Ottawa couple's loan payments more than double after new company takes over financing

An Ottawa couple is sharing their buyer beware story and the importance of reading the fine print in contracts, following a shocking price hike and interest rate adjustment for their home furnace financing.

An Ottawa couple is sharing their buyer beware story and the importance of reading the fine print in contracts, following a shocking price hike and interest rate adjustment for their home furnace financing.

In 2018, Sonya Rawlings and her husband, James, replaced their furnace, hot water tank, and air conditioner, spending $17,000, financed through a company called Provincial Home Assistance.

"The deal was that we would be able to pay $60.95 a month for 10 years and we agreed to that and that was fine because it was only at an interest rate of 2.99 per cent," says Sonya. "There's no complaints or anything to do with the service or the maintenance, it's just the financial part that really kind of complicating things."

Initially, everything went smoothly, however, in 2022, the finance company was acquired by Simply Group. Rawlings says the monthly cost remained the same and the interest rate did not change.

The trouble began in June 2024, when the loan was renewed by a third company, Financeit.

"Our interest rate jumped from 2.99 per cent to 14.99 per cent and our payment went from $60 a month to $136 a month," says Rawlings. "It's a shock. It's kind of like robbery. It's more than double the amount we were paying before."

Closer examination of the financing details revealed the loan's original 10-year amortization had been extended to 20 years by the second lender.