Why is Getting By So Hard in Canada Right Now? | The Rundown

Video Description

Back in December, Abacus Data found that 67 per cent of Canadians said the cost of living was the worst they could remember, with nearly two‑thirds calling it the federal government’s top priority. So where does affordability stand right now, and how hard is it to get by? For millions of Canadians living alone, the math is especially stark: there’s no one to split the cost of housing, groceries, or utilities, meaning single people often pay more, and they now make up the country’s largest household type at 4.4 million. We dig into the pressures driving everyday affordability and the specific financial challenges facing single Canadians, along with strategies for navigating them, with insights from financial journalist and "The Singles Tax" author Renée Sylvestre‑Williams, Erin Kelly, CEO of Advanced Symbolics Inc., and Kristine Beese, founder and CEO of Untangle Money. 00:00 Intro 01:07 Is life becoming unaffordable in Canada? 01:39 Experts break down affordability and debt 02:13 New data shows financial struggle rising 03:56 Revenge spending and financial burnout 06:17 What Canadians are cutting back on 06:42 Why singles feel the pressure more 09:07 Rethinking retirement and shared housing 11:59 Are Canadians relying on debt to survive? 14:20 Financial shame, bankruptcy, and stigma 16:11 Practical money advice during high inflation 18:34 Why being single costs more in Canada 20:48 Housing, food, and taxes: the biggest costs 26:45 Financial survival tips for single Canadians About The Rundown: The Rundown is your nightly half-hour deep dive into just one headline. With host Jeyan Jeganathan, we’ll cover everything from housing and health care to climate and AI. We’ll break down why each topic matters, who’s living it, and what’s being done to make things better – starting right here in Ontario. Slow down. Tune in. Make sense of the moment. And tell us what you think. Follow on social media: Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/therundowntvo Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/TheRundownTVO X- https://twitter.com/therundowntvo Bluesky- https://bsky.app/profile/therundowntvo.bsky.social Subscribe to TVO Today to watch more content like this: https://www.youtube.com/@tvotoday Listen to the podcast: https://www.tvo.org/podcasts/the-rundown-audio Check out the rest of the TVO ecosystem TVO Docs - https://www.youtube.com/@tvo TVO Kids - https://www.youtube.com/@TVOkids TVO Learn - https://www.youtube.com/@tvolearn Download the TVO Today App Apple - https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/tvo-today/id1616182112 Available on: Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Samsung, LG, Amazon Fire TV Enjoying this content and want to make a meaningful impact? Consider donating today! https://support.tvo.org/site/Donation2?mfc_pref=T&idb=599945504&df_id=16843&16843.donation=form1&DONATION_LEVEL_ID_SELECTED=1661&mfc_pref=T