What the article does not discuss is the assets of Canadians,  both financial and real estate.   It would be useful to know what is the average net worth of Canadians and compare this to household debt.   I remember reading a report a few months ago that wealth has risen dramatically in the last few years and the average NET wealth per capita was something like 150,000  ($600,000 for a family of four).    Then of course a lot of the debt is mortgages,  and unless there is a really serious drop in house values the mortgages are not a problem.   It is not an issue if a couple owns a house worth $1million but have a mortgage of $500,000 and income of 150,000 and 300,000 in RRSPs and TFSAs.   But their debt number looks very high.  The article should have discussed this question.