More than half of retired Canadians hold some form of debt: CIBC poll

TORONTO – A new poll suggests that more than half of retired Canadians hold some form of debt.

According to the survey conducted by Harris Decima, 59 per cent of retired Canadians are currently in debt, compared to 76 per cent of non-retirees.

CIBC, which funded the survey, says it is more difficult for retirees to pay down debt because of their fixed incomes.

Only 27 per cent of the retired Canadians surveyed say they have made an extra payment towards their debt in the last 12 months, compared to 42 per cent of non-retired Canadians.

The percentage of retired Canadians with debt was highest in Atlantic Canada, at 76 per cent. All other regions hovered just below 60 per cent.

The telephone poll of more than 2,000 Canadians is considered accurate to within 2.2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.