Yes, it’s the week before Christmas, you’ve probably gone way over your budget for gift buying and you still haven’t finished your shopping yet. If you paid cash for your gifts you won’t have any problems in the new year, January will be like any other January. If you used credit because you didn’t have cash then you’re one that is going to get that shocker credit card bill in the mail next month. 
Some of you will be able to pay the bills off over the next couple of months and be right back on track with your income and expenses. Others will struggle for a while, maybe three or four months, paying only the minimum payments until you realize one of two things – the debts aren’t going anywhere or you spotted that little reminder on your statement that tells you how many years it’s going to take to actually pay the darn thing off.
You, like everyone else will go into panic mode trying to figure out what’s next. Well, I can help you with what’s next – book an appointment with a licensed trustee to hear your options. If January comes around and you find yourself feeling stressed and don’t know what to do, we can help. It may be just a matter of hearing your options to realize that you actually don’t need to file a bankruptcy or a consumer proposal, maybe it’s just help with budgeting that you need.
Doug Hoyes, co-founder of Hoyes, Michalos & Associates, Inc. has done two videos on The Secret to Budgeting, Part One and Part Two. Have a peak, I think you’ll be surprised at what you learn, even if it is January before you decide to look into anything. In the meantime, Ian Martin of our Kitchener office has done a great blog on Knowing Your Holiday Spending Limit. In fact, he was on Talk Radio in the Kitchener area just last Wednesday to talk about this exact subject.
If your December goes out with a bang and the new year rings in with large credit card debt, loans that you struggle to pay off or a line of credit that just keeps getting bigger, give us a call and let us help you. We can be reached at our Hamilton and Burlington offices by calling 310-PLAN (7526) or 905-777-0770 or you can e-mail us directly.
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