Average Canadian family debt hits $100,000, says Vanier Institute

OTTAWA - A new report suggests the average family debt in Canada has now hit the $100,000 mark.

In addition, says the Vanier Institute of the Family, the debt-to-income ratio measuring household debt against income, is a record 150 per cent.

This means that for every $1,000 in after-tax income, Canadian families owe $1,500.

The Institute says in 1990, average family debt stood at $56,800, with a debt-to-income ratio of 93 per cent.

Just as the debt ratio has climbed, the savings rate has slid downward.

In 1990, says the Institute, Canadian families managed to put away $8,000 for a savings rate of 13 per cent. Last year, the savings rate had fallen to 4.2 per cent, averaging just $2,500 per household.

Other data compiled by the Institute shows the number of households behind in mortgage payments by three or more months climbed to 17,400 in the fall of 2010, up nearly 50 per cent since the recession began.