Matched Savings programs, or Individual Development Accounts, are a financial empowerment strategy that aim to build financial stability and reduce poverty. These programs build sustainable livelihoods by working with participants to earn savings while learning about money management, build regular...

The Prosperity Now Scorecard is a comprehensive resource featuring data on family financial health and policy recommendations to help put all U.S. households on a path to prosperity. The Scorecard equips advocates, policymakers and practitioners with national, state, and local data to...

This report from Prosperity Now shows the importance of matched savings programs called 'Promise Accounts' which help families successfully save for their futures. They are especially important for households of color as compared to white households. Decreasing economic inequality and closing the...

For many, homeownership is a vital part of the American dream. Buying a home represents one of the largest lifetime expenditures for most homeowners, and the mortgage has generally become the financing instrument of choice. For many families, their mortgage will be their greatest debt and their...

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) publishes a quarterly report on Canadian trends relating to mortgage debt and consumer borrowing. Find out the level of Canadian household indebtedness, and emerging trends in outstanding debt balances in different urban areas and by age...

This infographic from Statistics Canada summarizes the results of the Survey of Household Spending, 2017, including average annual expenditures by household...

This Economic Insights article quantifies the degree to which families who expect their financial situation to get better in the next two years have, all else equal, more debt than comparable families. The study shows that even after a large set of socioeconomic characteristics is controlled for,...

This calculator from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada determines your mortgage payment and provides you with a mortgage payment...

This report is the second of two complementary reports that address the issue of economic security for Indiana households. The Self-Sufficiency Standard approach to economic security consists of three elements: securing the costs of daily basic needs, creating an emergency savings fund, and...

The following profile presents data on the economic inequalities within Miami. These statistics may seem overwhelming. However, we with more information about the challenges of racial economic inequality, there is greater opportunity to identify best practices and policies that can address the...

The following profile presents data on the economic inequalities within New Orleans. These statistics may seem overwhelming. However, we know with more information about the challenges of racial economic inequality, there is greater opportunity to identify best practices and policies that can...

This is a guide from the FCAC on variable interest rate mortgages in Canada. A variable interest rate mortgage is a mortgage loan with an interest rate that can change during the term. The interest rate varies with changes in market interest rates (typically the bank’s prime lending rate). The...

When you bought your home, you probably signed a mortgage agreement that remains in effect for a certain period, called the term . When your mortgage term comes to an end, you will have to pay off your mortgage, renew it for another term or switch your mortgage to another lender. Your options are...

This is a guide from the FCAC on shopping around for a mortgage. A mortgage is a loan that is designed to help you purchase a home or other property. Home buyers make a down payment on the purchase price and then borrow the remainder from a lender. Five percent is the minimum down payment home...

This worksheet is designed to help you identify the costs involved in buying and maintaining a home. It will also help you determine how your expenses might change once you move in. Some costs involved in buying a home, such as closing costs, happen once only, while others like mortgage payments...

Buying a home is probably the biggest financial decision you will ever make, and for most people, it requires getting a mortgage. Before you start shopping around, you need to know what you can afford. It’s important to have a realistic budget. This publication outlines three steps you can take...

You have choices that can help you pay off your mortgage faster and save a lot of money in interest charges. It all starts with understanding how your payment is applied to the principal and interest you owe, and the options your mortgage lender can offer...

Mortgage prepayment refers to paying more than the regular mortgage payments you have agreed to pay in your mortgage contract. If your mortgage gives you prepayment privileges, you can save thousands of dollars in interest charges by paying down your mortgage faster. However, if you have a closed...

All banks, and trust, loan and insurance companies and retail associations that are federally regulated (or that are incorporated at the federal level) must have a complaint-handling process in place for individuals and small businesses. This process details how a customer may make a complaint, and...

Millennials (loosely defined here as those born between 1980 and 2000) are often characterized as facing tougher labour market conditions and homeownership barriers, despite being the most highly educated generation in history. However, Canadian millennials are faring better economically than is...

In American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities (Native Communities),1 the lack of capital has been a significant constraint on economic development. The 2001 Report of the Native American Lending Study (NALS), issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury Community Development...

Financial capability is a multi-dimensional concept that encompasses a combination of knowledge, resources, access, and habits. The NFCS is designed to understand and measure a rich, connected set of perceptions, attitudes, experiences, and behaviours across a large, diverse sample in order to...

The widening wealth gap in the United States is a worrisome sign that millions of families nationwide do not have enough in assets to offer better opportunities for future generations. On the basis of data collected using the National Asset Scorecard for Communities of Color (NASCC) survey, we...

The findings in this report from the National Asset Scorecard for Communities of Color (NASCC) survey reveal major disparities in wealth accumulation across various racial and ethnic groups in Los Angeles. Our analysis shows that with respect to types and size of household assets and debt, there...

This is the slide deck for the CFED-hosted webinar "Programs, Policies, Partnerships: Coming Together to Heal the Racial Wealth...