Ontario Consumer Insolvency Trends
Ken Rowan
June 28, 2023
Full site: debtsgo.ca
Data to May 2023.
For data source see notes following.
ON
Monthly Filings
A five-year chart of Ontario monthly consumer insolvency filings.
Consumer Proposals
Annual File Growth
To measure growth we compare total filings in the 12 months ended May 2023 with those in the 12 months ended May 2022.
Greater Toronto Area
Mean and Current Monthly Filings
Regions / Municipal Areas
Mean and Current Monthly Filings
We consider census metropolitan areas and regions and compare current volumes with the 10-year historical mean. Showing the current month as a percentage of the mean reveals the degree to which current filings exceed the mean.
Cities
Most Active This Month
We rank cities by the number of consumer insolvencies filed in the most recent month.
Highest Annual Growth Rates
We filter out cities having less than 120 filings per year and report the 25 having the highest growth.
| City | 12.mos.to.May2023 | 12.mos.to.May2022 | Change | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowmanville | 159 | 91 | 68 | 74.7% |
| Belleville | 271 | 167 | 104 | 62.3% |
| Niagara Falls | 384 | 251 | 133 | 53.0% |
| Don Mills | 143 | 99 | 44 | 44.4% |
| Trenton | 146 | 104 | 42 | 40.4% |
| Guelph | 410 | 293 | 117 | 39.9% |
| Peterborough | 313 | 224 | 89 | 39.7% |
| Whitby | 304 | 221 | 83 | 37.6% |
| Toronto | 1937 | 1422 | 515 | 36.2% |
| Barrie | 687 | 506 | 181 | 35.8% |
| Hamilton | 1565 | 1170 | 395 | 33.8% |
| Kanata | 186 | 139 | 47 | 33.8% |
| North York | 1525 | 1143 | 382 | 33.4% |
| Milton | 248 | 186 | 62 | 33.3% |
| Oshawa | 749 | 562 | 187 | 33.3% |
| Cornwall | 259 | 195 | 64 | 32.8% |
| Greater Sudbury | 555 | 418 | 137 | 32.8% |
| Oakville | 291 | 220 | 71 | 32.3% |
| Cambridge | 476 | 360 | 116 | 32.2% |
| Etobicoke | 1252 | 948 | 304 | 32.1% |
| Chatham, ON | 225 | 171 | 54 | 31.6% |
| Nepean | 390 | 298 | 92 | 30.9% |
| Ajax | 317 | 243 | 74 | 30.5% |
| Mississauga | 1811 | 1398 | 413 | 29.5% |
| Scarborough | 1967 | 1524 | 443 | 29.1% |
Lowest Annual Growth Rates
We report the 10 cities with the lowest annual growth rate.
| City | 12.mos.to.May2023 | 12.mos.to.May2022 | Change | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thornhill | 170 | 170 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Maple | 104 | 98 | 6 | 6.1% |
| Waterloo | 168 | 155 | 13 | 8.4% |
| York | 524 | 460 | 64 | 13.9% |
| London | 1430 | 1229 | 201 | 16.4% |
| Orangeville | 151 | 129 | 22 | 17.1% |
| Burlington | 353 | 300 | 53 | 17.7% |
| East York | 273 | 232 | 41 | 17.7% |
| Kingston, ON | 410 | 348 | 62 | 17.8% |
| Ottawa | 1111 | 942 | 169 | 17.9% |
10-Year Monthly Highs and Lows
We determined the maximum and minimum monthly filings since 2013 and compared these to the current monthly filings to see whether the city was experiencing an historic high or low number of filings.
New Highs
New Lows - none
Forward Sortation Areas
Most Active This Month
The 30 most active FSAs in the current month and their mean monthly filings since 2013.
| FSA | FSA.Place.Name | City | May2023 | Mean | May2023.over.Mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| L7A | Brampton West | Brampton | 35 | 19.7 | 177.8% |
| L4N | Barrie South | Barrie | 34 | 35.6 | 95.6% |
| K0K | Quinte Shores | Rural Area | 29 | 27.2 | 106.6% |
| M1J | Scarborough (Eglinton) | Scarborough | 28 | 13.8 | 203.6% |
| L3V | Orillia | Orillia | 26 | 17.0 | 152.9% |
| M1B | Scarborough (Malvern / Rouge River) | Scarborough | 26 | 20.9 | 124.6% |
| L6Y | Brampton South | Brampton | 25 | 19.8 | 126.6% |
| M9W | Etobicoke Northwest (Clairville / Humberwood / Woodbine Downs / West Humber…) | Etobicoke | 25 | 12.6 | 198.5% |
| L6P | Brampton North | Brampton | 23 | 14.1 | 163.6% |
| L6X | Brampton Southwest | Brampton | 23 | 18.5 | 124.5% |
| K6H | Cornwall East | Cornwall | 22 | 11.7 | 187.6% |
| M6M | York (Del Ray / Keelsdale / Mount Dennis / Silverthorne) | York | 22 | 15.1 | 145.9% |
| N5Y | London (West Huron Heights / Carling) | London | 22 | 13.0 | 169.6% |
| K2J | Nepean (Barrhaven) | Nepean | 21 | 11.8 | 178.2% |
| L1C | Bowmanville West | Bowmanville | 21 | 10.8 | 195.2% |
| L6S | Brampton North Central | Brampton | 21 | 14.5 | 144.6% |
| M2J | North York (Fairview / Henry Farm / Oriole) | North York | 21 | 14.1 | 149.1% |
| N5V | London (YXU / North and East Argyle / East Huron Heights) | London | 21 | 12.8 | 164.5% |
| N6H | London West (Central Hyde Park / Oakridge) | London | 21 | 10.3 | 204.8% |
| K0A | National Capital Region (Almonte) | Rural Area | 20 | 23.2 | 86.2% |
| K0H | Frontenac County | Rural Area | 20 | 9.5 | 211.0% |
| K0L | Peterborough County and North Hastings County (Lakefield) | Rural Area | 20 | 15.5 | 129.4% |
| L6V | Brampton Central | Brampton | 20 | 15.1 | 132.4% |
| K9J | Peterborough South | Peterborough | 19 | 12.7 | 149.4% |
| L1G | Oshawa Central | Oshawa | 19 | 15.1 | 125.7% |
| L1N | Whitby Southeast | Whitby | 19 | 11.8 | 161.3% |
| L4M | Barrie North | Barrie | 19 | 17.6 | 107.8% |
| L4T | Mississauga (Malton) | Mississauga | 19 | 12.1 | 157.0% |
| L5B | Mississauga (West Cooksville / Fairview / City Centre / East Creditview) | Mississauga | 19 | 15.7 | 121.0% |
| M1K | Scarborough (Kennedy Park / Ionview / East Birchmount Park) | Scarborough | 19 | 16.0 | 118.4% |
Highest Annual Growth Rates
We average over 10 years the number of monthly files in FSAs and we filter out those having less than 72 files annually. We compare the number of files in the 12-month period ended May 2023 to those in the 12-month period ended May 2022 to calculate growth.
| FSA | FSA_Place_Name | City | 12.mos.to.May2023 | 12.mos.to.May2022 | Change | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| L8W | Hamilton (West Albion Falls / Hannon / Rymal / Trenholme / Quinndale…) | Hamilton | 98 | 52 | 46 | 88.5% |
| L1K | Oshawa East | Oshawa | 108 | 58 | 50 | 86.2% |
| M1H | Scarborough (Cedarbrae) | Scarborough | 80 | 45 | 35 | 77.8% |
| K1C | Gloucester (West Orleans) | Gloucester | 79 | 45 | 34 | 75.6% |
| L6Z | Brampton West Central | Brampton | 89 | 51 | 38 | 74.5% |
| L1C | Bowmanville West | Bowmanville | 139 | 80 | 59 | 73.8% |
| P7A | Thunder Bay Northeast | Thunder Bay | 104 | 60 | 44 | 73.3% |
| K8N | Belleville East | Belleville | 120 | 70 | 50 | 71.4% |
| M6H | West Toronto (Dufferin / Dovercourt Village) | Toronto | 130 | 76 | 54 | 71.1% |
| L8H | Hamilton (West Kentley / McQuesten / Parkview / Hamilton Beach…) | Hamilton | 132 | 79 | 53 | 67.1% |
| L5M | Mississauga (Churchill Meadows / Central Erin Mills / South Streetsville) | Mississauga | 183 | 110 | 73 | 66.4% |
| P3A | Greater Sudbury (New Sudbury) | Greater Sudbury | 109 | 66 | 43 | 65.2% |
| N1H | Guelph Northwest | Guelph | 166 | 101 | 65 | 64.4% |
| P3P | Greater Sudbury (Hanmer) | Greater Sudbury | 57 | 35 | 22 | 62.9% |
| N6K | London (Riverbend / Woodhull / North Sharon Creek / Byron / West Westmount) | London | 107 | 66 | 41 | 62.1% |
| L8V | Hamilton (Raleigh / Macassa / Lawfield / Thorner / Burkholme / Eastmount) | Hamilton | 106 | 66 | 40 | 60.6% |
| N5Z | London (Glen Cairn) | London | 141 | 88 | 53 | 60.2% |
| M9C | Etobicoke (Eringate / Bloordale Gardens / Old Burnhamthorpe / Markland Woods) | Etobicoke | 112 | 70 | 42 | 60.0% |
| K2J | Nepean (Barrhaven) | Nepean | 155 | 98 | 57 | 58.2% |
| L8G | Hamilton (Greenford / North Gershome / West Stoney Creek) | Hamilton | 82 | 52 | 30 | 57.7% |
| L2H | Niagara Falls West | Niagara Falls | 94 | 60 | 34 | 56.7% |
| L4Z | Mississauga (West Rathwood / East Hurontario / SE Gateway) | Mississauga | 114 | 73 | 41 | 56.2% |
| K8P | Belleville West | Belleville | 143 | 93 | 50 | 53.8% |
| M9B | Etobicoke (West Deane Park / Princess Gardens / Martin Grove / Islington / Cloverdale) | Etobicoke | 86 | 56 | 30 | 53.6% |
| M3H | North York (Armour Heights / Wilson Heights / Downsview North) | North York | 148 | 97 | 51 | 52.6% |
Lowest Annual Growth Rates
And we show the bottom 15.
| FSA | FSA_Place_Name | City | 12.mos.to.May2023 | 12.mos.to.May2022 | Change | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| L5J | Mississauga (Clarkson / Southdown) | Mississauga | 56 | 80 | -24 | -30.0% |
| P0H | Nipissing North (Callander) | Rural Area | 72 | 85 | -13 | -15.3% |
| M9A | Etobicoke (Islington Avenue) | Etobicoke | 103 | 118 | -15 | -12.7% |
| K9V | Lindsay | Lindsay | 90 | 101 | -11 | -10.9% |
| K8A | Pembroke Central and northern subdivisions | Pembroke | 82 | 91 | -9 | -9.9% |
| N6C | London South (East Highland / North White Oaks / North Westminster) | London | 107 | 118 | -11 | -9.3% |
| N0P | Kent (Blenheim) | Rural Area | 131 | 143 | -12 | -8.4% |
| K1K | Ottawa (Overbrook) | Ottawa | 140 | 151 | -11 | -7.3% |
| N2C | Kitchener South Central | Kitchener | 72 | 76 | -4 | -5.3% |
| L3Z | Bradford | Bradford | 90 | 94 | -4 | -4.3% |
| N5Y | London (West Huron Heights / Carling) | London | 155 | 161 | -6 | -3.7% |
| L3T | Thornhill East | Thornhill | 87 | 90 | -3 | -3.3% |
| P7E | Thunder Bay South Central | Thunder Bay | 68 | 69 | -1 | -1.4% |
| L4X | Mississauga (East Applewood / East Dixie / NE Lakeview) | Mississauga | 78 | 79 | -1 | -1.3% |
| L4P | Keswick | Keswick | 79 | 80 | -1 | -1.2% |
Notes and Data Sources
FSA and Forward Sortation Area are protected terms for the benefit of Canada Post Corporation.
Data source: The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (“OSB”), Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, data sets 2013 to May 2023, https://open.canada.ca/
We report on only consumer bankruptcies and consumer proposals as defined by the OSB. For definitions, see https://open.canada.ca/
Ken Rowan is a retired Licensed Insolvency Trustee and a retired CA, CPA.
Questions or Comments? Email debtsgo.ca