New year, same problems; these segments offer some insight.

This week on Move Smartly, I’m joined by Doug Hoyes, Licensed Insolvency Trustee and co-founder of Hoyes, Michalos & Associates, one of the most experienced consumer debt relief firms in Canada. Doug works on the front lines with households facing financial distress, giving him a real-time look into what’s happening beneath the surface of the economy – long before it shows up in official data.

We unpack what he’s seeing inside his practice today: who’s struggling, what’s driving the rise in consumer proposals and bankruptcies, and how closely those trends are connected to housing costs, mortgage renewals and rising debt loads. We discuss the growing role of HELOCs, the psychology of debt in a real-estate-obsessed culture, and whether insolvency trends could signal more forced home sales and pressure on the housing market in 2026. Here is a direct video link.

Predatory business models continue to undermine economic strength and stability.

A hidden housing crisis is sweeping the US as debt collectors revive forgotten mortgages to seize homes. Bloomberg reporters uncover how outdated laws and predatory tactics have left millions at risk. Here is a direct video link.