March 2011
Mortgage debt: forbearance `may lead to future problems`
29 March 2011
Leniency from mortgage lenders over homeowners` ability to meet their payments is potentially storing up problems for the financial system, according to financial analyst Moody`s. The Telegraph reports.
With many homeowners struggling in recent years, mortgage lenders have been
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Energy bills `could rise due to carbon floor price`
28 March 2011
Household energy bills could increase as a result of the `carbon floor price` tax announced at this year`s Budget, it has been claimed.
The carbon floor price is the minimum amount of tax that users of fossil fuels
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Budget: pensioners amongst hardest hit
25 March 2011
Following this year`s Budget, it has been revealed that people who have saved hard during their working lives and have entered retirement will be among the hardest hit, The Telegraph reports.
With low interest rates and inflation eating away
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Budget today: some good news
23 March 2011
Today`s Budget is expected to contain some good news as well as bad. The Chancellor, George Osborne, won`t actually deliver the Budget until this afternoon, but that doesn`t mean it`s all kept secret up until then.
One of the
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FSA warns over mortgage debt levels
22 March 2011
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has warned that many homeowners are risking financial problems in the future by borrowing too much on their mortgage.
The watchdog said there are a large number of homeowners vulnerable to future interest
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Family financial wellbeing `at a two-year low`
21 March 2011
UK households saw the steepest monthly drop in their financial wellbeing for two years, the latest Markit Household Finance Index (HFI) has shown.
The index fell to 35.2 points in March, down from 35.6 in February. Average household
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Debt warning as sixteen million Brits face pay freeze
21 March 2011
A new study by uSwitch has found that sixteen million Britons are facing a pay freeze this year amid widespread fears over job security and low levels of savings to fall back on, The Telegraph reports.
Just 10% of
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Graduates could repay double the debt they take on
17 March 2011
Figures calculated for the BBC* have suggested that under the new tuition fees system in England, some graduates could end up repaying double the amount of debt they take on through student loans.
The figures show that a student
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Energy Debt Advice service announced
16 March 2011
With so many households in debt to their energy supplier, one of the `big six` energy suppliers, EDF Energy, has decided to fund a new Energy Debt Advice service.
It`s a new nationwide partnership with Citizens Advice, offering customers
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Nearly 10,000 HRMC tax debts cancelled
15 March 2011
Almost a quarter (23%) of people who appealed against last year`s demands for repayment of income tax debts have had those debts cancelled, The Telegraph reports.
Last year, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) sent letters to around 1.4 million
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Half `think ISA savers would lose their money if provider went bust`
14 March 2011
Just 49% of respondents to a recent survey for the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) were aware that cash ISA savers would get their money back if their ISA provider went bust.
38% of respondents said that they "don`t
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US: household debt at lowest level in 6 years
11 March 2011
Last year, according to figures from the Federal Reserve, total U.S. household debt (including mortgages and credit cards) fell to its lowest level since the final quarter of 2004, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The fall in 2010 (to
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Five million households in debt to their energy supplier
10 March 2011
Research by uSwitch has found that almost five million British households are in debt to their energy supplier, collectively owing £624m.
The average amount of energy debt per household now stands at £126. And while this figure is lower
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Debt `a growing issue` for people over 55
9 March 2011
Long-term debt is a `growing issue` among people aged 55 or older, Aviva reports.
The company`s fifth Real Retirement Report shows that many older people are finding it very hard to repay their debts. In all, 23% don`t expect
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One in five car buyers `will take on debt`
8 March 2011
Just under one in five people (19%) looking to buy a car in the next six months plans to take on a loan to fund some or all of the cost, research by Sainsbury`s Finance has found.
Personal loans
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Credit card debt `will last through 2011 for one in five`
7 March 2011
One in five consumers (22%) will owe money on a credit card for the duration of 2011, research by comparison site Gocompare.com has found.
Furthermore, 7% of consumers will still be repaying debts incurred over Christmas last year
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Taking on credit card debt `doesn`t count as spending`
4 March 2011
A survey conducted by the Social Market Foundation for Barclays indicates that a third of young adults in the UK believe buying something on a credit card `doesn`t count as spending money`, even though it means they`re taking on debt,
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Debt defaults exceed £1bn
3 March 2011
Official figures from the Bank of England (BoE) have revealed that credit card debt write-offs exceeded £1bn during the final quarter of 2010, The Telegraph reports.
Banks wrote off a total of £1.18bn worth of credit card debt during
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A look at store card debt
2 March 2011
Across the UK, there are almost 13 million store cards in circulation. To some, they`re a useful way of borrowing; to others, they`re an example of expensive debt that`s better avoided.
An article on thisismoney.co.uk looks at a few
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Many homeowners `find it harder to repay mortgage debt`
1 March 2011
Many homeowners say their mortgage payments are less affordable than a year ago, according to recent research by Barclays.
Of these, 36% say it`s because their salary is lower, while 29% cite higher outgoings as a cause of their
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