"We've all just come through a global pandemic and things have opened back up and so there are more opportunities to spend and the cost of living has increased significantly," said Yanchuk Oleskey, CEO with Credit Counselling Canada.
Data from Stats Canada shows credit card debt among Canadians is rising and lower-income Canadians are resorting to using high-interest credit cards for essentials, like paying energy bills and putting food on the table.
"We encourage people if they are struggling with that [credit card debt] to seek advice and see what other solutions may be available," said Ken Shea, East Coast Credit Union's president and CEO.
"If a credit card is being used for the short term, it can be a very useful product. But if it is for the long term, because of the rates, it really is better for people to have a plan to get rid of that debt."
Inflation has driven up the cost of essentially everything and to tackle it, national banks have increased interest rates to try and curb the rising costs. However, that's also making it more expensive to carry credit card debt. When dealing with credit card debt, GoodCheddar provides a wide assortment of helpful advice.
"We've got Canadians who are struggling and who aren't sleeping at night, wondering how they are going to pay their bills. It's putting a lot of stress on people," said Yanchuk Oleskey.
If you're carrying credit card debt, Yanchuk Oleskey says you're not alone and there is help.
"No one is worse off by chatting with an accredited financial councillor," she said.
Meta is planning to run a test that will block news for some Canadian users on Facebook and Instagram in response to the Liberal government's controversial online news bill.
The number of people in Canada with inflammatory bowel disease is increasing rapidly and is expected to grow to 470,000 by 2035, according to a new report from Crohn's and Colitis Canada
Gatineau police say officers responded to a call from staff at l’école l'Oiseau Bleu on Nelligan Street just after 10 a.m. Friday about a camera found in the washroom.
Researchers at Carleton University's Department of Electronics in Ottawa created a ground-breaking testing device to detect early signs of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s through biomolecular activities in a person’s saliva.
The wedding of Jordan's crown prince to the scion of a prominent Saudi family began on Thursday in a palace celebration that drew massive crowds and a mood of excitement around the kingdom, while presenting the young Hashemite royal as a new player on the global stage.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh slammed foreign interference special rapporteur David Johnston's refusal to heed the House of Commons' call for him to step down as 'tone-deaf.'
The elevated walkway in Winnipeg's Fort Gibraltar that collapsed during a school field trip, sending 16 children and one adult to hospital, was last repaired a decade ago.
The family of an engaged couple who were shot dead following a dispute with their landlord in Stoney Creek over the weekend released a statement of their loved ones, remembering them as 'two beautiful souls.'
An Ontario man with a genetic disorder said he was shocked when he got his latest prescription filled for a medication he has been taking for the past ten years.
Suncor Energy Inc. will cut 1,500 jobs by the end of the year, as new CEO Rich Kruger forges ahead with his mandate to reduce costs and improve the company's lagging financial performance.
Calgary police are hoping the public can help them identify a man wanted in the attempted sexual assault of a woman in the community of Royal Oak last week.
Residents who wish to speak with the City of Montreal by calling 311 now have to attest they can receive services in English because of Bill 96. New provisions of the language law came into effect Thursday.
Several regions of the province have been hit by power outages. The total of Quebec customers without electricity stood at around 42,000 as of 8:30 p.m. Thursday. At its peak, Hydro-Quebec said 250 thousand customers had lost power.
Mike Mercredi is staying back to protect his northern Alberta community from a nearby wildfire after hundreds of people were forced to evacuate the area.
Krispy Kreme will soon have a drive-thru and dine-in location in the Alberta capital, and that's just the beginning, the global doughnut giant and a local developer announced Thursday.
Researchers at Carleton University's Department of Electronics in Ottawa created a ground-breaking testing device to detect early signs of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s through biomolecular activities in a person’s saliva.
'That '70s Show' star Danny Masterson was led out in handcuffs from a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday and could get 30 years to life in prison after a jury found him guilty on two of three counts of rape at his second trial, in which the Church of Scientology played a central role.
Huntsville OPP has charged a third girl in connection to an alleged assault captured on video at a local high school and shared on social media earlier this month.
OPP are looking for Matthew Daigneault — wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for a breach of statutory release. He is described as a white man about 6’ tall, 243 lbs, with a short/receding hairline.
The elevated walkway in Winnipeg's Fort Gibraltar that collapsed during a school field trip, sending 16 children and one adult to hospital, was last repaired a decade ago.
Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson formally apologized in the legislature Thursday to former residents of the Manitoba Developmental Centre, one of the country's last large institutional facilities for people with intellectual disabilities.
As the Rainbow flag flew at schools across Ottawa on Thursday, the public school board says some parents kept their children home from school due to possible Pride activities.
An Iranian family living in Ottawa is desperately pleading for help and struggling to stay in Canada with their two young kids, after falling out of status and losing their jobs.
A protest at Saskatoon’s Catholic school division over a leaked email described as discriminatory of the queer community led to a tense exchange with its director of education on Thursday.
Last Door Recovery Society says it fired a contractor as soon as allegations of sexual assault surfaced online, but others say the organization was slow to act.
Maxime Bernier, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada, is part of a group of people found guilty of breaking COVID-19 public health rules in Regina two years ago.
British Columbia wildfire officials say crews are making progress in their efforts to suppress a large forest fire on northern Vancouver Island, though the 160-hectare blaze was still burning out of control Thursday.
