Back in 2020 I lost my job due to COVID, I was on the verge of losing my apartment, I was desperate, so I took a $4000 loan with EasyFinancial.

After two years of making payments I inquired of what my principal was and was told it was just over $4000, I said that made no sense since that's what I initially borrowed, that's when the agent told me I've been paying for some insurance I never signed up for? Needless to say I was livid.

I requested all payments to be stopped until I figured out what was going on, and of course, the payments kept coming out of my account, so I went to my bank and requested a stop payment.

This went on for a whole year with them refusing to give me a transparent answer and me refusing all payments.

Eventually I started making payments as long as some of it went to my principal which they agreed on.

Fast forward another year and I, once again, inquired about what my principal is, and the agent says I still owe $4073 😂😂, I just about lost it, I immediately requested to speak with a manager and asked how much I have paid to date, she downright REFUSES to provide me with a number, she just sends me a dozen pages of documents and pretty much tells me to figure it out, I pushed back and said YOU ARE THE MANAGER OF A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION and it's part of her job to provide me with the information, she replies "that process would take too much time" 😭😭.

After receiving that reply I said I will be filing a complaint with head office and all of the sudden I get an email with the number I've been requesting, and to my horror it was just shy of $9000 and they still wanted $4000 to close the account.

Needless to say I called head office, explained the situation, said I wanted to close my account and needed a solution today, the only way was for me to pay the 4k, so I made 4 separate payments of 1k each and today my account is officially closed,

Six years later, 12k gone, the nightmare is finally over,

Never again.

Is a monthly after-tax income of $5,000 realistic for supporting a family in Southern Ontario? With housing costs of around $2,000 for a mortgage or rent, combined personal bills of roughly $1,000 for the primary earner, and an additional $500 for a partner's insurance, phone, and subscriptions, the remaining budget must cover groceries, utilities, childcare, transportation, and savings. When considering the long-term financial picture, does having roughly $200,000 in savings for the earner and $100,000 for the partner change the feasibility of this budget?

The biggest fear here is the wife not being able to find work. She has a college degree and works in construction management but wants to find something remote. She currently works in the GTA, but i live in southern Ontario and this is where she would move. I just think the job market is terrible right now and this is risky. Supporting her on $5000, lets say I get bumped up to $6000, but by that time we will have to support a kid.

I heard someone got 25$/Month for a 70-80 GB US CAN MEX deal ( 35$/Month Plan but 10$ discount after auto deposit ) On Telus. Is this true? How to get it then?

What are the best mobile plans on the Big 3 lines?

Let’s say you have a sum of money representing a 20% down payment on a condo in Toronto you would like to buy, but for circumstantial reasons you aren’t looking to buy for several years.

Traditional wisdom says to invest in very safe fixed income products for money that is required in the short term.

However the risk in this circumstance is that there could be a significant run-up in condo prices in the next few years before you buy, such that your down payment would represent less (let’s say 15%) by the time you’re looking to enter the market.

However, if there was an investment you could put your down payment into that would approximately track the Toronto market, that would act as a hedge against the previous scenario, such that your down payment should continue to represent 20% of the condo you’d like to buy.

The downside to this is obviously that if there’s a significant decrease in the market, your down payment would be subject to the same volatility. However this seems like not a bad trade-off, since a poor return on your investment would mean you’re getting to purchase a home at a discount. In either scenario you’re ensuring that your down payment is remaining at that 20% level, whether the market itself increases or decreases.

Are there any REITs or ETFs that would help you accomplish this? Do you think this makes sense as a hedge in the way I’ve described?

I’m currently house hunting, and my experience with real estate agents has been terrible. I found a property I liked on my own, but my agent tried to talk me out of it in favor of a higher-priced listing (probably his realtor friend listing). I decided to stick with the home I originally found, but then the agent discouraged me from offering below asking price, claiming it might 'offend the seller.' In reality, it feels like they’re just pushing for a fast sale at a higher price to maximize their own commission rather than looking out for my best interests.

What is the best way to house hunt myself and collect the 2.5% buyer agent commission as cash back or a credit? Some seller realtors don't talk to me unless i have a buyer realtor. Do i have to go to a cash back realtor?

HI all,

I'm with RBC and was using the early renewal tool for an uninsured fixed mortgage at 5.3% ending March 26, 2027, and got these rates.

3.8% 5-year variable closed

4.59% 3-year fixed closed

4.59% 4-year fixed closed

4.67% 5-year fixed closed

I'm leaning toward fixed because I like to sleep peacefully at night, but I'm open to variable. No plans of moving. Rates don't look great. Is it worth waiting till March to refinance at that point, or just take the 3-year fixed closed?

I have been with Rogers more than 15 years .

Have 3 cellphone lines with them and collectively paying $221/month.

On my Roger's app only offers and promotions are for higher prices and more perks, which we do not need.

Anytime I call , after wasting time 30 minutes or more with AI operator or even longer, they disconnect the call!

Is it normal? How do I lower my monthly fee!?

- I have devices and are paid off, no need to upgrade

-between 3 lines we hardly use 3GB of internet and we have more than 90GB - no need for additional service.

- my calls are less than 60 minutes per month on each line

Please advise!

Should I change provider!?

Recently freed up extra cash and have a lot of RRSP contribution room. Trying to decide if I put it in my TFSA until the end of the year and then contribute it to my RRSP, then take the refund and reinvest, or just contribute it directly to my RRSP biweekly through payroll and not pay income tax. No company match. Any advantages or disadvantages to either?

Question: Can I ask CRA to deduct future benefit payments instead of me paying now?

Context: Blindly trusted an accountant to file my 2024 taxes. They didn't file one of my two T4s (~ $19K) and I stupidly didn't check my returns. Received Notice of Reassessment this year and paid $1,047 in arrears+interest few days back. Checked the Benefits and Credits tab earlier today and saw that I owe $2,860 in benefits and credits.

I am so pissed with this accountant. Filed my taxes using Wealthsimple this year and I hope nothing of this sorts happens.

Bmo is currently offering prime -1 on new mortgages. I currently have prime -1.2% with 3000$ cash back for the notary fees and have 3 months remaining on my term with RBC which id give up my discount rate and pay about 6k in early penalties. Rbc initially offered me prime -.64% if i did an early renewal, after a few talks they’ve decided to give me prime -.85% no cash back. In this market is it worth it or not, with everything going on geopolitically and unemployment…?

For context, I have three credit cards:

1 - Amex Cobalt: 40k limit

2- Scotiabank Visa Infinite Passport: 20k limit

3- National Bank - MyCredit Mastercard: 21k

I usually put mostly all my purchases on my Cobalt.

The NBC Mastercard is for my phone bill and my Costco Purchases.

I use the Visa for my travels and my gas purchases since there's no FX fees.

I always pay off all my credit cards every month.

I'm thinking of lowering them because I usually never reach over 1k on each card and having over 80k on credit limit is kinda useless for me since I make like 72k/year 😅...

So, I got rear ended by a distracted driver last Friday. Incident reported/recorded. Car is towed to body shop. This Tuesday morning I get a call that the car has been deemed a write off. I was fearing the worst but was hopeful that it was repairable considering how it looked (from my untrained eye). So i go and collect my belongings from the car etc. I go back into the office of the body shop and ask for some kind of breakdown of the damage etc. they told me that they have no info and that i should get more information from my insurance (CAA). I find this odd. Do they just write cars off willy-nilly now they don’t even assess them beyond collision centre pictures? Anyway, I’m still waiting to hear back. I just wondering if anyone else has gone through this process before.

I noticed on my rbc app when snooping around my credit card it says tap a transaction to pay with points and receive 20% more value. I tapped a $1000.00 transaction I made and it says it would cost me just over 112000 points. Is that really a good deal for something like that?

I'm just trying to learn more about all this slowly over the years.

Bit of background: 31m in AB so not really HCOL. Married but we keep separate finances. Not all that wealthy. Started investing in my mid 20s, sticking to it but probably not saving as much as I could be. Probably under compensated because I haven't switched employers, but I like the relatively low stress environment. I would like to retire early, maybe 50 to 55 or even earlier if at all possible. But who knows at this point.

My accounts: I have a TFSA, 2 small personal RRSPs, and a slightly bigger work RRSP. (They were kinda emptied for HBP… building them back up/ soon to start repaying HBP too).

I also have a DPSP and DCPP that my employer contributes a little to each account every paycheck. Still trying to figure these out. From what I understand is that DPSP will just get converted to a RRSP once I stop working... DCPP would convert to LIRA when I stop working and I could (probably would) convert to LIF at 50.

I would consider this LIF to be a small portion of my retirement and honestly the contributions to the dcpp seem pretty piddly, but it is invested in equities and running even very conservative calculations I think would easily surpass the $2000 pension income amount tax credit thing, even on the low chance that that they increase this amount.

Why would I ever want a RRIF before 71? Income splitting with spouse maybe? I don't fully understand this either. It only applies at 65? What if my spouse has a similar income or doesn't want to retire early?

I guess to force automated withdrawal? But I want flexibility? Wouldn't almost anyone else want that too (especially here? Let me know)

All this assumes I stay employed at the same place I guess...

Long story short. There’s been a discrepancy with my employer filing a roe saying I quit. However I was under the impression that I was laid off… due to the letter and severance package I received stating they would file my roe as a lay off. It has now been over a month since I filed for EI and my employer is not responding to service Canada. Has this happened to anyone else?

I’m sure it’s not an issue for most of you, but CIBC changed how it processes visa debit for online and some retail transactions. They do pending authorizations for many many more things than they used to and it now takes days to weeks for the app to reflect the actual balance. It’s throwing me for a loop.

Do any banks just process debit purchases instantly so you know what’s going on more easily?

edit: ok don’t believe me… go see the level of irritation over at r/CIBC

https://www.reddit.com/r/CIBC/comments/1x43bgn/pending_transactions/

https://www.reddit.com/r/CIBC/comments/1x55zxf/pending_transactions/

https://www.reddit.com/r/CIBC/comments/1wzhtwm/cibc_debit_pending_transactions/

Some transactions pending for 20+ days…

edit: another post today. This person’s Amazon and other subscriptions are also pending/held when they weren’t before

https://www.reddit.com/r/CIBC/comments/1x5yhpe/what_up_with_these_pending_on_my_transactions/

I’ve been living abroad in Japan since 2002. I’m getting ready to come back to Canada in a couple of years. When I return, I’ll be going straight into a post-graduate B.Ed. program in BC.
I’ve found National Bank’s professionals offer to B.Ed. students, and later teachers. I do not have a credit file in Canada - am I eligible for the credit card that is included in the National Bank offer?

Second question. I have an Amex Gold card that was issued by Amex Japan. Thinking of canceling it - do you think it’s wiser to keep it to do a global transfer when I return to Canada, given my non-existent credit history in Canada?

Thanks!

Initial post from 6 months ago

Well, it finally came. Health Canada sent me a letter demanding proof that I have no access to dental coverage from that previous employer that fired me (now over 10 months ago, and I am still unemployed and still on EI).

Unfortunately, Health Canada explicitly told me I had only one chance to submit documents, and I somehow messed it up by forgetting to submit form GC-MER0001-EN: Canadian Dental Care Plan Member Eligibility Review Form. The problem, as I said on the previous post, is that my former employer broke all the laws that an employer can break after firing me (like not paying the minimum severance/notice, not issuing a Record of Employment, etc) which caused me to file a lawsuit against them, and it is still working its way through the Toronto small claims court because of severe backlogs (yes, I got my ROE and I got the ESA payment eventually, about 2 weeks after the last post was written).

So, after the letter was sent to me, I submitted:

• A cover sheet containing my name, date of birth, social insurance number, address, phone, plan member ID.

• Record of Employment

• Verification of Employment on company letterhead

• Employee benefits booklet stating that benefits end when employment ends

• Notice of Settlement Conference from the Court

There was an automatic acknowledgement. But then, I realized that I didn't send GC-MER0001-EN, so I sent another email. This time, there is no automatic acknowledgement. Worse, when I called Service Canada, they said that there is no guarantee that alternative documents will be accepted. Service Canada did not offer a solution. These documents are due November 15. If deemed unacceptable, I will be found ineligible and disenrolled, potentially requiring me to pay back what the government paid.

What can I do here?

Hi folks!

I’m (32M) in an unexpected scenario and wanted to run this by a few more eyes to make sure we are making all considerations.

I am fortunate enough that my partner’s - 32F (common law, fiancé) family is offering to gift 200k for a home purchase. We were planning to start looking for a place in the next 2-3 years but with this offer are considering bringing our timeline forward. 

We need to be close to downtown for work so the plan would be to look for 2B - 2B condos ranging from 500k - 750k. Not a fan of a condo as a forever home but can easily see it being home for 5-7 years.

Here is our current financial breakdown -

Me 

Income - $115k
TFSA - $70k
FHSA - $14k
RRSP - $5k
Emergency fund - $15k

Partner

Income - $60k
TFSA - $70k
FHSA - $5k
Savings - $30k

No debts, no kids, no car
Rent - 2.4k
All other monthly expenses - 3k-4k on average
Planned downpayment - at least the $200k being gifted

Only one main question -
Given our financial situation, does buying a 2B+2B in downtown make sense given the current market?

Appreciate any other thoughts or input as well. Thanks for reading. 

Edit - Should have added that this is in Toronto, apologies.

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Now at almost 65, the Wealthy Barber — Canada’s most beloved personal finance whiz — is closing up shop, and he has some parting words of wisdom for Canadians saving for their golden years.

Read the full story with this gift link. No paywall.

Is a baby born Dec 2025 eligible for both 2025 and 2026 Canada education savings grants?

One establishment told me yes it goes by calandar year, another says they're only eligible once baby has a SIN

Also, do over-contributions roll over to the next year and get the CESG?

Thanks friends

I have a 2004 vehicle which has a very low market value now, it's only used as a backup vehicle when in-laws are in town and we need 2 vehicles.

I'm looking for an insurance company that will enable me to turn it off (not even storage level insurance which still has premiums), but completely not insure. I'll take the risk on theft or fire.

The frequency of in-laws coming over is like once a year or every other year, otherwise I expect the vehicle to just be sitting on the driveway.

I also recognize some insurance companies don't want to insure 20+ year old vehicles, and onboarding as a new customer requires a vehicle inspection report.

Given my situation, which insurers would be able to accommodate this situation:

1) Willing to insure 20+ year old vehicles

2) Can turn the insurance off and not require me to have to re-certify the vehicle or do another inspection every year or 2 years when I need to re-insure

I'm 6 weeks pregnant, I'm extremely exhausted to get out of bed, it's energy to lift my arm. Other than that, I don't have any Illness. I don't want to sound like I'm just tired, I can't fathom to get out of bed and work for 12 hours back to back shifts as my body shakes due to forcing it to do so.

Mat leave counts insurable hours from 1 year - I already have way more than 600 hours even if I do not work until my due date.

I have never worked for EI sickness before. I work in large company. What if I tell my employer I can't work and my claim gets denied? What if my short term disability gets denied and I have already taken days off and told I can't work? My employer won't believe me then.

I'm going to submit note from midwife but what if any of the party says they only need note from doctor? My doctor told me "the work must continue" and won't support me with this.

Hi all. Both my spouse and I have substantial amounts of money invested in index funds in our TFSAs. Wondering what the opinions of others would be to fund a substantial portion of a downpayment (e.g. 20-40%) against a new home versus deferring and taking a few years to save some cash to save up the same. We currently own a home and have an affordable mortgage and could manage waiting a few years, but our family is growing and our living situation will go from manageable to stressful as kids get older. I see the market is volatile, rates are increasing, and home prices seem to be lowering and am trying to hedge lifestyle concerns versus financial prudence and risk management. My work is volatile but lucrative, spouse is not volatile and makes enough money to get us by but she will be on mat leave for the foreseeable future.

What would you do? Cheers.