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Canadians living on the edge: studyPosted by solo 401k on: 2006-12-07 14:49:20 in category:
Retirement Planning News [ Print | Permalink / 0 Comment(s) ] Canadians living on the edge: study TORONTO, Dec. 7 /CNW/ - An important wealth survey released today by Statistics Canada provides further evidence that what Canadians believe about inequality in Canada is in fact true. The survey shows that wealth is extremely unequally distributed -- and Canadians are taking on heavier debt loads in order to keep up. "Economic insecurity is on the rise," says Hugh Mackenzie, research fellow with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA). "An uncomfortably large proportion of Canadians are living so close to the line that they are unable to save for retirement. "This potent mixture of high debt and no pension savings is a recipe for future economic distress -- especially when the economy takes a turn for the worse, which it will." << Wealth survey highlights include: - The concentration of wealth at the high end continued to grow from 1999 to 2005. - The wealthiest 20% families held 69.2% of the total net wealth in Canada, up from 68.5% in 1999. That increase in share was entirely at the expense of the middle 20%, whose share dropped from 8.8% to 8.4%. - The net worth of the 20% of families at the bottom of the wealth scale was negative again in 2005. - Debt increased at a faster rate than net worth. More than 6.5% of families literally operate under water -- with negative net worth. - Between 1999 and 2005, the median debt load for families rose 38%, from $32,300 in 1999 to $44,500 in 2005. >> "Despite our retirement income system's heavy reliance on private pensions and RRSPs for retirement income, nearly 30% of Canadian families have no retirement savings at all," says Mackenzie. "This raises serious questions about what we are going to do when these Canadians reach retirement age." For further information: Trish Hennessy, director of the CCPA's Growing Gap Project, (416) 263-9896, or c (416) 525-4927 |
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