Ottawa Launches New Tools to Help You Take Control of Your Finances

The second is that the federal government is here to help us all gain control over our money.

Canadians are told that our debt load is getting worse and we're carrying an average of $1.50 of debt for every dollar earned. The Department of Finance Canada announced yesterday that they're releasing Your Financial Toolkit to "help them make sense of the everyday financial questions that they face."

From the press release, "In simple, non-technical language, Your Financial Toolkit covers the basic financial topics that most Canadians have to deal with everyday," said Ursula Menke, FCAC Commissioner. "It touches upon everything from banking, budgeting and saving to debt management, fraud protection and retirement planning; providing Canadians with an opportunity to practice new financial skills and apply the information to their own situation," she added."

The toolkit was created by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, the Investor Education Fund and l'Autorite des marche financiers. But what's in it?

There are 11 modules which includes worksheets, questionnaires, videos and case studies. The first page has a self-assessment tool to help get you started.

The self-assessment sheet asks the basic questions such as age, gender and salary then proceeds to ask questions such as:

• Do you read your insurance policy carefully before deciding if you will keep the policy?
• Do you check that your insurance agent is registered or licensed before buying insurance?
• Do you know how to choose a financial professional who can help you plan your finances for retirement?
• Do you know what a financial plan is?

Based on your answers, you're told what information would be of the most benefit. For me, it was mortgage and insurance information - my mortgage comes up for renewal in 2014 and I didn't check if my insurance agent was licensed when I purchased insurance. (I've since checked and he is.)

Other modules include Incomes, Expenses and Budget and Budgets. There's even a trainer's toolkit for people who may want to use it as part of their training materials.

The modules are easy to read and take you through a step-by-step process to help you understand your finances.

Would you use it?