519-646-2222Category: Insolvency News
IS BANKRUPTCY STILL TOO CUMBERSOME TO BE PRACTICAL?
The bankruptcy provisions under the Bankruptcy & Insolvency Act (“BIA”) were streamlined several decades ago to make it easier for consumers to get out of debt, but at that time it was still harder for people to acquire debt. Bank deregulation and lack of viable consumer protection has created a very predatory lending environment over […]
Read moreCANADA REVENUE AGENCY AND PROPOSALS
Is the CRA too aggressive and adversarial with consumer debtors? The Canada Revenue Agency is notorious for asking for additional (enforcement) clauses to be added to proposals to “require” debtors to stay on top of current filing and remittances throughout the life of the proposal. They have even taken this notion a step further at […]
Read moreThe reason for getting out of debt
It may seem obvious why people want to get out of debt, but the reason is may not be what you expect. Yes, people are stressed, frustrated, wasting money on trying to maintain impossible minimum monthly payments, moving debt from one form of credit to another, they need relief, they want to break free from […]
Read moreIMAGINE WINNING MILLIONS OF DOLLARS – WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
Like most people, I have often dreamed of what it would be like to have a lot of money, to become suddenly rich either by developing that great new widget or winning the lottery. And I, probably like you, have sometimes wondered how much would be enough. Throughout my life I have encountered, in various […]
Read moreWHO HAS THE HIGHEST DEBT TO INCOME RATIO?
Your knee jerk reaction to that question may be way off the mark. Many people still seem to stigmatize the less advantaged. When talking about debt problems the people who are in denial are the ones who are in fact most vulnerable to excessive debt. The common notion is that poor, less educated people or […]
Read moreARE CANADIAN BANKS AND THE CRA IN A COMPETITION
To see which can take the most of your money! Tax Freedom Day was on June 26th this year – that means that every single penny you earned up until that date went to the government in some form of taxation. With that knowledge and some other government statistics let have some fun with numbers. […]
Read moreAverage London (Ontario) Home Buyer
The average home price in the London area is $329,000 – which begs the question “who can afford to buy?” Assuming the home buyer has the requisite 5% down payment and the 4% for CMHC insurance as well as the roughly $1,500 for legal fees and disbursements (totalling $30,452) all that remains is to qualify […]
Read moreWHAT HAPPENS IF MY TRUSTEE IS IN A DIFFERENT CITY?
Trustees are licenced Federally to act in Provincial jurisdictions. Many trustee firms have centralized processing centres as a means of cost and quality control. There are good and bad things about such a system. The best is that staff are specialized to deal with specific aspects of each file and can do so cost effectively […]
Read moreBANKS AND THE RIGHT OF OFFSET (OR “SET OFF”)
Talk to your trustee about the treatment of your bank account before you file a bankruptcy or proposal. In Ontario the Limitation Act prevents legal action being taken against you for debts, except mortgage debts, that are more than two years past payment. In other words if you have ceased making payments for a period […]
Read moreJESUS HAD NOTHING ON THE BANKS
Jesus was able to feed 5,000 people with nothing more than 5 loaves of bread and 2 small fish. Through the miracle of credit and fractional reserve banking, banks make Jesus’ miracles seem insignificant. Using complex calculations of loss expectations and by creating their own rules, banks have been able to loan thousands of trillions of […]
Read moreRESOLVE TO SOLVE YOUR DEBT PROBLEMS
Each year we all make resolutions appertaining to lifestyle changes we know we should make, by mid-year most of us have forgotten them. Servicing debt has tremendous economic and social consequences. Economically it means that every purchase made using credit will cost more than if we saved up and simply paid in full at the […]
Read moreTHE GIFT OF UNDERSTATEMENT
I enjoy reading Don Pettis’ articles on the CBC news website but find that sometimes he has a penchant for the understatement. Canadian consumer debt is so entrenched in our social consciousness there may never be any escape from the black hole of debt. Yesterday, I was at a breakfast meeting listening to a tax […]
Read moreHOW MUCH WILL MY HOUSE COST
Think about the term, amrtization and the frequency of debt consolidation. Banks have actively encouraged consumers to use their homes like ATMs – every three to five years as the mortgage comes up for renewal consumers would be encouraged by banks to consolidate their unsecured debts into their mortgages. This would eat up any equity […]
Read moreHOW MANY MORTGAGES ARE THERE IN CANADA?
Search google for “how many private mortgages in Canada” and you’ll get 52,000,000 hits. Search for “how many bankruptcy trustees in Canada?” and you’ll get 5,590,000 hits. In neither case does the answer readily pop up. In Canada there are about 900 or so licensed and practicing trustees in bankruptcy – there are several […]
Read moreYOUR TAX REFUND & YOUR FINANCIAL PLAN
Many Canadians count on an income tax refund as some sort of savings plan – at their own peril. There are many reasons why it is not a good idea to overpay the government. If you get a tax refund you are getting your own money, money that you have overpaid the government, refunded to […]
Read moreHOW TO GET OUT OF DEBT WITHOUT BANKRUPTCY
It can be done but may have an unexpected cost. Far too many people depend on credit rather than wages to be able to pay for the necessities of life. Unfortunately debt doesn’t just ‘go away’ it must be addressed and dealt with appropriately. The best way to get out of debt is always to […]
Read moreDEBT CONSULTANTS – SKETCHY PRACTICES
That comment of course is all a matter of perspective, but, apparently, our regulator isn’t too keen on the modus operandi of some consultants either. Here’s how it may play out: You are debt and afraid of meeting with a “Bankruptcy Trustee”, after all, who in their right mind wants to go bankrupt? But then […]
Read moreHOW TO MAKE A SUCCESSFUL CONSUMER PROPOSAL
How can you measure success in filing a consumer proposal, is it by your proposal being “accepted” by your Creditors or by you being able to “complete the terms” of the proposal? In our view getting a proposal accepted is easy – just offer more money and your Creditors faced with the likelihood of a […]
Read moreHOW EFFECTIVE IS RADIO ADVERTISING?
I ask this because a colleague called me today with an interesting observation – most of the local radio advertisements for bankruptcy trustees are being run by out-of-town trustee firms. They may be fine trustees but as they spread themselves over more and more diverse markets they similarly spread their ability to service those local […]
Read moreWHAT CAN I KEEP IN A BANKRUPTCY?
It is simply not true that by going bankrupt you must forfeit everything you own to the trustee. Many items are exempt from seizure, by your creditors or trustee, under provincial legislation. Some of these items include (in Ontario): Necessary clothing No limit Household furnishings and appliances $13,150 Tools for farming $29,100 Motor vehicle $6,600 […]
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