I Can’t Afford To Pay My Tax Debt

After you file your tax return, you will be sent an assessment notice from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) which shows the balance of the tax owing. If it is in a refund balance, this is money that the CRA owes to you but if it shows a balance owing then you must pay the CRA those monies by the payment deadline. After the payment deadline if the balance is not paid, interest will accrue and will be compounded daily.

What if I can’t afford to pay the balance owing to the CRA?
If you are already neck deep in debt and can’t afford to pay off the balance owing with the CRA, you have options:

Negotiate a payment plan with the CRA – You can contact your nearest CRA office and explain your circumstance and offer them a payment schedule that you can manage. So for example, if you have a balance owing of $1200, offer them $100 for the next 12 months. The CRA is aggressive and will always try to get you to pay the balance of in full but if they do accept the repayment plan, they will continue to charge you interest and penalty until the debt is paid off. If the CRA doesn’t accept the offer, they will take further action against you to try and collect the money owing.

Get a personal loan – These loans have become the premiere loan choice during a temporary financial problem. It is one of the quickest ways to pay off your debt. The interest rates will likely be less than what the CRA rates are and if you choose the proper financial institution to borrow from, they will even help you rebuild your credit rating through regularly reporting all payments.

In order to avoid this problem in the future, you must determine why you owe the money, whether it’s due to cashing out RRSPs, if you’re self employed or just not contributing enough from each paycheque. In either situation, you must acknowledge where the problem is and find a solution so that you don’t find yourself in this situation again where you have to pay a lump sum at the end of tax season when you really can’t afford to. There is nothing more frustrating than working hard to maintain your daily finances only to get slapped with another debt.

For more information about personal loans to pay off your tax debt, visit www.prudentcreditrepair.ca

Can Reward Credit Cards Affect Your Credit?

Reward credit cards allow you to collect points or miles towards purchasing flights, hotels, rental cars, merchandise and other free stuff. Usually you’ll have to collect enough points in order to buy your desired freebie. Not all reward programs are created equal and every points system is different in the way it works.


It’s hard to turn down free rewards. This is how credit card companies entice people to sign up to use their credit cards. It’s important to remember that these companies are in the business to make money and they’re not offering these rewards with the possibility that they’ll lose money. These reward cards are beneficial to you if you pay back the balance in full each and every month otherwise you’ll be paying for the reward yourself in interest and annual fees.


How can a reward credit card affect my credit rating?


For many people, it’s easy to get sucked in through the tempting sign up bonus offers or immediate discount on your purchase. What starts happening here is that you can get caught up in the hopes of getting further discounts and you focus on accumulating those points that you fail to see that your debts are piling up. The more cards you have, the harder it is to keep track and all the while your credit rating is being tarnished.


Every time you sign up for a card, the lender requests a credit score and an inquiry is placed on your credit report. If you have too many requests for credit, your behaviour will be associated with those who have a higher chance for default. Even if you don’t use your credit cards, the available amount of credit you have can harm your credit score.


Reward credit cards can save you money but you have to be extremely knowledgeable on how these cards should be used so keep things in perspective.


When people spend with credit, they tend to overspend so if you find yourself in that position, stop putting things on your credit card immediately until you have your card paid off. Once this, limit your cards to 1 or 2 and then you can reconsider using them for rewards as long as you are able to pay off the balance IN FULL every month.


For more valuable information and tips on how to manage money, visit www.prudentcreditrepair.ca

How To Have A Successful Yard Sale for Extra Money

Times are tough and we can all use a little extra cash in our wallets. How do we do this? Well Spring has sprung and a great way to put extra money in your wallet is through a yard sale. There is a lot of thought and work that goes into a yard sale to make it successful so follow these tips and you’re sure to have a heavier pocket at the end of the day.

What is my first step?

The best initial step is always to choose a date. A great target date is in 2 to 3weeks time. This will give you the opportunity to get things organized and ready. When you have a yard sale the first thing you need to have is stuff to sell. So a good plan of attack is to start with a spring cleaning. Every item you come across for the sale should go to a designated area. Once your items are chosen, it’s time to organize and clean them. Remember that a clean item will net more money than a dusty one.

How do I price my items?

A successful yard sale should have items that are already price tagged, so people don’t have to pick you out of a crowd or wait around to get a price quoted over and over again. Always price your items at yard sale prices. People shop at yard sales to get a bargain, so a $20 item selling for half the price may still be sitting on the table at the end of the day. Sell that item for $5 and watch it fly off the table. If you have a ton of small items, consider having a bin or table with a sign that says something to the effect of ``Every item in this bin is $1``. Also keep in mind when pricing that people will want to negotiate some of the bigger priced items so leave room for this. These are things you no longer want and if you feel you can`t price the item at yard sale prices then you may want to save that item to sell through a different avenue.

How do I attract people to my yard sale?

The best way to attract customers to your yard sale is of course if through advertising. Place online ads on sites like Kijiji and Craigslist. Call your local newspaper and buy an ad that will appear in the paper a week before your sale. All ads should contain the date of the sale, the location of the sale, the hours and you can even include a short summary of items for sale. On the day of your sale, place signs around your area advertising your sale info. When you`re making your signs, use bright coloured paper and put your information in large legible writing. It`s also a good idea to put arrows on your sign directing them in the right direction of the sale. Don`t forget to take down the signs when your sale is over.

Anything else I need?

Yes, you will need to have newspaper or bubble wrap to wrap delicate items, have grocery bags on hand so people can carry their stuff. Don`t forget to have a lot of small change. People will buy a $2 item with a $20 bill. You can start collecting your $5s, $1s and change weeks prior or take a trip to the bank and change a $50 bill to smaller increments. Keep your money safe. Wear a fanny pack so you`re not leaving your earnings unattended. Also remember to display all your items and dedicate the day to working your yard sale.

Have a successful day and for more valuable tips and information, visit www.facebook.com/prudentfinancial

How You Can Save Money by Avoiding Common Fees

Many of us don’t realize how quickly common fees could add up and the significant damage it can make to your finances in the long run. There are many different fees and penalties that can be avoided and it’s up to you to understand how. Here are some of the most common fees that should be avoided:

Late fees – If you’re paying late fees because you don’t have the money to pay your bills on time then you should start to understand your finances and budget wisely. Cut down on unnecessary expenses that will allow you to have that extra cushion you need to pay your bills on time. If you’re simply a forgetful person, write down your due dates in an organizer, pay your bills as soon as you get them or schedule your online payments automatically for a specific date.

ATM charges – These charges occur when you withdraw money from a bank machine that is not owned by your bank. These fees can range from $1 to $3. These charges can also be charged twice. Once as a convenience fee for the bank machine owner and once from your bank. Once transaction can cost you upwards of $5 and if you’re doing this too often during the course of a month, it can cost you big at the end of each month.

Reward cards – Unless you’re a business owner, you may not get the benefit of the rewards gold and platinum cards give. These cards have high annual fees that can cost you up to $150 so unless you’re a big spender, these cards should be avoided. If it’s taking you over 3 years to earn almost enough to fly then you may have already paid a big amount of your reward in annual fees.

Credit report – Ontario Law states that you have a right to get a free credit report once every year so make sure that you’re not charged by a credit reporting agency when you need it for a mortgage or a home equity loan.

Don’t knowingly allow your hard earned money to be taken from you, visit http://www.prudentcreditrepair.ca/ for more valuable information and tips on managing money.

Keeping Your Money Safe

No matter where you bank, scammers are trying to take advantage of every opportunity to take our money. A recent wave of fraud is hitting small bank customers and credit union customers. Stealing from a bank vault was an early stage of this crime but criminals nowadays are making a big business out of stealing digital money. Stealing from bank accounts or credit card records, which is more trouble for you, the consumer. This doesn’t mean that your banking institutions are not safe, they are, this just means that we should be diligent in keeping our money safe. Here are just a few tips to keep your money safe:

Check your banks policy for covering losses – Your bank should have a policy to cover losses due to fraud. They may also have security policies in place to protect you should you try to access your bank info from other sources such as online or through banks other than your own. Also, check to see if your branch has had problems in the past such as a dishonest employee which could mean that the bank is not diligent in their screening process.

Keep separate accounts with different passwords – If you have a business account with a big line of credit, it makes sense to have a separate account, with a separate debit card/credit card and a different password than your personal account. If your account is all tied in one and it gets cleared out by this crime, you will have problems maintaining your financial life until it gets straightened out.

Protect your passwords – When using your debit card at any store or ATM, protect your password. Change your password regularly. Use different passwords for all accounts. The last thing you want to do is use the same password for everything you do whether online or not. Remember to get in the habit of logging off. If you’re banking online, log out of the session rather than just closing it. The same should go for telephone banking, end the session rather than just hanging up. Not doing this will leave you vulnerable to scams.

Maintain your statements – Always review your bank statements. If you notice something wrong, contact your financial institution and record it. Reviewing your own statements and not relying on the bank to do it for you may save you a bigger hassle in the end.

Never give out your personal information to anyone you don’t know, especially online or over the phone. Banks will be more than helpful getting things back to normal but remembering the tips above will save you from finding out the hard way. For more valuable information and tips, visit www.prudentcreditrepair.ca

I Lost My Job, What Do I Do Now?

When you lose your job, you’re not only losing income. You lose structure, routine, friendships and a sense of well being. Immediately get support from your family and friends, letting out your feelings and allowing yourself to release the anger or hurt from your job loss. This will also allow them to keep you in mind should they see an opportunity for you in employment. Now that you’ve dealt with the emotions, it’s time to make a plan. Here is a list of things to do when you lose your job:

Reflect – Why did you lose your job? Did the company restructure or downsize? Were you directly responsible? You should start to think about your current skill level and abilities, how you can excel in an industry and what you need to accomplish that. Think about whether you enjoyed what you were doing or is this your chance for change.

Apply for Unemployment Insurance Benefits – Find out if you qualify for EI. It may take a while to apply and to receive your first payment, your payments may barely be enough to cover your expenses and they run out really fast but it’s definitely a step that you should take until you get employment again.

Cut Your Expenses – You will want to make your funds last as long as possible so cut back on unnecessary expenses. Talk to your creditors and explain your situation. See if you can negotiate smaller monthly payments or interest rates. Never ignore your bills. Change your cable service to basic, make a decision between landline or cell phone, cut back on entertainment. At this point, you’re not sure if you’ll find a job that is less money, more money or whether you’ll find a job in 3 months or 2 years so it’s always best to be wise.

Create a new daily routine – Embrace the change. Dust off your resume, develop coping strategies and network to increase your probability of finding a job soon. A job takes a large portion of your time and although looking for a job may not take up all your time but it will take up a big part of your schedule. Set up a time for job searching activities and also set aside time for recreation and leisure such as walking, going to the library or taking a workshop.

Remember to take care of yourself. Don’t hide on the sofa. Keep yourself well groomed and keep your sense your humour. You can accomplish so much when you’re smiling so keep smiling!

For more valuable tips and information visit www.prudentcreditrepair.ca

How To Deal With Identity Theft

Identity theft is when a person’s personal information is stolen for the purpose of criminal use. Unfortunately it has become a growing epidemic. Most people don’t even know that they are a victim of this type of fraud until they are contacted by creditors and so we need to take precautions to ensure that we are not a victim of this crime. Here are some ways in which you can deal with identity theft:

Protect Yourself – There are ways you can protect yourself from identity theft. Always protect your personal information. Shred your confidential documents and only use secure sites when purchasing online.

Notify Credit Bureaus – If you suspect fraud you must first be sure that it is in fact fraud. If there’s a charge on your credit card statement that you do not recognize, call the credit card company and find out more about the charge. Some vendors hold their credit accounts under a different name so you may not recognize the charge. Once you eliminate the scenario that it was an error and you’re sure that it’s fraudulent activity then you should contact the credit bureau to establish fraud alerts. Your account will be flagged so that all creditors will contact you before extending any credit.

Request A Copy Of Your Credit Report – Once you receive your credit report, examine it carefully. Make sure the information is accurate and report all fraudulent activity, in writing, to the credit bureau and also to the creditor. Don’t forget to continually monitor your credit reports!

Debt Collectors – If you’re being contacted by a collector to pay the balance on a fraudulent account, get the name of the person calling, the collection company name, phone number, address, the creditor info, the amount of the debt, the date of charges and account number. Explain to them that you are a victim of fraud and that you are not responsible for the balance. You may need to complete a fraud affidavit form. Follow up the call with a letter and ask for a letter back stating that the account has been closed and that you do not in fact owe the debt.

Lost or Stolen Wallet/Purse – If you have lost your wallet or purse or had it stole, report it immediately. Call all credit card companies and get new cards with new account number sand change your password to a new one. Closely continue to monitor your bank accounts.

Identity theft is a big problem and it’s really difficult to catch people who have stolen other’s identities. If your identity has been stolen then it can take a lot of work to clean up the mess. Educating yourself will help you deal with Identity theft. For more valuable information and tips visit www.prudentcreditrepair.ca.