Blog Articles

Go bankrupt before the new year

November 28, 2017

If filing for bankruptcy is on your horizon, going bankrupt before the new year protects your interest in next year’s income tax refund. When you file a bankruptcy, your trustee will receive your tax refund for the year of the bankruptcy and the year prior (more if other years are still outstanding). If you wait […]

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New Mortgage Rules – January 2018

November 23, 2017

That’s right the government is adding new regulations to the mortgage industry effective January 1st 2018. You might ask yourself “why?” the answer is simply that the mortgage industry won’t regulate itself. The industry is of course broader than just the banking industry and although the rules might seem to apply to all they probably […]

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Your income is too low

November 14, 2017

If you are reading this blog then the opening statement probably applies to you – “your income is too low” and that has far more to do with you being in debt than any other factor. In London, Ontario, a slightly misleading report released by the city council, as councillors were seeking a pay increase, […]

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Fourth Time Bankruptcy

November 9, 2017

We were recently in court for discharge hearings for a fourth time bankrupt as well as two third time filers. The court is empowered to refuse to discharge repeat bankrupts, effectively sending them back to the wolves to be dealt with by collectors and possibly lawyers. However, in most cases the court will allow a […]

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Dealing with rude collectors

November 8, 2017

You have bills and your creditors have a right to collect overdue accounts. But they must stay within the constraints of the law. You also have rights which are set out here. One way of dealing with rude collectors is to download the problem to our office by opening a file to resolve your debts […]

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Repay less than 2% of your debts

November 6, 2017

Yes, that is possible for some people, everyone’s situation is different. The lowest payment on a proposal we have ever seen was for less than one penny on the dollar – more than a 99% saving. Some of our competitors advertise that they will save you 70% or even 80% of your debts. But they […]

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Save Money on Groceries

November 2, 2017

I was shopping for a charitable BBQ event about two summers ago, I had my cart filled with buns, sausages, hamburgers, condiments, drinks and so on. When I got to the checkout there was a young woman in front of me pulling out coupons and flashing an app on her phone. Made a comment to […]

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New Mortgage Rules

October 31, 2017

New mortgage qualifying rules will come into effect in January 2018. Many consumers are in a rush to obtain mortgages before the changes, but is that a good idea? Let’s think about changes in mortgages during the last fifty years. Fifty years ago, about half as many Canadians had their name on title as property […]

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Bankruptcy Counselling Changes

October 30, 2017

The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy is contemplating sweeping changes to the Counselling Directive, which if implemented will dramatically affect the spin off industry. The mandatory counselling protocol has been in place since about 1997. It required that counsellors be certified after completing a brief training component. Not profit agencies had their staff certified […]

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Do you have ZOMBIE debts?

October 26, 2017

The term “zombie debts” usually applies to debts that “haunt you” for a long time after you thought they were dead. These may include debts that are no longer owed because they were paid out or even statute barred debts. But in fairness the term should equally apply to credit card debts from Canadian chartered […]

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You should plan for your bankruptcy

October 18, 2017

That’s right, you should plan for a bankruptcy in the same manner as you would plan for a critical illness or any other unfortunate occurrence that may come your way. You are probably worried that in the event you became critically ill you could lose everything you own. By the same token you ought to […]

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Surplus Income

October 16, 2017

In a bankruptcy proceeding surplus income is to be calculated by your trustee who is required to consider the guidelines provided by Directive from the Office of Superintendent of Bankruptcy.  The guidelines are based on the LICO (or Low Income Cut Off).  You might think of the LICO as being a poverty line. The LICO […]

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Taxes – The Scourge of Small Business

October 16, 2017

We have solutions for your tax dilemma. Small business owners face tremendous challenges in dealing with taxes and taxation. The challenges are multifarious beginning with excessive taxation, as well as rules and regulations around the calculation, reporting and payment of taxes. Nothing is simple about Canadian tax laws. Small business owners are often talented craftsmen […]

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BANKRUPTCY IS NOT A FOUR LETTER WORD

September 5, 2017

In fact bankruptcy is a great solution for difficult to solve debt problems. Start rebuilding your credit in one year. We service London, Woodstock, Sarnia, Chatham and Windsor. People filing for bankruptcy for the first time are entitled to be automatically discharged from their debts in nine months.  Court attendances are not normally required. After […]

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STATUTE BARRED DEBTS

September 5, 2017

What it means for a debt to be statute barred and how that affects you. Under Section 4 of the Limitations Act RSO a debt becomes statute barred two years after it was discovered. “Basic limitation period 4. Unless this Act provides otherwise, a proceeding shall not be commenced in respect of a claim after […]

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Ontario Debt Forgiveness

September 5, 2017

Have you seen the advertisements on facebook? Learn more, read this article. For me, it’s hard to believe that these folks are still at it and still, apparently making money, but then I do still get a lot of spam emails about “collecting money from my deceased Nigerian Uncle’s estate”, you know “the billionaire who […]

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Famous Bankrupts

September 5, 2017

Put the debt behind you, and get on with life Abraham Lincoln – 16th President of the United States P.T. Barnum – The Great American circus owner Kim Basinger – Oscar-winning actress (1993) Frank Baum – Wizard of Oz author Miguel de Cervantes – Novelist; Don Quixote Samuel L. Clemens (“Mark Twain”) – best-selling American […]

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Bombardier – opportunity lost, but for whom:

September 5, 2017

Is it O.K. for taxpayers to continually bail out big business as two big too fail or should companies and government be looking towards other solutions? Small business owners have a much tougher time with regulation that larger companies do – whether it is access to grants and subsidies to help establish the business or […]

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BEWARE OF TOTAL EQUITY PLANS

September 5, 2017

Home equity plans may seem like a good idea at first blush but they are loaded against you, and a lot of it is in the sales pitch and the language. Scotia Bank was one of the first Canadian Charter banks out of the gate with their Total Equity Plans, but other banks quickly followed […]

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SIMPLE DEBT FACTS

September 5, 2017

Change your expectations and you can live with less stress! In Canada, since 1980, the ratio of debt to income has tripled from 60% to 164% of gross income.  The people who carry the most amount of debt are those who earn middle to high incomes (probably excluding the top 2%). Low income receivers (including […]

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