The purpose of the survey is to collect information from a sample of Canadian families on their assets, debts, employment, income and education. This helps in understanding how family finances change because of economic pressures. The SFS provides a comprehensive picture of the net worth of Canadians. Information is collected on the value of all major financial and non-financial assets and on the money owing on mortgages, vehicles, credit cards, student loans and other debts. A family's net worth can be thought of as the amount of money they would be left with if they sold all of their assets and paid off all of their debts. The survey data are used by government departments to help formulate policy, the private sector and by individuals and families to compare their wealth with those of similar types of families.

During the month of March 2025, the company with the largest share of the reverse mortgage market in the United States was Mutual Of Omaha Mortgage Inc. Its share of 22.4 percent was around three percent greater than the market share of Finance Of America Reverse LLC. Reverse mortgage volume increases Mutual Of Omaha Mortgage Inc. was the top lender of Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) in 2023, with the highest number of loan originations. In 2023, the company, which specializes in home equity retirement solutions, closed a total of over 5,000 HECMs and ended the year as the leading reverse mortgage company in the United States. Despite the overall number of HECMs in the United States dropping dramatically between 2009 and 2019, this trend reversed in the following years, with 2022 recording the highest 10-year figure. Banks withdraw from reverse mortgage market In the past, some of the largest banks in the United States featured in the list of leading reverse mortgage lenders; as of 2024, financial services firm Wells Fargo remained the all-time leading reverse mortgage company in the country. However, banks have exited the reverse mortgage business, and the rankings now feature companies that focus primarily on HECMs. In 2011, Wells Fargo and Bank of America – the two largest providers of HECMs at the time – stopped offering the service because of an unpredictable housing market and the creditworthiness of borrowers.

In the United States in 2022, 28 percent of Gen Z respondents reported that they delayed buying or leasing a car as a result of their student loan debt, followed by 26 percent who said that they put off saving for retirement specifically because of their student loan debt.