Diving into Debt: A Study on Factors Related to Debt Risk Score in Toronto

This study aimed to find the correlations between data found regarding debt risk and the 140 neighbourhoods in Toronto, Ontario. Debt risk was compared with select variables from available data, including education, health, environment, housing, economics, demographics, transportation, recreation, and safety. The purpose of this study was to help civilians and the government identify possible factors that lead to higher debt risk, as well as find solutions to reduce it. The data was retrieved from Open Data Toronto. A simple linear regression model was built to determine the factors that have a seemingly great correlation with debt risk. It was concluded that the percentage of people who receive social assistance, the percentage of people who applied for rent banks, and the number of reported sexual assaults in a neighbourhood had a positive correlation with increased debt risk. The result is that an age-adjusted rate of people who received breast cancer screening had a negative correlation with increased debt risk. Through the results, several solutions could be proposed to reduce debt risk. More education on safety and health can enable citizens to become more responsible and aware of their financial state. Giving other forms of aid that are not monetary may be beneficial in helping people get out of debt and become more financially independent.