Financial Resources

Earning, Saving, Investing and taxes too!

 

Student Loan Interest Rebate Program

On September 21st, the Ministry of Health through the Physician Recruitment Agency of Saskatchewan announced short-term funding for First Year Medical Residents for the 2011-2012 fiscal year. The program will cover interest on federal and provincial government student loans for an 18 month period. For more information on how to apply for this funding please  read these instructions or contact Leah Chomyshen at 933-5307 or email leah.chomyshen@saskdocs.ca.

PAIRS believes this funding should continue to be available for all of our members and we are working with the Physician Recruitment Agency to achieve similar funding for all Saskatchewan residents. We will post more information as it becomes available.

 

 

MD Financial Services

MD Physician Services Inc. provides financial services to Medical Residents and Practicing Physicians. This service is free through your Canadian Medical Association membership.

Please visit their website for more information.

 

 

Debt Management

Residents have debt! Here are some strategies for reducing and eliminating it.

It is important to consciously manage your debt load by carefully scheduling debt repayment into your monthly cash flow. Depending on how much you owe, you may be able to afford only interest payments, or you may be able to make a combined payment of interest plus some principal. Reducing debt requires discipline and focus. Along with setting net worth goals, it is critical to set specific debt reduction goals, and to create a plan for achieving them (for example, paying off your loans within, say, seven years by increasing your payments each year as your salary increases). The debt elimination process begins by reviewing your monthly cash flow and separating luxuries from necessities. What items can you trim or postpone? The savings you discover as you go through this process can be used to improve cash flow or pay down debt. Here are some debt elimination tips to consider:

  • Set a debt repayment goal and adjust payments on loans or mortgages to match it.
  • Reduce credit card or credit line limits.
  • Pay off credit cards monthly and avoid high interest charges.
  • Pay off debts with the highest interest rate first.
  • Consolidate debts to reduce interest costs and ease cash flow.
  • Increase your loan payments each time your salary increases.
  • Set up a budget for discretionary expenses. Eliminating debts means differentiating between needs and wants.

The above information was provided by MD Management. Please click here to read the full article.

 

 

Tax Tips for Residents

Doing your taxes? Sounds fun! Here’s help from from the professionals.