National Canadian Credit Counseling Firm Warns Against Adding New Debt This Holiday Season

Avineet Kalsey, of BSCC in Vancouver (Surrey), British Columbia, is warning Canadian consumers against acquiring additional debt in the coming holiday season. The same concerns have been echoed by the Bank of Canada which is worried that although the economy is improving, household debt levels seem to be on the rise. According to statistics, debt figures have grown significantly in the past year. Debt at the end of 2103 debt was $1.409 trillion dollars. By the end of October this year, it was a whopping $1.8 trillion. This is worrying if you take into account the fact that these figures do not include mortgage debt. They are mostly credit card debt, personal loans and different lines of credit.
 
We asked Mr. Kalsey why an increase in household debt is potentially a bad thing considering that the economy is doing well. “Canadians are taking out more credit than ever. This cannot go on unchecked. The fact that the debt levels are growing rather than dropping is an indication that people are spending a lot more money than they have. If they take out even more debt during the holidays they can expect financial instability in the coming year especially when interest rates begin to rise.”
 
BSCC stands for Business Solutions and Credit Counseling. The company has been in business for more than 10 years and in that time they have helped hundreds of thousands of people manage their debts through debt counseling. Debt counseling involves negotiating with creditors so that individuals can come up with a manageable and realistic way of paying debts in order to avoid bankruptcy. Creditors are presented with a consumer proposal that suggests an amount that is to be paid back every month. If they creditor is agreeable the individual can then start to pay off their debt. BSCC offers other services including debt settlement, bankruptcy and they also help individuals rebuild their credit.
 
According to Mr. Kalsey, it is in the interest of the BSCC to make sure that people are not getting into more debt than they absolutely have to. “While it is our job to help individuals who are struggling with debt, we don’t encourage them to acquire more of it. Spending recklessly in the coming weeks is not going to help at all. We encourage responsible spending so that debt repayment is easy.”
 
You can find out more by visiting their website, http://www.bscc.ca

Contact Information

Avineet Kalsey

Manager, Western Operations

BSCC

Contact via E-mail