Judging by the number of locals shopping deals at Pearl’s Value & Vintage and at Walmart—and the almost universal local support for it becoming a super centre with perishables like veggies and meat—and anecdotal conversations, more than a few residents are struggling financially.
Many of us are in increasing debt.
This isn’t just a Squamish problem.
Canada has the highest household debt level among G7 countries, according to Statistics Canada.
In Squamish, it is easy to guess why locals are pinched—inflation and high housing costs, the higher cost of gas, groceries and childcare—to name just a few of the increases in recent years.
“More Canadians than ever before are only making the minimum required payments on their debt,” according to the 2024 Consumer Debt Report by the Credit Counselling Society.
In the society’s survey, 55% said that spending more on essentials —housing, food, transportation—is a reason for their worsening financial situation.
For some, bankruptcy is the only way they see to get out from under the mountain of debt.
According to the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, in the third quarter of this year, there was an increase of 13.5% in the number of insolvencies compared with the same quarter last year.
This time of year, the pressure to give beyond our means is intense. But we can choose to opt out.
For parents, this may be a good time to talk about finances openly—and age-appropriately—with our kids.
Spending beyond our means is risking their future, after all.
We may be surprised how much they value a quiet day at home in pyjamas with us over attending a pricey holiday event.
At the very least, as adults, we can be open and honest with each other if participating in the office gift exchange, giving to friends, or getting the teacher a gift would cause financial strain that will cut into our ability to give our family the basics or put us further in debt.
This can seem impossible, with the social norms around the holidays, but it is kind of nuts that this is the case when you think about it.
We shouldn’t be going further into debt for people who supposedly care about us. We all know this.
“If we work with the financial shame that arises before the conversation, it’s going to keep the conversation more grounded and less activated,” says Chantel Chapman, CEO of Trauma of Money in The Canadian Press.
“What if you came up with a replacement idea?” she said. “You could say: ‘Instead of gifts, I want to focus my energy on spending time with you.’”
It is possible. Our future, less indebted and stressed selves will thank us.
And so might our friends and family because, chances are, they are feeling the strain, too.
