Page 10 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 155

10 Issue #155 December 2025 www.sportsenergynews.com

om Our
Neighbourly
Neighbourly Advice From Our Local Professionals
Advice Fr
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By Brian Johnston growing financial strain. Hoyes Michalos Insolvency Trustee and co-founder at
Mortgage Specialist says the trend reflects mounting cash-flow Hoyes Michalos, told Canadian Mortgage
pressure among borrowers whose budgets Trends.
Households are Reaching a Breaking are no longer balancing. Insolvency growth picks up as refinancing
Point as Insolvencies Surge “Living expenses for many people are options narrow.
Bankruptcies gained momentum, rising rising faster than incomes, and they Hoyes says the third-quarter increase
19.1% across Canada and outpacing the bridge the gap by using debt to survive, reflects what the firm has been seeing
rise in consumer proposals, signalling but eventually they fall behind, and they throughout 2025, with more clients
a shift in how borrowers are managing can’t catch up,” Doug Hoyes, Licensed
Continued on page 11

the fact is they could end up paying some be credited $4,000 and have to pay the
By Michael VanderMeer
Real Estate Agent tax depending on the purchase price as balance of the tax applicable.
outlined below. In other words, if a first time buyer paid
LAND TRANSFER TAX - FIRST TIME No land transfer tax is payable by $400,000 for a home, the Land Transfer
BUYERS. qualifying firsttime purchasers on the first Tax would be $4475. They would only

A lot of people think that first-time buyers $368,000 of the value of the consideration have to pay $475 in land transfer tax as
are exempt from paying Land Transfer for eligible homes. Firsttime purchasers they are exempt from paying the first
Tax, which is for the most part true, but of homes greater than $368,000 would $4000 of tax.

When the money is set aside before bills, insurance portal and check who is listed to
Max Ming P.Eng. CFP ®
Financial Planner priorities adjust around it naturally. receive proceeds if something happens to
you. If it needs updating, fix it now. These
Simple, Practical Money Moves to Start Use your RRSP and TFSA room with designations often override a will, prevent
2026 Right intention. January is when most Canadians delays, and cost nothing to update.
think about new savings. Start by using
Good financial decisions are less about any fresh or unused room in your RRSP Put a number on retirement, even if it’s
complexity and more about getting the or TFSA. The RRSP can reduce taxable rough. Write down three things: your
basics right. Most long-term money income today, while the TFSA offers current age, your hoped-for retirement
progress comes from consistent, tax free growth and tax free withdrawals age, and a realistic monthly savings
intentional habits, repeated for many anytime. The order you choose depends amount you can maintain until then. This
years. Here are four actions you can do yourself this January to single note is already more thoughtful
on your income and timeline, but using the
set 2026 up well. than most Canadians ever create. It
room you have, even in small amounts, is
Check your recent cash flow — it takes minutes. Open your the real win. doesn’t need to be perfect; it just needs
banking app and review the past 90 days. If spending ran higher to exist. Momentum comes from starting.

than expected, set one rule for 2026: automatically redirect Confirm your beneficiary details today, Decisions get smarter when anchored in

5–10% of every paycheck into savings on the day it lands. not later. Log into your investment or intentional steps like these.
With our 2025 “Just Homes Listing Program”, Homeowners will never pay more than
3 3/4%+ HST commission which includes full weekly local newspaper

Owned and Operated by M. Jean Cameron Real Estate Limited advertising until sold, internet promotion and even an open house program when needed.
Serving the Community since 1959
The savings may not stop here. When we sell your home directly to a buyer
check us out on the web at: without another real estate brokerage involved in the sale, we further reduce our
www.soldsmart.ca
sandy@homesnet.ca commission to only 2% + HST
“Not intented to solicit properties already listed for sale”