Everyone knows that it can be difficult as a student trying to balance your finances and keep in the black. Most students finish their schooling and go into their first real career driven job with a load of debt, and having to look into debt assistance. Although it is difficult to save on the tuition or book costs, there are a few ways you can try to optimize how far your money goes while you are in school.

Here are a few examples of ways to stretch your dollars as a student:

• Seek and purchase used textbooks when possible.
• Apply for bursaries, grants and as many scholarships as you.
• If applicable in your location, apply for debt forgiveness when you finished your schooling.
• Create a budget and keep to it!
• Don’t waste – especially food! Eat leftovers

Another great article for Students Looking to Save Money can be found at this Finance Care Services Blog.

Every year over 100,000 individuals file for bankruptcy. Some do so because of job losses, or business failures, others do so because there student loan payments exceed their income; and some due so because they have medical costs that are too much for them to afford. This is a process where you assign everything you own to a trustee for a cost and they help you eliminate your debt.

There is a legal process that you must go through when claiming bankruptcy. One of these requirements is that you must be insolvent. To be insolvent means to owe a minimum of $1,000 and not be able to pay back your debt. Claiming bankruptcy is done through a trustee so it is important to make sure you understand there requirements beforehand. This process works through stopping the credit bureau’s from calling and if everything runs smoothly you would be discharged from being bankrupt within 9 months from the courts.

There are exceptions that are brought out in an individual’s situation, some of these can erase or not erase this claim off your credit record. Some assets may be taken but things under specific cost amounts will not be taken because they are every day personal needs. Things like clothes and a car under $5.650, and personal house hold items under $11,300 are exempted from being taken from you during the bankruptcy process.

There are always advantages and disadvantages to making choices like this. Some of the advantages are that it is cost affect, it protects you from legal actions and it eliminates the debt. Some disadvantages are that it ruins your credit rating, it may make you lose some of your assets and it requires you to control your budget and record it.

Overall this process provides individuals in debt a fresh start and a solution to their problem in a fast, efficient and inexpensive way. The truth is there are advantages and disadvantages but it may be one of the only ways to give you a fresh start in life. It is good to look into all your options however before venturing down this route so ensure you research your options first. By doing this you will be able to weigh out if this is the best option for your financial situation.

For more information about bankruptcy, visit BDO’s Bankruptcy Barrie

Here are three excellent resources for Bankruptcy Issues:

1. BankruptcyDebtProblems.ca

With information on a wide range of topics relating to bankruptcy and insolvency such as credit counselling, debt consolidation and debt settlement, bankruptcydebtproblems.ca is an in-depth resource for anyone who is in financial trouble and is considering and weighing out various options.

2. BDO Bankruptcy Barrie

Not only does BDO Bankruptcy Barrie provide you with resources including a bankruptcy and insolvency blog, videos, debt calculators and more, but they also are able to actually develop a plan for anyone who would like to take the next step.

3. BDO Financial Problems Ontario

In addition to everything that BDO Barrie does, BDO Ontario can help anyone in Ontario who is facing credit and debt issues.