How thankful will you be to see a Licensed Insolvency Trustee?

Jim had been having a difficult few years. He and his wife Sandra were overjoyed when their daughter Sophie was born. But that feeling soon gave way to worry, when Sophie was diagnosed with a serious health problem several months later. Surgeries followed, and both Jim and Sandra spent much of the following year at the metropolitan children’s hospital far from their hometown.

Travel and accommodation expenses consumed most of their income and they relied on credit to make ends meet. Sophie required extensive post-operative care and Sandra eventually made the difficult decision to quit her job to care for Sophie herself. Their debts mounted despite diligent budgeting, with only Jim’s income to support the family. They used Jim’s credit to make up for the shortfall each month. 

One step forward, two steps back

Sophie’s condition initially improved, but complications resulted in more hospital stays — which meant more travel and hotel costs and added uncertainty about when Sandra might be able to return to work. They were already struggling to service their monthly debt payments by the time Jim’s high-interest credit balance had reached its $37,000 limit. Jim found himself borrowing money from friends and family, just to cover essentials.  And though he was able to keep up with all the monthly payments for a while, he eventually started to fall behind as his family’s financial needs took priority.

Jim is resourceful and self-reliant. He prides himself on being a problem solver. So he did the sensible things most people in his situation would do. He approached his creditors about payment deferrals and a lower interest rate — but found them generally unresponsive to his requests. He approached his and other banks about securing a consolidation loan to help lower his monthly payments. But a couple of black marks on his credit report combined with Sandra’s lack of income meant he didn’t qualify. And neither he nor Sandra had any assets they could pledge as collateral to obtain a secured loan.

Sifting through the clutter

Jim’s search led him to some finance companies. But he quickly realized he wouldn’t be saving much, if anything, with their interest rates;  just trading one difficult debt situation for another. His questions took him to the internet, where the options seemed plentiful but confusing. Many sites promised payment solutions and debt reductions but were light on details.  Several seemed a bit shady: no address and only an 800 number. Then there was the problem of trying to separate U.S. information from Canadian.

He encountered Bankruptcy solutions several times through his research, but initially resisted looking  — both out of fear and because he didn’t think that’s what he needed. 

Then he came across MNP. A national Canadian company with a local office in Jim’s town.  Yes, there was information about Bankruptcy. But there were also other options, including a Consumer Proposal — a federally regulated, debt settlement option that would immediately stop all collection action. This Life-Changing Debt Solution could only be provided by a Licensed Insolvency Trustee (LIT) — a government sanctioned professional who has a legal mandate to explain all his options and provide unbiased advice. 

A glimmer of hope on the horizon

Although understandably preoccupied with his daughter’s condition and work, Jim reached out to MNP and met with a local Licensed Insolvency Trustee. The LIT reviewed Jim and Sandra’s situation and went over all of Jim’s options, even those not provided by MNP, to ensure they uncovered the best-fit solution. 

Jim had already explored many of the other options. And,as it turned out, a Consumer Proposal was indeed the solution he and Sandra needed.  The proposal their LIT helped them draft and file (which explained the circumstances leading to their debt) was accepted by his creditors, and resulted in him having to make only one monthly payment that worked with his family’s budget.

Not only was there no further interest charged, but Jim’s debt was reduced to a fraction of what it originally was. This was exactly the kind of relief that he and his family needed. Coincidentally, the news Jim’s proposal was accepted by his creditors came just before Thanksgiving weekend.  Which, combined with a positive prognosis for his daughter, gave him much to be thankful for.