The Marilyn Denis Show | Finance | The Cost of Living and Loving with Kelley Keehn

June 25, 2013 - click here for the video

The Game of Life

Average cost of getting married (wedding) - Wedding budgets are also ballooning in Canada, where the average expected cost rose to $23,330 last year from $20,129 in 2010

Tips for saving:

• Consider the non-traditional times of year and a date other than a Saturday ceremony can save you big bucks!
• Don’t be shy about asking your guests for cash – especially if you’ve both lived together and have built your home
• Can you live with a used dress, seasonal flowers and buffet style dining insteading of a sit down meal?  Small sacrifices can add up to huge savings!
• You don’t want to start your life together in debt, so remember that when things feel like they’re getting out of hand
• Get creative – do you have friends that could be your live band?  Do you have a small business that you could barter for some services or even promote a brand for free stuff?

Average cost of owning a car - $10,452 per year!

Tips for saving:

• Move closer to work
• Car pool
• Car shares
• Bikes and bike shares

Average cost of getting divorced: the divorce fees charged by a lawyer for an uncontested case vary from a low of $1,056 to a high of $2,922 with an average of $1,540 per case. The divorce fees charged by a lawyer for a contested case vary from a low of $6,582 to a high of $86,644 with an average of $15,570 per case.

Tips for saving:

• More and more Canadians are getting divorced later in life.  It can be devastating on one’s retirement
• Invest – yes – invest in your marriage during the good years with counsellors before things go wrong, couples accounts, vacations together without the kids and more.

Average cost of having a child According to MoneySense.ca and raising a child to the age of 18 is a whopping $243,660. Break down that number, and that’s $12,825 per child, per year -- or $1,070 per month. And that's before you send them off to university.

Tips for saving:

• Sharing nanny services with friends
• Shopping big ticket items like braces at your local university dentistry labs – young dentists can save you big bucks!   

Average cost of buying a home – varies greatly across Canada but hovers around $350,000 for a national average

Tips for saving:

• Consider renting until you have a larger down payment
• If you have less than 20% saved, you’ll have to pay big fees to insure the mortgage
• Consider an income property  - it might cost you more in the beginning, but a renter can help you become mortgage free much sooner.  
• Ensure you buy in the right neighbourhood
• Even though a lender might approve you for more, it doesn’t mean you should take it – you have to respect the cashflow needed for your family’s comfort and resist becoming house poor!

Average cost of a university degree in Canada - Students are taking on more debt, with the average price tag of a four-year undergraduate degree away from home ringing in at $84,000. Soaring costs for tuition, books and living expenses have left the average post-secondary graduate $27,747 in debt, it found, and it’s only going to get much more expensive.  The cost of tuition and other expenses related to post-secondary studies (such as books, supplies and accommodations) continues to rise. By the year 2027, the cost is estimated to reach over $110,000* for an average four-year Bachelor of Arts degree.

Tips for Savings: 

• Parents need to take advantage of the government’s 20% savings grant offered in the RESP shelter. And at the end of the day, an education is an investment.