Debt

How To Get Out Of Debt In Canada

Living a life burdened by debt can be a daily challenge. If you are living with a heavy financial burden, you know how challenging each and every day can be. You may make daily decisions about whether to pay a credit card payment or buy groceries for your family. You may be getting letters from collections agencies, or perhaps you have been turned down for a loan request recently because your credit rating is poor. As challenging as living with financial issues can be, it can be even more challenging to get out of debt. If you have tried to pay off your account balances on your own without success, there are a few different options that you can consider.

Debt Settlement

Debt settlement  is one option to consider to get out of debt. Through this process, you will work with a professional financial negotiator. The negotiator will contact each of your creditors on your behalf to negotiate a reduction in your outstanding balances. In some cases, the reduction can be significant. In addition to reducing account balances, this process often results in restructuring of payment terms. The interest rate may be reduced, and additional loan fees may be waived or avoided. Typically, creditors will only agree to reduce your account balances if they receive a lump sum payment immediately. Because of this, many debtors need to either obtain an equity loan on their home or save money for a period of time before they can settle their balances. Because account balances are reduced or settled without paying the money back in full, this process can result in a negative event on a credit report. However, despite this, it is an ideal financial solution for those who are struggling financial and want to avoid bankruptcy.

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Money Saving Tips

2 Cheap And Easy Summer Treats

There are lots of neat things you can do to make this summer special and here are a couple of ideas that will refresh you and tempt your taste buds this summer:

Homemade Iced Cappuccinos.

Sure, a Tim Horton’s  iced cappuccino doesn’t cost a lot, but I recently started making homemade iced caps and they taste great. They’re cheap and easy to make, they just take seconds.

To make enough for two, all you need is to blend the following:

½ cup of French vanilla cappuccino mix – it’s best to buy it bulk as it’s the cheapest that way

¾ cup of milk

2 cups of ice cubes

Just blend well and enjoy!

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Shopping

How To Save Money When You Shop At Bulk Barn

In case you have never heard of it, Bulk Barn is a Canadian franchise that sells a wide variety of bulk foods including all kinds of candy, health foods, pastas, and much more.  If you have an allergy to gluten, there are many gluten-free products available including snack foods, chocolate, and brown rice pastas.  You can save yourself a lot of money by shopping at Bulk Barn, but here are a few tips to follow in order to do so:

1.  Watch your prices. Just like at any other store, some things are a bargain, but others are overpriced.  Although you may think that everything would be cheaper at a bulk food store, think again.  Certain products such as all purpose flour actually will cost you more if you buy it at Bulk Barn.  Also, you will often be able to find your cereals for less at a regular grocery store, especially if you buy cereal when it goes on sale.  And to all you junk food junkies, another thing to watch out for is certain types of candy.  Sometimes you can buy candy cheaper at Walmart or on sale at grocery stores.  A good example of this would be M & Ms.

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Investing

Roth vs Traditional IRAs – Which Is Best For A Family On A Budget?

Retirement funding may not be the first thing on your mind when you’re worried about soccer practice basic meal planning and making it to the weekend, but saving for retirement now when your family is young – even if you’re on a tight budget – will ensure that you have a more secure future. While many parents are more concerned about saving for college than retirement, this is backwards thinking. Always remember: Your kids can find alternative funding for college, but no one is going to scholarship your retirement.

With that in mind, let’s talk about how you go about funding your retirement with an IRA. The main distinction here is Traditional vs. Roth IRA, and it can be tough to decide which is best for your family when you’re on a budget. Here’s what you need to know about the essentials of how these retirement accounts work and how you can choose which option will work best for your family.

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Taxes

Finished School And Entering The Workforce? Think About Your Taxes

Employee expenses: Most regular employees are not allowed to deduct expenses related to their jobs – services such as dry cleaning or haircuts. But anyone who earns employment income during the tax year can claim the $1,065 Canada Employment Credit.

Tuition credits: If you carried forward unused tuition credits, you can claim it against your employment income and it could result in a refund.

Save for the future: Retirement may seem like a long way off but even if you do not contribute the maximum amount allowed to your Registered Retirement Savings Plan, you can carry forward your available deduction limit for future years. It means you can save more when you are earning more income.

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