Soaring costs are causing some families to reach a tipping point

A new survey is shedding light on the impact of rising costs.

“This is probably the hardest we’ve had for our household,” said Marcelle Fausto, a Cambridge resident.

Fausto said with her family of three, she has made some changes to her grocery shopping habits to save where she can, including purchasing frozen produce instead of fresh, buying mainly discounted items and meal planning.

“Flyers, there’s price-matching, couponing, whatever can save a few dollars, and it adds up, and it works,” said Fausto, “I’m going to start to work extra hours just to help not feel as stressed.”

The Maru Public Opinion survey found 49 per cent of Canadians and their families have had to make drastic lifestyle changes due to rising costs, while a third said rising interest rates have pushed them to the brink of dispair. When it came to spending, 74 per cent of Canadians said inflation has caused them to cut back on spending.

The survey also indicated more than a quarter are using their credit card to pay the bills, and a fifth are cashing out their investments in order to make ends meet.

Doug Hoyes, an licensed insolvency trustee and co-founder of Hoyes, Michalos, said high inflation is a tough reality he sees everyday.

“All of my clients have always been right on the edge. They got an extra $200 to 300 a month, and that’s it, and now that $200 to 300 is gone because when you go to the grocery store, it costs more, rent, gas, everything is more,” said Hoyes.

Hoyes estimated there has been a 30 per cent increase in new clients throughout the month of November.

“We’re definitely getting more people calling us and saying they scrimp and save a bit but have all these other debts to pay,” said Hoyes.

He said inflation may hit everyone differently, but almost everyone feels it in some way or another.

“At the start of the year, you might have two or three different streaming services, and now it’s like, ‘one or two is all I need. Maybe I’ll give it up.’ It’s the little things like that but bigger things too, like food, trying to find any way to cut back,” said Hoyes.

The pressure has left some residents feeling stressed and strapped.

“We have cut back, and we just have to watch what we’re doing and what we’re spending,” said Len Porter, a Cambridge resident.

The dollar simply is not stretching as far as it once did.