Insolvencies on the rise as Albertans struggle with inflation
Insolvencies on the rise as Albertans struggle with inflation
The Bank of Canada's eighth rate hike in less than a year is coming at a tough time for many Albertans.
The central bank raised its overnight rate by 25 basis points Wednesday, moving its policy rate to 4.5 per cent.
It says it has been seeing small declines in inflation, but life for many in the province is still far too expensive.
The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy says in Alberta, there was an 8.5 per cent year over year insolvency jump in November.
The 1,402 filings in the month mark the highest volume since March 2020.
Experts say the rising cost of living and increasing debt are the culprits.
"People are not getting (wage) increases at all during a time when they're forking out over six per cent more in their expenses," Bromwich and Smith's Laurie Campbell said.
"So how are people bridging the gap? They're using credit, unfortunately, and that, as we all know, only turns into a downward spiral."
And those who rely on variable lending could be in for more hurt after the central bank's latest announcement.
Many are predicting a turbulent 2023.
"I see these insolvency increases continuing for the next 12 months as people adjust to these interest rates and inflation that has really not gone down to any significant degree," Campbell told CTV News.
The Bank of Canada says inflation is tapering off, but just not nearly enough.
Decreases in gasoline and durable goods prices have helped, but the things most Canadians are really looking for – drops in food and shelter – haven't materialized.
It's still unclear if the rate hikes will affect those core elements.
And, of course, not everyone is impacted in the same way.
"If you need to borrow right now, it's a very painful environment," Colliers Canada research head Adam Jacobs said.
"But there's the cash-rich investors who are probably going to have the upper hand in the market."
The latest rate hike is the eighth in the past ten months and highest mark since 2007.
"What's difficult right now for the banks – and why they're caught in the middle a little – is just the core elements of life," Jacobs added.
"We are still seeing a lot of inflation there and I'm not sure when that's going to end."
Duane Rockerbie, professor of economics with the University of Lethbridge, is looking south for a hint at the answer.
"Inflation has also been tempered quite a bit in the United States. So we're looking at that as hope that the policy is working and that by the end of the year or early next year, inflation will back within the target," Rockerbie said.
Meanwhile, real estate still seems to be moving.
"Real estate has been selling like it has been. But perhaps it's a little bit more difficult when your rate is getting over five per cent," said Jennifer Brodoway, View Lethbridge Realtor.
"Last year, we had just over 18,000 people migrate from Ontario to Alberta, and just under 7,000 from British Columbia to Alberta," said Heleen Jacobsen of Lethbridge and District Association of Realtors.
"So the strong migration, the economy, truly our expectations are that our province will do really well."
Police in Halifax say three people have been stabbed and a student is in custody following a weapons complaint at a high school in Bedford, N.S. The victims were taken to hospital for treatment, but the extent of their injuries is not yet known.
The parents of young Ontario hockey player Ben Teague have been searching for answers since he died while at a team retreat in 2019. The mystery about what happened and the code of silence in hockey culture is explored in CTV W5's 'What Happened to Ben,' on CTVNews.ca and W5's official YouTube channel.
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump's calls for protests ahead of his anticipated indictment in New York have generated mostly muted reactions from supporters, with even some of his most ardent loyalists dismissing the idea as a waste of time or a law enforcement trap.
Officials are still looking for victims after a fire ripped through a building in Old Montreal last week, killing at least one person. At a press conference Monday morning, spokespersons for the Montreal police and Montreal fire department said six people are still missing. They come from various locations in Quebec, Ontario and the U.S.
Some of the world's largest central banks came together on Sunday to stop a banking crisis from spreading as Swiss authorities persuaded UBS Group AG to buy rival Credit Suisse Group AG in a historic deal.
Autopsies confirmed gunshot wounds as the cause of death for two constables responding to a domestic dispute Thursday, the Edmonton Police Service says.
A vehicle burst into flames in South Vancouver after an early morning collision Monday, prompting police to shut down the intersection at Kingsway and Tyne Street amid an investigation.
People who rely on transit to get around parts of the Fraser Valley are scrambling to find alternatives as workers with BC Transit walk the picket line.
Police in Halifax say three people have been stabbed and a student is in custody following a weapons complaint at a high school in Bedford, N.S. The victims were taken to hospital for treatment, but the extent of their injuries is not yet known.
Police in Halifax say three people have been stabbed and a student is in custody following a weapons complaint at a high school in Bedford, N.S. The victims were taken to hospital for treatment, but the extent of their injuries is not yet known.
The University of Prince Edward Island Faculty Association says its staff has gone on strike after what it says are failed attempts to enter additional negotiations with the university's administration.
The student union president at Cape Breton University said food insecurity has become a concern for many students and the on-campus food bank cannot keep up with demand.
A Victoria artist who builds life-sized sculptures of local wildlife entirely out of driftwood is bringing her works to downtown Victoria to help fundraise for Wild ARC, an animal rehabilitation centre in Metchosin, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo are asking the public for help identifying two women accused of shoplifting. The women were caught on a surveillance camera at Sally Beauty, located at 6894 Island Highway North, just before 4 p.m. on Jan. 21.
Mounties in Port McNeill violated a suspect's Charter rights by failing to allow him to contact a lawyer promptly after his 2019 drug trafficking arrest, a judge has ruled.
Ontario employers who withhold foreign workers’ passports or work permits could face steeper penalties under new labour laws, with maximum fines setting them back up to $200,000.
Officials are still looking for victims after a fire ripped through a building in Old Montreal last week, killing at least one person. At a press conference Monday morning, spokespersons for the Montreal police and Montreal fire department said six people are still missing. They come from various locations in Quebec, Ontario and the U.S.
Quebec provincial police (SQ) announced Monday morning that a third person has died in connection with the tragedy in Amqui, in the Lower St. Lawrence region, where a driver drove his pickup truck into pedestrians a week ago.
Police in Halifax say three people have been stabbed and a student is in custody following a weapons complaint at a high school in Bedford, N.S. The victims were taken to hospital for treatment, but the extent of their injuries is not yet known.
Ontario employers who withhold foreign workers’ passports or work permits could face steeper penalties under new labour laws, with maximum fines setting them back up to $200,000.
A community is in mourning after a 10-year-old girl was killed earlier this week when flames tore through her family’s camping trailer southeast of Brantford.
Waterloo regional police say they arrested nine people for impaired driving over the course of nine hours between 6:30 p.m. on St. Patrick’s Day and 3:30 a.m. on March 18.
A 46-year-old man has been taken to hospital with serious, life-threatening injuries after a single-vehicle crash on MR80 near Donaldson Crescent in Val Caron.
Humanity still has a chance, close to the last, to prevent the worst of climate change 's future harms, a top United Nations panel of scientists said Monday.
Some residents of Saskatchewan's capital city have been vocal with their disapproval of Tourism Regina's latest rebrand, prompting an apology from the organization.
