Household Debt Hits Record $1.5-trillion

Household Debt Hits Record $1.5-trillion
Household debt has hit a troubling $1.5-trillion, sparking new fears that the heavy burden on Canadian consumers could hurt the economy, particularly as fiscal stimulus fades.The figure, from a report Tuesday by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada, means that if household debt were distributed evenly across all Canadians, a two-child household would owe an estimated $176,461, including mortgage costs...About 27 per cent of working Canadians aren’t saving, while single-parent families, retirees and households with an income of $50,000 and under are in particularly dire straits. Single parents were the only family category listed in the report where debt climbs with age, and one-third of retired households are burdened by an average debt of $60,000. Households with an income of less than $50,000 are “six times more likely to be financially vulnerable in terms of their debt-service ratio,” the study said.