Debt Advisor

by Darrin DeRoches November 1 - 7, 2012

I had an interesting lunch this week with the owner of Ontario Debt Advisors– James Woods. I was interested in the difference between a “debt advisor” and a “bankruptcy lawyer” or “trustee”. The reason I was interested in finding out how this all works is because as a real estate broker we are contacted frequently for an “opinion of value” on people’s real estate. These opinions are required when someone is considering going bankrupt or arranging a consumer proposal. Ninety-nine per cent of the time, the person who is asking for an opinion of value is not going to sell their home but rather are looking to control their debt. In most cases they ask a real estate agent to come out to their home, do the five minute tour and then ask for a written opinion of value, so they can fix their debt — not sell their home. I have no problem giving someone an “opinion of value” just let’s skip the tour, time, lies etc. The first step in fixing your debt problem is being honest to yourself and your advisors – numbers don’t lie.     To best explain what a debt advisor is, the explanation from ontariodebtadvisor.ca is “Ontario Debt Advisors is a Debt Consulting Firm driven to help Canadian consumers living in Ontario that are struggling with overwhelming debt. We are not trustees in bankruptcy. Trustees must consider the interest of your creditors and maximize the amount paid to your creditors and in turn, the trustees earn more of your hard earned money. Ontario Debt Advisors acts solely in your interest to ensure that you get the possible results by utilizing Federal Government options to eliminate or reduce your debt — immediately.”     By using a debt counselor you can reduce your debt by up to 70 per cent and keep your credit score, house, cars etc. It seems that everyone went bankrupt years ago and now a “consumer proposal” is the new norm. The difference is huge and of course every case is different but you should take impartial advice from a Debt Advisor before making a rash decision. Most people wait until the last minute when their house is going to be put up for “power of sale” and they are being harassed by their creditors.  Call an advisor before it’s too late. They can arrange your debt, reduce it by a large margin, and set up “interest free” payments to get you back on track. Creditors will tell you anything to get their money and most of the time they will go to any lengths to get it. A debt advisor can stop all the calls, arrange an affordable payment plan by reducing the amount owed — it is that simple.      As a real estate broker I would rather sell your home and help you downsize than get a call from the bank that has it up for power of sale and you being put out on the street.  If you need help with your debt email me darrin@unqiuerealty.ca and I will have a Debt Advisor contact you. V     Darrin DeRoches is a local real estate and mortgage broker. He can be reached to answer questions, comments or stories about real estate experiences through this weekly column at mail@uniquerealty.ca.