More than half of Canadians living paycheque to paycheque

[chemgear]

Probably an extension of the previous threads about people being naive about debt and whether a mortgage is (good) debt or not. 6/10 seems pretty crazy to me though. But by the same token, I know coworkers hauling in six figures that complain about that situation.

http://business.financialpost.com/20...to-pay-cheque/

Two years after the recession officially ended, Canadians continue to struggle to make ends meet.

A new survey from the Canadian Payroll Association found that 57% of Canadians surveyed said they would be in a tough spot if their paycheque was delayed by just one week. What’s more concerning is that that number has remained steady for the past two years. In 2009, when the CPA first released its annual survey of personal financial health, 59% of respondents said they would find it difficult to have their pay held off by a week.

Of the workers surveyed, 40% said they now expect to retire later than planned. Almost half cited lacklustre savings as the main reason behind a delayed retirement.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

I think a large part of it is the idea that at people aged 22-26, fresh out of school, think they can immediately live like their parents do.

2000sq ft house, nice car, trips all the time etc.

I was just speaking to someone the other day who's in an entry level type position like me, fresh out of Uni and they drive a Beemer which they pay $500 a month for and have a $400k mtg.

My cheap Nissan is paid off and I have a $200k mtg and we make about the same amount of money. And the guy wonders why he's having a tough time making ends meet.


For the people who will retire later than they thought, I blame it on living beyond their means. So few people have any type of proper retirement savings. CPP is not going to be enough to live off of in 20-50 years, in fact it may not even be there anymore.

[Travis Munroe]

I bet BMW and Mercedes are enjoying it seeing as so many new grads feel they have already earned a nice car just by graduating.

[STeeLy]

Originally Posted by Realtor 1

I bet BMW and Mercedes are enjoying it seeing as so many new grads feel they have already earned a nice car just by graduating.

On top of the car payments. Their insurance on those cars are also likely to be through the roof.

New grads coming out and getting a higher end car, a house and have to pay insurance on BOTH on top of that, plus some will have to pay back student loans.

How do they survive? Because I can't, not like that.

[automaton 3]

^^^Good post Cecil and I have to say good planning (and self-control !) on your part.

With respect to the CPP, agreed it will not be enough for most people to retire on, but the 1997 changes look to have been successful and the fund is sustainable:

http://www.oirpc.ca/faqs.html

[Ozy_Flame]

I bought a used 2007 Bimmer last year when I was 27. It's more affordable than a Subaru or Mitsubishi that i was looking at. Plus at only 19k kilometers, it was a steal.

Don't associate luxury name brands with unaffordability. The right opportunity to buy can be better purchase. I'm loving what I have so far, and will likely stay with BMW in the future.

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

I was just speaking to someone the other day who's in an entry level type position like me, fresh out of Uni and they drive a Beemer which they pay $500 a month for and have a $400k mtg.

.

Which they are probably leasing. and it's prob more than $500/month.

The only worse thing to blow your money on is buying scratch lottery tickets.

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

I bought a used 2007 Bimmer last year when I was 27. It's more affordable than a Subaru or Mitsubishi that i was looking at. Plus at only 19k kilometers, it was a steal.

Don't associate luxury name brands with unaffordability. The right opportunity to buy can be better purchase. I'm loving what I have so far, and will likely stay with BMW in the future.

Until you see the repair bills around year 5...

[STeeLy]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Don't associate luxury name brands with unaffordability. The right opportunity to buy can be better purchase. I'm loving what I have so far, and will likely stay with BMW in the future.

Not saying they're not affordable for someone just graduating and getting a job. It's the fact that they want to buy a brand spanking new car.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

Until you see the repair bills around year 5...

The car was built in 2006, and it is now 2/3 through 2011. I have yet to invest anything significant in repairs. The only thing I have replaced so far was two tires for when I drove over nails in a construction site, at which BMW provided a tire warranty on my used car, so I didn't pay a dime.

I also baby-drive my car, and don't drive it to work. I don't put alot of mileage on it for that reason.

[malcolmk14]

I'm graduating in April and I plan on driving my 2004 Cavalier until it can't drive any more.

[Frank MetaMusil]

Originally Posted by malcolmk14

I'm graduating in April and I plan on driving my 2004 Cavalier until it can't drive any more.

Your cavalier is in way better shape than my POS 1995 accord with 380,000k on it, but I took the same mentality. Drive the thing until it dies.

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

The car was built in 2006, and it is now 2/3 through 2011. I have yet to invest anything significant in repairs. The only thing I have replaced so far was two tires for when I drove over nails in a construction site, at which BMW provided a tire warranty on my used car, so I didn't pay a dime.

I also baby-drive my car, and don't drive it to work. I don't put alot of mileage on it for that reason.

Well thats pretty good then. I only know 3 people who have Beemers and all 3 have put in $6000+ within 5 years. With my coworker putting in over $10k on her X5. insane!

I was talking to a former BMW salesman who said that like 75% of their new car sales are leases. Is that true?

[GirlySports]

It's not how much you make, it's how much you spend.

I know married couples, both make $100K+ abnd live paycheque to paycheque.

-----

I still drive my 1999 Jeep Cherokee

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

It's not how much you make, it's how much you spend.

I know married couples, both make $100K+ abnd live paycheque to paycheque.

-----

I still drive my 1999 Jeep Cherokee

I thought you were asian? hehe

Do they have kids? they are expensive.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by Realtor 1

I bet BMW and Mercedes are enjoying it seeing as so many new grads feel they have already earned a nice car just by graduating.

Don't leave out Infiniti and Lexus

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

Well thats pretty good then. I only know 3 people who have Beemers and all 3 have put in $6000+ within 5 years. With my coworker putting in over $10k on her X5. insane!

I was talking to a former BMW salesman who said that like 75% of their new car sales are leases. Is that true?

Probably, although I found lease rates to be rather pricey. I am financing mine, but there's two of us who are paying for it, so its actually quite reasonable (two people, one car). I also have an XI (All wheel drive). Anything less in a BMW is a waste of money if you have one in Calgary IMO. I get better value out of it all year round.

I'm not rich or anything for owning one (I'm not in Oil/Gas or finance or anything like that) . . . However, I stopped going out to pubs/restaurants and stopped spending on shopping I didn't need, which has made my car and my condo extremely affordable.

[Flamenspiel]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

I think a large part of it is the idea that at people aged 22-26, fresh out of school, think they can immediately live like their parents do.

2000sq ft house, nice car, trips all the time etc.

I was just speaking to someone the other day who's in an entry level type position like me, fresh out of Uni and they drive a Beemer which they pay $500 a month for and have a $400k mtg.

Hey its better then $500 a month on Flames tickets!!

Na.

[North East Goon]

I havent got a raise at my job in over 3 years, maybe that is common across Canada?

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by Bertuzzied

I thought you were asian? hehe

Do they have kids? they are expensive.

No kids, just two dogs