The Latest Personal Finance News
Government Urges Spenders to Get a Grip
Posted 2008-01-9
The Government is warning Christmas overspenders to regain financial control and think long-term. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says poor planning for events like Christmas leaves people with a financial shortfall and struggling to pay regular bills. Over half the people in the UK overspend at Christmas, with the north-east, north-west and Wales suffering cash problems, departmental research says. Susan Clark, of Jobcentre Plus, said: “Struggling to pay the bills after Christmas is a situation many people find themselves in and it can be very stressful.” The DWP also recently revealed plans to create a new anti UK child-poverty unit. According to statistics, Government measures over the last ten years have helped rescue 600,000 children from poverty. ...
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6m Bills Go Unpaid
Posted 2008-01-9
More than six million household bills went unpaid last year as budgets became tighter, research says. Of all bills, people mainly overlooked council tax in the second half of 2007, with 2.3 million people either failing to pay or paying...
‘No Guarantee of Mortgage Savings’ After Rate Cuts
Posted 2008-01-8
More base rate cuts this year will not necessarily guarantee lower mortgage repayments, warns a financial website. Speaking after the Bank of England decided to keep the base rate on hold in January, David Kuo, Motley Fool’s personal finance boss, said the link between the bank’s decisions and mortgage payments is by no means certain. Chancellor Alistair Darling recently urged financial services providers to pass on December’s rate cut to homeowners, Mr Kuo points out. However, he maintains borrowers should remember mortgage loan providers may not pass on base rate changes to consumers as they are not obliged to even in the current climate. Mr Kup said the lead priority for lenders now is to “rebuild their battered business.” He said: “Therefore, many homeowners are unlikely to reap the benefits, even though there are indications that the Bank of England may continue to cut interest rates to stimulate the flagging economy.” ...
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Predictions of More Personal Insolvencies ‘Are Right’
Posted 2008-01-6
Advice service experts are agreeing with well-publicised estimates of an increase in personal insolvencies this year. James Falla, director of advice service Thomas Charles, says talk of an increase in the number of people declaring themselves insolvent is likely to prove true through 2008. Mr Falla said “everyone’s talking” about rising debt levels, and cited KPMG research predicting a 30 per cent rise in the number of personal insolvencies in 2008. However, he also added personal insolvency can be either bankruptcy, individual voluntary arrangements (IVA) or informal debt management plans. The director also says that while bankruptcy and IVAs can be measured, there is no way to assess how many debt management plans are undertaken in any given 12 months. Price comparison sites like uSwitch.com have suggested debt consolidation loans as one option for those looking to repay debts this year. ...
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Credit Crunch ‘has not harmed self-cert sector’
Posted 2008-01-4
The availability of self-cert mortgages has not been hit by the credit crunch, a leading broker says. Andy Pratt, spokesman for Alexander Hall, said the self-cert mortgage market remains essentially unchanged, despite reports of tighter lending conditions. This effect has mainly been seen in the subprime industry, Mr Pratt says, with nonconforming lenders hit the hardest by turbulence in the financial markets. Mainstream lenders have remained largely unaffected, however, with the spokesman adding borrowers with good credit records should face little to no difficulty in getting a loan. He said: “All those clients who would have got a self-cert mortgage before have been able to get them even with the credit crunch.” Thirteen per cent of the 29million people employed in Britain are self-employed and therefore eligible for a self-cert mortgage, says the Economic and Social Research Council. ...
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‘Bigger Outlay for Mortgage Holders’ After Rate Hold
Posted 2008-01-3
Mortgage borrowers could face paying out more after The Bank of England decided to hold the base rate this month, says one broker. Ray Boulger of John Charchol said homeowners could end up paying £105 more in interest than they...
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Overspending Bursts Credit Bubble
Posted 2008-01-3
A quarter of 16 to 44-year olds are scared about their bills arriving in the New Year, according to a study by uSwitch. The survey, backed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) also revealed over half of people had no...
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Dog Owners Urged to Plan Finances
Posted 2008-01-2
Dog owners need to take care with their cash as too few are taking out pet insurance, one company has advised. Tesco Pet Insurance says just 12 per cent of animal lovers take out insurance for their pet, risking large vet bills that could add to finance problems. The financial services provider says 5.2 million UK customers who own a dog need to take particular care with managing their money, ensuring they can handle the financial commitment. Tesco spokesman Allan Burns said the price for treating an uninsured dog can be “hefty”, and the company is publicising its offer of a 20 per cent discount to customers who buy their pet insurance online. A further ten per cent discount will be given to customers buying over the phone. According to Tesco, the offer could help the estimated 38 per cent of pet owners who say they could not afford a visit to the vets for their animal. ...
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Christmas Spending ‘Could Cause Record Bankruptcies’
Posted 2008-01-2
Huge spending over Christmas could leave 130,000 people facing bankruptcy this year, say accountants KPMG. Higher mortgage payments and big credit card bills are also thought to be causing the predicted total, which stood at just below 110,000 in...
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Boom in Northern Ireland House Prices Cooling
Posted 2007-12-22
A year of massive growth for house prices in Northern Ireland appears to be cooling off, experts say. The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said sales will pick up in 2008, but warned sellers will have to be more realistic about their house prices. Tom McClelland, housing spokesman for RICS Northern Ireland, said: “The market changed considerably during the course of 2007 and the new reality is a market where agents have to work harder to achieve sales and sellers have to be more realistic.” He also said first time buyers “could benefit from the change in the market” as there is “less competition for properties in the sector of the market within their price range.” At the end of 2007 Northern Ireland had the fastest average house price growth in the UK at a massive £150 a day, or 24.2 per cent. ...