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Finance News

December - A Base Rate Cut to 5.5% should help many people in hte run up to Christmas. Those with Base Rate Trackers should see an immediate change in their mortgages.

November - An Experian report indicates that house prices could drop over half the country over the next 18 months. Difficulties in gaining a mortgage offer and potential hice price drops are putting people off buying.

October - Britain faces it's first recession for 16 years, warn experts. Buy-To-let investors and first time buyers are particularly exposed to the growing economic problems.

October - In the wake of the Northern Rock crisis the Government has promised savers it will protect the first £35,000 of their savings, with further changes next year potentially protecting up to £100,000.

October - House prices fell by 0.6% in September, following the Northern Rock crisis and the recent interest rate rises.

Loans

Loans are available for many purposes and in many different formats. If you are a home-owner looking to borrow a lot of money over a long term, then it might be worth looking at a secured loan.

If you aren't a homeowner, or are just looking to borrow a small amount or borrowing over a short term, then lenders might prefer to offer you an unsecured loan.

A specialist loan, such as a car loan might appeal at first, but remember to compare the loan against a normal unsecured loan.

If you are struggling to keep up with payments on loans, credit cards and store cards, then a debt consolidation loan might help, but you should take advice first. Speaking to a debt advisor could be a good start.

Whatever type of loan you are offered, don't allow pushy sales people to confuse you with figures. APRs (interest rates) can be expressed in different ways. Interest amounts can be calculated daily, monthly or even just at the start of the loan (meaning that early repayments DON'T save you interest).

Whatever you chose, remember to take independent financial advice and to look at how much the total repayments will be.