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Latest News
Canada’s Best Visa Credit Cards 2022 Apr 13th
When consumers shop for a new credit card, they typically look at the ability to collect points, the insurance coverage offered, fees and interest rates on unpaid balances—not at the credit card company itself. But if you already have an account with RBC, CIBC, Scotiabank or any other Visa issuers.... More »
Scotiabank Scrambles to Fix Credit Card Statement Errors Nov 8th
On October 20, 2019, Scotiabank identified a technical error where legitimate charges on certain customers’ credit card statements were mislabeled as “BNS Scotia Life Insurance.” The mistaken charges all took place between October 18 and 20. Many customers were angry and took to.... More »
What getting a backyard fire pit will do to your home insurance + MORE Nov 23rd
Backyard fire pits, hot tubs, and other outdoor upgrades have never seemed more appealing than after spending most of 2020 practically housebound.
When Bob Peters, a 65-year-old lawyer from Winnipeg revamped his backyard five years ago—with an elevated deck, hot tub, seating area, natural gas .... More »
New mortgage rules take effect today Oct 18th
TORONTO – New federal rules that will cut into the purchasing power of some first-time homebuyers take effect today.
The rules involve a stress test for all insured mortgage applications to ensure the borrower can still service their loan in the event interest rates rise or their personal financia.... More »
What Does Silicon Valley Bank’s Collapse Mean for Canadians? Mar 25th
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, or SVB, earlier this month has been sending shockwaves throughout North America’s tech and banking industries. The lender, based in Santa Clara, Calif., had clients that included start-ups like HR and payment firm Rippling and major tech companies like Roku. It.... More »
How to make money from your car
– moneysense.ca
With the cost of car ownership rolling in at about $10,000 per year in Canada, it can’t hurt to consider money-making opportunities for your four wheels. No doubt you’ve already heard of Uber, but here are four other clever ways to generate income from your vehicle with little to no inconvenience. Based on our conservative estimates, you could shave more than $3,400 off the annual cost of your vehicle. As always, do your due diligence when entering into any contractual obligations and double-check your insurance liabilities. (And they say cars are bad investments.)
The post How to make money from your car appeared first on MoneySense.
Canadian Mortgage Debt Improving: CMHC Q3 Report
– ratesupermarket.ca
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has released their 3rd quarter results, and they indicate Canadian home buyers are doing a better job of managing their mortgage debt. The Crown corporation, which offers mortgage loan insurance and securitization guarantee programs, finds the new average buyer credit score and debt service ratio are on an uptick.
Improving Credit Scores for Canadian Home Buyers
CMHC found the average credit score for transactional homeowner loans in the third quarter was 747. This is an excellent score and shows that homeowners are doing a good job of managing their debts. Maintaining a good credit score is important if you plan to borrow money for a major purchase like a home, and generally the better the score, the better your mortgage rate. According to Equifax and TransUnion, Canada’s two credit monitoring agencies, a score of 600 to 749 is considered good, while a credit score of 750 and above is great.
Buyers Better Able to Handle Mortgage Debt
CMHC also found the average gross debt service (GDS) ratio for transactional homeowner loans in the third quarter was 25…
How to invest conservatively without bank GICs
– moneysense.ca
Q: We are maxed out on our RRSPs and TFSAs and our remaining funds are in joint GICs (Guaranteed Investment Certificates). Due to our age, we are risk adverse and like to maintain GICs. However, the bank rates for GICs are relatively low and more importantly, the banks are covered under the Canadian Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) for only $100,000.This means that we have to spread our funds over various institutions – and this is becoming cumbersome.
We recently heard about credit unions covered by the Deposit Guarantee of Manitoba. Their GICs rates are more appealing and their limits are unlimited.
1. How safe or risky are the credit unions covered by the Deposit Guarantee of Manitoba?
2. Are there any other avenues to take?
3. Typically, what do corporations, business and/or private people do with their money if they have large sums of money to invest (more than $100,000)?
–Jack
A: Yours is a good problem to have, Jack. Although having too much money is better than the alternative, it never ceases to amaze me how the wealthy worry about money too – just in a different kind of way…
