Canadians uncomfortable talking about money

[Dion]

OTTAWA -- Canadians are more uncomfortable talking about money than religion, says a Bank of Montreal survey out Wednesday showing we are losing sleep over personal finances and our biggest fear is not having enough to retire.

While they may not want to talk about it, 46% of Canadians polled felt anxious about money matters and 53% thought they should be managing their finances better. It is not just those on a tight budget who were concerned about finances. Around 35% of respondents with household incomes greater than $100,000 said they have lost sleep worrying about money matters.

Heading up the list of worries, at 46%, is not having enough money to retire comfortably. Twenty per cent were concerned they were living beyond their means, but only 12% thought they would outlive their money.

Where does everyone stand on this issue?

http://www.financialpost.com/money/story.html?id=704986

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Dion

Where does everyone stand on this issue?

I'd rather not talk about it.

[Rathji]

I went back to school 3 years ago ( 2+ years to go ), got married then had my first baby and bought a new house. I think it goes without saying that I am spending more than I earn, but that is what student loans are for.


While I do think I could be managing my money better, in the long term I have no serious worries. Even with mortgage payments, I am taking far less in student loans out this year and if all goes well I should be able to start pumping money into RRSP and other investments before the school year is done.

[mykalberta]

With the exception of a mortgage payment I am in fine financial bliss, no debts.

With condo fees I pay $2K/month to own a condo. I could likey rent for $1K saving $12K/year but since I bought my place its value has appreciated by $100K - it was more but since has subsided. Now that doesnt really matter until I decide to sell but it lessens the pain a bit of 12K less per year in after tax income (not by alot mind you, but by some).

I have often thought about selling the place and just renting and then buying again once I get married - that is the only real financial stress I have.

[Slava]

As a guy who talks to people about money all day, most days I would say that this is quite accurate. Money is a very private issue for most people. That being said there are two types of people who really don't like to talk about money (for the most part): people who have too much money and want that confidentiality maintained, and people who know that they don't have enough and are embarassed.

As far as not having enough money to retire that statistic is actually too low. For the most part the projections and assumptions made by the major banks are useless when it comes to having enough money for retirement. I find that these figures provide people a false sense of security in thinking that they will have enough to retire. In other words, if people really were told how much they'll have to retire then they would really be scared about not having enough!

[Table 5]

Prior to a few months ago I had very poor financial knowledge, and was pretty horrid in managing it. I'm not a huge spender, but it defintely wasn't "working for me". Which is why I've been on a mission to learn and change that....i've started investing more in my 401k (american version of RRSP), getting involved in the stock market, and making sure all my cash is in high-interest accounts etc.

I still don't have too much money, but I feel like learning about this stuff has made me at the very least feel much more in control. I now know what it takes to get me there, and atleast feel secure in the knowledge.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by fotze

And creating that fear is the best mode of generating business for you. I love when the financial planner bumps the fear they have just created about not having enough money for retirement into a whole new level when they mention cancer (or "crititcal illness"), you'll be singing checks to the dude for the next hour for automatic withdrawls for all sorts of insurances and direct deposit into investmenet accounts. It is a mystery what they make in commisions on all this because it is never disclosed.

While that creation of fear might be the easiest way to make a commision its still unethical in my mind. Quite frankly projecting a flat, consistent rate of return for the next 40 years and saying everything will be fine as a result is simply false and provides false security.

I know what you're saying on the insurance side of things. I don't get into the whole review of how likely you are to get cancer or have a heart attack or things like that with people. I figure that we hear enough of that everyday in the news...we all know that the odds are that one of these things will hit us, you don't need me to tell you that.

Lastly, if the commissions on products are not disclosed and you want to know you should ask. They absolutely should be disclosed, and I personally have no issue in discussing this at all.