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Page THE ALTON HILLS Saturday November 10 No evidence of fiscal skill in Federal Finance Department The finance minister says his department is no longer managing the economy through a rear view mirror the way it did in the recession Instead a team of Finance Department officials have hit the road visiting business people across country We are listening to them the fmancL minister told a House of Common committee recently The reason it seems is that Finance does not want to be taken surprise the way it was in 1981 of say Yet the department seems to be making of the same mistakes it did back then under he federal Liberal ment In the boom times of the 1980s it seemed us it Canada would grow richer without limit So the government decided to take in its share of the dough Ottawa set its sights on real estate and oil among other things Littie did it suspect imminent price collapse LONG Then along came a tall chompmg American a central banker the name of Paul Mr shot down the hopes of a generation of the North Americans He the danger of inflation he reached for his interest rate weapon B the time he was finish ed the prime business lending rate in Canada stood at 22 73 per cent Dianne Maley Business lav prone and bleeding The inance Department was caught flat footed It had new taxes and new policies to share the wealth but the wealth had vanished The department lingers Now less than a decade later it has new plans to squeeze from just as rcces sion is laving us low Then there is he rising oil price Things are worse than thev were in 1982 Vet Mr Wilson assured the Commons committee that his department has its ear to the ground Finance officials are talking to business and Irving to relate that to things we are sensing ourselves through the broad economic tn dicators which one should remember This has helped us get a better sense of what is happening and what is likelv to happen in the Mr Wilson said So the sensitivity that we have as a department to ex what is happening and where the economy may go is a good deal better than going into the 198182 recession he said Well thank goodness But the evidence We II have to wait for it I guess So far the damage high interest rates have wrought has been mostly to businesses wallowed in the ex cesses of the 1980s real estate ex pensive restaurants and the like Unemployed stockbrokers don t faze Mr Wilson himself a former Bay Street denizen But people are scared The con of consumers is the lowest it ha been since the Con ference Board created the index more than yean ago The same fear pervades Canada Because con spending accounts for roughlv two thirds of the economy the Finance Department should be out talking to the people What would we tell him To lower short term interest rates so that they are more in line with S rates hey are five percentage points higher Long term rates are the preserve of financial markets To let the dollar fall To drop the proposed and services tax To make the tax system fairer and simpler Housing alternatives exciting This article Is provided bv local realtors and the Ontario Ileal Estate Association for the benefit of consumers in the real estate market Have vou given much thought late Iv to where like to spend golden vears Does a condo in Florida sound appealing Or would vou a more interactive retire ment communi w here v could share mealtime and recrea hours with friends How about a garden suite or a shared equity lease These are just a few of the grow ing number of housing op portunities Canadians want to explore as thev approach their senior While some of these concepts have been in existence for some time there are several ex citing new alternatives now being in North America about 10 per cent of the country s population is aged or over But the vear this percentage will grow to 13 per tent and the seniors are ex petted to make up onequarter of the nation population most older Cana would prefer to con to live indtpendentlv in their own homes within the communities thev have come to know and love By age fa will have built up a great deal of their homes However as an increasing number of housing come on stream more and more seniors may be inclined to move out of their long time homes not simply as a matter of necessity but because they want to take advantage of the benefits and specialized services many of these new options w ill offer CURRENT OPTIONS Many Canadians are finding that mobile home retirement com muiuties provide them with suitable amenities at a reasonable cost as well as lots of opportunity for social interaction with their peers Usually set in quiet charming locations these communities generally pro vide services and recreational opportunities for residents In most mobile home retirement communities the homes are purchased bv the seniors but rent must be paid for the plots on w hich the units are located HOME SHARING AND Many seniors faced with economic or physical limitations mav want to consider sharing their homes with familv members friends or In addition to helping the homeowner with expenses home sharing also prov ides companion ship In some cases the homeowner wish to reduce the rent charged to newcomer in exchange for performing annus chores around the house If re interested in this option check with municipality first some could have bvlaws concerning thse tvpes of arrangements when are unrelated Sheltered retirement housing is somewhat similar to the home sharing concept popular in Britain this type of housing con sists of a group of apartments or clusters of single homes Each occupant has his or her own living quarters and a caretaker is on hand to provide special assistance Some of these setups also provide meals to residents Often the units can be bought and some offer lifetenancy or shared equity arrangements concepts new to Canada Life tenancies offer the elderly a chance to buy life leases rent in one lump sum allowing them to live in a unit for the rest of their lives The cost is based on value of the unit and the age and sex of the purchaser If the occupant moves or dies ownership reverts to the developer or investor Shated equity arrangements can also provide many benefits Under this type of system seniors can pur chase a portion of the equity of a unit 25 or per cent and then pay rent for the part still owned by the dev eloper or investor Maintenance and operation of the building are handled by special staff but special fees much like condominium fees- must also be paid to cover ongoing costs If residents decide to move they can sell their share in the unit and still benefit from any appreciation in Ihe unit value Loan stock arrangements- may also appeal to seniors in the future With this setup seniors make art interest free loan to the sponsor of a housing probject In exchange the senior has the right to live m the unit rent free for the remainder of his or her life he pavments they have to worry about are maintenance and operation fees Retirement villages are generally larger than sheltered retirement housing systems but provide similar services They are common in Australia I care communities can be larger still They provide seniors with independent lifestyles but offer increasing levels of service and care as needed To live in these com residents usually have to pay a sizeable entrance fee along with monthly charges emergence of these various housing options will make it easier for Canadians to plan more effec tively for their retirement knowing that they wont have to make huge sacrifices to be comfortable and secure Survey Completed Wednesday November 7th MORTGAGE RATES ANNUAL INTEREST SIX MONTH ONE year van THREE FOUR FIVE YEAR TRUST COMPANIES Canada Trust NA 13 13 13 13 Municipal Trust A 13 13 13 13 Trust 13 13 25 13 13 13 13 CHARTERED BANKS Bank of Commerce 13 13 25 13 13 13 13 Bank of Montreal NA 13 13 25 1320 Bank of Nova Scotia NA 13 13 25 13 13 Royal Bank 13 13 13 13 Toronto Dominion 13 25 13 13 13 13 This survey was prepared to help the Herald Homestyle readers track weekly Bank and Trust Company rates It does die work for you SAY ISNT with aulonuUir Simply arid I he digital raving fur work ami unit automatically awl When you from a I 1hour work lay a loaf of bread will wailing A tip included to you prepare mil f ami muffin