Canadians Optimistic About Escaping Debt

One of the primary objectives we have, here at Synergy Merchant Services, is to assist small to medium-sized Canadian businesses to grow. Business growth is essential to the national economy and as such, we work diligently to help business owners make smart decisions about the ways in which they can use merchant cash advances to grow their businesses.

Sometimes, the growth of a business is stunted when a business owner feels that that they may go further into debt by spending money on developing the company. And while these fears are understandable, it’s important to note that no business can truly survive in any marketplace without having any investment into its growth.

Thankfully, it would appear as if Canadians are growing more optimistic about being debt-free. Earlier today, QMI Agency reported that two brand new polls found that most Canadians believe that they will be debt-free by the time they reach the age of 55. Based on a CIBC survey, it seems that a positive mindset about finances is prevalent across the nation.

However, the same survey also found that only a third of Canadians in the 55-to-64 age group have actually gotten themselves into debt-free situations. A separate poll, conducted by ING Direct, found that 46 per cent of Canadians are finding it harder to save money today than it was just two years ago.

A third of the respondents from this poll reveal that they aren’t even close to the financial goals that they set out for this year. Nevertheless, most Canadians believe that they will be debt-free within 10 to 15 years of their current ages. At least, this is what the CIBC study also found.

Optimism seems highest in Alberta, QMI reports. Respondents from this western province expect to be debt-free by the age of 52. Their neighbours in British Columbia, on the other hand, are among the country’s most pessimistic, as they feel that it will take at least until age 58 to become debt-free. The Atlantic provinces seem to feel the same way.

Offered Christina Kramer, CIBC’s executive vice-president of retail distribution and channel strategy: “A key finding in this poll is that the passage of time alone is not enough to achieve the goal of paying down your debt. Canadians with a goal of being debt-free would benefit from having a realistic plan in place that includes extra payments towards their debt and a strategy to minimize their interest costs.”