Description: A survey from the National Payroll Institute finds financial stress is rising among Canadian workers. Thirty-seven percent of those surveyed reported financial stress, with over sixty percent of that group indicating they need to spend their full net pay just to keep even. Meanwhile, thirty percent of those undergoing stress are drawing down savings or taking on additional debt to try and get by from paycheque to paycheque.
Date: October 3, 2023
Source: cp24.com
Discussion points:
1) Are you and your classmates feeling the pinch from rising prices?
2) Would you consider a career as a financial advisor who would help Canadians manage their personal finances?
3) Illustration 7.11 in Wiley’s Financial Accounting: Tools for Business Decision-Making shows us six principles of cash management. Which of these can a family use to help them reduce their financial stress?
Rhys James Chambers
GROUP THREE
1 ) Yes, we are, the university is fees is rising as well which is stressing a lot people out on how will they pay the fees for next year or for al the 4 year. Sackville is expensive without the rising prices, it is worse when the price keeps rising, if you live off resident which mean you have to do grocery at least once a week or 2 and it is so expensive here in Sackville.
The taxes are rising as well, the taxes rate in NB is around 9.4% to 20.3% of income but when you combine the federal and provincial tax rate it is between 24.4% and 53.3%. If someone is paying 53.3% tax more than half of the income is gone which makes grocery shopping or buying daily necessities hard with the rising price.
2 )Yes, I would consider a career as a financial advisor who would help Canadians manage their personal finances. It’s a noble profession that can make a positive impact on people’s lives. If you’re passionate about finance and helping others, becoming a financial advisor can be a fulfilling path.
3 )Out of the six principles of cash management, our group thought that the sixth principle, prepare a cash budget, would help a family reduce their financial stress the most. A cash budget over a one year or two year period will show where and when payments will be required well in advance of the actual payment date; this can greatly reduce the stress of paying bills on time and it will also let you know when you will have extra money to pay off debts or invest for the long term.
Rhys Chambers
Sophie Major
Martin Duguay
Gursahiba Kaur Saggu
Emily Lake, Sage Jull, Maalik Boukouiss, Kenna Van der Pluijm
1. As a group, we all agree that we are feeling the pinch from the rising prices. Being a full-time student means not being able to get a full-time job, which means little to no income while still having to pay for tuition, living expenses, groceries, etc. The rising prices make an already challenging situation ten times worse.
2. At this point, we feel as if we do not have mature enough financial decision-making skills for ourselves, let alone helping others with theirs. In the future when we have more experience in personal finances, we might consider it.
3. A family could use either plan timing of major expenditures or prepare a cash budget. This is applicable for a family because they both involve keeping a family on track with their purchases and expenses to help relieve their stress. The other principles of cash management shown in the textbook focus more on business. With a budget, a family can see where their money is going, what their top spending priorities are such as rent and electricity bills and when/if they have extra money, they can spend it for leisure. Investing idle cash could also be possible, although they would need a financial advisor to not add unnecessary stress related to their money.
Sage Jull, Emily Lake, Maalik Boukouiss, Kenna Van der Pluijm
1.As a group, we all agree that we are feeling the pinch from the rising prices. Being a full-time student means not being able to get a full-time job, which means little to no income while still having to pay for tuition, living expenses, groceries, etc. The rising prices make an already challenging situation ten times worse.
2. At this point, we feel as if we do not have mature enough financial decision-making skills for ourselves, let alone helping others with theirs. In the future when we have more experience in personal finances, we might consider it.
3. A family could use either plan timing of major expenditures or prepare a cash budget. This is applicable for a family because they both involve keeping a family on track with their purchases and expenses to help relieve their stress. The other principles of cash management shown in the textbook focus more on business. With a budget a family is able to see where their money is going, what their top spending priorities are such as rent and electricity bills as well as when/ if they have extra money they are able to spend it for leisure. Investing idle cash could also be a possibility although they would probably need a financial advisor of some sort in order to not add unnecessary stress related to their money.
sonam usel wangyal
Sonam Usel Wangyal, Spencer McCarron, Cohen Tremblay, Victoria Burnie.
1. Yes, our group is feeling the pinch from rising prices. The survey from the National Payroll Institute reveals that financial stress is increasing due to rising costs of living, and this is likely to affect us as university students. Rising tuition fees, the increasing cost of living in places like Sackville, and higher taxes can put financial pressure on students, making it challenging to cover expenses and manage daily necessities.
2. Yes, we would consider a career as a financial advisor who helps Canadians manage their personal finances. The survey highlights the increasing financial stress and it’s evident that people need assistance in managing their money. Being a financial advisor can make a positive impact on people’s lives by helping them navigate their financial challenges and make informed decisions to improve their financial well-being.
3. Out of the six principles of cash management, a family can use the sixth principle, which is to prepare a cash budget, to help reduce their financial stress. Creating a cash budget allows families to plan and forecast their expenses over a specific period, helping them to anticipate when payments will be due and how much money they will need. This proactive approach can ease the stress of paying bills on time and enable families to allocate resources more efficiently, including paying off debts or setting aside funds for long-term goals.
Mia Cogger, Andrew Joseph, Benjamin Michel
1. Our group definitely feels affects of the rising prices. Since we are all full time students its hard to work and do school while paying for the things we need. Throughout generations of students its been hard to pay for school but its even harder now with the higher prices.
2. No members of our group feel that they would want to be a financial advisor. The reason we feel this way is because we feel that we can barely manage our finances ourselves so it would be hard to give other people advise on their finances.
3. Out of the six principals of cash management we thought that step 6 “preparing a cash budget” would be most helpful. The reason for this is because it would help them see what they’ve been spending most of their money on and the money they have left over to pay off expenses and debts. A budget is an easy thing any family can do to help with their finances and reduce financial stress.
Théo Delaney, Hailey Arsenault, Tristan Raine
1) Are you and your classmates feeling the pinch from rising prices?
– Yes, extremely. Everything is getting more expensive, every aspect of our university fees, transportation, gas, housing, and groceries is going up in much greater increments than our summer wages are.
2) Would you consider a career as a financial advisor who would help Canadians manage their personal finances?
– Some of us are open to becoming a financial advisor if it shows promise of being a fulfilling and interesting career, as well as a nice salary on top of that.
3) Illustration 7.11 in Wiley’s Financial Accounting: Tools for Business Decision-Making shows us six principles of cash management. Which of these can a family use to help them reduce their financial stress?
– Of the six principles, the following could be used by families to reduce their financial stress:
3. Take advantage of credit periods
– By paying all of their bills at the beginning of the credit period, families could be spending all/ most of their money at once, forcing them to be more frugal until the next paycheck.
4. Plan the timing of major expenditures
– Houses and cars are expensive, and families should try to buy one/ make a down payment towards them during a period of low-interest rates, and when the family has enough excess cash so that this purchase won’t ruin them, if possible.
5. Invest Idle cash
– If the family has enough money lying around, then investing it is an option, in order to have it increase over time without much effort.
6. Prepare a cash budget
– Deciding how much of a family’s household income will go towards bills, groceries, and other necessary expenses, and how much of it will be saved for emergencies, or other reasons.
Patrick Barnhill
GROUP #1
Patrick Barnhill, Daniel Duffy, Nitya Kumar, Hunter Wrigley
1) we are all at least slightly feeling the pinch, as saving over a period of time seems unsustainable and go to bills, insurance, or food and housing
2) some of us have considered this as an option. The knowledge doesn’t just apply to clients which makes it more worthwhile to me. While others have not considered it, but are willing to consider it later in life.
3) The big ones for Canadians to focus on that live paycheque-to-paycheque are:
1. Keeping inventory low – This is more so a buying the bare necessities, or settling for good enoughs. Instead of buying a large quantity of things, minimize what and how much you buy. If you feel you need a more expensive item like a new car or phone, think of it’s current utility to you and consider if it is really necessary if your car or phone works as is.
2. Taking advantages of credit periods – Hold off payments until the end. This will let you have more cash in wallet in the moment instead of sending out a payment evetime you throw a dollar on your card. Just make sure you have enough to pay at the end of the month.
3. Plan timing of major expenditures – If you time your spending based on when less is due or purchased, then you’ll be able to afford what’s needed into the future right then, saving you a massive tab with everything else
4. Prepare a cash budget – If you set yourself a limit on what you can spend in specific categories, you’ll have more cash to put towards other needs or wants outside the essentials
we do not see the other 2 as very relevant because most Canadians wont be receiving large inflows of cash receivables. If they are also giving all they have to survive, that does not leave a lot of room for investment
GROUP 3Janan Anvar, Cecilia Anderson, Andrew K. Carrier, Spencer S. Joudry
1) Yes, the rising prices and the inflation have put stress on our finances and I’ve heard similar sentiments from many of my classmates. For instance, the domestic and international costs of tuition are at an all-time high, not to mention the additional cost of textbooks which is a significant burden. Also, everyday expenses like rent, groceries, transportation, and other essentials have been on the rise.
2) I would consider being a financial advisor to help Canadians manage their personal finances since relating back to the first question, the financial stress on Canadian workers is rising. Helping others in achieving financial freedom would be rewarding and the field in itself is a promising career in terms of opening up other professional prospects.
3) To avoid initial financial stress, a family could make use of cash budgeting. This allows for understanding the household expenditures and when and where cash flow would be necessary. Having an understanding of household needs and wants would then show when additional financing would be necessary. This also eliminates living paycheck to paycheck whilst also keeping some savings. Furthermore, if a family owns emergency savings and has enough money to invest they can then invest idle cash on liquid and risk-free investments. This would then make available passive income opportunities.
GROUP 3: Janan Anvar, Cecilia Anderson, Andrew K. Carrier, Spencer S. Joudry
1) Yes, the rising prices and the inflation have put stress on our finances and I’ve heard similar sentiments from many of my classmates. For instance, domestic and international tuition costs are at an all-time high, not to mention the additional cost of textbooks which is a significant burden. Also, everyday expenses like rent, groceries, transportation, and other essentials have been on the rise.
2) I would consider being a financial advisor to help Canadians manage their personal finances since relating back to the first question, the financial stress on Canadian workers is rising. Helping others in achieving financial freedom would be rewarding and the field in itself is a promising career in terms of opening up other professional prospects.
3) To avoid initial financial stress, a family could make use of cash budgeting. This allows for understanding the household expenditures and when and where cash flow would be necessary. Having an understanding of household needs and wants would then show when additional financing would be necessary. This also eliminates living paycheck to paycheck whilst also keeping some savings. Furthermore, if a family owns emergency savings and has enough money to invest they can then invest idle cash on liquid and risk-free investments. This would then make available passive income opportunities.
Canyon Hawkes, Divine Tissera, Amit Friling, Anmol Shory
GROUP 2
1.Yes we are all noticing a pinch from the rising prices. As students we take on fees associated with education, food, transportation, and so on. Recently we have seen a rise in the price of of all of these things. While being students it is hard to have a job while being in school. This makes it hard to bring in some income to battle these rising prices.
2. Yes we would consider a career as a financial advisor. It is a job not only with a good salary but it is a job that is currently demanded by a lot of Canadians who are having a hard time dealing with their finances. Over the years there will only be more people seeking to find financial advisor, so not only will you be able to help out fellow Canadians but you will have a secure job.
3. Out of the six principles of cash management our group decided that the sixth principle “Prepare a cash budget”. With the cash budget the family can track all their cash flows over a 1-2 year period. Not only will they be able to track expenses such as various expenses, debt payments, and so on, but they will be able to figure out when/if they excess cash to spend on debts, investments, or other things they might want or need.
Section B; GROUP 3: Janan Anvar, Cecilia Anderson, Andrew Kenneth Carrier, Spencer Stephen Joudry
1) Yes, the rising prices and the inflation have put stress on our finances and I’ve heard similar sentiments from many of my classmates. For instance, domestic and international tuition costs are at an all-time high, not to mention the additional cost of textbooks which is a significant burden. Also, everyday expenses like rent, groceries, transportation, and other essentials have been on the rise.
2) I would consider being a financial advisor to help Canadians manage their personal finances since relating back to the first question, the financial stress on Canadian workers is rising. Helping others in achieving financial freedom would be rewarding and the field in itself is a promising career in terms of opening up other professional prospects.
3) To avoid initial financial stress, a family could make use of cash budgeting. This allows for understanding the household expenditures and when and where cash flow would be necessary. Having an understanding of household needs and wants would then show when additional financing would be necessary. This also eliminates living paycheck to paycheck whilst also keeping some savings. Furthermore, if a family owns emergency savings and has enough money to invest they can then invest idle cash on liquid and risk-free investments. This would then make available passive income opportunities.
Joel Williams, Andrew Kuiper, Spencer Long, Kohei Noda
1. Yes, with the rising prices of everyday goods as well as rent, tuition and other costs associated with attending a post-graduate institution, it is becoming difficult to manage living on our own with the money that we have saved from working over the summer alone. Some of us find it necessary to have a part-time job to reduce some of the financial stress that comes from the high costs of living.
2. Yes, we all would consider pursuing a career in financial advising. We think that it would be nice to be able to help others deal with their financial stress since it is something that we have all struggled with at some point.
3. We think that the principle of “preparing a cash budget” would be the most effective in helping a family to reduce their financial stress. Having a budget helps to hold people accountable for their spending and help ensure that people are not overspending, which can be very helpful when trying to be financially responsible.
Alexander Davison, Aidan Sullivan, Samuel Woodman, Zainatu Massaquoi
1) Overall, my fellow group mates are not feeling a significant pinch from the aforementioned rise in prices. Although as a group despite our differing levels of wealth we can also see the visible notice in price rise in all forms of the market such as activities ranging from everyday shopping to mortgages and other large long-term expenses. This type of price change is especially worrying to us as youthful Canadians because it is nearing our time to take out mortgages on houses and purchase automotive vehicles.
2) Yes, because not only would you have the satisfaction of being able to help people who need financial assistance, but you would also be able to work in a sector that will, most likely, grow due to the increased financial stress on Canadians.
3) Families could use principles 4 and 6, involving planning the timing of major expenditures and preparing a cash budget respectively, to help them reduce their financial stress. Both of these principles would require little to no cost to perform and could allow families to see where they could save money. Principle 5, investing idle cash, could also help families reduce their financial stress in the future as well but only if they had enough capital to invest.
Alexander Davison
Aidan Sullivan
Samuel Woodman
Zainatu Massaquoi
Isaac Rajan, Kadar Fountain, Hamid Hindi
1. As a group, we find it quite frustrating with the rising prices on a normal basis, from having to cut down on necessary expenses to taking up a part time job, we find it hard to hold onto and maintain our monthly budgets. As we’re sure with most MTA students, with prices rising, most people would surely feel a pinch.
2. Financial problems is something most people go through at a point in life, if not until the very end of their lives. We would all consider taking up jobs as financial advisors to help other people ease their minds on the stress from such financial problems as we believe that no one should have such a great burden on them.
3. We came to the conclusion that families would benefit most from using principle 6, preparing a cash budget, to reduce financial stress. Preparing a cash budget can help keep themselves accountable to where they spend their money. We especially understand the importance of keeping a budget as university students as it helps us pay our monthly bills on time and as well as have extra money for other expenses in our lives.
Christopher-James Valenti, Colby Cormier, Mishael Mathew, Jaimie Gallant
1) Yes, we all feel it. Everything is increasing because of inflation. Tuiton charges, food, gas, school fourniture and rent. We are worried about the future because some of us, can’t even make it to the end of the month. What’s even more problematic is that these are stuff we need to survive and build our future. None of the things mentionned above could be cut in our budget.
2)No, nobody in our group would consider this option, because to give financial advises, you need to make sure to handle your finances to. If you are not in a position to take care of yourself first, you shouldn’t give advices to people. That being said, I think it is too soon for us to answer if we would be interested in this option because it is impossible to predict where we’ll be in the future. Also, you need to be passionate in finance and most of our group members are not.
3) We decided to use the cash budget. Obvously, without a cash budget it is pretty hard to keep track of you cash. If you plan before making decisions where you will spend your money, there will be no bad surprise at the end of the month and you will be able to make sure you earn enough money to substain your lifestyle. It can also take people accountable for their actions. If everyone is respecting the budget but one person, this person will most likely feel bad and try to improve his behavior.
Hayden Rowe, Rykert Balfe, Tristen Devine, Remi McLaughlin
1) Across the Group , we are experiencing difficulty with inflation in general. As prices rise, Its getting more and more expensive to afford a home and food. University students don’t work so their income is fixed and portioned out to all their expenses over a 8 month period until they can work again in the summer. Living off campus is difficult for student because of the price of groceries.
2) Our group would take the job, depending on the wage , location, hours etc. We look forward to helping all Canadians with financial assistance once we have mastered our accounting skills and are finished with university. If Canadians are in financial holes, its our duty to relieve their stress and for us to get paid for it.
3) The principle we think that will relive the most stress is a cash budget. If a family installs a cash budget, There’s no stress for missed payments, and will ensure all bills are paid and all essentials are looked after. It will stop families for paying for things they don’t need but, with the budget it takes away money for “wants” instead of needs .