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Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca BLOG
My Wife is going in for surgery/cancer - Money is secondary
- Posted February 26, 2009 by Monty Loree
My Wife is going in for surgery/cancer
- Money is secondaryI thought I would write this post for all of those people who get on this site and tell people to "pay their bills and stop complaining."
In the last few months, my wife Lisa has found out that she's got a 21cm tumor growing inside her. It's more than likely a large cyst, however, it could be cancer.
In that time I've been pretty freaked about the situation. I'm not ashamed to say it. I haven't been concentrating on my business and this site as much as I normally do.
The worry for my wife's health is huge, and its something that will be there until she has the operation and is recovering nicely. (Thank God for Canada's health system!)
It's at times like these that we some people coming on the site and talking about how they are having problems with collection agencies. They're not paying their bills and are getting hassled by bill collectors.
I'm not in debt, and I don't have bill collectors calling me, but I could see how this type of situation could cause a person to fall into these problems.
My wife has had to quit work in the last month, as she was preparing herself to have the tumor removed. This means that all of the bills fall onto my shoulders to pay. If we needed her income to pay credit cards and other debts then we would be in trouble right at the moment.
I guess I don't need to mention that my wife didn't didn't decide to have this 21cm tumor. It wasn't part of her financial plan to do the surgery and take time off of work.
The Economy is Bad - These things happen
Where as I believe that people should pay their bills as agreed to, bad things still happen to the economy and to individuals.
These days there are hundreds of thousands of lay offs in Canada. People are losing their jobs because of circumstances out of their control.
They may get behind on bill payments. The collectors might call.
The point is... bad things happen to people to hinder them making payments. It always makes me furious to have people come on this site and laugh at others because they fall into rough situations financially.
The people that say "pay your bills and stop complaining" obviously haven't gone through the traumatic experience of losing their job , or having a loved one take sick for a prolonged period.
I know that my wife's health will get better. I have the greatest confidence in the Canadian health system.
In the meantime.. I am going to work a few less hours in the next few weeks, and I am going to stay worried until my wife gets better. I dont' think I'll have any bill collectors calling me, however, It deepens my sympathy for those who are going through rough times in Canada.
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
GM loses $9.6 billion - Let's give them more money?
- Posted February 26, 2009 by Monty Loree
GM loses $9.6 billion - Let's give them more money?
I see on money.cnn.com that General Motors lost almost $10 billion in the 4th quarter. Now they've got their hand out asking for more money.
I keep talking about General Motors because as of last year they had 252,000 employees according Time Magazine, and they were bleeding money all year.
You would think that this company would do massive lay offs and plant closures to shed a ton of its costs.
WE FOUGHT AGAINST SOCIALISM IN THE WAR
Growing up in the 60's and 70's I remember a little talk about how we hated Russia's communism, and how we fought in World War's to fight against socialism.
The U.S. and Canada have prided themselves for being free market countries. These days it doesn't seem like it.
1) General Motors is getting social assistance for people to make $40/hour
2) General Motors is still hemorraghing money
3) Where's the incentive to innovate?
1) General Motors is getting social assistance for people to make $40/hour
It's not like we're helping starving people who are going to the food bank.
General Motors employees are making alot of money relative to other workers.
In trying to tighten its belt in the last decade, Canada's federal government has tightened its belt with Employment insurance, & social assistance. People didn't like the added restrictions and cost cutting but they learned to live with it.
Now the government is handing over public money, without much thought, to a company who is paying its employees several times more than minimum wage.
2) General Motors is still hemorrhaging money
General Motors seems to be incapable of cost cutting to a point where they're profitable. Because of their extensive contracts, they're unable to lay off people and close plants. I'm not sure what the reasons are, however, the company is still losing money.
I understand why General Motors would be reluctant to lay off alot of their staff. It's because it costs them so much money to recruit and train people. That's understood.
However, the problem is... they need to shed alot of costs right now. $9.6 billion in the fourth quarter. That's $3.2 billion per month at least that they would need to shed before they started making money.
3) Where's the incentive to innovate?
Necessity is the mother of invention. That's been a strong rule that we've lived by as a country. When the chips are down, or there is a strong need, we get to work and innovate.
Having General Motors receive money like they are is just delaying the problems.
If General Motors and Chrysler declared bankruptcy, that would focus their minds on actual cost cutting and innovation. The amount of pain suffered would be enough to motivate them to do what it takes to make the company profitable again.
I like General Motors.. They make good cars. I am pretty loyal to their brand. They're just not getting the point right now. They need to declare bankruptcy, shed their costs, get motivated again to start making money.
If we keep bailing out this company, it's going to be a socialistic company. I definitely won't buy a car from a company that's owned by the Federal Government!!
Let's talk about this
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway's Stock down $4100 in a day
- Posted February 18, 2009 by Monty Loree
Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway's Stock down $4100 in a day
I was curious to look and see what Warren Buffet's stock is doing these days, during the economic crisis.
The 52 week range for NYSE:BRKA is 74,100.00 - 147,000.00 per share. That's a huge fluctuation in value.. not only percentage wise, but also dollar wise.
I guess even the Oracle of Omaha has bad stock years. His company is legendary for investing well, and making money
If you lose $63,000 per share from their highs of $147,000 per share, and you own 1000 shares ... that would be $63,000,000 you would have lost on those 1000 shares.
That's different from General Motors stock which is currently worth $2.18 per share, or $2,180 for 1000 shares !!
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss Investing Other posts about Canadian Investing More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
General Motors Bailout - Federal Made Cars?? - VIDEO
- Posted February 17, 2009 by Monty Loree
General Motors Bailout - Federal Made Cars?? - VIDEO
It bothers me to no end that General Motors was given a deadline to make a plan to make their company profitable.
The deadline was today, and they didn't do it. I'm not really surprised, but I am pretty angry.
Instead of making a plan that would make General Motors profitable today, they've made a plan that might make them profitable in the future..
Oh yeah.. and start to make repayments by 2012!!
This video is in response to the video below by Rick Wagoner
Making profit is simple... Costs are less than sales revenue.
General Motors and Chrysler need to lay off enough people and cut enough costs until they're profitable today. Not in 2-3 years... and especially NOT using tax payers money.
Would you want to purchase cars made by the federal government.. I didn't think so.. but that in essence is what's happening when the federal government keeps bailing out losing companies.
That should be General Motors next marketing slogan..
The all new 2009 Cadillac CTS... made by the U.S. and Canadian Federal Governments. How prestigious is that?!!
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss Bankruptcy Other posts about Canadian Bankruptcy More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
If General Motors goes bankrupt, will you still get warranty?
- Posted February 17, 2009 by Monty Loree
If General Motors goes bankrupt,
will you still get warranty?Never in my life time did I think I would have to think of this question.
If the US car companies go bankrupt, that probably releases them from all contracts regarding living up to their warranties. Unless it was a part of the bankruptcy negotiations.
General Motors and Chrysler could walk away from all of their warranty obligations if they declare bankruptcy.. That would leave millions of car owners fending for themselves.
Will this happen? It's not likely, given the Federal Governments propensity to keep helping out the car companies.
By definition General Motors and Chrysler are bankrupt. So... there is a possibility that they will not live up to their warranties in the future.
Answers on How the GM, Chrysler Restructuring Will Affect Your Car
By Ylan Q. Mui
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 17, 2009; 9:00 PM
General Motors and Chrysler delivered their plans for survival today to the White House in order to receive billions of dollars in loans. Here are some answers to questions about how their restructuring could affect what's in your garage.
Q. Will the warranty on my car or truck be affected?
A. The short answer is no. The automakers are obligated to fulfill their end of the contract as long as they remain open for business, said Philip Reed, senior consumer advice editor at Edmunds.com.
General Motors has said several times that it will honor all outstanding warranties in the United States and worldwide as it attempts to stay solvent. At Chrysler, a spokesman said yesterday that the company "stands by its customers."
However, if an automaker did fall into bankruptcy, the fate of consumer warranties would be unclear. Reed said the issue likely would be addressed quickly in that worst-case scenario.
What happens if one of the automakers goes bankrupt?
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss Bankruptcy Other posts about Canadian Bankruptcy More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Economic Crisis - Timeshares don't need a bailout? -VIDEO
- Posted February 16, 2009 by Monty Loree
Economic Crisis - Timeshares don't need a bailout? -VIDEO
I was watching the bailout stimuls talks on CNBC and CNN.. The congressmen and senators were talking to Tim Geithner...
RANT Part #4 of 4
One of the congressmen mentioned that Florida's economy was in trouble and that the tourism industry was doing badly. One of the things he mentioned was that Timeshares were doing poorly.
TIMESHARES DON'T NEED A BAILOUT
I couldn't believe it as I watched a congressman actually wondering if timeshares could be helped out by the economic stimulus package of $787 billion.
I sat there in wonderment.. This is the mentality of people right at the moment.
For all of the worry and concern about the economy, wouldn't it be prudent to worry about the homeless, putting food on the table, and getting shelter for those who need it.
While timeshares do have something to do with credit... THEY'RE A LUXURY.. PLAIN AND SIMPLE.
If the time share industry needs to go bankrupt because they haven't saved enough money and paid down their debt, then so be it.. The consumer isn't there to service the timeshare industry... the timeshare industry is there to service the consumer.
CONGRESSMEN... GET A GRIP ON REALITY.. PLEASE!!
The point is... if congressmen are wondering about what to bailout, and they have such low priority items to talk about, it's not really a wonder that the ecomony is in the toilet.
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Economic Crisis - Elkhart Indiana, MotorHomes, RV's - VIDEO
- Posted February 16, 2009 by Monty Loree
Economic Crisis - Elkhart Indiana, MotorHomes, RV's - VIDEO
Elkhart Indiana was showcased by President Obama visiting their city.
My heart goes out for the people in this city as their unemployment rate is running upwards of 18%.
RANT Part #3
The problem I've got is that their economy is largely based on Motorhomes and RV's manufacturing. Of course, with the credit crisis, their sales of motor homes and RV's are probably very low right now.
These types of products are hugely credit based.. and there probably isn't alot of credit available for RV's at the moment.
NO BAILOUT FOR MOTORHOMES OR RVs PLEASE
Where as it's bad that there is huge unemployment based on the manufacture of these luxury items... I don't think they should receive any stimulus package money. That would be ridiculous in my opinion.
Again, manufacturers are there to service the consumer... if the consumer isn't buying , then the manufacturer needs to do something else. Hopefully the manufacturer has put money aside and paid down their debt so that they can weather this economic storm.. but it doesn't look like they have.
It's painful for the workers to have to retrain, and relearn new skills, however that seems to be the only answer right now. Instead of looking for bailout money to keep jobs making motorhomes... why not use our god given talents and find out what the market does want and then start to manufacture that!!
It's all about supply and demand. Right now the demand for many luxury items have dropped. It's time to rethink the process and find out what consumers all over the world are willing to purchase.
It's easier said than done... however, this was the approach that our founding fathers used when they came to Canada and the U.S., pioneered everything, and made our country great.
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Why Saving is SAVING the economy-VIDEO
- Posted February 16, 2009 by Monty Loree
Why Saving is SAVING the economy-VIDEO
This post is in response to money.cnn.com's article titled:
Why saving is killing the economy
RANT Part #2
It makes me furious to think the media and government are giving the consumers heck for saving their money and paying down credit.
Let's get something straight.. retailers are there to service consumers. It's not the other way around.
IMPORTANT: RETAILERS ARE IN BUSINESS TO SERVICE CONSUMERS
Retailers are in business to service the consumer. If retailers declare bankruptcy because of a bad economy, that's their fault... not the consumers. Retailers had ample time and sales to put away cash reserves for themselves to weather a bad economy.
I want to publicly strongly disagree with media and government who are encouraging consumers to spend their money.
I'm encouraging people to become financially healthy again. Save your money, and pay down credit.. FOR AS LONG AS IT TAKES.
Don't get bullied into thinking that it's the consumers responsibility to uphold the economy by spending every last cent they've got.
I want to congratulate all of the people who are saving there money and paying down credit during this economic crisis. I think you'll be much better off for doing that.
I also posted my reply on lthe cnn's talk back blog.
This is my reply on CNN
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Economic Stimulus Package won't work - VIDEO
- Posted February 16, 2009 by Monty Loree
Economic Stimulus Package won't work - VIDEO
In this video I give my opinion as to why the U.S. and Canadian Stimulus package won't work.
RANT Part #1
I've been watching TV in the last few weeks and found so many things that made me furious.. I just needed to rant a little.
An example I use is about the forefathers who built the country from scratch.
-- Back in 1620 the settlers knelt down on Plymouth Rock and prayed, "Dear Lord, can you give us a nice stimulus package to help us pioneer the U.S. and Canada.
I have nothing but the greatest respect for the people who risked their lives and took the time to pioneer across Canada and the U.S. hundreds of years ago.
These pioneers were resilient, creative, and enduring and did what ever it takes to build the country.
We've lost that resilience as a nation and have become fat and lazy.
FAMILY MAKING $94,000 LOSES THEIR JOB AND HAVE NO CASH RESERVES
I also talk about a family that I saw interviewed on cnn.com. The father loses his well paying job. He's making $94,000 per year.
I feel really bad that the family is having this crisis...
I'm wondering why a family that made this much money needs to go to their families for help because they only have 2 months cash reserve saved up.!! They should be the ones that family come to for help!
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss General Discussion Other posts about Canadian Monty's Thoughts More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
capital one cecured credit cards for canadians
- Posted February 10, 2009 by Monty Loree
Capital One Secured credit cards for Canadians
I made this video as I thought It would be pretty informative for those who are looking to build or rebuilt their credit.
SecuredCC.com
CapitalOne Secured Credit Card
Alot of people ask me about how to improve their credit rating on the Canadian-Money-Advisor website
They're applying for a car loan, credit card, or mortgage and they have "bad credit" or even "new credit".
Let's talk about this for a moment
NEW CREDIT
New credit means that you've never had credit that's reported to the Equifax and/or TransUnion credit bureaus before.
This could be because you're a student, just turned 18, or perhaps you've newly immigrated to Canada.
BAD CREDIT
Bad credit means that you've missed a few payments on a credit card, loan or car payment... or maybe even had some dealings with a collection agency
The Capital One secured credit card can help you get started with a new and improved credit rating
Before I continue, let me give you a little information about what a security deposit is:
A security deposit is just that... it gives the creditor security against your loan, and... the amount required will be based on your current credit rating.
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By giving CapitalOne a security deposit of as little as $75, you have guaranteed acceptance with their secured credit card. This will give you a credit line of up to $750... credit lines of up to $1500 are available based on your credit rating, and higher security deposit.
This means within a very short period of time, your new credit card will start to report to equifax and transunion and start to develop your credit score.
---
In my opinion.. for only $75 ... this is the least expensive credit card that will help you build or rebuild your credit rating.!!
Apply today at: ---SecuredCC.com--- Again... that's SecuredCC.com
Please Note: Capital One Secured Credit Cards are not available to the following:
Individuals who have not been discharged from a bankruptcy
Individuals who live in Quebec, Northwest Territories, Nunavit, or Yukon Territories
Apply Now ! Secured Credit Cards
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss The Banks Other posts about Canadian Creditors More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Bankruptcies were up 47% in Canada - December 2008
- Posted February 10, 2009 by Monty Loree
Bankruptcies were up 47% in Canada - December 2008
According to bloomberg.com Canadian bankruptcies were up 47% in December 2008 over December 2007.
The total number of bankruptcies in Canada were 8,299 in December
bloomberg.com
Canadian Bankruptcies Jump 47% in December From Year Earlier
By Theophilos Argitis
Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Canadian bankruptcies in December jumped 47 percent from a year earlier, as more consumers struggled to pay their bills amid the country’s first recession since 1992.
The number of bankruptcies filed by consumers and businesses in Canada totaled 8,299 in December, compared with 5,659 one year earlier, the country’s bankruptcy superintendent reported on its Web site. Bankruptcies filed by consumers jumped 51 percent to 7,821 in December, according to the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada.
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss Bankruptcy Other posts about Canadian Bankruptcy More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
Canadian Credit delinquencies rising, Deloitte warns -Canada
- Posted February 03, 2009 by Monty Loree
Canadian Credit delinquencies rising
Deloitte warns -CanadaConsumers are going to get hit at the credit cards, it seems, whether they have good credit or bad!
According to this Financial Post article: Canadian credit-card users could face a wave of credit checks, limit reductions and even account closures as issuers fight against a rise of between 5% and 10% in the delinquency rate.
I'm thinking that what the credit card companies will do is go through a filtering process of who is potentially higher risk credit card holders and then reduce their credit limits, do credit checks accordingly.
It might be worth a phone call to your credit card company and your bank if you're concerned about having your limit lowered on your credit cards.
I had it happen to me in the past... a line of credit was actually shut down because my credit score dropped. My payments were current, and there were no problems with the account at all. The only difference was that I was showing a lower equifax score. (It was probably due to me having 45 inquiries on my credit report. I didn't understand the term credit shopping at the time )
EXAMPLE: If somebody has a credit card with a limit of $20,000 and they're only using $3,500 of that limit on a consistent basis... at the same time their credit score drops ... this might be a situation where the credit card company feels that they are over exposed and may reduce the credit limit down to a limit matching that person's current credit score.
Bottom line, the credit card companies need to make sure that they're not taking too much risk their current clients.
Financial Post
Canadian credit-card users could face a wave of credit checks, limit reductions and even account closures as issuers fight against a rise in the delinquency rate to between 5% and 10% from 4% before ...
Canadian credit-card users could face a wave of credit checks, limit reductions and even account closures as issuers fight against a rise of between 5% and 10% in the delinquency rate.
Consumer debt on credit-cards issued by Canadian banks has soared nearly 40% since 2004 on the back of loosened standards, according to accounting giant and advisory firm Deloitte.
Now, it's delinquencies that are rising. The average loss rate of between 3% and 4% has risen by between 50 and 100 basis points, according to the firm's new report, Uncharted Waters for Credit Issuers, released Tuesday.
Deloitte puts the total value of outstanding consumer debt on credit cards at $80-billion, putting as much as $800-million at risk of write-offs in the next year if issuers "fail to take action immediately.
More From Canadian-Money-Advisor.ca Discuss The Banks Other posts about Canadian Creditors More articles from February, 2009 More articles from 2009
People are saving more - but backwards?
- Posted February 03, 2009 by Monty Loree
People are saving more - but backwards?
I still can't believe it.. consumers are getting heck for saving their money, because it hurts the economy!!
Finally, consumers have gotten it into their heads that they need money saved. They're paying down debt and saving money. This is fantastic in my opinion.
It would have been a little nicer if they had done this during the boom times, however, I guess people start being conservative when the news gets really bad. Better late than never.
I heard a figure that was saying the U.S. population increased their savings by 4% over the last 6 months. This is almost unprecedented in recent history. It's absolutely wonderful... except....
The problem is... all of this money saved isn't going into the economy to boost the businesses and retailers. Businesses rely on consumers spending themselves into the floor to keep afloat each month.
So ... the question is: Should consumers spend their money just to keep retailers afloat?
What's wrong with this picture?
southtownstar.com
By Lauren FitzPatrick on February 2, 2009 3:51 PM
The U. S. Commerce department today released a report about consumer spending and saving in December 2008, and what came out is that Americans are stashing more money than they're spending.
Seems like good news, right?
The New York Times doesn't seem to think so.
Squirreling away money and paying down debt may be good for one family's kitchen-table economics, but the broader economy suffers in the short-term when millions of families do it.
A dollar saved does not circulate through the economy the way a dollar spent does, and these higher savings rates immediately translate into lower revenues and sales for struggling businesses. Still, some economists said the higher saving rate was a natural consequence of America's spendthrift ways.
You can read the whole story here.
It continues to talk about personal savings rates, which dropped to nearly ZERO during the last boom, when folks were tapping their houses for home equity loans, treating their dwellings like ATMs.
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