Did summer fun blow your budget right out of the water? It happens to millions of people. Summer is a carefree time and a time to spend with family and friends. Budgeting takes a back seat as we focus on fun.
But then reality settles in and we realize we went over budget and now have to recover, but how?
Continue reading “Recover from Summer Spending Using these Steps”
If you lost control of your finances this summer, you aren’t alone. After the year we had in 2020, many of us felt like letting loose and living life to its fullest. After all, the pandemic showed us just how short life can be.
But as you tally up your finances and get ready for the upcoming holidays, you might find that you spent too much this summer.
Now what?
You’ve taken the first step, admitting there’s a problem, and now it’s time for the solutions.
Continue reading “Did you Spend too Much this Summer?”
Canadians have many financial worries thanks to the pandemic, of which the largest issue right now is interest rates.
During the heart of the pandemic, we saw the lowest interest rates available in decades. This made it easy for millions to get in over their head in debt. Whether it’s consumer debt (credit cards) or mortgage debt, millions are wondering how they’ll make ends meet.
What caused this?
Continue reading “Pandemic Anxiety – What Should you Do?”
You have a debt with a collection agency, but you wonder if/when they are crossing the line. What rights do they have and more importantly, what rights do you have for managing the collection?
We answer your most pressing collection agency questions below.
There are laws regarding how often and what time collection agencies can call you. In most provinces, they can call between the hours of 7 AM to 9 PM, but it may vary slightly by province one hour each way.
Continue reading “The Top 5 Answers about Collection Agencies”
If you’re a senior with debt, you may feel like you’re up a headed up a creek without a paddle. Living on a fixed income makes it hard to take care of anything except your daily costs of living, but fortunately, there are ways to work out your debt so you have peace of mind and can enjoy your golden years.
Here are the simple steps to take.
First, get an honest look at your situation. Don’t sugarcoat it, that won’t get you anywhere. Pull out all bank statements and credit card statements. Categorize your spending and total up your debt.
Continue reading “Senior Debt Forgiveness – What you Must Know”
Summer is a time for fun and vacation, but bad habits can quickly put you into debt for temporary fun. If you’re trying to stay out of debt, there are plenty of ways to have summer fun while staying within your budget.
Becoming tourists in your hometown is one of the best ways to have the best of both worlds. You can have fun and save money. You don’t have to pay the high hotel costs or even need money to eat out. You have the comforts of your own home, yet can venture out and be ‘tourists’ in your area.
You can even keep it free by visiting national parks, hiking local trails, visiting museums on ‘free museum days,’ and using your library’s resources (many offer free passes to local attractions).
If you want to head out of town for a true vacation feel, travel to areas where you have friends and see if you can bunk at their place. If you don’t have friends who live out of town or at least where you want to visit, consider traveling with friends and splitting the cost of a rented house versus paying inflated hotel costs.
You don’t have to be a resident to take advantage of local deals, and do your research before you go. Many tourist service centers have coupon books for travelers, but you can also look on Groupon or the area’s local chamber of commerce page.
Find out where the deals are, including Happy Hour, buy one get one free deals, or even free times to enter attractions (sometimes going to attractions a couple of hours before they close) are all great ways to save money.
Back to school spending is inevitable. As parents, we do it every year, and yet every year it sneaks up on us, right? Even in 2020, most parents had extra expenses to send their kids back to school, even if it was at home.
This year, let’s do something different and budget for the return to school spending so it doesn’t catch you off guard.
Continue reading “Budgeting for Back to School”
Parents can’t wait until the days of no more alarms or harping on kids about homework, but then there’s all the free time summer creates. Without schedules and structure, it can feel overwhelming and if you aren’t careful, you may forget about budgeting and spend money just to keep your kids occupied.
Rather than throwing all caution to the wind this summer, plan a staycation. This way you’ll have fun planned for your family without the expenses of a vacation and the rest of the summer won’t feel as unstructured.
Before you plan a staycation, though, learn the top budgeting techniques to make it affordable.
Continue reading “Summertime Staycation Planning & Budgeting”If you’re in over your head in debt, you may hold back from doing anything about it. Is it fear? Is it embarrassment or a bit of both? In a world where we broadcast just about every aspect of our lives online, debt is one area we don’t speak about even in person.
We look on as we think others are ‘successful’ not knowing the truth behind the perfectly chosen pictures. The fact is the average consumer has $23,800 in consumer debt, not including the mortgage.
If you’re ready to do something about your debt, but worry about fear and embarrassment holding you back, read on.
Continue reading “Are Fear and Embarrassment Holding You Back from Consolidating Your Debt?”
If you’re feeling financial stress, you not alone. Over half of Canadians are within arm’s reach of financial insolvency thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. The numbers are at a five-year high and don’t seem to be falling anytime soon.
Millions of Canadians wiped out their savings accounts during the heart of the pandemic and others relied on credit cards to make ends meet. But where does that leave them today?
If you’re coming off a job loss, shuttered business, or increase in bills, bankruptcy may seem like the only answer, but it’s not. Here’s what to do instead.
Continue reading “Canadians on the Brink of Bankruptcy – Here’s what to Do”