yourself a pat on the back, and get ready for next month!

    If your leftover cash wasn’t what you had hoped, or following the budget was just a bit too difficult, it might be time to head to a professional for some help. DebtCare has you covered. Call us today at 1-888-890-0888.

  • Fast Cash = Big Problems: The Notorious Payday Loan

    Payday LoanIt seems as though payday loans are becoming alarmingly more prevalent for many individuals looking for a quick financial fix. But borrower beware: if you are considering a payday loan to help with some upcoming bills, or to make a big-budget purchase, you might want to think again.

    There has been a great deal in the news lately, and for good reason, regarding the actual borrowing consequences for payday loans. Sure, $100 for $20, as their advertisements typically claim, may sound like an okay deal, but in the long term, these loans are far too often much more costly than they initially appear to be. Payday lenders are actually quite infamous for their sky-high interest rates, thus their propensity for sending borrowers into a self-destructive cycle of debt that can be incredibly hard to get out of.

    Here is an example of why: It is the end of the month, and payday is not for another week, but you find yourself strapped for cash with a few bills still outstanding and no way to cover them. Looking for some fast cash, you head to a payday loan centre and leave with $1000 in about 15 minutes, after agreeing to terms of $20/$100 (so about $200 to cover the entire loan). Time goes by, and everything seems good at the end of the month, but then you realize you are on the hook for that cash. If you were strapped last month, the chances are quite high that things will be the same again this month. That means re-borrowing the money, and again paying that $200, and again being on the hook at the end of the month.

    See the problem? The cycle is one that far too many people find themselves stuck in repeatedly, and without additional funds, can’t get out of. If you have been considering just how attractive these easy-to-get loans seem to be, you might also want to seriously consider, firstly, why they are so easy to get, and secondly, what the long term impacts are if you are not 100% certain you’ll be able to pay them back in a short period of time.

    So what are your options if you are already stuck in the revolving payday loan of your nightmares? Well, you have a few options. If a payday loan is just one of your financial worries, and is more like the proverbial cherry on top of your rotten debt sundae, you might think about the benefits of a consumer proposal or bankruptcy. And, since a payday loan is a form of unsecured debt, it is often included in a bankruptcy or consumer proposal.

    For more about how bad payday loans actually are, or for other debt help, DebtCare Canada is here to help you. Contact us today by calling 1-888-890-0888.

  • Say Goodbye to Credit Card Debt

    Credit Card DebtWith Canada’s consumer debt continuing to rise, although at a slower rate, it is no surprise when individuals come to us looking for credit card debt relief. The ease with which credit card companies extend credit, even to those with less than stellar credit, and with credit limits far exceeding what is necessary, it can be really easy to get in over your head relatively quickly. And with all of that spending, at month’s end, or a few months down the road, you might find yourself in the common position of wondering how you are ever going to pay down those debts!

    Because they carry such high interest rates, and because the balance is revolving (meaning once you have paid off a portion, that credit becomes available again), credit cards are often the most difficult types of debt to pay off. But there is always hope. Start by paying more than the minimum payment each month, as much as you can. The minimum payment is typically little more than interest, and therefore not much is actually going onto the principal.

    Don’t have enough extra each month to pay that much more than the minimum on more than one card? One of the best ways to deal with this situation is to start with the card with the highest interest rate and pay as much as possible. Since this card is costing you the most, work harder at paying it off. Once it is paid off, move to the one with the next highest rate.

    So how can you cut down that monthly spending in order to find the cash to add to each month’s payment and cut down your credit card debt? What about taking advantage of these useful, but all too often ignored, money saving strategies:

    –        Have a yard sale – you have all of that stuff lying around anyways – why not get rid of it and make some money in the process.

    –        Save your change – when you empty your pockets, instead of using that money tomorrow, put it in a jar and save it up – you might be surprised how fast it actually grows.

    –        Make your own lunch and brew your own coffee – sure, this might mean a bit of extra time and effort, but just think about the fact that that $2 a day coffee habit is actually costing you $40 a month!

    –        Coupon clip – check the flyers, look online, and search for deals in store. Again, this might take a bit of extra time but the savings in your pocket can actually be well worth it!

    –        Visit the library – don’t think that the theatre or overpriced bookstore are your only options for entertainment. Your local library probably has a great selection that is largely underused – and free!!

    –        Plan your meals and groceries in advance – buying everything at once lets you take advantage of bulk buys, and can mean useful ways to stretch the budget and the food.

    Credit card debt can be a nightmare to deal with, but with the right support and guidance it is possible to pay it off. DebtCare can help. Call us today at 1-888-890-0888.

  • Know the Difference: Secured Versus Unsecured Debt

    IUnsecured Debtn the world of finance, there are so many different types of debt that it can be really tough to wrap your head around those differences. Furthermore, when you find yourself struggling to make the minimum payments or trying diligently to get out of debt those subtle differences can be easy to ignore. In an effort to help you make some sense of those differences, we thought we’d take the time to explain two of the most common types, secured and unsecured debt, and what those differences mean to you.

    Secured Debt: When a debt is secured, this means that an asset has been used as collateral when borrowing the money. This gives the lender more security and reduces his/her risk against default. When you take out a secured debt, but fail to make payments on it, the lender then has a recourse to secure the money owed (usually that means selling that asset to recover the losses).

    For most people, the largest secured loan is a mortgage. When you take out a mortgage, this loan is secured by the house itself. However, there are several other types of common secured debts, including car loans or loans secured by investments (i.e. property).

    In bankruptcy, most secured loans are not released, meaning they are not covered by the bankruptcy contract, and thus if you claim bankruptcy these are not included in the term or payments.

    Unsecured Debt: When a debt is unsecured, this typically means that there is no security behind a loan, and thus the lender runs a higher risk of not recovering their money if you default on a loan. Since there is more risk, this usually means that the interest rate on unsecured debt is significantly higher than secured debt.

    There are several types of unsecured debt, but the most common is credit card debt. Other types include student loans, payday loans, or other bills (i.e. utilities).

    Unlike a secured debt where your creditor can just use the collateral to recoup their losses, with unsecured debt this is not an option. However, they may use other avenues, such as a collection agency, garnishing your wages, or placing a lien on your assets until you have paid off the debt.

    In bankruptcy, these are the types of debts that are included, and thus wiped out in exchange for a monthly payment in bankruptcy.

    When you are in debt, it usually makes sense to pay off more of those secured debts first because there is often more to lose if you default on these. However, when looking to make larger than minimum payments, start with the unsecured debts because they often carry much higher interest rates.

    For more about secured vs. unsecured debt, and how to prioritize when trying to get out of debt, please contact DebtCare Canada today by calling 1-888-890-0888.

  • Globe and Mail: Why Teaching Your Teens to Stay Debt Free Matters

    Stay Debt FreeWith an often unstable job market, and huge tuition rates, it has become a trend over the last few decades for kids to rely more on their parents financially than ever before. Gone are the days of kids turning 18 and leaving the house (and your wallet debt free) for good. Longer stays at home after high school or returning to the nest after post-secondary has become more common these days, and parents are really starting to feel the financial pressure.

    According to a recent Globe and Mail article, “Plan to Retire? You May Need to Pay Your Gen Y Kids’ Debts First,” the trends with regard to financial dependence are quite startling, and parents are finding themselves dealing with not only their own debt, but that of their adult children as well. And those children are admitting to having come to expect it.

    How parents are helping:

    • Pay off their student loans: 37 per cent of poll participants said their parents had done this, or that they expected this.
    • Pay their bills: This is happening with 42 per cent of 20- to 24-year-olds, 28 per cent of 25- to 29-year-olds and 17 per cent of 30- to 33-year-olds.
    • Buy a home: One in four said parents have helped with a down payment, or will.

    Savings, in the past, that were accumulated after the kids had flown the coop, usually from the mid-50s to retirement, used to sustain parents through the retirement years. Now however, in an effort to assist their children, those saving years (and the savings themselves) are dwindling, leaving very little amassed at the end.

    Living debt free has become a far less common way of life, especially for the younger generations, and parents finding themselves saddled with bills that are not their own can become disheartened very quickly.

    For more about debt free solutions, either for yourself or your children, as well as saving and spending tips that won’t leave you calculating desperately in the end, please contact DebtCare Canada today by calling 1-888-890-0888.

  • Take Action to Get Out of Debt: Tips and Tricks

    Get Out of DebtDebt free: a highly attractive yet increasingly unattainable lifestyle for the average Canadian. No matter how you slice it, consumer debt has become a major problem for many individuals, and whether as a result of job loss, divorce, student debt, or just overzealous spending, many now find themselves trying to dig themselves out of a fair-sized financial hole that often seems more like a bottomless pit.

    Ok, wait. We are not just going to saddle you with negatives and not offer some useful advice. We are, after all, here to help. So, with that in mind, here is a realistic list of tips to help you get back on the road to financial freedom.

    1. Make a monthly budget. We absolutely cannot stress this enough. It is the best, really the only, place to start when it comes to ways to get out of debt. Once you realize how much you take in each month, and compare it to how much you spend, you will actually have a better idea where your money is going, and how you can decrease certain amounts. And be realistic – don’t attempt to cut out all spending – no one can do that.
    2. Stick to that budget. Become a savvy shopper and curb needless spending whenever and wherever possible. Look for sales whenever possible and take advantage of money saving incentives.
    3. Stop paying just the minimum payments. Take any money saved thanks to your new budget and put it all on those debts. Since most minimum payments on credit cards are interest, making the minimum payment really is making the minimum payment. Give as much as you can to those creditors.
    4. Work on those high interest credit cards. When you are overwhelmed with credit card debt and trying to decide which debts to eliminate first, always take a look at interest. If one card is 15% interest and another is 25%, think about how much money you are contributing to the principal and how much is just empty interest.
    5. Seek out some debt help. Once you have tried to implement the above changes, but feel as though you are still left in a precarious financial position, it might be time to seek some professional assistance. An organization that can offer you various options to get out of debt might be your best solution.

    Stop struggling and start swimming above water. It can often seem impossible to get out of debt if you are drowning, so start with these 5 tips and see just how far diligence can take you.

    For more tips or for help getting out of debt please contact DebtCare today by calling 1-888-890-0888.

  • DebtCare’s Karen Goldenberg Made a Member of the Order of Canada

    Karen Goldenberg

    DebtCare is proud to announce that our own Karen Goldenberg, C.M., Director of Community Outreach at DebtCare Canada, has been made a Member of the Order of Canada. This prestigious award  recognizes a lifetime of achievement and commitment, and Karen’s work in developing the DebtCare public education program and our community outreach initiatives has been a great source of pride for the entire DebtCare family. Congratulations Karen!