September 9 roundup: No paycheque, big problem?
A majority of Canadians are still one paycheque away from poverty, and Ottawa might do what Mark Carney can't.
A majority of Canadians are still one paycheque away from poverty, and Ottawa might do what Mark Carney can't.
• In a story we’ll file under least surprising news of the day, a recent survey reveals that 60 per cent of Canadian employees are living paycheque to paycheque.
Half of respondents said they are saving less than 5 per cent of their net pay, while 40 per cent admitted they’re not even trying to save more than that amount.
Sigh.
However, there is hope. Workers seem to know what they should be doing—namely spending less, paying off credit card and mortgage debt and contributing more to retirement savings. Plus, almost 70 per cent said their first or second priority would be to pay off their debt if they won $1-million from a lottery.
If only MoneySense was required reading …
• As we’ve mentioned many, many times, Mark Carney’s sole mission in life is to raise interest rates in order to rein in profligate borrowing for big-ticket items such as real estate. However, big trouble in Europe and the U.S. has left him no room for higher rates without hurting Canadian competitiveness, leaving Canadian credit cheap and easy.
But an economist from RBC believes the government may step in to further tighten mortgage rules, as it did earlier this year with regard to minimum down payments on secondary properties.
This time around we may see shorter amortizations and an increase in the amount of required mortgage insurance, according to Craig Wright, chief economist at RBC Financial Group.
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