Beat your summer ‘revenge shopping’ debt: Nerdwallet
 
You may have spent more during the summer of 2021 compared to the last year and a half of the pandemic, as people return back to outings not previously allowed under strict lockdown measures. Any spikes in your credit card bill may leave you with some feelings of anxiety caused by racking up debt. Sean Pyles of Nerdwallet shares some tips on making a plan to pay it off while preventing more debt.
 
Discount brokers could rot portfolio: Jackson
 
The ice cream truck has come to Main Street, Personal Finance Columnist Dale Jackson writes. Desjardins Online Brokerage has joined National Bank Direct Brokerage and Wealthsimple in getting rid of commissions on trades of stocks and exchange traded funds. Jackson says low fees “don’t tell the whole story” and discount brokers tend to lag on other criteria, such as market research and education and planning tools.
 
Prices remain high. Costco isn’t the answer: Opinion
 
The debate over whether higher prices will be a temporary phenomenon or here for the long continues. In the meantime, Bloomberg Opinion’s Teresa Ghilarducci writes shoppers should know there are things they can do to deal with sticker stock. “Think twice about shopping at wholesale stores like Costco,” she advises. “Studies show people just tend to buy more than they actually need rather than save.”
 
Home prices climb further in Canada in August
 
Canadian home prices continued to climb in August as the country’s market remained historically tight. Benchmark home prices climbed 0.9 per cent from July and were up 21 per cent from last year, according to data released by the Canadian Real Estate Association. With Canada in the midst of an election, the leaders of the federal parties have proposed various fixes to the housing market.
 
DIY-ers benefit from lumber price correction
 
Homeowners who resisted the urge to renovate during the first 18 months of the pandemic may find now is their chance to tackle those fixer-upper projects. Lumber prices that soared to dizzying heights in the spring have now crashed back to earth. North American lumber prices hit record highs of more than US$1,600 per thousand board feet in May – three times higher than pre-pandemic levels. The owner of one Ontario lumber retailer who said prices have since “collapsed” with an eight-foot-long, two-by-inch piece of framing lumber than cost $12.65 on June 1 is now selling for $3.95.
 

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"People have decision overload when figuring out how to pay off their debt. Just come to terms with the fact that you're going to have to do something and figure out a way to overcome that emotional barrier." – Thomas Nitzsche, financial educator at the nonprofit credit counseling agency Money Management International