Maybe you’ve heard the old joke about what happens when you play a blues record backwards. The answer is you get your dog back, your wife back, your house back – et cetera, et cetera.

Well, that’s the idea behind a funny, surprising new TV commercial Credit Canada is airing, which we’re calling “Reverse the Blues”.  With “Reverse the Blues” we want to bring the point home that although life may get you down because of a lack of finances, there is always hope. It’s why we’ve taken a light-hearted approach to a TV ad that provides us our highest media exposure.

There is enough doom and gloom in people’s lives today. Our job at Credit Canada is not to add to all that, but to mitigate the anxiety with messages – and above all counselling and education services – that shine light in the darkness.

Now, I’m going to contradict myself a little and talk about some of that darkness, if only to provide some perspective on the serious need for spreading messages of hope.

More than ever today, people are facing onerous debt, and many across Canada are at the end of their tether because of it. That’s not surprising. We’ve been living beyond our means for a number of years in this country, and not long ago Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney warned us that we’d better start curbing our spending enthusiasm or we’re headed for real trouble.

In some of his strongest language to date, Carney said in a speech, that Canada’s ratio of household debt to disposable income hit 146 per cent in the first quarter of the year, a record and a level that is closing in on that of the U.S. He noted that despite the “buoyancy” of the real estate market, the debt-to-asset ratio among Canadian households is at its highest in more than two decades.

To put the figures into relatable terms, with household debt in Canada reaching a record $1.41-trillion in the first quarter of this year, we are at a point where each and every Canadian is carrying almost $42,000 in outstanding debt if we are to spread what’s owed throughout the population. That’s an amount 2.5 times greater than what it was two decades ago, according to a study by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada (CGAAC).

But we remain eager to take on still more debt. The CGAAC study noted that nearly 60 per cent of respondents whose debt had increased through the recent recession – and 92 per cent whose debt decreased or stayed the same – still believed they could either manage it well or take on more debt.

So it’s the same old story. Buy now and pay later. Unfortunately, too many in Canada are now discovering the full cost of paying later – and it’s not a pretty picture.

It is to these people that we especially address ourselves at Credit Canada. And through our comprehensive education services we are doing our best to increase financial literacy among all Canadians.

With credit counselling we are helping people through the dark times. With our comprehensive education services, we are enlightening individuals –adults, kids and communities alike – to prevent all the problems and heartache that come with out-of-control spending.

As our new TV commercial amply illustrates, no matter how dire you think your circumstances might be, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Or to put it another way: yes Virginia, you can get your dog back. Just call Credit Canada.

Here is an interesting article by Derek Abma in the Financial Post on a  CIBC World Markets report about household debt slowing. It seems that for the six months that ended in March there has been a slowing of household debt.  This is good news but are we out of the water yet? I would say ‘no’ to that. 

We have to remember that we were in the deep end with personal debt just six months ago as a nation. So before we collectively exhale and say ‘all is good’ I say beware and be careful!   The Vanier Institute reported in their 2009 State of Family Finances report that Canadians owed $1.45 for every dollar they made.  It is certainly going to take more than a few months to turn this around. So while I applaud all of us for curbing our appetite for debt, I would also say let’s please all of us move forward cautiously.  I  am interested in your thoughts. Are we in the clear or not?

Click here for the full article.