One of the largest and most random expenditures I ever put on my credit card was emergency dental surgery. It seems crazy, but Vancouver dental work adds up. I had left my debit card at home and I needed to pay the full amount before leaving the office. I had no cheques, so I pulled out my Visa.

The bill was still on my card when I made the decision to leave my insurance gig. I probably should have waited till I paid off my dental work.

I haven’t made any emergency trips to a Vancouver dentist since then – thank God. I am completely satisfied with the work they provided; it’s just the bill that was shocking.

If I did require more work I would definitely come prepared with an alternative method of payment, rather than my credit card. It is always best to pay upfront and avoid the credit lure.

Say Awwww.....

But before I got into sales, I saw my career path heading down a different road. My goal, ten years ago, was to go into the locksmith profession. Crazy, I know, but for some reason I thought being a Vancouver locksmith would be a really cool job.

Every exterior door in the city has one, so there would always be business. They don’t require a huge amount of technical experience to install, so I could pretty much learn my trade on the job. I wouldn’t have to rely on others for support; I could work alone on most jobs. And, I would be able to provide a needed sense of security to thousands of individuals.

Seemed like a dream job.

Lured by a higher starting salary, I ditched the lock world for the insurance industry. I guess they both provide security in a way…

Now, every time I lock my door when I leave my apartment I think, what if I had taken the other road. Who knows?

Ensuring Security

Add us to your circles, and we’ll keep you up to date with the latest debt advice and news about debt consolidation in Canada.

At the completion of your plan, tally the interest you paid. Compare it to the potential interest you could have paid if you continued with a handful of creditors. Those numbers don’t lie. That is a huge savings.

When you cross the financial finish line, your borrowing potential will have greatly increased. You will have proved to your previous and future creditors that you are able to payoff your debts. An increased credit rating will help you buy your first home, invest in a small business or purchase a vehicle on credit.

Your heart will also thank you for completing the consolidation journey. Without a consolidation plan, debtors are forced to deal with collectors and phone-calls from each of their separate creditors. With a plan, debtors only receive one bill – the one from Full Circle. With less agitation comes less anxiety. Less anxiety equals a healthier lifestyle.

Receive all three of these benefits when you apply for a Full Circle Debt Consolidation Program.

Pack Leader

Because debt is often hidden from other family members, Full Circle counsellors always suggest that new clients disclose their situation to their spouse or significant other. A debt consolidation plan is a new beginning and new beginnings should always start with full disclosure.

Sometimes, this conversation can be harder than making the monthly payments. But it’s always best to explain your debt when you have a plan in place to pay it off. Stuck on the right words? Full Circle’s counsellors will be glad to talk it over with you.

Start a repayment program that you can be proud of. Contact Full Circle Debt Solutions to begin a conversation with one of our many licensed, government approved credit counsellors.

They Deserve To Know

Although the company claims not to be a practicing payday loan operation, its purpose is to provide short-term loans for clients who need money fast.

Clients are evaluated and offered a maximum payment based on their navigation of the site and application form. Their movements are electronically fed into an equation that rates the viewers estimated ability to pay the premium back.

Payday loans are deadly because their short-term nature demands a high interest rate. If the debtor is unable to pay the loan amount, plus interest and fees at the end of the month, the interest compounds.

Before you take on a loan of this nature, consider the other option; what will I need to pay if I can’t afford to pay the premium for four months? How much needless interest will I pay? These are important questions.

Unfortunately, many of the debtors that contact Full Circle have accepted terms similar to ones offered by ZestCash. Full Circle can help these individuals with a consolidation plan, but lowering the interest on these loans can prove difficult.

Your best bet is stay away from lenders that offer quick financial rewards.

If you are serious about finding a solution to your debt, call 1-877-220-3328.

1. Gossip Mags – They’re there at the checkout, you’re bored, the cashier just went on break and J.Lo has a new man. The perfect storm. But resist! If you need to have the latest celebrity scoop, wait till you get home and read it online. Or we can tell you – she’s dating one of her dancers (again…).

2. Lottery tickets – You’re not gonna win. EVER!

3. Adding a Combo / Upsizing – Fries are the furthest thing from a healthy side dish. They can hardly be considered a vegetable by the time they are added to your sandwich or burger.

4. Water Bottles – Water is free and clean in this country. In most places… Take advantage of this fact and fill up your reusable bottle at home, work and while you’re out-and-about.

5. Oil Light – When the little light comes on, spend a few dollars and buy a few litres. Don’t let it linger like a solitary Christmas decoration you forgot to take down. An engine overhaul could cost you thousands.

The Usual Suspects

Whatever the case, the amount of Vancouver cyclists wearing helmets on the street has dramatically increased in the last 15 years. Which is a good thing for taxpayers.

But what about the mountain? No laws exist, but it is highly recommended for a sport where the majority of full-day rides includes at least one spill. It would be insane not to.

The same can be said for leg armour. Downhill riders are risking their permanent mobility each time they attempt a trail without lower leg protection. Suiting up makes sense.

Iron Mountainwear is the leading manufacturer of leg armour in British Columbia. Their unique armadillo-like design protects riders with a lightweight armour that can withstand the hardest fall.

A helmet will protect the organ that lets you operate your bike. Leg armour will protect the engine that moves it.

Be safe. Strap up.

Keep Your Body Safe

Tracking our spending is becoming increasingly complex. It is now easier than ever to overspend and windup on the wrong side of the line.

Like most things in life, less is more. If you can reduce your payment tools to two or possibly one method, you can keep a more accurate up-to-date record of how much you’re spending. You can also track where you’re spending your money.

Limiting your payment options will allow you to chose a service plan that meets your spending. Finding the right plan can save you money each month.

Those savings could go to paying down your debt.

A Vancouver consolidation plan is similar in nature. With only one payment a month, you limit the number of creditors you have to keep track of. You also reduce the amount of interest you pay.

Win-win.

To find out if a credit consolidation plan is right for you, visit Full Circle‘s website or call them in person at: 1-877-220-3328.

Pocket Filing System

Interest is money that you will never see again. It’s money that goes straight to your creditors pockets without ever reducing your principal. If you can lower the monthly amount you pay towards interest, you can put more money towards erasing your debt.

This is basic finance. Why pay more, when you could pay less.

There are no strings, there is no fine-print to read, only a guarantee that your interest will be reduced.

That should be enough to get you interested. But it’s only the beginning of the advantages offered by a debt consolidation plan. Not only will your interest payments be reduced, you will also see an immediate change from your creditors. With a debt plan in place, you will never receive a bill directly from your credit companies. They will not call and they will not send you written warnings. The only piece of mail you will receive will be for the one payment you owe.

I know… You’re thinking the same thing I was; “Why didn’t I signup for this earlier?”

Reduce Your Interest Payments

The protests in New York City may have seemed like a romantic movement, inspiring our own Art Gallery encampment, but now with the rain and the cold weather, is it really that smart to voluntarily deny yourself one of the five basic needs? Wouldn’t it be more productive to come up with a plan on how to pay back your debt, rather than blaming others for their financial success?

The 1% got to the top tax bracket by working tirelessly. Sure some were handed family money, but they used that cash to build their own empire. It’s hardly fair to demand that they share with others who haven’t put in the time.

But this is a democracy and if people want to show their displeasure towards the current financial system by squatting on the Art Gallery lawn, I guess that is their prerogative.

Me, I’ll stay warm and continue to work towards my own goal of financial freedom.

To each his own.

-Tyler

(I should note, that these are my opinions and not those of the Vancouver debt consolidation company)

Occupy Vancouver

One place to start is your home. Simple energy saving tips can dramatically reduce your power bill. Here are a few that have been passed on to me.

1. Dirty Filters – Replace your furnace filters every couple of months. If they’re clogged, your furnace has to work harder to warm your house. A harder working furnace is dollars up in smoke.

2. Digital Readout – There is an obvious initial cost to a programmable thermostat, but some homeowners claim to have saved almost $200 the first year.

3. Cold Wash Clean – 85% of the energy used to do your laundry is spent warming the water. Switch the dial to cold and save money.

4. Don’t Let Your Crack Show – Make sure to weather strip all your windows and doors. Don’t forget the door that heads to the attic.

5. More of the Pink Stuff – Insulate all your walls, including the basement. This will keep the heat in. No sense warming the backyard.

Keeping Out the Cold

I answered her questions concerning my financial status and we talked a little bit about the burden of credit card anxiety. Then she directed my phone call to Morgan, a veteran debt management professional.

Morgan didn’t have the conversational skills that Rebecca had, but she immediately impressed me with her professionalism. She explained that Full Circle was going to do three things for me: they were going to give me one payment instead of six, they were going to reduce the interest that I paid each month and they were going to assist me in my financial decisions. In return, I would have to be committed to finishing the repayment program.

I explained to Morgan that I had recently pulled myself out a ‘life trench’ and was now looking to improve my status as a working professional. I knew the time was right for a plan and Full Circle was willing to provide that opportunity.

But debt can also be as funny as it is scary. To add to the funny side, I would like to pass along this little story.  I hope you enjoy it.

It is a slow day in a damp little Irish town. The rain is beating down and the streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit. On this particular day a rich German tourist is driving through the town, stops at the local hotel and lays a €100 note on the desk, telling the hotel owner he wants to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one to spend the night.

The owner gives him some keys and, as soon as the visitor has walked upstairs, the hotelier grabs the €100 note and runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.

The butcher takes the €100 note and runs down the street to repay his debt to the pig farmer.

The pig farmer takes the €100 note and heads off to pay his bill at the supplier of feed and fuel.

The guy at the Farmers’ Co-op takes the €100 note and runs to pay his drinks bill at the pub.

The publican slips the money along to the local prostitute drinking at the bar, who has also been facing hard times and has had to offer him “services” on credit.

The lady-of-the-night then rushes to the hotel and pays off her room bill to the hotel owner with the €100 note.

The hotel proprietor then places the €100 note back on the counter so the rich traveler will not suspect anything.

At that moment the traveler comes down the stairs, picks up the €100 note, states that the rooms are not satisfactory, pockets the money, and leaves town.

No one produced anything. No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now out of debt and looking to the future with a lot more optimism.

Ring For Service

One interesting point I learned was that the service was not in the business to offer a consolidation loan. I would be paying my creditors, through the Full Circle Company. This was reassuring. I already had enough creditors; I didn’t need one more.

It was also nice to know, that once in the program, my creditors would not be permitted to contact me. No more voice messages, angry letters or threatening emails.

The best news was that my credit score would enter a different category. The new rating would be R7, a rating reserved for individuals who ‘voluntarily’ enter a debt consolidation process. As I continued to work on my debt, my rating would improve towards the goal: an R1 rating.

The blog was actually a really interesting read.

And now look at me. I’m writing on the very same blog that inspired me to start a repayment program.

So, if you have been enjoying my story, make sure to scroll down and read the personal debt tales from the other four writers who have produced for this blog.

Thank you Scarlett, Ben, Eve and Julia. Your work has shed light on a service that many Canadians should learn about.

“So, did it help?”

“It looks promising,” I said, trying not to give away my skepticism. “Where did you hear about it? Do you work for them on the side?”

“Not really,” she replied, “but I have been writing a little blog on the topic of debt consolidation. See I was like you. A little lost, treading water in the deep end of the pool. But these guys saved me. And as a little favour to them, I write a weekly blog about my experiences with debt. You should check out the blog.”

“So you’ve used their service?”

“Yeah, and continue too. I’m on an five year plan to pay off my creditors.”

“Wow! And it’s been working? Lower interest and all that?”

“Of course,” she said. “But the best part is I don’t have to deal with a mountain of bills, just one payment to Full Circle. It’s so incredibly easy, you’ll wonder why more people don’t use the service.”

“Huh…” I mumbled. “And you have no problem making the payments?”

“Nope! I worked out a manageable rate with Rob, my credit counsellor. It still hurts each month, but the money is being split between all my creditors. Full Circle handles all of that. It’s brilliant.

Give them a call. They can explain all the details and put you in contact with your own counsellor. You won’t regret it. I promise.”

She looked sincere, but I still wasn’t ready to call.

“What about this blog?” I asked. “Where can I find it?”

“Just type in ‘Debt Consolidation Vancouver’ into Google, it should be in the top three search items. Give it a read and let me know what you think.”

That night, I went home and read every post on the site. I called Full Circle the next day. I haven’t looked back since.

I was on lunch break, sitting in a diner down the street from the car lot. I stirred the soup that was in front of me and waited for it to cool. As I waited, I took out my pen and wrote the list of my creditors on the white restaurant napkin – six in total.

There were two credit card companies, the Bay, a phone company, The Brick and a credit union. With the list written and my soup still cooling, I stared out at the falling rain outside.

I started to imagine all the cars I would have to sell to pay off each creditor. I pictured them piled on top of each other like bundled commodities.

“Quite the list,” a voice broke in. I turned and saw the waitress refreshing my coffee. “What’s your plan?” she asked.

“Well, I don’t really have one. I guess pay it off slowly,” I replied.

She stared at the list again. “Probably drowning in interest payments.”

I shook my head slowly in agreement.

“You want some advice?”

“Sure, if you’re offering it,” I said.

“I’m offering, only if you are serious about repaying.”

“Of course I’m serious,” I replied. “I’m just a little frustrated about where I should start.”

“Start with this,” she said. She took a pen from her shirt pocket and wrote on her order form. Then she slapped the paper on the table in front of me.

“Check this site out. Come back tomorrow with your questions.”

Skeptical, I paid and walked back to work, wishing I had brought an umbrella.

Julia

By the third month I was selling an average of eleven cars a week. It was fun and I loved doing it. I asked questions to the other salesmen, studied vehicle specs at night and by the eighth month mark, I was one of the top sales staff.

With success, came the return of a steady income. I moved out of the parents’ place and bought myself a new coach.

I settled in and started my adult life over again.

The last thing I unpacked was an old cardboard box. It had originally held a new coffee maker, but it was now full of collection letters and old bills from an assortment of creditors. I poured the contents over the kitchen table and stared at the paper reminders for close to twenty minutes.

Where to start?

"It doesn't matter what you're selling."

Desperate to get her son back in the workforce, my mother talked to one of her friends whose family ran a used car dealership. She convinced the husband of her friend to give me an interview for a sales position.

The lot was in Burnaby and I had to bus to the site for my interview. I shared a seat with an older gentleman who asked a zillion questions. I avoided most of the personal ones, embarrassed of my current financial state.

The elderly man explained that he had just retired, at 68. He had worked for over a dozen companies since he was twenty; some of them good and some of them poor.

He had managed to raise a family and save for his retirement.

He must have sensed my situation because he seemed to constantly return to the theme of perseverance; ‘Yes, life was hard, but hard working people find ways to succeed.’

I thought about this as I stepped off the bus and into the dealership.

Car salesman was a step in the right direction.

I pondered this last question for hours. Why did I ever take on so much debt?

Well, the answer is easy. Debt is a necessary part of life. Credit provides us the ability to buy key living components, such as cars, homes and education. It keeps us afloat and lets us enrich our lives.

It is only when we lose the means to keep up with our payments that we fall into trouble.

Managing our debt is not always as easy as applying for credit. When times are tough, we need to find ways to pay the minimal amount to continue our good credit standing.

This is all visible to me now, but at the time I only thought to curse my creditors. Their collection notices were making my life more stressful.

Without an out, I continued to mope, blaming everyone but my self for my situation.

Staring at me, taped to the hospital grey door, was a notice from the landlord.

My first thought was he must have the wrong suite. I had paid on the fourth – a little late, but I had given him the cheque.

I pulled the letter off and read it in disbelief. Apparently my cheque had bounced. I had ten days to pay. If I failed to do so I would be evicted.

I called the bank. I must have misjudged my automatic billing. It was true; I did not have enough to cover the rent.

I was forced to give up my apartment.

Nine days later I moved back in with my parents. It wasn’t an extended stay. But the request was humbling.

With new expenses arising daily, it seems that the banks money will not be enough to keep you going for those first few key months of operation.

What are your options?

A choose your own adventure book would have you flip to page 63 to find out if your business sinks or swims.

Luckily, life comes with more certainty.

If you own a home, you are eligible for a line of credit through Kamloops mortgage financing. With a Kamloops second mortgage, you can afford to keep the integrity of your business, without scrapping your year one plan.

The extra capital you receive from your Kamloops mortgage credit loan will guarantee your doors open on time.

Don’t let your dreams slip away due to a lack of startup cash. Secure a Kamloops second mortgage.

Open On Time

This week I have two more stories to share about my dark days, my time spent without a financial counsellor.

So, as I mentioned in earlier posts, my girlfriend left me when my debt anxiety began to ruin our relationship. I’ve never blamed her. It was a totally natural response. I was acting completely erratic. And, as I told you at the end of the post, we have since reunited.

But during those months when we were apart, I decided to dip my foot back into the dating scene. Let me rephrase that – I went on a single date during our time apart.

Let’s call her Angela.

Angela was the daughter of one of my mother’s friends. She was the owner of a small marketing business and was relatively the same age as me. My mom had decided that we would be great together.

I wasn’t expecting much, but when we finally met, I was blown way. She was beautiful, smart, funny and outgoing.

We went for a ride around the seawall using bikes from a friend who owns a rental company. After making our way over to Granville Island, we spent some time browsing the market. After half-an-hour of interesting conversation, Angela suggested grabbing something to eat at Sandbar.

Now normally I would have chosen the hot dog stand, but this girl was special and I didn’t want to seem cheap. I somehow convinced myself, that my remaining credit card could handle the date.

You see where this is going…?

After three rounds of drinks and a full meal, the cheque came – she didn’t even reach for her wallet. I gave the waiter my card and prayed silently. Of course it was declined and I had to politely ask the young lady across from me to pick up the tab.

The ride back was quiet. I could have easily brushed the embarrassment off, but the anxiety surrounding my debt situation returned and that was all I could think about.

We parted at the rental shop with only a hug. I didn’t bother calling her and she never called me.

The Moment of Truth

At work, emails are returned promptly, the boss invites you over for dinner, the secretary gives you a smile that she only reserves for her boyfriend and your clients swear their allegiance to your services.

At the bar, girls come up and start chatting without even an introduction. They can somehow sense your success and economic potential.

At the gym, the pounds are removed and your muscle definition becomes clear and ripped.

Compliments are thrown upon you, discounts are offered and your Facebook page is full of humourous banter between friends.

Everyone wants to bask in your successful glow.

This is when the credit card companies seek you out and feed on your already inflated ego. They convince you that your income will only increase and that a $30,000 limit on your card is a good idea. ‘You’ll need a whole new wardrobe and a fancy car to keep up with your new, powerful colleagues.’

Then ‘poof,’ like magic, they are gone when your finances turn sour.

It’s bad enough living without the smiles, idle chat and social favours that you enjoyed, but without credit your life becomes a day-to-day struggle.

The only evidence of your creditors existence is the monthly bills they send.

It’s true what they say about fair-weather friends…

While the temperatures rose and the masses moved outdoors to tan, swim and enjoy the sunshine, you were stuck indoors working. You caught the odd softball game after work and enjoyed a few sunset beverages, but the majority of your time was spent working.

With your goal almost in reach, you have decided to increase your time-off, to reward yourself and your family. But a longer vacation will mean more capital and even with your extended hours, your savings will fall short.

Fortunately there are other means to finance your well-earned vacation. A Kamloops mortgage broker can help you pay for the time you need to take your family away to somewhere warm during the winter.

With a quick application process, the money you need could be delivered within days. Within a week you could pay for all the flights, accommodation and extra activities you have planned for your trip.

You deserve a break and a Kamloops mortgage broker can help turn your dream vacation into a reality.

Kamloops Second Mortgage

But in my desire to eliminate my financial problems, I forget about one of the biggest potential threats facing my limited capital: interest payments.

With more than a handful of creditors, I tried in vain to calculate the interest I would owe each credit company. After more than an hour I gave up. Interest is a bitch!

I was in over my head. I wanted to organize a schedule of payments, but without an accurate understanding of the interest I would be charged, my budget was useless.

All I knew was that while I struggled to stay above the poverty line, my creditors would be living the good life with all the interest I was paying.

My conclusion was this: I needed a financial advisor and I needed some sort of debt relief to lower my interest payments.

Calculating Interest

My thoughts kept returning to bankruptcy. Sure it was a coward’s way out, but it worked and my debts would magically disappear. I could improve my credit rating when I finally found a field of work I was happy in. I had survived my first nineteen years on this planet without credit; surely I could survive another ten or so.

The rebuttle to the last statement was made by my uncle the following day. I called him because he owned his own business and had gone through similar financial problems when his business faltered a few years back. ]

His response to my idea was quick and to the point. He asked me if I ever wanted to own a house? If I ever wanted to take a trip again? If I ever saw myself returning to the lifestyle I led when I sold insurance?

I answered ‘yes’ to all three and he responded with raised eyebrows and a smile.

“You can’t run from this,” he said. “You didn’t think about this predicament before you quit – did you? Well, now you’re in it and it’s your responsibility to dig your way out. If you want the life you lead before, you’ll need credit eventually. Bankruptcy is not an option.”

I went back home and pulled out the paper again. How was I ever going to pay this down?

Dig Yourself Out

Bottom came when a repo man appeared at my door on a Wednesday morning in April. He wanted my television, my couches, my sound system and my laptop. I was able to save the laptop with a quick loan from one of my neighbours. The couches, TV, speakers and receiver were put on a truck.

Sitting in my apartment that afternoon, I pulled out all my bills and made a list of what I owed. I wrote the number on a piece of paper with a sharpie pen and stared at it for over two hours as I thought about all the options at my disposal.

My Parents: I had gone to them for money when I was in University, but that was it. I could have gotten student loans, but they helped me pay for my entire tuition outright. I still owed them that favour. I couldn’t go to them again.

The Bank: Use one loan to pay for another…? I hear you could do it, but was it worth borrowing from one evil empire to pay another?

My Friends: They had money, but I had Butch’s nagging sting. I could never ask them.

Who or what then would be the answer? How would I continue with my payments with the smallest of incomes?

Butch is being paid off by Wallace to take a dive in a fight he will partake in. After Wallace pays Butch, he has a few words on the topic of ‘pride’:

Wallace: The night of the fight, you may feel a slight sting – that’s pride (beep)ing with you. (Beep) pride! Pride only hurts. It never helps. You fight through that (beep). Cause a year from now, when you kicking it in the Caribbean, you going to say to yourself: ‘Marsellus Wallace was right.’

Now the speech is intended to keep Butch on track. It is supposed to remind him of his role and keep him from straying from the plan. Taking a dive is obviously not a noble path, but it is the one Butch has chosen.

The nugget of truth in Wallace’s speech is the notion of ‘pride’ interfering with our decisions. I thought of this speech the other day, when I looking back on my debt troubles.

At the time, pride was keeping me from progressing forward. It was stalling my desire to seek financial help. I knew I was in trouble, but pride had a firm grip on me. Maybe it was a macho thing, but I wanted to somehow suffer through my situation alone.

I know.

Let’s talk about relationships. I had an amazing girl for three years when I was working in the liability field. She moved in after a year and shared my Yaletown apartment with me. Things were good.

Then I quit. She supported me and said that if I wasn’t happy, then it was the right decision to move on.

During my extended sabbatical, she put up with my many days on the couch. She knew I needed a break.

But then the money started to run dry and I started to panic. I let my anxiety get to me and I took it out on one of the only people who supported my decision to leave insurance.

After months of quarrelling, she left. Packed her bags one day while I was out and vanished.

I didn’t talk to her for half a year.

We have since made-up. But it took a cold hard look in the mirror, a substantial break and a credit counsellor to see that my debt was the source of my troubles.

This is Tyler. I’m new to this, so you will have to bear with me.

I read a few of Julia’s posts, so I have an idea of what you are expecting.

My story begins with a new job. After University, a family friend helped me get into the insurance world. I took a job with one of the major brokerage firms in Vancouver. After three years of paying my dues, I was finally able to build a respectable client book. By year seven I was pulling in over $100,000 a year.

Then I started to get bored with the industry. I made sort of a fool of myself at a business meeting and a week later I handed in my resignation. I worked for another month to save face.

The problem with me quitting my job was the bills that I had acquired during the period when I was making money hand-over-fist.

I had the fast car, a posh apartment in Yaletown and a taste for the finer things.

After a year of semi-retirement, I was out of cash and unable to find work in a field that would interest me. I had to reconsider my finances. I wanted to hold on to a few of the luxury items I had gained when I was at the top of my insurance game, but there was little money to pay for them. Eventually I sold my car, but there were still other bills that I was struggling with.

The anxiety was crippling and it affected my search for a new job.

This 'Was' My Car

I landed a job in Creston B.C. It’s a small town of about 5,000 people. I’ll be teaching at Adam Robertson Elementary.

Finally, I will have a steady paycheck. I talked with Rob, my credit counsellor at Full Circle, and worked out a plan to increase my payments. Hopefully I will be financially free in less than three years.

Rob has been a rock for me and I cannot thank him enough for his support and advice.

But unfortunately, the new job will occupy the majority of my time. So I have decided to pass on the writing reigns to a friend of mine who also signed on with Full Circle Debt Consolidation. His name is Tyler. Hopefully he will provide you with the information you need to survive in this crazy city. Cause we all know how costly it can be…

Anyways, thanks for reading. I enjoyed sharing my stories with you.

My last piece of advice, and I know I’ve said it numerous times already, “you’re not alone.” There are a ton of Canadians out there going through the same financial struggles. Finding help is the only way to deal with your debt. If you try to turn your back on it, it will only rear its ugly head to bite you. Talk to Full Circle. They helped me and they can help you.

Alright Tyler, I hand the pen (keyboard) to you.

So Long Guys

A great place to start is farmer’s markets. Community stands are opening across Vancouver to offer summer produce at reasonable prices. The most recent addition to the already established weekend spots is the Kerrisdale Village Market, across the street from Point Grey Secondary. The Kerrisdale market is open every Saturday from 10 am – 2 pm until October 8.

Bring your own bags or Tupperware containers for produce. Most stands do not offer paper or plastic bags.

Also, feel free to ask questions about how the food is grown. Venders love to discuss their product and your interest may land you a reduction in price.

Words of market wisdom: Come early in the day for the freshest wares and late in the day for the best prices.

Life Tastes Better When It's Fresh

The venues range from parks, to Robson Square, to the Athletes Village. Our personal favourite is the Stanley Park viewing area; a beautiful backdrop, minutes away from downtown and a fairly mature crowd.

The films range from 80s classic popcorn flics to family animation.

Here is a sampling of the films that will be showing this August:

Thursday, August 11^th – “Casablanca”

-Athletes Village (Vancouver)

Friday, August 12^th – “Grease”

-Harbour Green Park (Vancouver)

Saturday, August 13^th – “Ghostbusters”

-Cloverdale Amphitheatre (Surrey)

Monday August 15^th – “Toy Story”

-Robson Square (Vancouver)

Thursday, August 18^th – “Aladdin”

-Delbrook Park (North Vancouver)

Thursday August 25^th – “Citizen Kane”

-Athletes Village (Vancouver)

And the cherry in the summer line-up:

Tuesday, August 30^th – “Stand By Me”

-Second Beach (Vancouver)

“If I could only have one food for the rest of my life? That’s easy – Pez,

cherry-flavoured Pez. No question about it.”

You could read the entire Harry Potter series from his early days under the stairs to his final battle with Vold…. ‘The One Who Will Not Be Named.’

You could take ten windsurfing classes – that’s almost pro status.

You could weed, replant and water your garden a dozen times.

You could learn basic Spanish – enough to leave the resort with on your next vacation to Mexico.

You could retile the bathroom.

You could attend at least eight of your son’s soccer games.

You could film, edit and publish a video on YouTube explaining how easy it is to remove your debt with a debt consolidation plan from Full Circle.

Any of these options could be yours.

That last one stands out as a winner.

When you apply for a debt repayment program, your level of anxiety is greatly decreased if not eliminated.  With Full Circle’s help, you will only have to make one payment a month; this amount will be dispersed between your creditors. You will have less interest to pay and you will know exactly how long it will take to eliminate your debt completely. Try it today. Gain back hours of your life almost immediately.

Even 'Debt' is Scared By That Face

If you are applying for work with a new company, the chances are high that your potential employer will run a full background check on your online activity. Besides calling your references and talking to previous employers, companies are now examining applicant’s social media, print and video history. It can be as easy as a Google search or as complicated as a social investigator. If there is dirt on the web, they will find it.

If you are worried about what may be out there, start with a Google search of your name. Depending on your online activity, this may bring up pages of references. Check each one carefully, including links that may take investigators to other incriminating information.

If your social media account is public, change the settings immediately. Put up a recent, respectable photo for your Facebook account. If your settings are private, this may be a non-issue. If you have serious concerns, change your name to an alias in your Facebook settings.

The same applies to Twitter. If your account features your name, delete it. Start again. The problem with Twitter is Google references every tweet you make. This also applies to friends or colleagues who reply or mention your name in their tweets.

Message boards are another area of concern. You may have responded to an article or a video using your full name. This may have taken place years ago, but remember, Google never forgets. If you find a post that uses language that you would not normally use, try to delete the post, or if needed, delete your account with that board.

Investigators or the companies themselves will use the information you supply in your resume. This includes checking your University boards for any mention of your name.

Be smart. Tighten up your privacy. Create accounts with names only your friends know. Block your Twitter and Facebook accounts when you go out on the town. Land the job of your dreams.

Social Circles

An effective meeting should always have one staff member as a mediator. This person needs to ensure both sides are heard for each issue. This person should also be in charge of keeping the meeting on task and on schedule. This figure should not be recruited from management.

Things to avoid when planning a meeting are a lengthy agenda. Keep it brief and focus on a few central topics. Try not to over-visualize the material. Charts and graphs are effective to use in limited doses, but a forty-three-slide PowerPoint presentation is excessive.

Another huge problem with staff meetings is punctuality. All the members involved are taking time out of their day to participate. If one member arrives late, everyone suffers.

No time for a formal meeting. Programs like Skype can help you keep face-time in different provinces. Just make sure the technology is setup well before the meeting – always good to do a dry run.

Between meetings, use email to correspond. Co-workers should have one work account that everyone knows. All emails should have a descriptive subject line for easy referencing.

Communication is vital; so don’t toss the baby out with the bath water. Change your meeting format and focus your attention on the most pressing matters.

Keep Your Numbers Low

When you sign up for a debt consolidation plan, Full Circle, with your permission, will contact your creditors and negotiate terms that are more amicable to your current income. If you are currently on unemployment insurance, Full Circle will help you find a way to pay for your living expenses and your debt.

No one likes to be out of work, but our payments still need to be made. The bankruptcy route can be long and painful, with lasting issues surrounding your credit rating.

Choose the safer route and apply for debt consolidation. Once you find work again, you will be glad you chose to continue your payments instead of throwing in the towel.

Here are some helpful resources for finding work in British Columbia.

Service BC website:

http://www.servicebc.gov.bc.ca/life_events/job/index.html

BCjobs.ca:

http://www.bcjobs.ca/

Don’t discount Craigslist:

http://geo.craigslist.org/iso/ca/bc

Good luck!

Interesting… a bank produced a poll about the lack of debt in our country. Isn’t that exactly what they want us to believe so we will go out and apply for a loan, confident, that like other Canadians, we can pay it off quickly.

What about the three quarters of Canadians that do carry a negative balance?

The same survey found that 19 per cent of the individuals polled from British Columbia feel overwhelmed by their debt. If three quarters of our province has debt and 19 per cent are overwhelmed, then there are roughly 600,000 BC residents struggling to pay their bills.

If you are one of the many British Columbians who is in need of credit guidance, talk to Full Circle Debt Solutions about consolidating your debt. You can reduce your creditor list to one, lower your interest payments and eliminate your anxiety.

Call today and talk to a credit counsellor about your financial situation.

You're Not Alone

1. Always establish a company goal. Where does your focus lie? Does your major concern involve increasing your profit margins? Are you looking to expand? Maybe your focus is creating a diverse marketing campaign to spread the word about your unique enterprise.

Answering these questions will help you evaluate your company’s success. Sharing this focus with your employees will unite your team.

2. Knowing your focus is an important first step forward, but knowing where your company historically spends money can be just as valuable for advancement. Make a table of your financial data and organize it into three categories: revenue, direct costs and overhead costs. Are your costs growing at a faster rate than your revenue? Knowing where you spend your money will help you trim the budget. Keep your company goal in mind and adjust your spending accordingly.

3. Consider variables that may affect your business before the year-end. Have you properly budgeted for them?

4. Evaluate your company by comparing your data to industry benchmarks. How does your company stack-up.

Making Sense of Your Financial Data

The simplest list: your grocery list. We’re human, we forget things. Next time write all the ingredients down so you won’t have to make two trips to the store.

Make a list of important dates. You don’t want to miss your mother’s birthday – for the third year in a row.

Hire a personal trainer for a day and have them make you a list of appropriate exercises that you could do at home.

If you have eight important clients to handle in a day, make a quick list and rank each one on their importance. Then make another list identifying how much time you think it will take to handle each client. Use these two lists to build your weekly working schedule.

Make a list of all the things you wish to accomplish by the time you’re 50. Post this somewhere safe, but visible.

Spend a few minutes and make a list of all your creditors.

Wow… you can stop now.

Want to reduce that list to one. Full Circle Debt Consolidation can help. With a debt consolidation plan, you will only receive one bill and you will only have to write one cheque.

Stick with the lists that matter. Hike in Nepal before you turn ten past forty.

1. Wifi Finder

Are you counting your change at the end of the month? Want to get rid of that expensive data plan? The Wifi Finder can help. Just start at your basic you-know-its-there hotspot. Your local Starbucks will do. Then use their signal to connect to the Internet and search for other hotspots in areas where you might need one, such as the neigbourhood you work in or the eight block radius you walk your dog in. Why pay for data when Wifi is faster and free.

2. Park ‘in’ Spot

This app locates free parking in your vicinity. This app is especially good for downtown. Given up on the free parking hunt? Use Parkopedia to locate a lot near your destination.

3. Save Benjis 1.1

The name refers to the American one hundred dollar bill, but the app works just as well in Canada. To use it, you scan an item in a store that you are interested in; let’s use the example of a new TV. After scanning your HD dream, the app will list all the stores in its database that carry that particular television. It will also tell you what each store is currently selling the TV for.

Isn’t technology great!

Over the semester we learned how to do our taxes, a little about mortgages and we had a small portion of curriculum set aside for small business development.

What we were never taught was: How to apply for a credit card. What happens when you can’t make a payment? The perils of bankruptcy.

Now, as an adult in my thirties, I have had to learn those lessons the hard way. I should say the last two were hard. Applying for the credit card was easy.

But, as many of you know, I received my adult education credit when I signed up for a debt management program with Full Circle Debt Solutions. Robert, my debt counsellor, was my instructor. After a few meetings and a dozen emails, I had a management plan in place that I was proud of.

With less interest to pay, no collection calls and a move towards improving my credit, I was certainly better off than I was after completing my B.Ed. class.

And too think how close I came to declaring bankruptcy. Yikes. That would have been a disaster.

Business Class

• Avoid credit cards that don’t allow you to pay off your purchases immediately. Credit cards are important part of building a credit history, but you don’t need to accumulate balances to use them. Many store credit cards allow you to make a purchase and then pay off your balance immediately.

• Create separate accounts for important payments and purchases. Setting up separate accounts for travel or car payments or new technology helps keep you from dipping into your savings during your everyday routine. It also allows you to see the progress you’ve made toward your goal.

• Think before you spend. Do you spend a lot of money on a cable TV package you hardly use when you could be watching your favorite shows online or on Netflix? Do you pay for a long distance calling plan when you could be using a calling card? It’s important to think about every spending decision you make, knowing that spending in one place means giving up something else.

• Squirrel something away. If you can accumulate a small amount and put it into an interest-earning certificate of deposit or another investment vehicle, even if it’s only for a short time, you’ll see your money grow and feel good about making even more frugal choices.

• Buy in bulk. If you have the space to store large bottles of catsup and other staples, you can save a lot of money by shopping at discount stores that sell larger-quantity items.

There are a lot of other money-saving strategies I’ve adopted, such as driving slower to save on gas, but the ones I’ve listed here are key when you’re just starting to figure out how to live a better and more sustainable financial life. I hope they’re helpful to someone.

One way to save money on organic food is to plant a garden, either at your home or in a community garden. Sure, it takes work, but once your soil is ready and your seeds are planted, you’ll realize you take pleasure in tending to your plants and harvesting your own food.

If you don’t have the space for a garden, try buying organic food from a wholesaler. Local distributors and wholesalers usually offer lower prices than grocery stores, especially if you can buy in bulk and freeze some of the food you don’t use immediately.

Even if you can grow some things yourself and find an organic wholesaler, buying all organic is still really expensive. Do some research and make a list of priority foods you feel must be organic, and then do your best to stick to it. That way, when you need to choose the cheaper version, you’ll know you’ve kept the important things natural.

Eating organic food doesn’t have to be impossible. With some searching, networking and prioritizing, you can live healthily without spending much more than you normally would on groceries. Good luck!

By working with licensed, professional debt managers at Full Circle Debt Solutions, you’ll see that you can make tangible progress toward your goals and climb your way out of that hole, without taking two steps backwards.

We can help make the calls from debt collectors stop and put you back on the path to prosperity. Give us a call to see how we can find a solution to your debt management problems. It’s the best phone call you can make for your future.

Well, this week offered one of the biggest recovery stories in professional sports, as Manitoba was finally able to bring a hockey team back to Winnipeg.

The announcement was made on Tuesday, May 31st, with a somewhat sombre Gary Bettman in attendance.

Why will it work this time around? Strong management.

The Atlanta Spirit Group did nothing to market the team in Atlanta. The Thrashers were always an afterthought to the cities NBA franchise, the Atlanta Hawks.

In Winnipeg, the team will most definitely be the biggest card. They still have the Blue Bombers of course, but a NHL team is another sporting identity altogether. The True North Management Group will have no problem selling tickets. The Winnipeg fans are well aware of what will happen if they don’t manage to fill their arena.

Here’s to second chances!

Full Circle is 100% committed to reducing your debt and getting you back on track. They want to see you return to a life of opportunity, a separate routine from the shackled existence you now command. Reduce your debt, save money along the way and get back to enjoying the game.

And for all you Vancouver fans, Go Canucks Go!

Back To The Peg!

When our desk or laptop breaks down, it leaves us feeling as if one of our limbs has been taken from us. Sure, this ‘Borg’ way of thinking is a little unhealthy, but it almost can’t be avoided. Where would we be without Google Maps, iTunes or email? (Notice we didn’t even mention Facebook)

Buying a new computer to repair that missing limb is a pain, but it has to be done. When that time comes, we occasionally fall short on funds. With our credit maxed, it is nice to know there are other options.

Alpine Credits can help you replace your old computer with a new, more powerful, faster, computing station. Your new arm will have you doing one-handed pushups by the end of the week.

Don’t let your credit deprive you of the Internet, word processing or pirated movies. Apply for a Vancouver home equity loan and purchase a computer that will last your for years to come.

Once You Go Mac, You Never Go Back

This latter group may seem like excellent role models, but often they struggle with the same issues we do.

Financial problems plague the rich and powerful. They may make millions, but they can be equally suited to burning millions.

Mike Tyson is a great example of this. Here is a young boy who fought his way out of the ghetto to become one of the most recognizable athletes in the world. He may have lost all credibility with his rape charges and his later antics in the Holyfield fight, but at one time Tyson was earning close to $400 million.

By 2003, after a fall from grace, Tyson owed $27 million in debts, $9 million for a divorce case and $13 million in back taxes.

Then there is the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. At the time of his death, Michael owed $400 million dollars to various large lending agencies and private financiers. His album “Thriller” is still the second largest selling album of all time, but still Jackson’s spending outdid his income. After his death, one forensic accountant estimated that Jackson was spending over $20 million per year more than he was actually earning. Yikes.

Are these people we can look up to? No. But we can learn from their mistakes.

The most important lesson to take away: “Only spend what you can afford.”

No Matter How Far You Pull The Hat Down, Your Debt is Still There

I always thought swag meant the free stuff you got when you attended a conference or charity event. But now I hear hip-hop stars and celebrities using the word as an affirmation or noun to mean style or confidence. I even hear it being used as a verb: “swagged-out.” Then all of sudden I read that Puff Daddy has changed his name to “Swag.” What gives?

Well readers, I did some research and apparently swag comes from the hip-hop term “swagger.” Remember that song M.I.A. did with T.I., Jay and Kanye: “Swagga Like Us?”

No one on the corner has swagga like us

Swagga like us

Swagga swagga like us

I guess these four thought pretty highly of themselves.

Now the shortened form swag, picked up by the hip-hop group of the moment Odd Future (OFWGKTA), has taken off. For example, I was watching “Dancing With The Stars” (don’t judge) the other night and one of the dancers used it to describe their routine: “That is swag!”

If you’re thinking of using it in your everyday life, try alternating it for the word cool. “Do you think it would be swag if I wore my Bruins jersey to the game?” And the answer to that question is definitely no! That is not swag.

Towel Power is Swag!

The rain is behind us and the glorious west coast sun has returned. Your home, with its spring garden, has never looked better. These are the prime months to sell when everything about your home looks new and inviting.

The influx of foreign buyers has created a huge demand for property and houses that were once half a million are now over six figures. Sell and take advantage of the expanding bubble before it bursts.

But don’t forget to pay attention to the interior elements. If your plumbing system needs work, invest the money. Your value will increase and potential buyers won’t have an excuse to look elsewhere.

Campbell Care can prep your house for the open market by doing a complete maintenance package. With guaranteed results, the professionals at Campbell Care will service your whole home for less than you think.

Don’t let leaky pipes keep you from making a bundle. Have a plumbing professional from Campbell Care primp your home for resale.

The Vancouver Area Cycling Association is promoting the weeklong event by offering prizes for businesses that signup to participate. The Grand Prize is a draw, with the winning team awarded two tickets for a Kettle Valley Trail Trip from Great Explorations. How you decide which two employees will go is your job.

There are celebration stations around the Lower Mainland where cyclists can stop and get a free refreshment. Mechanics will also be available at each of these sites, offering free tune-ups and advice.

Ride with a friend, or ask the cute boy from accounting if he wants to join you on your commute. That definitely counts as a date!

Start a friendly competition with other staff by logging your total number of km’s.

Have fun, take in the city’s beautiful scenery and save money on gas – money that could go toward paying off your bills.

One of the biggest obstacles I grappled with during my lowest point was the feeing of being alone. I had all this debt to deal with and no one to talk to.

All around me I saw successful people, going to their steady jobs, driving their luxury cars and living a life that was miles away from my own.

I kept asking myself: “Why me? I’m the only one who is struggling to get by?”

The answer, of course, was no. There are literally thousands of Canadians struggling with debt issues every day.

Each of us has a different story of how we managed to accumulate so many bills, but the final condition is sadly similar.

Strapped with debt, we take on second and possibly third jobs to pay off our credit cards and loans. We lose touch with our friends and our families and become consumed by the struggle.

This is no way to live.

Debt Consolidation frees us from this financial and social confinement.

With a repayment plan in place, normal people like you and I can return our energy to the important elements in our lives.

You’re not alone.

Full Circle Debt Solutions can help you understand this fact. Talk to one of their counselors about setting up a consolidation plan.

Join the hundreds who have already and start living your life without the burden of debt.

-Julia

Obviously my first thought was: “My online friends could really benefit from this material.” So here is my summarized version of their 10 tips.

1. What’s Your Story?

-What does your company offer? Why are you different from the rest? You need to figure out what makes you unique.

2. It’s Not All About You.

-The article stresses that PR is separate from advertising. It’s about offering something to the public – a service. Something they need, not you need to sell.

3. Find the Emotion

-You know those NHL Playoff commercials that are all over YouTube right now? Those History is Made spots. The reason why those are so effective is because they remind us of the emotions we felt when we saw that goal scored or witnessed that huge save. Your customer’s emotional attachment doesn’t need to be that extreme, but they need to connect with your product.

4. Know Your Target Audience.

-This is essential. Who are you trying to reach?

5. Write Concisely.

-Remove all the information from your press releases that isn’t important. In other words, edit your work. Send it to a friend or colleague to proofread. Read it again. Then read it again.

6. Adhere to Deadlines.

-The business world is a momentum machine. If you can’t keep up with it, you’ll be run over. Always submit your work on time.

7. Know the Media.

-Where are you submitting your work? Who subscribes to their publication? Why is your story important to their audience?

8. Press Release Versus Pitch.

A press release is a formulated article that follows strict guidelines. This works for news items that relate to your company. A pitch if less formal and can be written to attract a journalist’s attention for a follow up interview.

9. Develop a Relationship With the Editor.

-Social Media tools are great for this. Follow them on twitter and respond to their tweets. Befriend them on Facebook. Just don’t smother them.

10. Timelines.

-How often does your intended media outlet publicize? When will they need the information to produce an article that will be relevant with their readers?

It’s a sad tale, but an honest one.

The grasshopper’s heroic flaw is that he can’t see past the present. This is a condition that many of us, including myself, have experienced. We take the easy road and accept lines of credit to maintain a lifestyle that we are accustomed to.

What we can’t see at the time is how a seemingly easy decision to extend our credit line can damage our future opportunities. At the time, we can’t imagine that our decisions will possibly one-day limit our chances of purchasing a house or will result in a denial of a business license.

But a bad credit rating does just that. Improving that rating is not an easy task and that is why there are companies like Full Circle to offer assistance. Full Circle can get you back on track, building for your future.

You don’t need to freeze next winter if you start a repayment program while the weather is fair. Contact Full Circle about a Canadian debt consolidation plan.

The total number of Canadians that applied for bankruptcy status in the second month of the year: 6,774.

Ouch!

Trust me guys, this is not a road you want to travel down. Once you declare bankruptcy your credit record is ruined. You may be asked to surrender many of your valuable possessions such as your car. It also requires you to meticulously track your future income and expenses.

For those of us buried in debt, there are other options.

Applying for a debt consolidation plan informs your creditors that you are making a serious attempt to repay your debt. It will stop the phone calls, the angry letters and most importantly, it will put your credit history into a category that, with steady payments, you can come back from.

Before you throw in the towel, think about your future. Apply for a debt consolidation plan with Full Circle Debt Solutions.

Avoid the Front Page

Before you jump into a serious relationship, it may be worth your while to have a long talk with your partner about their financial goals and current status.

You may have been working for years to improve your credit rating, but your new partner could be concealing thousands in debt. Financial conversations are just as important as discussions on childbearing. In an alarming statistic, 35 per cent of couples don’t talk about money before marriage. This is not healthy. You need to have the talk.

If you don’t ask you will never know. And sure it’s not very romantic, but neither is taking out the garbage. They both have to be done.

You don’t want to be carrying someone’s unpaid debt for the next twenty years. If your partner’s financial history is drastically different than your own, you may want to reconsider your compatibility.

If not. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Love conquers most things, but it doesn’t pay the bills at the end of the month.

"The Talk"

Perhaps it is connected with the ease at which we are able to pay with our credit cards. Scan, swipe or enter our digits, and bam, the purchase is completed. The speed at which we can buy products and services using a credit option is driving us into unthinkable debt.

Now Visa Inc. is making that process even easier. This fall, Visa will launch a new payment program called “digital wallet.” Designed for the online purchaser, the Visa wallet app will allow customers to simply enter their email address and password to pay for their purchases. No need to get out your card, and type in the 16-digit number plus an expiration date. That takes up to much time and god forbid you cannot find your card. Now, all you will need to remember is your email and password

Scary.

What’s next?

In the future will we just have to say the words ‘charge it‘ into a voice detector and we can walk away with an X-Box 1080?

Who knows?

All I know is the harder it is to use my credit options, the less likely I am to run up a huge bill.

So if Visa comes calling, maybe tell them you’re happy with the old ways.

You Don't Even Need Your Card

But how do we go about communicating this? Through gifts?

If I buy my Mom a huge basket of flowers, with every known blossom known to humankind, she would reply with a huge lecture on how I had wasted my money on a gift that will wilt by next week.

If I make my mother a card, she’ll love the effort, but the crayons and sparkle glue will only remind her of the fact her daughter is still struggling to make ends meet on the West Coast.

No, I think the best gift I can give my mother is the knowledge that with the help of my friends at Full Circle, I have finally got my life in order. Bills are getting paid, my credit level is improving and for the first time in years my head is firmly above the water line.

If you want put your mother’s mind at rest, sign up with Full Circle and give the gift of security. No more calls for financial bailouts. No more co-signs. No more teary phone calls complaining about your aggressive creditors.

It’s the gift she has been waiting for the past ten years.

Unfortunately, not all of us come by it naturally. Some of us need a little coaching on how to manage our time, work and money.

Many of us who lack critical organization skills are helped by our significant others. Our partners are always the first ones to notice our deficiencies (and I don’t mean that in a bad way), so when they can step up and help, it means a lot.

Sometimes it’s a friend who steps in and helps us organize our schedules and demands. Making timelines and helping with our financial records goes beyond the duties of a friend, but this kind of help is often received by the organizationally challenged.

For the rest of us, there is Full Circle Debt Solutions. Full Circle can help you make a financial plan and stick with it. They will outline exactly how long it will take for you to pay off your debt by giving you a fixed, manageable, monthly payment amount. Their counselors will provide tips and instruction so you can manage your credit back towards a positive standing.

A debt consolidation plan is your first major step towards organizing your life. Let Full Circle help you start yours today.

Organize Your Life

Bread and circuses!

Sometimes the major issues are clouded with inconsequential news stories and entertainment. These pop into our lives through the media and consume our time. In the process, we lose sight of the issues that concern our day-to-day lives.

Your credit situation is a major issue. Ignoring it will not make it go away. I tried that route and it only gets you deeper in the hole.

Enjoy the Canucks plyaoff run, be happy that there is one less psycho in the world and send your congratulations to the Royal couple, but don’t forget about your debt.

Contact Full Circle Debt Solutions and work out a repayment plan. You can always come back to the news of the day, but solving your credit situation should be your first priority. The more time you spend with distractions, the more interest you will accumulate. Start a debt consolidation plan today.

Many of their schemes fall flat, but a few do succeed.

One of their most dastardly plots is the ‘sports paraphernalia giveaway’. You’ve probably all seen this evil device at work at a Lions or Canucks game. The credit card companies set up a booth or stall and offer free merchandise if you sign up for a credit card. The merch is often a towel with the Orca on it or a Leo’s shirt, something that would literally cost less than twenty dollars.

But we’ve had a few beers, our boys are winning and they claim the towel is free – so we sign. And sure enough, a week later a credit card arrives in the mail.

For a fifteen dollar stuffed lion, we will pay years of interest payments. It seems absurd, but it works.

Avoid the tractor beam. Buy your towel at the pro shop and thwart the Dark Side.

The Evil That Plots Against You

R7, a close relative of R2D2 (you see how I’m stretching), is a rating given to debtors who voluntarily choose to engage in a debt consolidation plan. In Canada there are nine rating marks with R1 being the perfect credit and R9 being bankruptcy. What R7 means to a future creditor is that the individual had problems with repayment, but sought help to pay off their debt. It means the debtor is dedicated to the credit repayment process.

The R7 rating is considerably removed from the R1 rating, but it shows that the individual chose to avoid bankruptcy. This is always a positive sign.

Three years after completing your debt consolidation plan, your credit rating will move back towards the R1 rating and closer to R2D2 status.

For more information on credit ratings, talk to a debt counselor by calling this number: 1-877-220-3328.

The Ever-Faithful R2 Unit

It was about women and our forays into the business world. The article discussed the fact that a lot of women and probably men as well, tend to use financial help books to prepare themselves for their business ventures. The problem is that business books, by nature, are written in a dry, formulated language that leaves many readers abandoning their paperback by the end of the first chapter.

So what are we to do?

Support Groups!

I don’t know how many of you out there belong to a book club, but over the years I’ve been in a few. You meet with a few friends each week and talk about the chosen book you read, or tried to read. You discuss the characters, the symbolism, the plot, the naughty bits and then you spend the rest of the afternoon gossiping. You leave with a better understanding of the book through the exchange of ideas. You also finally get to hear why Penny dropped Shane.

Financial book clubs – just as valuable. Learn from your friends, talk about strategies that worked for them and throw in a little gossip as well. For your first book I would choose a lighter read, a book that could easily be finished in a week. I would start with Gail Vaz-Oxlade’s work, Debt Free Forever.

Good luck ladies. Tell me how it goes.

Sesame Street is now incorporating money management skills into its educational package. Familiar characters like Oscar the Grouch, Elmo and Cookie Monster are being used by the popular kids program to educate children on financial subjects.

The project is titled “For Me, for You, for Later.” In the series, the Sesame characters use three jars to divide their money; one is labeled ‘spend’, one ‘save’, and the other ‘share’. The children learn the value of putting money away for each of these causes.

While the lessons are directed at children, the shows’ producers hope that the lessons will also inspire adult viewers to consider the values being presented to the younger audience. Saving and sharing are two traits that some grownups seem to neglect.

For a more adult take on financial stability, talk to a Vancouver credit counselor at Full Circle Debt Solutions. They might not use hand puppets and funny voices, but they will present you with sound advice for managing your income and your debt.

Call them. I did!

The Muppets Take on Finance

This one sounds really simple, but it could save you more than thirty dollars a month on bills.

The lesson is this: the rate you pay for your cable package is too high. How do I know this? Because all of the providers operating in Canada use rates that are not set!

What cable companies like Telus, Shaw and Bell do is try and project a firm list of prices that offer customers service packages in pre-described bundles. The prices for these bundles are advertised and shown in their literature as being firmly set. This is completely false.

If a cable company is scared you will leave their service for a competitor, they will immediately offer you a lower price for the same service you received the previous month. Nothing changes but the price.

Try it! All you need to do is call your service provider and threaten to leave. Mention a competitor’s rate and wait for a response. If they don’t drop the price, tell them you have another call and hang up.

I guarantee a customer service rep will call you back in the next 24 hours and offer you a reduction.

This year’s celebrations will be held at the traditional meeting ground, the Vancouver Art Gallery steps. With tens of thousands expected to participate, the Vancouver gathering is considered to be the largest in North America. There will be free samples offered to the crowd, so no one goes without.

Proposed topics for discussion at this year’s event are the active promotion of legalization and the arrest of Marc Emery.

The festivities will begin at one o’clock and will build to twenty minutes past four. The gathering will continue until 9:00.

A post-party hip-hop show will take place at Fortune nightclub in Chinatown. The main musical guest will be the legendary Raekwon, of Wu-Tang fame.

Police will be on hand at the Art Gallery for the purpose of crowd control only.

Smoke Cloud Descends On Downtown Vancouver

The first thing you should know, is that no creditor has the legal right to use threatening or intimidating language. This applies to contact with you, your family members and or any of your acquaintances. It is also against the law for them to publish a record of your failure to pay.

If a creditor has your correct contact information (home telephone number and address), they are not permitted to contact you at work. If, for some reason, contact cannot be made at the home number, a creditor can make ONE call to the debtor’s place of employment.

A creditor can only phone you between the hours of 7:00am and 9:00pm. They can only contact you on Sunday between 1:00pm and 5:00pm. They can never contact you on a stat holiday.

If you would like to learn more about your rights as a debtor, call 1-877-220-3328.

Make It Stop!

Don’t run yourself into the ground trying to pay back your creditors. Sign up for a debt consolidation plan and work towards paying one realistic payment a month.

A debt consolidation plan could save you thousands in interest charges. It will also allow you to resume a normal life. One where you can take the odd night off. Maybe catch a movie or try that new bistro down the block.

It’s not a loan to pay back another loan. It’s a service.

Contact Full Circle Debt Solutions to apply today. The professionals at Full Circle will contact your creditors and negotiate terms that are consistent with your current income level.

You won’t have to spend your days off picking up extra shifts or spend your nights scouring Craigslist for a job that brings in more income. Full Circle will help you pay off your bills while maintaining the same lifestyle you currently hold.

For a no obligation consultation, call: 1-877-220-3328.

Taking On Too Much?

And you know what? We’re going to talk about the Canucks!

My question to you is this: “Do you think the Canuck organization should change the goal song from Green Day’s “Holiday” to something else?

I’m thinking something Canadian, or something by the White Stripes. Or… yes, I have it. “Howlin for You,” by the Black Keys. I’m a genius. Alright, your turn. Comment below and include your vote for the Canuck 2011 Playoff goal song.

Wave Your White Towel

Here’s hoping the Chicago Blackhawks don’t score a single goal in their own building and we don’t have to listen to that annoying song by the Fratellis!

No one plans to get caught up in a web of credit bills, but sometimes, through poor budgeting or unforeseen events, we find ourselves cornered by our creditors. With the two options of bankruptcy or repayment, the latter is often seen as the tougher road to travel.

Fortunately, Full Circle is in the business of helping Canadians fulfill their repayment obligations. Full Circle helps individuals pay off their debts by reducing their troubles to one easy payment. They accomplish this by negotiating a plan with your creditors.

It is in Full Circle’s best interest to help you find a plan that works with your income level. Talk to them today and meet with a credit counselor almost immediately. You will save thousands in interest payments.

Sign up and turn your life around – Full Circle.

Her question was this: “Is a consolidation plan the same as a consolidation loan?”

The answer: Not at all.

If you signup for a consolidation plan with Full Circle, you are not loaned any money. You are not switching one creditor for another. Full Circle provides a service. They contact your creditors and explain your situation. They make arrangements for you to pay them back on terms that are more reasonable. This is the service they provide.

They also make it easy for you. Instead of three or more outstretched hands, asking for money, there is only one bill. With only one bill, your interest payments are greatly reduced. This can save you thousands of dollars.

Sounds almost too good to be true! Trust me. You’ll never look back. Well, until it’s all paid off and then you’ll be raving to all your friends just like I am.

So visit their site and fill out the quick-and-easy form.

http://www.debtgone.ca

Questions Over Coffee

There will be a small area for on-site camping. The camping passes will be sold in pairs for $150. Why in pairs? Who knows? The camping pass will allow you stay for three nights and will secure you one parking space.

The festival weekend tickets will be priced at $119 until May 15rh. Children 12 and under have free admission when accompanied by an adult.

The gates to the festival grounds will open each day at 2:00pm. Tickets will be exchanged for wristbands at the door. There is no outside alcohol or cigarettes allowed on the festival site.

See you there!

Turns out not everything goes according to plan.

After two years in Science, you switched to Arts. You graduated with a degree in creative writing and then spent the next three years trying to find a job in your field. After teaching English in Korea for two years, you returned to Canada and went back to school for a trade. Now working as a metal fabricator, you are just starting to pay off your huge student loan along with your three maxed credit cards. You’re thirty-four and a house seems at least a few years away.

Plan B got you a job that challenges you every day. It let you experience life in other countries. It let you experiment with your desire to write. And it helped you realize you were skilled in a field you never even considered ten years earlier.

But it also left you with a huge debt.

When it comes time to pay, there are institutions that can help. Full Circle Debt Solutions will sign on to be in your corner. They can talk to your creditors to help devise a repayment plan. Visit their website today.

But unlike a poor gene physical attribute, your debt can be worked off. You spend all those hours in the gym working off the beer from the weekend before; why not spend some months seriously paying off your creditors?

Don’t know where to start? Look at your bills and find the one with the highest interest rate. Start there. Still confused. Hire Full Circle Debt Consolidation to help you manage your debt. They did wonders for me and look how confident I am now. All it takes is a visit to their site. Fill out the quick form and a debt counselor will call you back. It is that easy.

Now please, try it.  And lose the facial hair. We’re not big fans of that either.

Call Full Circle... Then Shave.

But why am I talking about ostriches? You got it! Because they stick their heads in the sand. And what does someone drowning in debt do? C’mon, I did it myself. Right, we ignore the problem and bury our responsibility.

Is this the best choice? Probably not.

But that’s why the ostrich comes equipped with powerful legs, to defend itself against predators. “Are you telling us to take a karate lesson to handle our debt.” No. But you can attack it head on when you seek the help of Full Circle Debt Solutions. By creating one easy payment, you can minimize the anxiety that comes at the end of the month when all your creditors come asking for a piece of your income.

Now I’ll let you in on a little secret. The ostrich head-in-the-sand connection is actually completely false. Ostriches lower their bodies as a defense mechanism, but they never shove their heads into the earth. They’re too smart for that. And so are we. So start paying back your debts and start seeing what’s really around you. It’s not as bad as you think.

Sure enough, I found an article on saving money, my newfound passion. It was the title that first grabbed me: “Get it For Free.” Yes – you now have my attention.

The article talked about the online world of trading. It focused on two sites: Swapadvd.com and Swap.com. Both of these sites let you trade products with other users. The only charge is the shipping. If you package a bunch of trades with the same user, you can lower the cost dramatically.

The Swapadvd.com is simple enough, you can trade movies, but on Swap.com you can trade just about anything. When you create your profile, you make a list of the items you have and the items you are looking to trade for. The site automatically matches you with other members who may have similar interests and items you need.

It’s a pretty cool idea. Check it out. And the best part – No credit debt!

Good luck with the treasure hunt. Talk next week.

Julia

Top Ten Reasons To Move Out of Your Current Residence and into a Suite in Toronto

10. That smell in the basement is just getting worse.

9. You saw the neighbours unloading high tech surveillance cameras over the weekend.

8. The commute…

7. Kensington Market

6. Closer to all your friends.

5. Mold. It’s all over the upstairs bathroom.

4. Closer to school / work / everything

3. Dining out has a world flavour beyond EastSide Mario’s.

2. A nightlife past 8:00.

1. Sports!

Say goodbye to the burbs and start scanning craigslist for a suite downtown. It will probably be a smaller space, so take the opportunity to ditch some of that old furniture that sits around and never gets used. The rest of your gear can be moved with Toronto’s most reliable moving company, Careful Movers. Call them for a free estimate at: 416-310-7000. They will supply all the boxes and tape you need to pack up your smaller items. Your belongings will be delivered safely and timely to your new residence.

Hire Toronto’s moving company, Careful Movers, and focus your time on planning your new life in the city.

Downtown Toronto

This week I have another tip to pass along on how to make our hard-earned dollar go a little further. It concerns the price of gas in the Lower Mainland and for that matter the price of gas across the country. It’s skyrocketing! But that’s probably not news to anyone. With the unrest in the Middle East and the fate of nations being held at the hands of revolutionaries, the price of oil is reaching never before highs. Just last week, a station in Richmond posted their regular gas at a price pennies away from $1.40 a litre. I know, crazy talk. But that is the world we are currently living in.

So my tip, check out the GasBuddy app for your smart phone. Last week it was the 18th most downloaded app at the iTunes store. What GasBuddy does is track the daily prices of fuel around the city of your choosing. With this information they are able to post the best deals of the day, so you don’t have to spend time looking for them.

A noticeable trend in price spikes shows that Thursday night is a good night to purchase your fuel. Gas stations tend to raise their prices Friday morning, as many individuals load up their cars for the weekend.

So buy your gas during the week and download the free app to find the cheapest station in your neighbourhood.

There's an App For That.

1. Your Grade 10 high school Yearbook (those photos from your Musical Theatre class are terrible for your cred)

2. Your signed Nelly Furtado CD

3. Your ex-girlfriends love letters (Why do you still have those!!!)

4. Your Pilates DVD series

5. The novel you started writing just out of University

6. That text from Jennifer last Saturday night

7. Your collection of Spiderman comics

8. Your nightly face creme.

9. Your worn copy of Twilight

10. Your drawer full of credit statements

Hope She Doesn't Go Searching For A Pen

One through nine you can take care of yourself. Number ten is a little trickier. Sure you can throw out the paper statements, but that won’t stop the creditors from sending more. The only way to scuttle your debt is to tackle it head on. Confused about how to start this process? Consider a debt consolidation plan with the credit experts at Full Circle Debt Solutions. Their counselors will guide you on your path to repayment.

Trust me boys. Girls are always on the hunt for incriminating evidence. Lose yours with the help of Full Circle.

The events in Japan this week have forced many British Columbians to look long and hard at their earthquake preparations. Many of you have been asking ourselves the same question: “Will my family be ready if we are hit by a quake on par with the one that took place off the coast of Japan?”

If you feel like the answer is no, log on to the Provincial Emergency Program, a website created by the Ministry of Public Safety. There are pages of tips to help keep your family safe during the event of an earthquake. There are also loads of tips on how to prepare your family for the ‘big one’ that scientists around the world are predicting will eventually strike the Pacific Northwest.

Pacific Ring of Fire

Mattress Choice would like to post a few of the suggestions for preparing your home:

1.  Inspect your home’s foundation. This includes your walls and your chimney. You should make immediate repairs to any structural elements of concern.

2. Tie down your water heater and other major appliance that could topple and flood your residence.

3. Store your important documents in a fireproof box in a secured location.

4. Keep flamable products such as cleaning chemicals in a special cabinet, away from heat.

5. Move your bed away from windows or hanging picture frames. You spend 1/3 of your day in bed. If a quake hit during the night, you would be helpless to falling debris in those few seconds of disorientation.

The increase will come in stages, with the first jump occurring in May of this year. The first bump will take the wage to $8.75. In November it will rise again to $9.50 and then by May of next year it will finally climb to $10.25.

Clark also plans to eliminate the training wage, which is currently set at $6 per hour.

B.C. currently holds the lowest minimum wage in the country.

The increase is an integral part of Clark’s plan to put families first.

The wage was last changed when Gordon Campbell first came to power, nearly a decade ago.

Though many small business owners are wary of the increase, Clark is confident that the new increase will not affect the economy in a negative fashion. Others believe that potentially, numerous jobs could be cut and replaced with atomization practices.

Only will time will tell.

Working for Minimum Wage

By consolidating your debts, Full Circle can create a single payment plan that is much less daunting than five or more credit statements.

With a plan in place you will find yourself getting more rest, enjoying your leisure time and improving your output at work. Debt anxiety is a taxing affair that only has the potential to damage our regular activity.

Find freedom from the worry and stress of your credit debt with the help of the financial counselors at Full Circle. Your basic everyday demeanor will improve, you will take a positive first step in repaying your loans and your credit rating will remain level.

By reading this blog you are already ahead. Try the service of Full Circle Debt Consolidation. Call them today.

Full Circle Can Help

The smart option is home ownership. Paying into a mortgage is far more financially productive than paying a third party for the right to stay in their dwelling.

Getting your credit under control is the first step towards owning a home. Without a decent credit rating you will never be accepted for a mortgage.

Full Circle Debt Solutions can help you right your credit ship. They will construct a tailored repayment plan that will direct you out of your credit cave.

Once you have proven to your creditors that you can make punctual payments, your rating will begin to show positive signs. You can also take your credit plan to the banks to present a powerful argument for your capacity to repay your mortgage.

Credit troubles should not be black spot for life. Reduce the risk. Talk to Full Circle about a plan and get your finances in order for the big move into your first home.

Starter Home in Vancouver

These stats and more were provided in an interesting article published last week in the Globe and Mail. Entitled, “Reno Coach Keeps Projects in the Ballpark,” the article concerned a young woman who had attempted to find a contractor to do a number of renovations around her modest home. The quotes and feedback she received from different contractors was highly inconsistent and stank of unprofessionalism. But then the young woman hired a reno advisor from a company called House Calls Project Management. At a hefty fee, a reno coach visited her home and helped her draw up a reasonable budget and project plan for her renovation ideas. The coach also went through the contract when the young lady was finally able to find an appropriate contractor. This process helped the homeowner save in the long run. It also provided her with needed assurance that her plan was practical in raising the value of her home.

The Globe article concluded with five pre-reno checkpoints:

1. Know the rules: You don’t want to go through the process of renovating your home, only to find your new additions are not up to code.

2. Know what’s possible: This rule is for those handy ladies and gents out there who seem to take on the ‘im’ possible.

3. Create a budget: Never start anything without a rough idea of what it is going to cost you.

4. Do the Math: Get more than one quote. Review the numbers. Pick one and then add another 15 per cent for unexpected costs.

5. Spend wisely: For additional financing, contact a home equity loan specialist. Alpine Credits can lend you the money you need to bring up the value of your home.

Plan Your Home Reno Carefully

At the top of this list is ‘gambling.’ Playing the lottery is fun and it’s nice to dream about all the millions that could be ours, but the math is obviously not in our favour. The lottery should not be seen as a viable option for ridding our self of debt.

Neither should weekly or daily visits to the Casino.

There are plans in place to expand the operations at Edgewater to include a monolith casino that would be attached to the newly refurbished BC Place. The B.C. Pavilion Corporation hopes to bring a massive casino and hotel venture to the property directly adjacent to the BC Lions new home.

This casino, if it was to be built, would be a huge draw for those looking to quickly pay off creditors.

But let me tell you, the risk is far greater than the reward.

The only solution to dealing with your debt issue is a well thought out debt repayment plan. Full Circle Debt Solutions offers this service to it’s many Canadian clients across our country.

If you have debt problems and are looking for a way out, avoid the distractions of the bright lights and chance games. Talk to the experts at Full Circle about a consolidation plan. It will take less time than you think to pay off your creditors, with zero risk.

Leave the gaming to your idle hours in front of your XBox.

Insert Your Money Here...

First time buyer? Looking to move inside the Calgary area? Now is the time.

With the Bank of Canada maintaining its interest rate freeze at a near record low mark of 1%, homebuyers can now lock into mortgages at rates that will probably never be seen again in our lifetime.

This is the year to take the leap from renter to owner. With the economy starting to show signs of recovery, it won’t be long before the banks decide to raise the rates.

And with the West Coast market spiking, Calgary seems like the most affordable option for a first class city to live in.

With your new home purchased, you will need a first class moving company to transport your furnishings from your old dwelling to your new home. Careful Movers is your best option for a reliable, competitively priced moving company in the Calgary area. Our staff will handle your belongings with kid gloves. We will show up on time, with all the resources needed to move your items safely.

When the purchase of your new home is finally processed, your next move is to call Careful Movers – Calgary’s moving company.

Is the Grass Greener On the Other Side of the Rockies?

Concerts can be an expensive luxury, especially if you want to check out some of the bigger acts that come to our fair city. Rihanna tickets went on sale last week and the majority of the seats were over $100. Ouch. The same applied for the Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj tour. Honestly, who was $140 dollars to spend on a one-night ticket? Not this young lady.

But don’t turn your back on the music. There are plenty of small shows playing around the city that are more affordable and way more intimate.

Hey Rosetta is playing the Rio Theatre on Friday night and tickets are only $25. This is an awesome venue to check out a show. And for all the hipsters, the Rio serves Pabst Blue Ribbon.

Saturday you have The Dears, an amazing indie band out of Montreal, playing Venue. Tickets, again, are only $25. And you can get as close to the band as the bouncers will permit.

So don’t let your limited finances hold you back from enjoying what the city has to offer. Just pick your events a little more carefully.

Stay tuned for more affordable entertainment options.

The Dears - Looking Serious in Greyscale

My mom would always answer in the same way: “Watch and see.”

They never did get rescued from that island – not during the regular seasons anyway. They were stranded out there on a tropical isle, doomed for decades of reruns and speculations about who got Ginger (the professor) and which one got Mary-Anne (The Skipper).

Either way, there was one episode where they put on a play, I believe it was Hamlet, and as a part of it they sang this song.

Neither a borrower nor a lender be,

Do not forget: Stay out of debt;

Think twice, and take this good advice from me,

Guard that old solvency.

There’s just one other thing you ought to do,

To thine own self be true.

After all, it was Hamlet who got himself into a whole load of trouble borrowing more than he could pay back.

That song really stuck with me. For years. Every time I opened an overdue bill, or saw Unknown Caller in my call display, my skin would crawl and that song would start playing in my head.

Now, years later, I see that I’m just like Hamlet from Gilligan’s Island! I owed all this money, and they came knocking! I should have taken that good advice from the Skipper and Mary-Ann.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXId5jOTxdg#t=0m30s

Sure, Vancouver’s a lovely place with majestic mountains, beautiful beaches, clean air, lush forests and a temperate climate – but what of the cost of living in such a place?

It seems there is no room for a middle class in this city. Housing prices are the highest in the world compared to salary. The average house: $700,000. The average household income: $65,000. That’s over 10 times.

It’s crazy. No one can afford to live in Vancouver except overseas investors, and even they don’t live here. Take a look at Yaletown at night and you’ll see what they call the ‘Blackout Effect’ – a whole lotta empty apartments. Couple that with the worst homeless problem in the country, and it’s not looking so livable any more. (There is one really easy solution to kill two birds with one stone here – but I’ll leave the dot-connecting to the anarchists.)

Don’t get me wrong. I love this fair city. But it shouldn’t be inaccessible to own a place without accruing an impossible debt.

For now, I’m happy to rent. If I can consolidate my debt in Vancouver to a manageable number, then I’ll start looking into buying. And hopefully, by then, the prices will be back to normal.

Either way, the sun is shining. I’m off for a jog along the sea wall to the backdrop of the mountains and buildings of shimmering green glass all under the glorious blue sky.

We used to do Surrey debt consolidation, and we still do, in fact we service the entire Lower Mainland from our Delta office at:

Full Circle Debt Consolidation Solutions

6935 120 Street,

Delta, BC

Canada

V4E 2A8

604-724-3242

So no matter if you live in Vancouver, Richmond, Delta, Surrey, Langley, Burnaby, New Westminster, White Rock, or Coquitlam we can help you with your debt consolidation needs.

The reality: these people probably lead a boring life or have crazy assistance from some family benefactor.

The ‘D’ word should not be an evil phrase. It is a natural part of living in a monetary world. All of the perceived power nations run with a debt. Even China’s industrial boom is the result of the country going into massive debt. But what do these investments yield, stronger, more competitive nations.

Without debt, you would never afford to live in a house, pay for a new car, go on vacation or graduate from the school of your choice. It is a necessary element for achieving the lifestyle you deserve.

Paying off your debt can be hard. But as your income increases over time, it becomes easier and more manageable.

For those of us in our late twenties and early thirties, debt can sometimes seem like a dark cloud of oppression. Fear not. As I said, it gets better.

But for now, seeking out a debt counselor is often a proactive means of controlling your financial situation. The staff at Full Circle is an excellent resource for creating a plan to manage your debt. If you are having trouble meeting your payments, Full Circle will contact your creditors and create a repayment plan that is practical for your current income level.

Debt is not to be feared. We need it to lead progressive, full lives.

If you are struggling with your monthly payments contact Full Circle today.

Debt is Not a Word to Fear

With all the work I’m doing to pay off my debt, it is sometimes hard to find time to keep my body in the shape I like it to be.

(Ladies, we’re talking about the backside. Boys, we’re talking about your gut. And that joke about having a keg instead of a six-pack stopped being funny years ago.)

This week I considered joining a private gym. I confess my new infatuation with Vancouver’s adopted leader, Trevor Linden, lead me to ponder a membership to Club 16. Yes it’s in Coquitlam, but the chance to work out beside Linden had me looking past the drive.

Trevor Linden on the Treadmill

So I started doing some research and looked into the price. It cost $14.99 a month, but I would have to lock into a 12 month plan. I looked at my budget and even though I was spending almost right to the cap (Gillis style), I could just afford it.

But then a few days went by and I started to think about my idea with a little more clarity. How much would I honestly spend on gas? Would I use the gym for the five months of the year when Vancouver is truly amazing outside? What if I joined and decided three months down the road that it wasn’t for me?

Then I looked into Community Centre plans or lack thereof. The monthly price was a little higher, but there was no contract. The location was less than four blocks from my house. And the equipment was a little older, but the basics were all there.

Then I thought, what if I just used my home as a gym. I had stairs in my apartment for climbing, a park near by for running, a yoga mat for crunches and a old workout ball from an ex who thought he could tone his tummy by sitting in front of the TV.

Eureka! Julia’s private workout club was born.

I had enough bills already. A gym membership was silly, private or public.

And the best part. No gym monkeys posing in the mirror.

Try it. It’ll save you money.

-Worried about motivation. Find a friend and create a daily schedule. Push each other to increase your difficulty.

Good luck. See you in June!

I had an interesting conversation with one of my girlfriends this weekend. We were talking about whether or not girls should pay for their half on the first date.

I’ve been paying my way for years, because that’s just who I am, but she had an enlightening story to share.

It involved her great aunt Jane. My friend had been talking to Jane about a date she had gone on over the holidays, when her aunt suddenly cut her off with a simple question: “What, you paid for dinner?”

This shocked her aunt Jane beyond belief. Her aunt proceeded to enlighten her about the unspoken social contract between a man and a woman. Apparently ladies, if you go on a date, the man should pay for the privilege of your company by picking up the tab. Jane proceeded to tell my friend that in her time, you ordered as much as you could at the restaurant and what you didn’t eat, you brought home to your sister.

Funny, but it sort of makes sense. Even today, times are tough and with bills adding up, a free meal is a free meal. So put the equality speech in your back pocket, order the lobster and enjoy the little perks that come with being a female. The money you save can go towards paying for that prestigious University you went to. If I’m not mistaken, I think your date went to Community College.

Let Him Cover the Cheque

That’s what happened to me when I went mattress shopping. I knew exactly what I wanted from my bed. I knew the firmness and the dimensions. I knew that one day I might need to share it with a partner, so I needed a mattress that wouldn’t shake and shimmy every time my significant other moved in the night. I did my research online, found the brand and make I wanted and worked out a price that I thought was reasonable. Then I spent the next two months looking for the bed I wanted at the terms I had come up with. No luck… Until, after coming across an advertisement for a brand new mattress store in Victoria, I visited Mattress Choice and finally came face to face with the mattress of my dreams at a price I could afford. It was a divine moment.

So if any of you are looking for a new bed, I suggest taking a day trip over to the Island to view the showroom at Mattress Choice. With unbelievable deals set for their Grand Opening, Mattress Choice is ‘the’ place to shop for a new bed.

Want to increase your bliss? Mention this article and receive two free pillows.

Or just tell them Julia sent you.

Till next week, sweet dreams!

Better Brands. Better Prices. Better Dreams.

The article was entitled, “Five Common Mistakes When Paying Off Debt.”

Being that I had a massive debt problem just under a year ago, I thought I should probably read up on what the paper’s expert had to offer; You know, just in case I could share it with you guys. After reading the article though, it occurred to me that every tip offered I had heard before. Don’t get me wrong! It was great advice, but it was like they had interviewed my debt counselor at Full Circle and stolen all of his wisdom.

Whatever the case, I thought I would pass on his pearls to my readership.

1. Work with a repayment plan

-This is exactly what Full Circle provides. Your personal credit counselor will devise a plan that works for your current income. If that rate changes, they can readjust the numbers to suit your needs. The focus of payment should always be on the debt with the largest interest rate.

2. Don’t Pay More Than You Have To

-Lose the balance protection insurance on all your credit cards. This is a scam! The article also puts forth a disturbing example of how paying the minimum payment hardly affects your overall balance. In most cases it only just covers your interest. Full Circle’s advice: When you have the funds, pay as much off on your high interest debt as you can.

3. Create a Spending Plan

-This is a where you can pinpoint just how and what you are spending your money on. It’s great for cutting needless expenditures. The Globe suggests using a site to create your plan. They endorse MoneyStrands. See how it works for you.

4. Don’t Shred Your Cards When You Finally Pay Them Off

-Credit cards do have their perks. Rental insurance, extended warranties and lost or damaged items are just a few reasons to hold on to your plastic. Ironically, they could end up saving YOU money.

5. Don’t Go Down That Road Alone

-This is exactly the service that Full Circle provides.

What does that mean for the average Internet user? You know all those movies you have been downloading? That could potentially spike your Rogers Internet bill.

But before we march on Ottawa, it should be noted that the government has already seen the potential for a unilateral surge of public outcry. Harper’s Conservatives have stepped in and delayed the notion until further review.

Thank god!

In a day and age when movie theatres charge close to fifteen dollars and CDs cost close to twenty, it’s nice to still count on Al Gore’s wonderful series of pipes and tubes to provide us with free entertainment as we go about our busy lives.

Even with the government’s intervention plans have been made for public demonstrations against the CRTC ruling. Several major groups are planning to stage protests across Canada on February 26th.

Let’s keep those bills down.

Stay tuned for more details.

The Future (maybe)

The same applied to my bank statements. I never wanted to know how far I was into my overdraft or the amount I had spent on my Visa that month. I just wanted to pay the minimum and move on with life.

This, dear friends, is no way to live.

You need to be conscious of your spending if you ever plan to manage your life in a progressive manner. One way I found to manage my resources efficiently was to signup for online banking. It literally only takes a few minutes and you can do all your account transfers and budgeting online.

Opening monthly bank statements can be traumatic. Opening your account online is easy and painless. You will also be able to track your balance as you move through the week. It is an excellent resource for financial management.

No Internet access? Use the computers at your local public library.* You can check your Facebook, watch YouTube and manage your money all in one stop. Try it. It helped me. And most of my friends said I was beyond help.

*When working on computers at the library and at Internet cafés, always remember to clear your cache and reset your browser. You do not want your banking information getting into the wrong hands.

Just Remember To Check Over Your Shoulder

But I bet you didn’t know that I am a huge fan of historical fiction. I love combat scenes, heroes, knights, cavalry charges and battle strategy. I sometimes fantasize about running an infantry unit at work, as I supervise the junior waitresses beneath me. When I’m hiking, I find myself daydreaming about how a mounted unit would move across the terrain. When I fill my purse in the morning, I think about how much else I would need to carry if I was a soldier marching off to war.

But I’m not. I’m Julia – A waitress with huge amounts of debt.

I’m not a Roman soldier or a knight of Camelot or even a Canadian foot soldier. None of these heroes would have thrown themselves at the foot of their enemy and begged for mercy. But that is how I perceived my move to contact Full Circle Debt Solutions. I surrendered, just before ruin.

But then it hit me one day: ‘Julia, you’re not surrendering. You are choosing the best option possible. You are admitting defeat, sure, but only in battle, not in the war.’

My white flag was raised to save the rest of my soldiers, to help secure a life for the ones who lied wounded. My actions were for mercy, but I would return. I only needed time and the resources to compete, both of which Full Circle provided.

Help Is On its Way

Let’s quickly review my situation for those who weren’t paying attention:

I was unable to find work in my field of study, Education.

I applied and received a credit card to pay for my bills and rent.

I found a job as a waitress to pay for my rent and the minimal payment on my card.

Student loan repayment had me paying another $357 a month until I got it reduced to $187.

I found a position inside a school, but fortunately it was only volunteer. Income tax can be a killer.

To get back and forth to my non-paying job I bought a car. Correction; I agreed to start making payments on a car.

Now let’s add up those monthly totals:

Credit card min. payment: $110

Student Loan: $187

Car payment: $263

Rent: $720

Subtotal: $1280

Lets add to that my other major expenditures:

Groceries: $375 (roughly)

Cigarettes: $120

Gas: $60

Subtotal: 555

Grand Total: 1835

Ouch. And I was barely making $2,000 a month. Paying the bills, but only when I could. I prayed for an easier way, a path of less resistance. It came, finally, but not before I added another debtor to my list…

The List

Fellas, I know times are tough and we all are a little bit strapped for cash after Christmas, but trust me, you need to take advantage of the Dine Out program running now in the many restaurants around Vancouver. This may be the only time you can take your girl to that restaurant she has been talking about for weeks. With a fixed menu at incredibly reasonable prices, you can afford to play the high roller for one night.

If you really want to impress her, find your own gem using the Dine Out map at the Tourism Vancouver website. You can search under cuisine type, which really helps.

A little tip though, stay away from the wine list. Last year I went with a friend to a a little French bistro on Broadway. The three-course dinner was billed at $38 a piece, but somehow the waiter convinced us to buy a bottle of red. He neglected to mention the price. The bill came and we owed close to two hundred dollars once we had factored in a tip. A student loan payment up in smoke.

The Dine Out program began on the 24th and will run until the 6th of February.

Enjoy my friends.

I don’t what it is… the thrill of the hunt, the satisfaction received when you come across that amazing accessory or maybe it’s just we like to look good for our boys. Well, you can throw out the latter option, because I don’t have a boy and I’d rather look good for my own self-image than the affection of a hockey obsessed superfan.

No, I love shopping because I love clothes.

But with very little expendable cash, it’s hard to pursue my passion.

That is until I discovered the wonderful world of consignment. Girls, I know it sounds like a dirty word, but consignment stores are a dream come true.

This is how it works. First, you go through your closet and pick out those twenty or thirty outfits you don’t plan on wearing again. Then you bring them down to your nearest consignment store. My favourite is Modern Upbeat on West Broadway.

Hopefully, in the next few months, your items will sell. The store will then give you 40% of the sale price. It’s that easy.

In the meantime, you can buy other brand name items at ridiculously low prices. If you see an article you like, but it still costs too much, wait a week or two and watch the price come down. It’s amazing. It’s like a sale everyday and with your own clothes in the mix, it’s almost like you are getting paid to shop.

Try it. Tell them Julia sent you.

And now with my debt under control with the help of Full Circle’s debt management program, I can shop even more!!!

August held pretty much the same as the previous month; lots of work, little time for rest and bills, bills, bills.

Then, on the 23rd I got a phone call from a friend working in the Surrey school system. He told me that the school he worked at had drastically cut back the hours of the teacher librarian. They were looking for potential teachers to volunteer their time in the library. He asked me if I would be interested.

Of course I said yes. But as I hung up the phone, my one thought was: “How am I going to get to Surrey three days a week.”

Now, I know what you’re thinking: ‘the Skytrain runs right out there Julia.’ And yes, I am aware of this mysterious people transporter, but realistically it wasn’t an option. My job in Vancouver and the school in Surrey were both more than 5 km’s from a station. That meant a bus on each end.

By the end of the month, I signed myself up for yet another expense: a 1999 VW Golf. Yes, I could have bought a cheaper model, but I figured if I was buying a car I should probably buy one that was going to last me. And when I use the term ‘buy,’ I use it in its loosest form. Clarkdale provided me with a decent finance package but the monthly payment still eclipsed my monthly student loan bill.

So just when I was getting a grip on my debt, I dug the hole a little deeper. If only I heard about debt consolidation sooner.

But, on the positive side, I was in a school. Working for free. Thumbs up for volunteering! Yayyy….

My Little Baby: Rose

But what I would like to say is: “Damn, that Bieber kid puts up with an awful lot of hater abuse. Imagine going on your YouTube site and reading all the terrible comments that people write about you. I really don’t know how he does it.

Well, that’s not entirely true.  When I was at my lowest, I remember hearing murmurs from certain friends and family members accusing me of getting into a debt situation that threatened to ruin me. I just had to put my head down and know that the plan Full Circle had set out would lead me to the Promised Land.

Bieber does the same. He plays almost every night, he blogs, he tweets and he looks past his critics towards the final goal: Freedom 25. The young man believes in himself, he has talent and he’s reaching almost every top 40 market in the world. And while I might not be as talented or prolific, I am doing my own gig and getting it done. In no time at all, I will be able to look back and be proud of the long journey I embarked on to remove, what I thought was, insurmountable debt.

Ahhh.... Isn't he cute?

The women are planning on breaking the Guinness World Record for the longest hockey game ever played; a truly Canadian undertaking. They are planning their attempt for next fall, from Aug 26th to Sept 5th. That’s right, 11 straight days of hockey! I couldn’t believe it either. The teams will be fixed and each will consist of twenty players.

Reading this story, I thought about the agony and the ecstasy of competing in a sporting marathon of this scope. What would it take as an athlete to play your game for 11 days straight?

Then, being ever obsessed with my debt situation, I started comparing it to the repayment program that Full Circle had worked out for me. Sure the goal was a long way off, but I had a plan and a means to get to my final goal. The consolidation option was my ticket to freedom.

To these women, the grueling hockey game will be their self-sacrifice. By playing out the game they love, the foundation will be able to raise more money for research and care for those suffering from Cystic Fibrosis.

Nothing comes for free in this world. Working hard is just part of the game. To learn more about this event or to make a donation, visit www.longestgame4cf.com

Playing For a Great Cause.

Opening up the bill, I slowly scanned the statement provided by the National Student Loan Bureau; $357 a month was to be my minimum payment. Wow. That was half my rent!

Well my friends were at the beach, I spent July working like an animal and worrying about how I could pay my credit cards and my loan payments. I felt alone, left to meek out a meager existence in a forest of debt.

Then a co-worker told me that I could apply for debt relief. By filling out a form and providing details on my current income, I could become available for a short term, reduced payment plan. I applied and two weeks later was accepted.

My new payment was $187. Steep, but manageable.

I paid the minimum on all my bills at the end of the month. Again, I was just barely surviving. The credit card interest was killing me. I needed a way to pay them off and focus solely on reducing my debt to the government.

I also needed out of the waitressing gig and into my field of study.

Maybe August would hold more promise.

Crippled by Debt

An article in Canadian Living entitled, “Trim Your Grocery Bill”, inspired me.

According to the article, Canadians spend almost as much money on food and grocery bills as they do on rent. The article references a professional shopper/blogger named Kimberly Clancy. For a news piece, Clancy was able to walk into a grocery store and after picking out a $133.89 worth of product, reduce the cost to a meager $23.45.

Her secret: coupons. Apparently those old ladies with the bursting purses are on to something. Clancy claims that she routinely saves 25 per cent on her grocery bill using coupons and watching for upcoming sales.

Now, I know what you’re thinking; only the elderly have the time to spend scanning flyers and leaflets for discounts. But a few each week can save you dollars that add up at the end of the month.

Other tips from the article are to buy generic, avoid impulse shopping and plan meals before entering the store.

A great generic brand retailer in Vancouver is No Frills. There are two locations, one just off Alma, on Fourth Avenue and the other in the West End, on Denman Street. Tell them Julia sent you.

Talk next week!

Squint and Save

The story: Trevor Linden’s appointment to the Order of Canada.

Being a fairly new Canucks fan, I had to do a little research on Trevor. I had heard the tales of 94 from some of my guy friends, but I had no idea of the amount of charity work that the young hockey captain participated in.

Now every time I see his smiling face on those eyeglass ads on the bus, I can understand why this city holds such a high regard for their transplanted son.

Some day I hope to inspire young children with the same passion that Trevor was able to share with the less fortunate.

We all can’t be honoured in the way Trevor has been, but we can all appreciate the hope he was able to inspire.

Thank you #16…

Forever Our Captain

Without being too sappy, my moment was when I contacted Full Circle Debt Solutions.  I called to ask about a plan to consolidate the huge mess of unpaid debt I found myself drowning in. It was 2009 and I had borrowed from every available source I knew. One year later, I am working towards paying off every creditor I owed. I have renewed hope, I am more confident in my decision-making and my attitude on life has done a full 180.

The same sort of inspiring event happened to a homeless man named Ted Williams this week. Williams was begging for money at the side of the highway in Columbus, when a media personal recognized his talent. He returned with a video camera team to film Williams speak and record his story.

Williams, in the video that went viral in a matter of minutes, holds a sign that claims he has the ‘God given gift of voice.’ Watching the tape, you realize that the homeless man is far from exaggerating. Williams, who once worked as a radio host until he lost his way with drugs and alcohol, has a voice that belongs on Monday Night Football.

The Columbus Dispatch posted the video and asked if anyone could hire the out-of-luck announcer. Well, within a week Williams had a job with Kraft Foods. The Kraft Food Company is currently running a campaign to Feed America through 20 million meals. Hiring Williams, the Kraft Company latched themselves on to the viral news story. With a commercial already in the can, Williams voice will soon be heard, again, all across America. And this time he’ll be paid.

Congratulations Ted.

Part One – The Mermaids Mug

Addictions are a tough subject to bring up. I’m not to fond of talking about my brother’s illness and I’m sure addicts aren’t too keen on discussing their own slides. But some addictions carry a little less severity than others.

This week I want to talk about this city’s addiction to java.

It’s rampant. I thought it was bad back east with the Tim Hortons craze, but they have nothing on Vancouverites.

You guys are hooked on the Mermaids brew. She has her three pronged triton deeply imbedded in your psyche. You need her elixir to start your day. You make plans to meet at her lair with potential partners. And you sneak in just before closing to get your last cup for the long night of work ahead.

These visits add up. It’s almost five dollars for every non-fat, extra shot, caramel latte you order. Plus, one out of every three visits you add a munchie. On an average week your bills could total over sixty dollars. That’s ludicrous. And we’re not talking about the rapper.

Want to save money? Buy a thirty-dollar coffee maker, some filters and a generic tub of fine grind. Bring your tub to work and brew your own blend at the job. It might seem weird at first, but you will soon see the difference in your pocket book at the end of the week.

Small things like these can have you saving money instantly.

Try it.

The Little Mermaid

The first thing you need to do is organize. Forget the money issues for a sec and take the time to clean up your living area. Clean the bathroom, the kitchen, the closet; especially the closet. Throw out any old clothes you don’t think you will wear again. Next, do your car. Get rid of all that junk you’ve been lugging around.

All right, now back in the house.

Next is your purse/backpack/wallet. If you are one of those people who likes to collect receipts (which is great!), find a shoebox and store them away. You don’t need those little paper reminders in your back pocket. Then take your key ring and remove any key that you don’t use on a regular basis. Do the same with your cards, pens, and cell phone adapters; anything that you might be carrying with you that is of little or no use discard.

"The Things We Carried"

Now go for a walk.

Back already?

Feel better?

Do you know what you just did? You consolidated. Now, it is a little trickier with your finances. That’s where Full Circle Debt Consolidation can help. Their expert credit team can help you minimize the bills that reach you. Your only concern will be one simple sum that will arrive once a month.

Apply for a Full Circle consultation right now and feel the weight lifted within days.

April 2009 – The First Bill Arrives
With my rent paid for with the Devil’s blood money, I resumed my efforts to find a job placement in my field of study. Maybe they could sense my soul had been removed, but by the middle of the month I was still without work. I was now making weekly visits to the school board offices, but each time they explained that there was already a list of available teachers and I was at the bottom.
On the 27th, my first bill arrived from Visa. Apparently interest begins immediately on cash advances. Why was this never explained in Grade 10 Business Education? I buried the bill, took another advance and paid off another months rent.

May 2009 – Resumé Rebuild
In the hole for over fourteen hundred dollars, I gathered what little pride I had left and returned to the Island to ask for help. I sought out one of my Ed teachers and asked him if he would mind reworking my resumé. We sat down for two hours and tweaked my professional CV and brainstormed a new, tentative cover letter.
Once back on the mainland, I returned to my hustling ways, but still no results. Rejected and convinced of failure I gave up my search and applied for a waitress position at a local restaurant.I was hired the next day.

When the end of the month came, I begged my boss for a cash advance to pay for my rent. He agreed. Thank you Rob.

June 2009 – Balancing Act: Waitress Nightmares
Two months overdue, I was finally able to pay the minimal payment on my credit card. I was working doubles and picking up any shifts I could get my hands on.
The work was physically demanding and tediously boring, but there was a small trickle of money coming in. At times I wanted to quit, but at the back of my mind was the now close to two thousand dollar debt that I had racked up on my Visa. It pushed me on and kept me from ripping off my apron.
I didn’t apply for a single position in June. I was caught, working a job that just barely held me afloat. I was treading water, but determined to survive.

Serving it Right

But that was before the government heavies sent me my first student loan bill…

Last night, when I was on a smoke break (yes, I smoke and yes, I know I could save myself a ton of money by not, but I also never said I was perfect), a fellow employee shared an alarming statistic with me. Apparently, Canadians debt-to-income level is now higher than our American neighbours to the south. Fact!

The way he explained it, this statistic is troubling because it could spell financial ruin for families who have over extended themselves. The threat comes in the form of rising interest rates. Currently interest rates are at a all-time low, but as the economy rebounds, these will start to rise. When they do, some families may not be able to meet their higher payments.

I brought up the matter with my credit counselor at Full Circle. He told me that this was exactly the reason why debt consolidation is a smart move for any Canadian with a variety of credit card and personal debt payments. Consolidate and you only have to make one payment at a fixed rate. It’s simple. Even I get it. And you know how much financial trouble I used to be in – We’ll get back to that next week.

Here is another article if you want to read more on the debt-to-income crisis. You’re welcome…

No, really it’s not. It’s actually a lot brighter. But even after finding Full Circle, my guardian angel, I still have to pay my daily bills. One of those is my cell phone bill. We all get it. Every month. And it’s always bigger than those lousy cell phone companies promised.

I’m with one of the big ones. It starts with ‘R’ and ends like tigers. Didn’t leave much to the imagination there did I? So this company has me on a basic plan of… I think it’s like 65. But like all those plans it ends up being in the high 70s or 80s each month. And, I know, it probably is my fault for going over my minutes and calling during the day. But sometimes its unavoidable.

So Rogers (whoops!) has me in a contractual trap. I’m stuck paying these ridiculous bills until my contract runs out in the spring.
WRONG.

There are ways out. The easiest being: a simple pay-off. A small fee for each of the months left on your contract.
But then what. I need a cell phone!

The answer is in the Wind. Wind Mobile has way better deals than Rogers. FACT! For forty dollars I got an unlimited Canada wide talk and text plan. Listen to me, I sound like an advertising talking head. But it’s true. Way cheaper, no contract, keep your old phone number. It’s awesome.

The Winds of Change

And no, I’m not on commission. Just wanted to pass along some advice from my own life.

Save money. Pay off your debt quicker. It feels good.

Well, lets get back to the gory details.

January 2009 – Resumés, resumés, resumés!
So after completing my Education program on the Island, I crossed the Inlet to look for work in the lower mainland. I had a brother living here, so I moved in with him. That proved difficult, but again, that is a story for another blog.

The first month here I spent my time checking different job posting websites. I submitted my resumé to every position that became available and waited patiently for a response… nothing. Then I started dropping my resumé in person at every school board office between Squamish and Chilliwack. I got one phone call. From the Surrey office. They called to say ‘they weren’t hiring, but they would keep my resumé on file.’ Excellent.

February 2009 – Tears and Fears
With no responses, I started to panic. What if I never found work? What if I went years without work? How would I afford to live in the city? I couldn’t move back home, that would admit failure. Could I take on another job and still look for work?
Totally confused I spent the rest of the month feeling sorry for myself.

March 2009 – Last of the Free Rent / Deal With the Devil
In March my brother told me I would have to start paying rent. I needed to come up with money quickly. That’s when a friend of mine, a so-called-friend, suggested getting a credit card. They said I could use the card to take out an advance and then pay the money back when I found work. Honestly, looking back, I thought I was smarter than that. Turns out I wasn’t. Like a junkie’s first hit, I took the card, paid my brother off and bought a new pair of boots to help boost my spirits. And like that, I was hooked.

Aren't They Cute???

Google Search: Debt Consolidation Vancouver

• Debt Consolidation in Canada – Full Circle Debt Solutions
Debt consolidation and debt management options that can reduce your debt payments … -Crystal, Vancouver. Thank you for again taking the time to talk to me …
www.debtgone.ca/ – Cached – Similar
6935 120 Street, Delta
(604) 724-3242

Amongst the top three results was the entry above. After looking over their site, I gathered that this must be the company Alexis was referring to. They offered a complete package of debt consolidation and credit counseling.
After calling their toll free number, 1-877-220-3328, I got hold of a young man named Robert. Rob explained my rights as a debtor and laid out my options to move forward.
He promised me a dramatic drop in interest payments, a convenient single payment and my own credit counselor. It sounded to good to be true.
But I told him I would have to think about it.
The next day, before work, I called back and signed up for a consolidation program. I haven’t looked back since, well besides recalling the events for you, my dear readers.
Next week I’ll get into a little more detail about how I wound up, in what I thought, was financial ruin.
Till then, sleep well. And remember, there is help out there. I found it at Full Circle.

Alexis: OMG! Have you heard the Arcade Fire’s new album? Frking amazing!
Me: Yeah, I downloaded it last nite. The Sprawl 2 gave me goosebumps.
Alexis: You know theyre coming in Sept?!?! Lets get tix!
Me: Love to, but honestly, I have 0 funds. Can’t even afford to pay Rogers bill. This time next week I may be sending this msg by carrier pigeon. LOL
Alexis: Seriously, is it that bad? ☹
Me: You have no idea!
Alexis: You know my brother signed up for this debt program online.
Me: Oh yeah. You know what it was called?
Alexis: No, but Ben said it made his life way easier.
Me: How???
Alexis: Well for 1, he got in touch with a credit counselor. They explained his rights and then worked out a plan for repayment.
Me: Was this 2 different org.s?
Alexis: No, the debt program and the counselor were from the same company. I think the term Ben used was debt consolidation.
Me: Sounds like a disease.
Alexis: Hey! Don’t you knock it. Ben is way better off now. You should try it. Just google debt-consolidation-Vancouver.
Me: Alright, I’ll try it. But if I develop a thirst for kool-aid…
Alexis: LMAO!!! Don’t worry babe. It works.

Saving Tip: Pick Your Plan Wisely

Why would the App Store offer such a gadget?

Collectors. If you have ever had to deal with these annoying blood-suckers, you know the problem. They call at dinner-time, they call in the morning, they call at all-hours. All they care about is money.

Collectors are bad on the morale. They are a kill-joy and an energy suck. They need to be avoided, or, nipped in the bud.

The iPhone app will help you avoid them, for now.

But sometimes it is better to get them out of your hair once and for all.

With a debt management, debt consolidation strategy, Full Circle can help you find a way to reduce your monthly payments to collectors by as much as 50%!

To find out more, contact us today at www.debtgone.ca and we’ll get those collectors off your back once and for all.

It’s a bit of a crazy thought to think that the guy pushing the shopping cart through your neighbourhood with cans and bottles rattling along to Yankee Doodle actually has more money than half of the people in this country.

Debt is scary business. It’s a matter of re-assessing your life to know that you are not what you own – you are what you owe.

To most Canadians, debt consolidation is a foreign term. Not many people know that there is a way that they can take a bunch of high cost debt and simplify it into one easy monthly payment.

To find out more about how you can consolidate your Canadian debt, contact Full Circle Debt Solutions today.

They can help you on your way to reducing your debt by as much as 2/3rds. It’s not as difficult as you think.

To find out more go to www.debtgone.ca or call 1-877- 220-3328

If you are paying $500 a month in payments, do you realize that not a cent of those payments are going towards the principal?

As much as you are paying on a month-to-month basis. It doesn’t help.

It’s depressing, for certain.

However, there is another way.

Did you know that you can consolidate your high-cost debt into one easy monthly payment?

Through Debt Consolidation with Full Circle Debt Solutions you can take all of your high-cost debt and reduce it to next to nothing.

To find out more, contact Full Circle at 1-877- 220-3328.

Half of the apartments in Yaletown and the Olympic Village are empty, but we also have one of the largest homeless populations in Canada. In Vancouver, everyone exercises and every second restaurant has a vegan menu. Then there’s the crack epidemic. Vancouver has Air Care so your car doesn’t pollute. And every second car is an SUV. There’s no smog, but there’s massive opposition to public transit. Cyclists ride en masse to create change. But when they get it, no one’s happy.

Here, you need to smoke outside, but only if you’re smoking cigarettes. They call Vancouver ‘No Fun City’ because they shut down all the great venues to watch shows. But they also call it Vansterdam because you have hemp shops on Hastings and the smell of BC’s finest is never more than a block or two away while strolling downtown.

If you live in Vancouver, it’s one or the other. It call be a ball, or it can be a drag. Chances are, you’ll need to be out of debt to enjoy it to the fullest.

To find out about your best Vancouver debt consolidation options – talk to one of us at Full Circle Debt Solutions today. We can help make some sense of Vancouver, and the wild extremes of both sides.

But there is hope. If you live in Vancouver, BC, and you are interested in Vancouver debt consolidation solutions you have a friend in Full Circle Debt Solutions.

The first thing you need to do is examine your options.

1. Do you own a home? If you own a home in Vancouver, BC then you are already ahead of the game. You will be able to consolidate all of your high-cost debt almost instantly with a home equity loan or second mortgage.

2. If you don’t own a home – are you good with numbers? Take a good, hard look at your financial statements, at your chequebook, and at your organized bank statements and data. If you have all of this available, and you check it weekly, you can probably make some headway to the steps you need to sort out your debt.

3. HELP! If you can’t balance a chequebook on a 40 foot concrete slab. then you might just need a little help from people who deal with numbers and figures every day. A lot of what we do is just make sense of your financial situation. Because we live and breathe this stuff, it’s easy for us to make it easy for you to understand. Sometimes the best thing you can do is just get a consultation about your debt situation, so we can offer practical advice.

To find out more about Full Circle Debt Solutions, give us a call today. We would be more than happy to help you out. It is our goal to see everyone in Canada out of debt.

It’s tongue-in-cheek, but there is something to be said about being 100% self-sufficient.

Did you know? 1 in 7 homes in America is currently available for squatting. A little lesson to be learned in debt management.

You have to love Steve Martin. He’s a riot.

But seriously, this is my life! I was exactly like this. Before I sorted out my debt, all I did was buy things. I loved to buy things! Especially things I could not afford.

Canada isn’t quite that bad yet. But I read somewhere that the majority of us are in debt. It’s scary to think that if interest rates go up, even a hair, that we could be underwater just like all those Californian families during the recession.

Canadians should plan on getting out of debt as fast as possible. It’s the safest way to go about things. With the right debt management plan in Canada, it is possible to get monthly payments under control and start living life without the constant fear of an American crisis happening here.

Some Debt Management Solutions in Canada include debt consolidation through Full Circle Debt Solutions, and getting the capital you need to pay down debt through home equity loans.

keys in the lock

We are still friends and we still keep in touch from time to time. And in a funny way, no one knows me better than Stan. We went through a lot when we were young, idealistic early-twentysomethings.

One of those principals was that we would never allow anyone to pay for anything for us. His dad was a successful businessman and he even had Stan working for his company selling insurance when he was in high school. But Stan was never big on insurance. He’d rather grow out his hair and strum along to Donovan. That’s what I loved about the guy, he went his own way.

And he really stuck with it. He ended up getting his own recording studio, years later. And now, talking to him, he’s doing okay.

We got into a conversation about debt though. I guess owning your own studio isn’t the cheapest endevour to set out on, and being as stubborn as Stan was, he refused to get any help from his dad. This meant that he was up to his eyeballs in debt when I talked to him.

You know my story. My debt was simply out of control up to just recently. So I told Stan about debt consolidation options available and how with the right debt management, how he could save his bruised credit.

Stan was all ears. I have to say, even though I haven’t seen him in years, I still miss my crazy hippie friend.

Crazy Stan

If you are interested in getting a loan to consolidate your debt but your credit is bad, you might want to look into a home equity loan.

If you own your home, we can help you get the money. No matter if you have bad credit, no credit. The banks won’t lend you money if you can’t verify your income, or if you are too old, or if your credit is bad.

Imagine that, being too old to get a loan. That is ageism front and centre. So if you have a home, talk to us about second mortgage options – we can put you in touch with the right people so you can consolidate your debt once and for all, and get those payments down as much as 50%.

If you live in Vancouver, BC, watch out for hippies on the Skytrain.

There are some interesting ads being run right now encouraging Vancouver debt consolidation and Vancouver debt management.

If you are truly debt-free, then you will feel as free as a hippie on holiday. You will be running wild in the streets with none of the oppression of the Establishment or The Man to hold you down with crippling monthly interest payments.

If you want to feel as free as a hippie on holiday, Credit Counselors Canada can show you how to open your mind to a world without debt.

Give peace of a chance!

We started this experiment with Scarlett, the artist. She was deeply into debt thanks to credit card bills, bad credit and student loans. She wrote about her Vancouver debt adventures. You can follow along here: Scarlett’s debt consolidation story.

Our next author was Ben, an accountant. For a guy who was good with numbers, he certainly had his debt management problems. You can follow his debt consolidation story here: Ben’s debt management story.

Then along came Eve, who joined us earlier this month. Eve is a dental assistant from Vancouver, BC. She had a few problems balancing her chequebook and keeping her credit cards in line, so she eventually found us to get her debt under control. You can follow Eve’s adventures here: Eve’s debt consolidation story.

Vancouver is an expensive city and I soon found my new wealth drying up.  I was struggling to make monthly minimum payments and rent, let alone any extras for fun.  It’s such a trap, like a hamster on a wheel.  Any extra money I had would go straight onto my ever growing credit card bill but it didn’t make a difference.  My funds would run out before the next pay period so back on the credit card it goes.  At this rate I would never pay anything off not to mention be able to afford to do anything fun.  I wish someone would have told me about Full Circle Debt solutions at this point in my life.

It felt exhilarating to be released from school and to finally be earning a proper wage.  I managed to land a great job that paid more then I expected ($19/hr) to start and I was on my way.  Life was good.  Roger and I were stronger then ever and I suspected that we would soon be moving in together, away from wild roommates and communal living!

And boy did I spoil myself those first few months after school!  But I deserved it, or so I rationalized.  A girl can only take so much suffering and I used a great deal of my new cheques to spruce up my wardrobe and buy lovely things for my house that I could never afford before.     

  It took about 6 months for the dust to settle and then I realized that I was in a whole world of trouble but I’m off to sleep right now so this story will have to continue later.

I feel so grown up!
I should also point out that this isn’t an impulse buy. I have no intention of stepping one little toe back into debt now that I have clawed my way out thanks to Full Circle Debt Solutions. I happen to stroll by the West Broadway and Oak Simmons store daily so this is an idea that has been ruminating for a long while, long enough for me to wait for a deal and pay with cold hard cash.

Sweet Dreams!

At this point I wasn’t yet clued into Full Circle Debt Solutions.

Plus I was in love!  His name was Roger and was a ruggedly handsome carpenter that I met through a friend of a friend on a wild night at the commodore.  We drank martinis and discussed everything under the sun until dawn.

Love has an all-consuming quality and my year of dental assisting school whirled by soon spitting me back into the workforce.

That was my debt.

Before I found Full Circle Debt Solutions I was lost. I would oscillate between trying to be responsible by paying the miniscule amounts I could towards the debt or throwing my hands up at the sheer absurdity of my struggle and splurge to treat myself with some new clothes or such.

It was such an intense feeling to feel this debt looming over me and being powerless to do a thing about it. I became accustomed to avoiding thinking about it all together. I reasoned that there was nothing I could do about it so no point dwelling on the topic. Something like plugging ones ears and singing la la la la la la I can’t hear you! Probably not the best strategy granted.

Anyway I do digress. What I’m trying to say there is a way out. Don’t give up!

Dental Assisting.

I figured in for a year and out with a decent paying job that would tide me over until I could figure out what I really wanted to do with my life.

Interestingly, when I headed down to my local community college I discovered that many people had a similar plan.  The dreaded 2-year waiting list.  I mean who has 2 years to wait around to get into a course?  2 more years of slinging hash browns.  Forget that!  Luckily one of the private schools offered the program too but of course the catch was cost.  Almost $20 000 for the year.  That is more then the combined total of my stint at university.  Unbelievable.  Highway robbery.

  But what is a girl to do? 

Time is of the essence and the sooner I complete the program I can start earning a decent wage.

Like I mentioned, I was inspired to move on from the service industry so I packed my bags and headed to the west coast.  I planned to attend university in the fall and enjoy my first summer in Vancouver.  Life was good.

I had a little money saved for the move and enough to get by for the summer but that was it.   For all those years flush with tax-free cash I had nothing to show for it.  Students loans were it and that is really where all my troubles began.

That is how my mountain of debt began, with school.  A year here, a year there, dancing through different disciplines and trying to find my niche. Post secondary education is a very expensive place to find oneself. After three years I was no further ahead and I had completed nothing.

Oh, and I had a load of debt and no skills to land me a decent paying job so back to serving in a restaurant it was. Only now I’m in my late 20’s and it is even less fun.

I’m a pretty average girl in most aspects of my life.  Unfortunately, I have excelled in one particular area … the accumulation of debt.

Now it wasn’t always this way. My early 20s procured a false sense of wealth.   Tax-free tips earned from various waitress and bartending gigs left me with a continuous wad of bills tucked into my pocket.  I didn’t know anything about budgets and didn’t need to. I always seemed to have cash in my hand.

Then, as many people in the service industry do, I soon grew weary of dirty dishes and a general lack of respect given to people working jobs that don’t require an education or specialized training.   So, I packed up my bags and headed out west to Vancouver, BC.

Blood Suckers

I want to suck your blood.

Well, if your blood could be exchanged for hundred dollar bills. But I’m pretty sure you just get a cookie for plasma these days.

And no, I will not be going as a vampire for Halloween this year. No money for a costume. Still trying to save.

For the third year in a row I will be going as a hippie. My old tie-dye, the tinfoil peace necklace and the John Lennon glasses I bought from that crazy old woman at the garage sale down the street. Nothing scary about a Hippie, apart from the odd acid trip.

If I really wanted to scare some partygoers I could enlarge a few of the collection notices I’ve received.

I am the fear inspiring student loan reclamation document. Tremble before me.

I don’t know if everyone would get it though. It would be lost on all those kids who went through University with a financial plan. Guess I missed that lecture. Now I’m stuck in debt purgatory. Seriously considering getting some help. Can’t live in the 60′s forever.

My mom, after years of putting up with a springy old bed, finally told me last week that she was considering buying a new mattress set. I told her she needed a new one back in the late 90′s, but you know mothers, sometimes they like to stick it out until the bitter end.

So to help her, I thought I would find her a mattress company. I googled ‘Mattress’ and ‘Victoria’ and came up with a small, locally owned company called Mattress Choice. I called ahead and told them to be on the lookout for a grouchy pensioner.

She finally went to visit the showroom on Sunday afternoon. After spending an hour discussing the different brands, she went with a Sealy Posturepedic mattress.

Later she told me she smooth talked them into delivering it for free, but I checked out their website and they offer free delivery to any customer in the Greater Victoria area.

After her first night on the new mattress, she called me at 9:30. She told me she just got out of bed. She said it was the first time in years that she hadn’t woken up at 6:30 am. I mumbled a ‘you’re welcome.’

What I really meant to say was, ‘well I could also use some help me with my debt.’ Guess we share that stubborn gene.

Sealy Posturepedic Mattress

Take the Dunsmuir bike lane as an example. With a safer route across town, I can ride my bike from one side of the city, easily over to Stanley Park for some cheap, outdoor entertainment. (I won’t give away all my secrets, but the seawall is a dynamite first date)

And, in a few months, the Hornby lane will be open for a quick route down to the False Creek seawall.

No need to spend money on gas or waste time idling in traffic. I can save my loonies for paying off some of my bills, while the extra time can be spent planning my new firm.

Thank you Mayor Robertson.

I know you had me in mind when you passed those bills.

The Dunsmuir Bike Lane in Vancouver

Every lonely night I spend sitting on my couch, eating store-brand popcorn and throwing back Colts is depressing. The only way I get through it is by reminding myself over and over again that I have to save money, and get rid of my debt, if I ever want to get my business off the ground.

I know Scarlett had great results working with FC and everything, but I don’t know if I’m ready to take that leap yet. After all, I’m just getting comfortable with admitting the serious $H!# I’m in… You might think that it’s bull-headed stubbornness or even delusions that make me want to go it alone, but a guy’s got to try right?

I will say, though, I was glad to see that the process is pretty painless if I decide to get some professional help to manage my debt. It doesn’t leave the lazy-guy-in-me with any excuse to not sign up when all I have to do is fill out my name and contact info.

Somehow the conversation moved onto Twitter, and personal techniques on Twit-flirting, and he mentioned one of the Tweets that he had received that day. It was basically a casting call from a debt solution company for someone who would be interested in sharing their debt story.

First, let me note that Mac has always been the type of guy who did homework assignments a week before they were due, and who painstakingly took the most detailed notes in class. He was obviously pretty concerned with my current financial state and my seeming lack of initiative to get it under control. So he suggested that I volunteer myself to document my story for their blog.

“Hey man, just think of it as your financial journal. If you write this stuff down, you won’t be able to avoid the problem anymore,” he said, trying to convince me.

My hesitation must have been apparent because he quickly added, “Comon, it’ll help you start your business. Once your own debt’s taken care of…”

And long story short, ladies and gentlemen, here I am – revealing all the blood, guts, and gore that I experience on my way to financial freedom. End goal? Starting my own business.

sneaky little bird

So my debt poses a problem for my entrepreneurial aspirations. How am I supposed to pay my web programmer and graphic designer if I’m struggling to make ends meet? At the very least, I know I need to have a solid website if I want this business to succeed…

So I left my job, and everything that was safe and steady behind, to start my own boutique accounting firm. Sure, it’s going to be hard as hell, but I’ve got time – that’s where the ‘boutique’ comes in handy. My grand plan is this. I’ll start off small, build my brand, and once the customers start coming, all I’ll have to do is expand, right?

The difference, though, between you now and you then is that you’re supposed to be all grown up and mature. Which means, that when it comes time to pay the bills, you gotta pay ‘em! And in a timely matter. So if you’re sick of waiting until… “stuff” hits the fan, then give us a call, consolidate your debt, and say good bye to last-minute stress.

Such is the case with Scarlett, who was kind enough to share her story with the world on our blog. Now that she’s got the skills she needs to manage her debt, she’s more than prepared for staying on top of her bills and payments. Although she’s parting ways with us today, we know that it’s not goodbye; rather, it’s more of a see you later. Not because she’ll fall off the wagon, but because we know she’ll be back, but with success stories to tell.

This got me to thinking… We’re finally out of the woods with debt thanks to my rehabbed spending habits and our debt management consultant at Full Circle, and we’re finally making progress on the kids’ college funds. People are even asking me (me!) for financial advice. 4 years ago, I would have never guessed we’d be this far along.

So, dear readers, I think it’s time to say goodbye…As sad as I am about it, and as much as I love sharing my debt stories with you, I’m excited. Excited about my newfound financial responsibility and all the freedom that comes it. I can’t  wait to spend time with my family, without the stress of thinking about interest rates, and bills. So thanks for hearing me out, and good luck to you on your road to financial freedom!

Not only were we able to consolidate our debt, we even started to save some money (finally!). Weights off our shoulders, we were finally able to focus all our attention on our careers – and that’s when Mark got his job offer in Vancouver. Our finances were finally back on track, I was finally getting some beauty sleep, and the rest is history.

dogs need it too

But as much as I love my job, I have days when I wake up and the only thing I want to do is lay on my couch and watch trashy soaps and infomercials. As soon as I go to wake up the kids, though, all those thoughts wash away and my work ethic kicks back into overdrive. After all, the last thing I want to do is to fall back into debt, and have to struggle to raise them.

Before long, Mark called me out on my hermit-status and convinced me that staying home all day was no way to live, even if I was living free of debt stress. So slowly but surely, I started to go out again, with my friends and with Mark. And sure, I slipped up a couple times and ended up buying something I shouldn’t have, but I was buying less, and buying less often. But I really should have give myself a little more credit – after all, I was doing pretty well for a recovering spendaholic.

But after my debt management consultant helped me wrangle my debt down to a low, manageable monthly payment, I was finally able to call my mom and just chat. Before, I avoided talking to her on the phone, and when I did, I would have to skirt around any issues that had to do with money, for fear of getting another earful of nagging. And it wasn’t that I was trying to be a bad daughter, you know, never calling my own mother. It’s just that I didn’t want to disappoint her and have her worrying about my money situation.

You can imagine her surprise when she received my call that night. I came clean about all the money trouble I had been in for the past couple of years, and how much stress I had been under. I rambled on and on, not wanting to interrupt before she understood that I had it all under control now, and that I had finally consolidated my debt, with the help of my debt management consultant at Full Circle. When I was done and a little out of breath, there was a moment of silence from my mom’s end. When she spoke, it was very quietly. “I’m proud of you,” she said.

Of course, for the past couple of years, I’ve had to listen to Mark whine about our car’s torque and how the whole green car thing is a passing fad, and look at that the 20 inch rims on that beauty! So when I read in the paper about how one in three vehicles in B.C. would be electric by 2030, I almost jumped out of my seat at the breakfast table. It was a shame that Mark had already left for work, because I would have loved to do a victory lap around the kitchen, article in hand. Sure, it’s a tad bit immature, but so is wanting to own a convertible.

It’s a good thing my sister called one day to check in on us. She convinced us that running away from our debt was not the way out, pointing out that our credit scores would be ruined (and where would we run away to and what money would we live off of?). Thank goodness for older sibling wisdom.

So we decided to stay put and slowly work off our debt, which in retrospect was a good idea because a couple months later, we heard about Full Circle Debt Solutions. They helped us consolidate our debt, and even got rid of the annoying calls from creditors. If you find yourself in a similar situation that Mark and I were in, wanting to bail on your debt, give Full Circle a call before you make any drastic moves.

Sure, 10 years ago I wouldn’t have been the best financial role model for my kids. But ever since I got in touch with my debt management consultant at Full Circle, I can say that I am. He helped me design a debt consolidation plan that reduced my monthly payments to something I could manage, and helps me stay on track. I might not be the shining beacon of financial responsibility but at least my kids will know that I picked myself back up and hopefully they’ll learn from my mistakes and not make as many of their own.

At Full Circle Debt Solutions, our goal is to make debt payment easier for you. Our team of licensed debt management professionals will design a debt reduction plan that is tailored to your needs and concerns. We will talk to your creditors and consolidate your debt so that paying your bills feels less like walking into a battlefield and more like a walk in the park.

But when Mark lost his job, everything else seemed to unravel along with his career, including his good habits. Instead of opening his bills as soon as he got them, Mark would let them pile up on the desk. So much so that his tower of bills started to compete with my own. Pretty soon, he was swimming right along with me in our ocean of debt.

Our saving grace came when my sister suggested we call Full Circle Debt Solutions. I was skeptical, but at her insistence we gave them a call. I got connected right away to one of their credited debt management consultants who outlined a debt consolidation plan specifically for our situation. Miraculously, he minimized our payments to one so we wouldn’t have to worry about paying so many creditors at the end of the month. I guess it just goes to show that even the best of us can get into money trouble, and only the best can get us out.

Needless to say, the addiction continued into adulthood. Whenever we need something in the house, whether it be toilet paper or some eggs, I jump at the opportunity. Not only because I love Costco, but also because we save a lot of money getting things like meat, seafood, and cheese there. Throw in a basic at-home vacuum sealer, and you’re looking at a packed freezer and a boatload of savings. And even though I don’t get to sit in the cart anymore when I go to Costco (I had to relinquish my seat to my son), I get to be a kid again.

So if you’re sick and tired of worrying about your debt, and want to do something about it, give us a call. At Full Circle, our team of licensed debt management professionals will help you minimize your debt and your monthly payments. We know everything there is to know about debt consolidation and we’ll even help you get rid of those annoying calls from creditors.

As Canada’s largest independent group of licensed debt management professionals, they will walk you through every step of debt consolidation, even tailoring consumer credit counseling programs to your needs. By contacting your creditors to negotiate debt payment plans that are more manageable for you, our debt management experts help you get rid of those annoying calls from debt collection agencies.

So if you find yourself knee-deep in bills, give us a call. We’ll set you up with an expert from our team right away. We will help you reduce your interest rates, and cut down your monthly payments so that you can, once again, take control of your debt.

But with all the bills I have to pay, it’s easy to fall behind. For example, there was this one time when Mark and I first moved into our new apartment in Vancouver. I got so caught up in the unpacking, furniture shopping, and setting up of our new apartment, that I had forgotten to tie up our loose ends in Calgary – and we ended up getting late fees on our cable and electric bills. And this other time, in my college days, when I let the credit card bills pile up, for fear of dealing with what was inside.

Ever since we got in touch with Full Circle though, we’ve been pretty good about keeping on top of our monthly bills. By helping us consolidate our debt, the process of paying the bills has become a lot less daunting. So if you find yourself paying late fees all time, consider giving Full Circle a call. They’ll walk you through the entire process of managing your debt so that you can be one step closer to financial freedom.

But seriously, how nice would it be if the biggest worry in your life were the guest list at your next play date? Instead, I have to worry about how I’m going to make my next mortgage payment and how I’ll pay for my car insurance.

The only consolation I have is that I’ve got Full Circle Debt on my side. Thanks to my debt consolidation consultant, life doesn’t feel like all work, no play.

When my sister and I were growing up, mom tried to instill in us a sense of financial responsibility. The earliest lesson I can remember was when she gifted us with piggy banks when we started getting our allowance. While my sister would carefully deposit half of her weekly $5 into her pig, I would be at Seven Eleven on Monday shoving my hand into the 5-cent candy jars. Needless to say, her pig got fat while my stayed painfully thin.
In retrospect, that was a pretty good predictor that my sister would be the one to guide me out of my financial rut. Which is exactly what she did 2 years ago when Mark and I found ourselves close to bankruptcy and ready to skip town. She told us to call Full Circle immediately, assuring us that their debt management consultants would help us reduce our debt. We called, and surely enough, our consultant helped us consolidate our debt to one manageable monthly payment.

Mom was so proud.

Now that Mark and I have our finances under control, thanks to our Full Circle debt consultant who helped us consolidate our debt, we’ve decided that we should take our first family vacation abroad. Since the kids love the waves so much, we’re definitely thinking somewhere tropical with white sandy beaches, but we’re not sure where. Any suggestions?

But just when things started looking up, Mark lost his job at the architecture firm and had to go into freelance consulting. Our cash flow reduced to a meagre trickle, what with my pay as a legal assistant and his inconsistent employment. Add that to the trail of personal debt that had followed me from Vancouver, and we were in serious trouble.

That’s when the fighting started. And it was always about money, even if it wasn’t explicitly expressed. As you can guess, passive aggressiveness was usually my weapon of choice. Despite the fact that my finances were in a worse state than Mark’s, I picked fights over just about anything – not putting the toilet seat down, his gym membership fees, and the flavor of ice cream he’d buy – everything was fair game.

During one particularly ridiculous argument, while bickering about the recyclability of a pizza box, Mark’s pressed his lips together and his grinning eyes caught mine. In that instant, it dawned on me how crazy we had become, and I burst into an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

Looking back at those days now brings a smile to my face, but only because we decided post-pizza box, to do something about our debt. We called Full Circle, and one of their debt management consultants guided us through the process of debt consolidation. We reconfigured our monthly bills to one low monthly payment and never looked back.

relationship saviour?

If you’re looking to manage your debt and you live in BC or in AB, give us a call. We’ve got licensed professionals who specialize in debt consolidation and will be there every step of the way on your journey towards financial security.

Put down the anti-aging cream and self-help books, because the only way to treat a serious case of debt downer is to face the problem head on. As Scarlett can attest to, avoiding the problem only makes it worse.
So call Full Circle Debt Solutions and talk to a debt management professional to reduce your monthly payments. He will help you consolidate your debt and guide you through your financial road to recovery. As any good dermatologist will tell you, it’s about maintenance, not a quick fix.

If it weren’t for Full Circle Debt, I’d be knee deep in these bills. But thanks to my debt management consultant at Full Circle, I’ve consolidated my debt so that I just have to submit one payment each month. Much more manageable – to my relief but also to my mailman’s.

when he sees me...

Since graduating from college, I promised myself never to buy another piece of furniture from Ikea, a promise I didn’t manage to keep when I moved to Calgary, due to my ailing finances. But thanks to Full Circle, our debt was under control for our move to Vancouver, and I finally managed to fulfill my interior decorating dreams.

bye bye

But the days would turn into a couple, and then I’d get that terrible itch. The one that presents itself when I’m feeling particularly good about my good behaviour. Usually triggered by something like a television commercial, or an ad in a magazine, the result was always the same – go out and buy something. And let me tell you, it’s quite the fall, falling off a financial high horse. Your spending goes into overdrive, a sort of subconscious overcompensation for all the saving you’d been doing for the past couple of days.

After a particularly damaging self-rewarding bout, and after the retail euphoria wore off, I was racked with guilt and stress about how much money I’d spent and how much I’d have to pay for it when I got my bill in a couple weeks. So I called up my debt management consultant over at Full Circle. He talked me through some debt-reducing strategies like debt consolidation, and assured me that he’d walk me through the next billing cycle. Relief! I quickly added him to my speed-dial that day.

cruisin'

Needless to say, what seemed like a lot of money at first turned into what-can-I-really-buy-with-five-hundred-dollars. That changed again when I got the first statement in the mail, this time to holy-sh#!-where-the-heck-am-I-gonna-get-five-hundred-big-ones? So I had no choice but to go with the minimum payment and get charged an insane interest on the rest.  And that, ladies and gentlemen is when my debt started piling up.

Where was this sign when I signed up for that darned credit card?

“I can’t believe she bought all that stuff even though she was broke! Com’on, did she really need that scarf?”

“Umm…” he continued, “Scar, that might as well have been you in the movie.”

That’s when I got real quiet, first because I was pissed off and then, sheepishly, I realized how right he was. I am Becky Bloomwood! Well, not actually…but you get my point. I buy art supplies instead of scarves and rugs instead of purses but nonetheless it adds up to a lot that I can’t afford.

I was feeling pretty down and guilty after my epiphany, so I decided to give a call to my debt management consultant over at Full Circle. Good idea. He called me down and talked me through the next strategy he had in mind to consolidate my debt. I guess movie night turned out alright after all. Maybe I won’t make Mark sit through another chick flick again.

The one I’m referring to is the one where I avert my eyes to the left every time I enter my kitchen. The reason being that my desk is tucked into a nook on the right side of the kitchen and if I look away at just the right moment upon stepping over the threshold, I can avoid seeing the toppling tower of bills threatening to take over my desk. Someone please tell me that I’m not alone in this game of denial! What do you do to avoid facing the bills?

doesn't exist if I don't look

nom nom

So I really need to try harder and stay on track with my debt management plan – maybe I’ll pack a more appetizing lunch next time. I guess I can’t expect my debt management consultant, as good as he is, to do all the work…

Enjoy!

Moments like that are usually when I realize that although I am paying $125 a month in payments, it isn’t really doing anything. It’s just keeping the whole process going.

It’s enough to rattle your brain and make your skull swell up with fog.

The best thing that you can do, sometimes, is to forget about the payments and look at the big picture.

Wow. That can be scary. It can be horrifying to add up all the credit card bills you get each month, all the other payments – it’s nuts.

Stepping back, and looking at the big picture, you can see a singular, consolidated way tot get rid of your problem.

Rock Bottom

That’s what Mark and I were like. It was straight out of a song – we didn’t have any money, any future or a clue, but we were born to run and we hit Canada like two crazy kids with the wind in our hair and nothing to lose and a whole wide world worth seeing.

We went everywhere, man. We went to Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, Port Alberni, Port Coquitlam, Cranbrook, Creston, Nelson, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Brampton, Thunder Bay, Toronto, Montreal, Halifax, St. John’s, Charlottetown.

We went everywhere, man! Debt or debt beware, man! We went everywhere!

750 or higher – This is considered to be an excellent credit score. At 770 and above you can generally obtain the best interest rates.

700 to 750 – This is considered to be between very good and excellent credit.

650 to 700 – Considered to be very good credit.

600 to 650 – A good credit score. Sometimes the minimum for good credit is at 620 or above, because this is generally considered the cutoff point for a prime rate loan.

600 and below – This range is considered a high credit risk. While you can still obtain loans and credit cards in this range, they will most likely be secured credit cards and loans at the highest interest rate.

550 and below – Any FICO score below 550 is considered to be awful credit.

Bad credit means no one will lend to you... for good reason.

If you are interested in debt consolidation in Vancouver, talk to us first. The other counseling companies will charge you voluntary ‘fees’ that you will have to pay. Not so voluntary.

If you live in Vancouver, and you are being suffocated by debt payments that haunt you worse than farmed salmon, you’ll need to talk to a debt advisor right away. We’re open late.

Call 1 877 220 3328. Getting rid of your debt is as easy as a phone call.

We had an apartment in Vancouver, a couple of cars, a boat, a bunch of furniture, even clothes – all bought on consignment.

If we were to sit down with our bills to figure out what was what, we’d be lost. Who had the time for something like that?

Either way, one of the first things that Full Circle Debt Solutions did when they talked to me on the phone that day was ask me about my FICO score.

FICO? Beacon? Bacon? Six degrees of pain? Huh?

I had no idea what they were talking about – I thought they wanted to know if I was betting on Brazil.

Either way, it turns out that a FICO score is your credit score. It lets the bank – or anyone that you want to borrow money from – how reliable you are.

Now, I may have a lot of debt, but I always thought I was somewhat responsible.

Turns out that I was wrong. My FICO score was freakin’ terrible. 550. That is like debt hell.

I’ll post the list of what those scores mean in my next post.

Debt Hell Cuts Like a Knife... or rather Scissors

If you’ve ever watched To Debt Do Us Part, you will know that one of the things they suggest is putting all of your money into little jars and keeping track of everything.

Man, oh, man, I’ve tried living like that and I can tell you, it’s no fun. Have you ever tried brining ajar into a Wendy’s? They look at you like you’re crazy.

I think one of the biggest problems I had was that I always wanted the best of everything. I couldn’t just stroll into a mattress store and get a $300 bed. This one time I wandered into a Vancouver mattress store, Simmons Mattress Gallery, and I just couldn’t help myself. I knew I had no income. I knew I probably would be lucky to make $30,000 a year out of art school, but nope, that didn’t stop me. I plopped down $1000 on a brand-new Beautyrest.

That’s probably why I’ve slept so well knowing that I owe something like 50 grand in debt. Great bed, I still have it, but I digress.

I had to stop buying things I couldn’t afford. That’s like Strategy #1.

I had to start paying my bills. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But I had some kind of mental block when it came to paying bills. I’d just throw them out. What was I thinking? I don’t know. Bad strategy though.

Either way, Full Circle Debt Solutions helped me out – a lot.

My life completely changed. It was as easy as making a phone call.

You can read more about that here.

You know you’ve found yourself in too deep when:

-You don’t answer numbers you don’t know because you’re worried about some creepy collection agent breathing in your ear.

-Your voicemail is always full from their annoying messages

-You dread opening your mailbox. Your hand even kinda shakes when you fumble with the key.

-There are more bills on your kitchen table than crumbs.

-No one takes your personal cheques anymore.

-Your mom and dad screen your calls. Isn’t that horrible?

-Garnish isn’t just for dinner.

-When they cut your credit card up at stores, they say, “You again?”

-You never sign for registered mail. Believe me, registered mail is for chumps.

-When strangers try to give you something, you run!

-You are better at making excuses than getting things done.

-When your waitress says, “Hello, I’ll be your server tonight.” You make a quick exit through the bathroom window.

When I first talked to Full Circle Debt Solutions about consolidating my debt and managing this big hairy monkey on my back, they lent me a supportive ear. It was almost like they had been in my shoes. I have to admit, I was crying a bit after telling them about how crap my life had become because of all this stupid debt. But they had ideas to help me out right away.

One of the frist things they did was set me up with a plan to make paying off my debt that much easier. By consolidating all my high-cost debt into one low monthly payment, I was able to breathe a little easier, and one-by-one the things in that list began to vanish into a bad, faint memory – kind of like the time I drank tequila and Tang.

When I was at Emily Carr, I had a strange attitude towards money.

The way I saw it – money wasn’t important. The only thing that mattered was what you produce – your art. Being in set design, I lived an breathed photographs of my final creations.

I framed those photos and put them up in my bedroom. It was all that mattered to me. It was a great way to keep focus on what I was doing. Especially considering everything else was going sideways.

I used to go out for 50-dollar dinners, by myself, because I thought I deserved a nice meal. I would treat myself to a 400-dollar jacket come winter. I hadn’t made a dime in two years, yet I was spending like I was Caligula.

In my head, I thought that I deserved all of the luxuries of life. I had my Kitsilano flat, my red Volkswagen Bug, my 200-dollar lamps – all bought on credit. Looking back on it, I wonder if I wasn’t a little crazy.

I just kept using my Visa for everything, because dammit, I deserved it! But when the monthly statements started rolling in, I’d just stuff them in a box without opening them, or throw them out.

Deep down, I knew this lifestyle couldn’t last forever though.

Tomorrow Did Come

Sorry to interrupt you (again), Scarlett. But we have an important message for our clients.

We are moving to a new address effective now!

Our new address is:

#301-6935 120^th Street

Delta, BC

V4E 2A8

Our phone numbers will not change.

Phone 604-585- 2161

Toll-free: 1-800-587-2161

Fax: 604-583-0757

Please change all of your records accordingly.

Okay, back to you, Scarlett!

You hear about folks that never pay a bill. They just float from place to place ducking out on dentist bills, and hotel bills, and rent.

Now, Mark and I have never been  like that, but our credit was shot all the same, so we got to thinking – why not?

We could easily skip town without paying rent. We could take our rented furniture and run. We could hit up every no-money-until-payday, Moneymart, payday loan kind of places and then make a run for it.

We made the  mistake of mentioning this to my sister, almost as a joke. She just went all pale and told us, ah, Scarlett, don’t do it. No matter how desperate things get, your credit will be shot to nothing, and you’ll never be able to get a home down the road, even when you get yourself out of this mess. Believe me, that kind of quick fix is no way out.

We kind of grumbled to ourselves and she suggested that we call Full Circle Debt Solutions. With Mark’s three credit cards out of control, and him paying over 20% interest on each of them – matched up with my student loans and (hush) Sears card mishap, we had debts all over town.

At least Full Circle Debt Solutions could consolidate all of those payments for us.

Half the time, she said, they can even cut your debt payments in half.

That’s all the convincing it took for us. The next day, we called them up.

Who would have guessed that a self-employed architectural consultant could have so many problems with a bank? That was Mark’s situation. He had clients that wouldn’t pay, and he had his suppliers, and because he’s such a big-hearted guy, he started floating everything himself.

One day, I look over and he’s sweating on the phone with his credit card in hand. Turns out one of his clients skipped town and left him holding the bag. He had people to pay, and as much as Mark would like to, he couldn’t.

Would the banks help us out? No way. Being self-employed made it impossible for Mark to have a good credit rating with the bank, in fact his FICO score was even lower than mine! I couldn’t believe it. We had credit cards maxed out, all over again, I still had my student loans.

Just when we thought we were out of the frying pan, we were right back into the fire.

ugh!

We at Full Circle Debt Solutions thought that we would interject here for a moment to offer a bit of a reality check. As we don’t want you to get worried that debt is just doom and gloom (sorry, Scarlett).

SPOILER ALERT:

In the end, Scarlett was able to make her payments a manageable $150/month (from $300/month) – and in the end, she paid her entire debt off within a year.

Scarlett and Mark now live in a beautiful three-bedroom apartment with a sunny North-western view. They have two beautiful children – Griffin and Silvia.

Life all worked out in the end, and to her credit, Scarlett did it all on her own. After picking up the phone that day in the bath, she called us up at Full Circle Debt Solutions and were able to consolidate her debt, talk to her creditors, and negotiate payments that suited her lifestyle. In the end, we saved her thousands of dollars in bills and months of headaches.

She did write this blog, years ago, and would like to share it with you for inspiration. If you would like to follow along from the beginning, click here.

Our sponsors.

We hit some hard times in Calgary. Mark’s firm went bust and then he went into consulting. This was fine for a while, until one client never paid. Mark was left in a lurch and owed his suppliers something like $20,000.

He couldn’t pay.

We looked into getting a home equity loan to cover the cost on our Calgary apartment. No dice. Because Mark was now self-employed, he couldn’t verify his income. And my Beacon score (FICO score) was way out of wack.

No bank would lend us money.

Luckily, we heard an ad on the radio about Alpine Credits, and we looked them up. They promised that they would lend us the money as long as we owned our own home. So we were in luck.

We got the loan and they helped us figure out a way to consolidate our debt into one manageable payment.

Before, Mark was struggling with $2000 a month! It was more than our mortgage, after talking to Alpine Credits, they had us down to $1000 a month, and got rid of some of our high cost debt at the same time.

The sad part was, Mark didn’t even know half of the debt that I had following me around – I have never felt more guilty in my life.

She is beautiful though.

I met Mark, we hooked up, and my job got better. We moved into a flat, and everything got better. Then, we moved to Calgary, Alberta of all places – to the bustling capital of cows and hats.

We lived right downtown. Mark worked at a big architectural firm. It was okay. No tax there, which was nice.

I kind of kept my credit card statements from him, which I felt a little dishonest about, but I didn’t want him to see that I had maxed out my Visa and I was quickly getting there with a Sears card too. A Sears card! I really wanted to get us a good bed though – but I should have got a mattress in Vancouver. They don’t have Simmons like they do out West!

That summer we made plans to get married. He had a good job. I was doing okay at the legal assisting firm.

For a while… everything was good in our lives.

Woo hoo Calgary

First off, I’d like to thank my readers for following along so diligently.

It’s nice to get fan mail! It’s a bit surreal too, because this all happened so long ago, yet I have people waiting on pins and needles to find out if I’m ever going to get anywhere.

I have to tell you, I fell in love with my roommate – this Mark guy.

I couldn’t really help myself – he seemed so perfectly in line with where I wanted to be going, and he ticked all the boxes on my goal list, and he didn’t have a financial worry in the world. It was perfect.

Either way, it is nice to see some of you think that my story is encouraging. Looking back at some of these posts makes me kind of sad, but I’m just letting you know a little about me, and my situation, before I found the silver lining.

But even when I was in debt, I still found happiness in love.

Mmmwaah!

Things were looking pretty bleak for a while there.

Let’s face it. There is no way a legal assistant making $18/hour, with over $300 in monthly bills, can ever get out of a $25,000 debt.

Even paying $1000/month, for 25 months, is not sustainable. There’s rent, food, transit to pay – and not mention that $300/month bill that’s more than your rent.

It’s a nightmare.

It’s a hell that most people my age face. All your life you are told to do what you love, and when you do it, and it doesn’t work, you have to pay the rest of your life for it.

What a drag.

Either way, my debt was way out of control. I was living in a run-down house that if you slammed the basement door the entire building shook. The porch was held up by a flimsy piece of chain the size of your pinky. The back door had been broken into and there was a piece of plywood over the shattered window. Great. The whole place should have been condemned. It was a tough situation to be in, and everyone I lived with were in the same boat. Debt, gloom, desperation.

I was working as this legal assistant, which mostly meant filing papers and making photocopies and looking up stuff on the Internet. Not too bad, but I don’t think I ever saw much of a lawyer except the inside of his nose.

One day this new guy moved into our flat. I loved him right away. He was just the right combination of artistic ambition and solid grounding. He wasn’t a dime in debt and he was looking to break into architecture.

I liked him for other reasons as well, of course, he was nice enough, and he was pretty tall. Pragmatically though, he was everything I needed to make my checklist of dreams a reality. I grabbed on as hard as I could. He fought me at first, but eventually, he couldn’t help but love me. I’m good. But he kind of won me over too.

It had been a long time since I had looked at myself as wonderful. I was talented. And beautiful. And loveable. It has been a while since I had given myself so much credit.

Love!

I have run the gauntlet of debt, and debt consolidation, and creditor appeasement and all of that, and I’ll give you a hint, I don’t think I’d let them publish my story if I didn’t’ make it.

But you never know, this could be the most misleading spoiler of all time. Either way, thank you for reading – it makes me feel like less of a lunatic talking into an empty void, and more like I have friends on the other side of the campfire that might actually gain something out of this, somehow, someway.

The more I post this, the more I believe it is only to fair to state that I am getting paid to post this story. Surely, some of you may have guessed this already, but still. I think it is only right to set this straight. The way many of the earlier posts are written implies that I am writing from the heart, and indeed, I am, but now, a year later, knowing that I got paid for this story changes it a bit for me – I’m not sure why.

Either way, I just think it right for you to know that not only did Full Circle Debt Solutions save me by reducing my debt, and making my life manageable, they also helped me get my story heard.