135 – The Economic Reality of Vulnerable Debtors

Earlier this week, our firm Hoyes, Michalos & Associates launched our 2017 study of Joe Debtor. Joe Debtor is a report on the average insolvent Ontarian that we publish every two years. This year marks our sixth published study, which means we have a lot of comparative data and can identify trends.

We're increasingly seeing a certain type of Ontarian filing insolvency. Although we have Ontarians from all income levels filing either a consumer proposal or bankruptcy, there are certain vulnerable debtors who are more likely to declare themselves insolvent.

Key findings from our study:

• Joe Debtor's take-home income is 41% below the median Ontario household income
• He is using most of his income to pay for necessities, not luxuries
• Joe Debtor has just $302 a month available for unsecured debt repayment - but that debt carries an estimated interest cost of $960 a month

Who Are the Vulnerable Debtors?

We're seeing an increase in certain demographics based on our findings year-over-year. We'll post demographic-specific podcasts in the upcoming weeks so we can discuss each one in detail.

There is a steady rise in insolvent millennials, who are just starting out their adult lives. We've also seen an increase in senior debtors who are carrying debt into retirement. Today's podcast talks about the certain types of debt that these vulnerable debtors are carrying and why it's so dangerous.