OTTAWA — Statistics Canada says the amount Canadians owe relative to their income ticked lower in the second quarter.

The agency says household credit market debt as a proportion of household disposable income fell to 175.5 per cent on a seasonally adjusted basis in the second quarter, down from 176.7 per cent in the first quarter.

In other words, there was $1.76 in credit market debt for every dollar of household disposable income in the second quarter.

However, the household debt service ratio, measured as total obligated payments of principal and interest on credit market debt as a proportion of household disposable income, increased to 14.97 per cent on a seasonally adjusted basis at the end of the second quarter, up from 14.89 per cent at the end of the first quarter.

The mortgage-only debt service ratio stood at a record high of 8.18 per cent in the second quarter, up from 8.07 per cent in the first quarter.

As of the second quarter, Statistics Canada says households had average debt, including mortgages, of $176,525.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.

The Canadian Press