Saving for the Holidays? So old fashioned…

According to a recent survey commissioned by TransUnion, more than half (64.6 percent) of Canadians surveyed say they have gone into this holiday shopping season having not saved money for it, which will likely lead to starting 2014 with a major debt hangover and potentially harming their credit health.

As a collection agency with offices in Edmonton, Calgary and the GTA we recognize that the vast majority of consumers we inevitably end up dealing with are good people, with good intentions that have now simply arrived at the tipping point of having to either try to continue to rob Peter to pay Paul or, in the alternative, to make some hard choices in monthly budgeting in order to honour their outstanding financial obligations.

A recent Google Consumer Survey conducted by TransUnion revealed that 64.6 percent of Canadians surveyed do not save in advance of holiday shopping and an additional 14.4 percent of those surveyed said they only saved in October, November and December. For many, this will likely mean using current credit cards, opening new lines of credit or taking on extra debt. Excessive inquiries for new lines of credit, higher balances compared to credit limits and large amounts of debt can all be harmful to a consumer’s credit health.