Facing Holiday Bills with a Debt Hangover

Are your post holiday bills calling out to you from your kitchen drawer? Just like in the commercials aired during the holiday season, the bills are whispering in your ear “interest payments”. Are the bill piles causing you stress?...

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How to Cook on a Budget

Now that the holidays are over it’s time to get back into our regular routine which includes cooking for the family on a budget. As life gets busy with work, school and extracurricular activities, it becomes a bit tricky...

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Should Canadians in Debt borrow for RRSP season?

The beginning of every year is a tricky time for all consumers. We are just starting to pay the bills from the holiday season while at the same time encouraged by the banks to make...

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Negotiating with Customer Service – is it worth it?

We have all dealt with situations where customer service can be a deal breaker. Recently I was told of a situation that happened between a long standing customer and a leading telecommunication provider that many people can relate to....

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We are still learning the lesson of bearing debt

We’ve hit another record high for debt-to-income percentage in Canada.  It has climbed in the third quarter of 2013 to 163.7 per cent, up from 163.1 per cent in the previous three-month period according to Statistics Canada last week. ...

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Trying to curb Student Debt

Managing student debt is a common reality that takes Canadians years to endure.  This “first taste” of debt is recognized by many creditors as “good debt” because the debt was taken on as an investment to better one’s career....

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Consumers Win with New Prepaid credit card Regulations

The Canadian Federal government has the consumer’s best interests in mind by removing expiry dates on prepaid credit cards and mandating card issuers to clearly advertise any fees that take away from a card’s balance within the first year....

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5 Tips to keep you in the Black

As we roll into December, we’ve listed a few tips to keep you in the black this Holiday season: Pay more than the minimum.  Paying the minimum on your credit card payments covers your monthly interest and barely touches your...

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Putting your Debt ahead of Investing for Retirement

Investment planners and employers are effective in getting the message across to employees to invest, save and plan for retirement. However a plan for debt management is usually not included in a typical benefits plan provided to employees. When...

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Are you financially honest with your Spouse?

Do you have an open line of communication with your spouse about your spending habits? Capital One conducted a survey recently about how couples handle personal finance.  Their findings are mixed in how much open we are with each...

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