Oh boy, my laptop is letting me write :-)
I am writing quickly then getting my butt off to school to get some work done. Week off is done dididdly done today.
I was watching on the news this morning that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty commented that the average cost of personal non mortgage debt, up here in Canada, is just under $26 000. So LOC or Credit Cards or personal loans etc. The stats say that for five years in a row the January stats showing up how much personal debt was added (each month I think) was going up up up until this January. 2011 showed $1200ish, and January 2012 showed just under $300. I told myself I would remember the exact stats and data to write later and I didn't :-)
The Finance Minister even said that perhaps people shouldn't be buying the biggest, most expensive house their credit limit would let them afford, and instead, having a bit of a smaller one and some cash in their pockets might be a good idea. I had to chuckle though as he said it in a very non emphatic way....just like it was something he had to say but didn't really truly want people to stop spending.
So for a married couple that would be an average of $52 000 in personal debt plus a mortgage. Scary stuff!!
'They' still say we are doing better than our american cousins but we need to be careful. Does anyone have data on the same stats for US residents?
Lest I sound like I am tooting my own lil horn, I would have exceeded this $26 000 amount three years ago.
Not Much Working Out Monday
2 hours ago
3 comments:
Not sure what that number would be in the US, but I do know that student loans make up about 10-25k. Credit cards are like 5~15k. Cars are about 25k. It's sounding expensive already. Yikes!
Funny that the Minister half-heartedly gave people a good piece of advice.
I think Tanner is on the right track, not all of that debt is credit cards and lines of credit (fortunately). While student loans aren't as high here as they are in the states, I'd be willing to bet it adds a bit to the statistic. Likewise, cars cost more here than in the US, and loans on those vehicles probably account for a good chunk of that $26,000. Either way, the statistic is disturbing. I'm (now) well under the statistic for non-mortgage debt fortunately. The mortgage one I need to work on...
You're right. I didn't list student loans specifically. That was what the etc could include. thanks for adding that in.
MM - you're right too. so many have added into their mortgage and then they forget that it was a different kind of debt of sorts. I wonder if they realize how much interest they have added to the mortgage, as well as years to it? I know I sure didn't the one time we did that back in.....2000 ish. NEVER even crossed my mind. Ignorance is only bliss til you get bit on the *ss
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