More than half of British Columbians living paycheque to paycheque: survey

A new survey suggests that more than half of British Columbians are living paycheque to paycheque.

Fifty-three per cent of British Columbians polled by the Payroll Association of Canada said they wouldn’t be able to meet their financial obligations if their paycheque was delayed by just a week, greater than the national average of 48 per cent.

Twenty-seven per cent of respondents in B.C. said they they couldn’t come up with $2,000 in an emergency and a whopping 92 per cent said they carry some kind of debt.

READ MORE: Many Manitobans living paycheque to paycheque: study

Many Canadians are facing something of a perfect economic storm – little to no wage growth, skyrocketing cost of living in places like Metro Vancouver and a newfound willingness to take on debt to make up the difference.

Scott Hannah of the Credit Counselling Society said Canada has become a nation of debtors with the average ratio of debt to income higher now than at any time in history.

“We’ve gone from a generation that valued delayed gratification to a generation that values immediate gratification – a big difference,” Hannah said.

Considering Canada’s current debt binge has happened at a time when interest rates have been at record lows, Hannah said he can’t remember a more perilous time for Canadians with debt and no savings.

– With files from Paul Johnson and The Canadian Press