How Canadians are growing richer but deeper in debt

The Globe and Mail- Canadians are getting richer as stocks and house prices rise. Household net worth rose 1.3 per cent in the first quarter of the year, or $74-billion, to $6-trillion, Statistics Canada said today, as the value of assets eclipsed the rise in liabilities. “This follows a 1.8 per cent advance in the previous quarter,” the federal statistics gathering agency said. “Gains in the value of financial assets, especially equities, as well as increases in residential real estate contributed to the advance in net worth.”

Household debt also rose, particularly mortgages, Statistics Canada said. The ratio of household credit market debt-to-income now stands at 147 per cent, up from 144.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2009…

How Canadians are growing richer but deeper in debt – The Globe and Mail

Homing in on a recovery

 Globe and Mail, Toronto – The housing recovery will show up as decent growth rates even though the actual level might be only one-third of its former rate, said Richard Kelly, a senior economist with TD Securities Inc. “You have already seen an initial advance in [housing] stocks,” and ripple effects felt in the U.S. banking sector and Canadian lumber companies, he said…

Homing in on a recovery – The Globe and Mail

Rebuild your wealth

 CanadianBusiness.com – Toronto,Ontario,Canada – Contribute to your RRSP, and then take the tax refund to pay down your mortgage. If it makes sense, open a Tax Free Savings Account. …

Rebuild your wealth | Markets | Stocks | Canadian Business Online

New bank rescues reflect a vicious cycle

 The Gazette (Montreal) – Quebec,Canada – This in turn cuts asset values even more as it creates new mortgage defaults, loan losses and declines in the value of bonds and stocks. What many of us …

New bank rescues reflect a vicious cycle