Results: Debt: good or bad?
Published on 03/13/2019
I'm curious about the ways people view debt. In Canada our national debt to income ratio is a reported 173.6% according to the Jan 2019 issue of Maclean's magazine. This means we owe $1.736 for each dollar we earn. In Vancouver, it is 242%.
QUESTIONS
GO to COMMENTS
Comments
1.
1.
Do you have debt? Yes
58%
1446 votes
No
42%
1038 votes
2.
2.
What kind of debt(s) do you have? Mortgage
26%
638 votes
Credit card
35%
865 votes
Vehicle loan
17%
430 votes
Investment loan (eg rental property mortgage, loan to buy asset such as stocks)
1%
32 votes
Student loan
8%
203 votes
Line of credit (LOC)
8%
188 votes
Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) - this is also known as a second mortgage.
3%
75 votes
Other (please specify)
4%
93 votes
Not Applicable
40%
990 votes
3.
3.
Do you ever have trouble making all of your payments each month? Yes
26%
657 votes
No
54%
1330 votes
Not Applicable
20%
497 votes
- I don't buy things until I can afford them. No debt.
- I avoid debt.
- Mortgage paid off, no credit cards
- too old
- I manage my finances.
- I cleared my debt
- Nnn
- never needed to have any debt
- saved a lot, paid off car, don't buy a lot, not many bills
- Own house outright, pay credit card entirely each month and own my car paid cash
- Debt free
- i am working hard , i have enough money to pay whole amount
- We paid off our house in 7 years. We pay off our credit cards every month.
- I only have what I can afford I never get in debt
- paid off debt
- i live within my means - thank god i have common sense!
- I just do not have debt at this time.I was in debt 3 years ago.
- Too young to have debt.
- Paid all of our bills and have not obtained any new debt
- Deferred student loans.
- No debt
- have no debt-all paid off.
- saved and never spent more than my income - did without to accumulate
- always pay bills on time
- can
- I'm still in school, so I don't need to start paying my loan off yet.
- I don't have any debt.
- I pay off my bills
- Everything is paid. Credit cards are paid in full every month
- no need for debt
- do not consider myself to have debt
- inheritance
- Not enough monthly money. Loc interest rate went up
- pay bills on time
- Paid off my debts
- Do not have debt. Retired.
- I pay every thing off
- I wait until I have the money.
- Too many depenses
- No. do not live beyond my means
- Don't believe in debt
- Paid off debt
- Learned from past mistakes
- nothing
- We make sure not to purchase things we can't or don't have funds for
- I pay all bills
- all paid
- too old and have paid my debt
- living within my budget
- Paid all off
- No deby
- I AM FORTUNATE TO HAVE ENOUGH MONEY EACH MONTH TO PAY MY BILLS MY HOME & CAR ARE PAID FOR...
- all paid off no rent no mortgage
- Already payed off my student loans and my credit card
- Payed off all debt years ago
- If I can't save for it then I don't need it.
- no more
- Retired and have saved,
- BILLS PAID AHEAD OF TIME
- Too old
- A... This is none of your business B. I don't have any debt
- I'm in the process of getting my student loan for giving because I'm disabled
- I don't spend more than I can afford.
- Don't have debt
- Paid off mortgage about 10 years early. Pay in full credit card bill each month.
- Taxes are too high, that is our single highest expense.
- Everything is paid for.
- My expenses are light
- Too young to have debt. Don't have many bills yet
- None
- I just don't like having any kind of debt.
- no debt at all
- too old to have debt
- Got all my debt paid off this year!
- never had a credit card
- NUNYA!!!
- None of your business.
- I don't have debt, I don't have credit cards, I don't use loans,
- I am on pension.
- dept free
- I have no debt and I pay all credit card charges in full each month.
- no
- I am still in school and don't have to pay off student loans yet.
- Dont like to have debt ever..hope it stays that way
- not in that position
- just forget.
- retired do not owe money
- Payed off everything, will never use credit again unless I can pay it off every month.
- Old enough to have paid it all off
- too old not needing any risk
- not applicable
- Too old to have debt
- I have saved and paid cash on everything
- My parents taught me never go deep into debt. My biggest debt was my home which I paid off ASAP.
- No debt.
- TAKING CARE OF MY BILLS ARE PRIORITY SO I DO NOT HAVE DEBTS
- Consolidated all my debts and paid them off
- Less worries
- I don't have any kind of debt.
- I don't spend money that I don't have. I consider myself to be very careful.
- Everything is paid for
- Been wise with my money. Don’t spend outside of my means
- After becoming sick and bankruptcy Now go month to month to month on disability, very tight
- no debt
- NA
- No debt.
- Never was able to get cc
- I hate having debt, so I avoid it
- have no debt
- too young
- Never took on any debt. Pay my credit card in full every month.
- repayment has not started yet
- Paid it all off.
- None
- not too young I just pay all my bills and I don't live above my means
- Cant afford debt to get it.
- No credit no debit
- Retired, and debt paid off, thank God!
- no debt
- I am 65.Got out of debt years ago and intend to stay that way.
- Too young...for now. Next year I'll have student loan debts because I'll be in college.
- I choose to not spend more money than I have.
- I don't have Dept.
- i payed off my debt and have stayed out of debt and am not working to get into debt
- worked hard to pay off all my debt
- retired
- No debt
- I'm a Senior & very apposed to debt. Visa etc will lower you rate if asked.
- Everything is paid off
- our house and cars are payed off.
- I keep my card use down....I live with in the cash i earn and I am debt free at 53 lol
- Filed Bankruptcy once a very long time ago. Do not wish to go through that awful process ever again!
- I have no credit card and pay cash for what I want. It's best that way.
- too poor to be in debt. Learned my lesson years ago
- nobills
- Religious reasons
- If you really wanted an answer, you wouldn't have limited this to 100 characters.
- we Do not owe for anything. If we can not pay cash for it we do not buy it.
- paid off my mortgage, & car. I 'pay as I go'. Always paid off my credit card each month.
- too young
- I have paid off all my debt and refuse to go into more debt
- Just don't have debt
- no debt at all, and bills are not debts necessarily
- I own my vehicle and live with my soon-to-be ex in his house.
- not your business
- I am not in charge of the money
- I have a great job and don't buy what I don't actually need.
- have no debt
- don't have debt
- paid everything off quickly
- never spent more then I had
- Medical expenses are monthly and take most of the budget.
- I spent most of my life in debt and decided to stop. Now I pay as I go and carry no balances.
- Live in my means. Period!
- I charge but pay off everything every month. Had a mortgage at one time put paid it off.
- learned years ago not to go into debt
- by choice
- No debt, pay bills when due
- We only have utility bills like electric, phone and insurance, groceries and gas.
- I live in two places and I have no debt in Canada. I try to keep my debts in my previous country low
- I own what I have
- ?
- We worked really long and hard and paid off our mortgage, autos, parent loans and credit cards.
- Have a good job and live within my means so I do not have debt
- Just, paid off debt
- Do not believe in debt except.for.a.primary house and we worked hard to pay that off.
- N/A
- I only have my monthly bills to payu...no outstanding debt
4.
4.
There are tons of financial "gurus" out there and various rules of thumb. Which are you familiar with? Your housing costs should only be 30% of your income.
37%
913 votes
Only take a "buy now, pay later" deal if you KNOW you will have the money to pay the bill in full when it is due.
38%
944 votes
Never carry a balance on your credit card, always pay it off in full each month.
59%
1477 votes
Not Applicable
30%
743 votes
5.
5.
In the event that you have (or will have in the future) debt, how would you repay it? Marry a rich partner.
4%
102 votes
Second job.
14%
358 votes
Buy lottery tickets.
6%
146 votes
Hope to inherit from relatives.
5%
121 votes
Start a business. (This might be counterintuitive but it can work for some people.)
4%
88 votes
Sell possessions such as at a pawn shop or garage sale or E-Bay.
14%
355 votes
Sell assets such as car, house, artwork, stocks, etc.
8%
209 votes
Start exploring the gig economy for ways to earn money such as by tutoring English or Math; dog walking; babysitting, etc, etc.
11%
270 votes
Extreme option - declare bankruptcy. In other words, don't pay the debt. This has extremely negative impacts on your financial future, such as making it difficult to get a mortgage in the future.
4%
108 votes
Make regular payments towards the debt for the term of the loan.
43%
1070 votes
Other (please specify)
2%
40 votes
Not Applicable
34%
851 votes
6.
6.
In the event that you have several debts, and you had an extra $1,000 to put towards any of those debts, how would you decide which to pay first? Highest interest rate
37%
916 votes
Lowest interest rate
3%
75 votes
Highest balance
8%
188 votes
Lowest balance
9%
220 votes
Type of debt (i.e. vehicle loan, mortgage, credit card, etc, etc)
12%
298 votes
Other (please specify)
0%
12 votes
Not Applicable
31%
775 votes
7.
7.
Do you earn enough money to live? That is, can your employment income pay your grocery, rent/mortgage, childcare, vehicle expenses (gas/insurance/car payment), etc? Yes
55%
1371 votes
No
25%
613 votes
Not Applicable
20%
500 votes
COMMENTS