5 August 2014

According to Sal Guatieri, Senior Economist at BMO Capital Markets, the developing economy of Alberta, especially Calgary, has led to such an outstanding position of the province compared to others.  “The high household debt rate in Alberta can be partially explained by sharply rising house prices, as homebuyers now have to get larger mortgages.”

The BMO Report also showed how the popular type of debts changed from 2013 to 2014:

  • 43% Canadians have mortgage debts – it’s 13% higher than in 2013.
  • Although more than half of Canadians still have credit card debts, the number went down from 56% to 52%.
  • Student loans remained unchanged at 15%.

Mr. Guatieri believes the growing share of households with mortgages is mainly supported by highly active first-time buyers.

And, please, remember, if there’s enough equity in your home, you might be able to pay off your high-interest debts with the help of refinancing. For instance, if you have several unpaid debts, e.g. car loan, credit cards of credit lines, you can consolidate them through the refinance into one low affordable mortgage payment.

 

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