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Recent Bankruptcy Questions:
 Over the lunch hour today I was invited to speak to a group of employees at the Brant County Health Unit here in Brantford. Many large employers often hold “lunch and learn” sessions where guest speakers discuss topical issues. Even if we are not experiencing financial problems ourselves, we often know others who have money problems, so I was asked to discuss strategies for dealing with debt problems.
I started by describing the typical person I help here in Brantford. I explained that often bad things happen to good people, and as a result of job loss, marriage break up, medical condition, or bad money management people use credit to survive and end up with more debt than they can handle.
We then talked about solutions to debt problems, including personal budgeting, debt consolidation, credit counselling, consumer proposals, and bankruptcy.
The group then had lots of questions about different ways to deal with debt, and they also had many questions about credit reports.
Regarding credit reports, I recommended getting a free copy of your credit report each year to ensure that all information is correct. (You can get a free copy from the Equifax web site).
I closed by reminding everyone that financial problems occur frequently, so if you know of anyone experiencing debt problems, help is available by calling my office in Brantford at 519-770-4440, or e-mailing me to set up a free initial consultation.Labels: bankruptcy Brantford
 After experiencing a decline in the personal bankruptcy rate in Brantford in 2005 and 2006, the number of personal bankruptcy filings in Brantford increased by 13% in 2007. In total, 384 residents of Brantford went bankrupt in 2007.
In addition, a further 112 Brantford, Ontario residents filed a consumer proposal in 2007, a 12% increase from the 100 people in Brantford who filed a consumer proposal in 2006.
While the unemployment rate declined slightly in 2007 in Brantford, employment growth was a tepid 1%. Similar to other communities in Ontario, Brantford has lost higher paying manufacturing jobs and replaced these with lower paying service jobs. In early 2007, Genfast Manufacturing Company was just one company to close resulting in the loss of 210 jobs in Brantford. In August, Canadian Blue Bird closed affecting a further 130 manufacturing jobs. The list of plant closings also included Easton Coatings, Dura Automotive and Kester Canada.
By way of contrast, personal bankruptcies increased by 5.2% in all of Ontario, and by only 0.7% in all of Canada, so obviously Brantford has been hit harder than other cities in Canada.
If you have lost your job, or had your hours cut back at work, or if you are just faced with more debt than you can handle, please call me in Brantford at 519-770-4440, or e-mail me to set up a meeting to review your options, and let me help you find a solution to your debt problems.Labels: bankruptcy Brantford, bankruptcy statistics Brantford, consumer proposal Brantford
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This site is sponsored by Hoyes Michalos
& Associates Inc.
If you're having financial difficulties and live in the Brantford area, call (519) 770-4440 today to meet with one of our experts, or complete the ask a question form to send us a message and we'll get in contact with you.
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Over the lunch hour today I was invited to speak to a group of employees at the Brant County Health Unit here in Brantford. Many large employers often hold “lunch and learn” sessions where guest speakers discuss topical issues. Even if we are not experiencing financial problems ourselves, we often know others who have money problems, so I was asked to discuss strategies for dealing with debt problems.
