Debt Free In 30

Our guest on today’s podcast, Ben Rabidoux is the President of North Cove Advisors, a macro research firm that works with institutional investors like mutual fund companies, hedge funds, and pensions, providing a broad view of the economy at any time. Today he visits Debt Free in 30 to share his insights on the current status and future of the Canadian housing market (and it’s not pretty).

As our economy in Canada has evolved so has the nature of most people’s employment. Downsizing and outsourcing has become more prevalent, stable jobs have become more scarce, and more people are becoming self employed. While the freedom and potential for success are great, being self-employed brings it's own challenges when it comes to managing business debts. On this week's podcast I talk with Ian Martin, Scott Schaefer and Ted Michalos about the potential debt problems that entrepreneurs and self-employed persons might face and provide tips that can help you avoid these common small business mistakes when it comes to managing your finances. I also talk with our experts about how to deal with one of the most common business debts: tax debts owing to Canada Revenue Agency.

Payday loans are expensive. Lenders charge a ridiculously high interest rate and demand repayment in one balloon payment. Inevitably, this traps some payday loan borrowers into a debt cycle. As a result, the Ontario government is reviewing current payday loan legislation and it's considering changes. In today's show, Ted Michalos, my partner and co-founder, joins me to discuss some of the suggested changes, our own recommendations for the government, and which payday loan alternatives to consider before taking out one of these high interest loans. Conventional wisdom says the following about payday loans: the interest rate is too high, well above the maximum rate of 60% set out in the criminal code of Canada, and this causes a financial problem for payday loan users; people turn to payday loans because they have a low income, can't access traditional credit and need a payday loan to cover necessities like rent, utilities and groceries. I beg to differ with this wisdom. While the interest rate is certainly a

If you are struggling with debt, how do you know which debt relief option is right for you? Both consumer proposals and bankruptcies have similar benefits, but the length and cost are different. On today’s podcast Ted Michalos, compares various aspects of filing a consumer proposal vs bankruptcy.

Are you planning for retirement? Have you started to save? Do you know how much you need? If not, then today’s podcast is for you. My guest, David Trahair, stops by to discuss his new book, The Procrastinator's Guide to Retirement: How You Can Retire in 10 Years or Less, and provides tips for Canadians who’ve delayed saving for retirement.

Is Canadian real estate due for a crash? On today's show, I speak with Hilliard MacBeth, a portfolio manager and author of When the Bubble Bursts: Surviving the Canadian Real Estate Crash, who thinks the Canadian housing bubble is about to burst. Hilliard notes that there are four symptoms of a bubble: A period of rapidly rising prices People telling each other stories about why the price increase makes sense People experiencing regret that they didn’t get into the market earlier, or the fear of missing out – i.e. if they don’t get into the market now, they never will The media starts to talk about the bubble He mentions that there is a prevailing myth that only Vancouver and Toronto are in a real estate bubble, when in fact the bubble exists across Canada. While incomes have only risen by 15% in the last 15 years and inflation has been under 2% for a long time, house prices have tripled. Considering that houses are paid for with income, the ratio of house-price-to-income has become so stretched that the bu

On today’s show we discuss a common question: if I have some extra money, should I pay off my debt, or use it to invest?  In some cases the answer is easy.  If you owe money on a credit card with a 29% interest rate, and your investment will earn 1%, you should obviously pay off your credit card. But what if your debt is a low interest mortgage, and you think you can earn a greater rate of return on an investment.  Than what? That’s the question we asked Sean Cooper (famous for paying off his mortgage in just over 3 years), and Ted Michalos, all on today’s Debt Free in 30.

Today I ask a question that generates a lot of debate on our Facebook page: what happens if you stop paying your debts? More specifically, what happens if you stop paying your debts and you are not in a consumer proposal or bankruptcy? To help me delve deeper into this topic, Ted Michalos, my partner and co-founder of Hoyes, Michalos & Associates, joins me to discuss the various outcomes of not paying your debts.

Often, I share advice about how to get out of debt and live debt free. But, what if you've already eliminated your debt and you're ready to get back on track? What's next? Today, I am going to share tips on how to rebuild credit after a consumer proposal or bankruptcy. First, I don’t advise that anyone, after completing a consumer proposal or bankruptcy, jump right in and start borrowing again. If you can live without debt, that’s great! However, in today’s modern economy, you might need or want access to credit. And if you want to borrow and keep your interest costs low you need a good credit score. On today’s show we discuss tangible steps you can take to improve your credit score after a consumer proposal or bankruptcy. On today’s show we discuss five simple steps to rebuild credit.

It’s no secret that payday loans charge an outrageously high interest rate. In Ontario, they can charge $21 for $100. If you take out a new $100 loan every two weeks, you would pay $546 a year, that's an interest rate is 546% on an annual basis. And therein lies the problem with these types of loans. But what is the solution? On today’s podcast, Doug Hoyes speak with Jonathan Bishop, a Research and Parliamentary Analyst at the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) about Bill 156 and pay day loan regulation. The PIAC is a non-profit organization that conducts research into public service issues that affect consumers. The payday loan industry is something they have been investigating for well over a decade.

It can be hard to know who to turn to when you are dealing with Canada Revenue Agency and you need tax debt help. Some situations are relatively simple and can be resolved on your own, while other situations may require more expertise. Choosing the wrong professional for your situation, may end up costing more than it should. On today’s show, Doug Hoyes speaks with Janette Martin, a Certified Credit Counsellor, and Ian Martin (no relation), a Licensed Insolvency Trustee with extensive experience with the CRA, about how to get the right tax debt help.

The payday loan industry in Canada loans an estimated $2.5 billion each year to over 2 million borrowers. Like it or not, payday loans often meet the need for urgent cash for individuals who can't, or won't, borrow from more traditional sources. If your hydro is about to be disconnected, the cost of a payday loan may be less than the hydro re-connection fee, so it may be a prudent financial decision in some cases. As a “one time” source of cash a payday loan may not be an issue. The real problem is payday loans are structured to keep customers dependent on their services.  Like opening a box of chocolates, you can’t get just one. Since a payday loan is due in full on payday, unless your situation has improved, you may have no choice but to get another loan from another payday lender to pay off the first loan, and a vicious debt cycle begins. So what’s the solution?  That’s the question I asked my two guests, Brian Dijkema and Rhys McKendry, authors of a new study, Banking on the Margins – Finding Ways to Buil

On today's podcast we talk with Ted Michalos about the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy and how they regulate the bankruptcy process, and trustees, in Canada and why they changed the name from bankruptcy trustee to Licensed Insolvency Trustee (LIT).

A conventional mortgage today has a 25 year amortization, because the typical borrower wants, or needs, 25 years to pay off their mortgage.  So is it possible to pay off your mortgage faster? Sean Cooper became a media sensation after paying off his $255,000 mortgage in just three years. We talked with Sean about how he paid off his mortgage so quickly, what sacrifices he made, what he might have done differently in hindsight and what tips he has for anyone wanting to pay down their mortgage sooner.

There are a number of personal finance personalities, especially on American radio and TV, who say that if you have too much debt it’s because you spent too much and you're the cause. After all, if you're actions aren't to blame, then they can't sell you their solutions and books. But is that opinion valid? Are all of our financial problems entirely our fault, or are there other factors that lead to debt problems? On today's show we talk about how circumstances can overtake anyone. Kelley Keehn and Robert Brown discuss why sometimes “stuff happens”, and we discuss five reasons why debt problems may not be your fault.

There are many reasons people find themselves in debt. For our guest today, the underlying cause of his financial difficulties was drug addiction. James inspires us with his story - both how he battled his addition and why bankruptcy was a part of his recovery. James actually contacted us with a moving letter about his recovery which is what inspired us to ask him to be on our podcast.  On today’s show James tells the story of how he started using drugs at age 14, and was an addict until age 27.  He got into debt, but he turned his life around, as he explains on today’s show.

At the end of 2015, updates and clarifications were made to existing Ontario bankruptcy laws that directly affect indebted consumers. On November 13, 2015 the Supreme Court of Canada put forth a ruling about the 407 ETR (a toll route in the Toronto area) concerning the treatment of 407 debts in a bankruptcy or consumer proposal. Another big change came on December 1, 2015, as the Execution Act in Ontario was updated. On today’s show Doug Hoyes and Ted Michalos, co-founders of Hoyes, Michalos & Associates, Licensed Insolvency Trustees, discuss how the changes, as well as the Supreme Court's ruling, will affect Ontarians looking to deal with their debts.  Disclaimer: Our discussion about updates to the Execution Act are the interpretation of ourselves and the lawyers we've spoken with about the new rules. This is new legislation that has not yet been tested in court, and as such, a judge could rule differently than we've interpreted the information on today's show.

Is it enough to calculate the amount of debt you have and focus exclusively on making that number smaller? I'm an accountant and a licensed insolvency trustee, so to me, the numbers matters. That being said, getting into debt and struggling to get out of debt again has a lot to do with behaviour and mindset.  My guest today first appeared on episode 14 of Debt Free in 30 to talk about his newly released book, Wealthing Like Rabbits and followed up that interview with one about good debt vs. bad debt. Robert Brown is back to shed some light on the importance of changing our perspective about debt. 

Getting sick or injured is common and it can often mean missing work for a few weeks or for a prolonged period of time. To cover any missing income, people tend to turn to credit to survive, leading to more debt than they can handle. On today’s how our guest is Promod Sharma, an actuary at Taxevity in Etobicoke, Ontario. Promod is here to talk about life and health insurance, why everyone needs to have it and how to decide which coverage is best for you and your family.

Fifty years ago if you wanted to steal money from someone you had to steal cash.  Today money is electronic, so if your identity is stolen you can lose a lot of money very quickly, and that can lead to a mountain of debt. How big a problem is identity theft and fraud?  That's the question we asked today's guest, Kelley Keehn, the author of Protecting You and Your Money: A Guide to Identity Theft and Fraud.  She told us that: A third of Canadians have been victims of some type of fraud.  What was more curious is that two thirds of Canadians surveyed said that they knew of someone that was a victim of fraud, so even if it hasn't happened to us yet, a lot of us know someone who was a victim of fraud. Credit card fraud is a problem, but in most cases your credit card issuer will cover you, so if you fill out a form or prove that you didn't authorize the charges the problem can be solved quickly. Identity theft is another matter altogether, and it can take many weeks and a lot of effort to restore your name. So wh