Great news! Quebec drops the mile/point value retention from proposed bill + MORE May 4th

The spring season provides the perfect opportunity to mentally give yourself a clean slate and get a handle on your finances. Are you planning on saving more this year? Investing? Paying off debt? No matter your motive, you first need to gain a clear understanding of where you stand financially.
And in order to do so, here are a few things you should know so you can best leverage your hard-earned dollars.
Your credit score
If you don’t know your credit score, you’re not alone. This is a number that many Canadians are still in the dark about, but in reality, your credit score should be common knowledge. A strong score is the gateway to better interest rates, credit approvals, and mortgage approvals.
Simply knowing the magic number might not seem useful, but it can help you figure out where you stand financially and what you need to do to improve. Because this number changes regularly based on what you owe, it’s prudent to check it regularly – at least on an annual basis. Agencies like Equifax and TransUnion offer this information through the mail for free or online for a small fee…

DBRS Ltd. says it has cut its credit rating on alternative mortgage lender Home Capital Group Inc. after the company delayed the release of its quarterly results, while maintaining its rating on Equitable Group Inc.

An old card paid off on time contributes positively to your credit score. Instead of trying to delete it from your report, consider reactivating and using it

Last week we detailed the news of Quebec’s proposed Bill 791 which would make points expiry and points devaluation illegal. Good news is that on May 2nd, the Quebec government seems to have forgone with Bill 791 and are moving ahead with Bill 134 which no longer stipulates the points devaluation. Overall this is great news as had Bill 791 actually been passed, loyalty programs would have found ways around the retention of mile and point value. Namely by not participating in Quebec like mbna chose with their Alaska Airlines credit card or by adjusting the earn rates on miles and points.It does appear however that the mbna Alaska Airlines credit card is still available in Quebec at this time despite mbna telling us otherwise as when you go to the application page there is no stipulation that it is not. I’m going to reach out to mbna once again to see if I can get further clarification on what they told me last week.As to expiry, Quebec will match Ontario with the law if and when the bill passes…

Complaints about credit card rewards jumped 88 percent last year to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau