According to an Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Investor Education Fund, Canadians believe that not having enough money coming in and owing too much are the top obstacles they face when it comes to managing their money and investing.

Nearly half of Canadians (48%) cite “lack of income” as an obstacle for them when it comes to managing their money and investing, while 1 in 5 (22%) believe having “too much debt” creates an obstacle to their financial management and investing. Other obstacles include fear of losing money (23%), lack of financial knowledge (20%), lack of confidence (14%) and lack of time (12%).

Highlights include:

• Canadians in the lowest-income group (earning less than $40,000 annually) are most likely to cite “lack of income” (65%) as an obstacle in managing their money and investing, ahead of those in the lower ($40,000 to less than $60,000) and upper ($60,000 to less than $100,000) middle-income groups. Interestingly, one-quarter (26%) of Canadians in the highest-income group (more than $100,000) cite “lack of income” as an obstacle.
• Canadians in the upper-middle-income group (35%) are most likely to say that “too much debt” is an obstacle in managing their money and investing, ahead of those in the lower-income (27%), lower-middle-income (25%) and highest-income (25%) groups.
• Those in the lower-income (26%) group are most likely to say that “fear of losing money” is a financial management and investing obstacle, ahead of Canadians in the upper-middle-income (24%), highest-income (22%) and lowest-income (18%) groups.
• Interestingly, less than half (48%) of those who identify obstacles to saving actually invest or save their money when it comes to their own finances, retirement, children’s education or big-ticket items.

Read the report.