The Older Generation Lead the Way in Savings
They say that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Yet, in an age of digital technology and mobile apps, the older generation are still able to teach the young one of the most fundamental financial tricks: saving.
Stats from Halifax’s ISA report shows a striking correlation between age and average ISA savings. The average ISA balance stands at roughly £8,500.
The results show a remarkable contrast in the amounts that different age groups hold in their ISAs.
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Next years students advised to use gap year to save
With the massive increases in some university fees that are being introduced next year, it is more necessary than ever that students make the most of their money to stop themselves coming out with massive debts.
One spokeswoman for online resource Moneyfacts, believes that those wanting to go on to higher education should consider taking a year out in order to save money in ISAs. She went on to say that, where possible, students should priorities building up savings accounts before embarking on their degree course.
Currently, most British students will be getting prepared to start the 2011/12 academic year which starts in September, and the majority of these will more often than not plan on getting through their time at university on their student loans and in some cases an overdrafts on student accounts.
This can be very hard to do with tuition fees now averaging at the top £9,000 on top of the need to pay for groceries and utilities.
However, taking the advice of the Moneyfacts experts, by planning ahead and saving up for a couple of months prior to your course beginning, students can provide themselves with a strong financial safety net that could help them to avoid serious financial debt on completing their course.
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Tips to lower your car insurance premium
Choosing the right car insurance policy can be both demanding and costly, but by following some simple steps, you could cut the cost of your cover and find new ways to make the most of your car insurance.
I will begin by stressing that you should never lie on your insurance application to any of the car insurance companies. This would cause your policy to be invalid and could leave you with a hefty bill if you are involved in an accident.
And think twice about the level of insurance you plan to take out. If you require car accident whiplash compensation you will need to make sure your policy covers this.
1. Choosing your car
All cars are assigned an insurance group from 1 to 50 which affects the cost of insuring them, with 50 being the most expensive group. These groups take a number of factors into consideration, including engine size, the value of the car , security etc.
Before you decide which car to buy, look into which insurance group it would fall into and get a quote. Your dream car may come with hidden costs, so consider all of your options.
2. Choosing your level of cover Read more >>
House prices continue to fall
According to the latest Land Registry figures – which covers all completed sales in England and Wales, house prices are continuing to fall.
The survey showed the average house price fell by 1.1% in March to £160,996 - 2.3% lower than figures taken from last year.
However, data from Nationwide painted a different picture, suggesting prices had remained “fairly static” since the end of 2010.
Meanwhile, the Bank of England’s mortgage approval figures indicate that property sales could increase. House prices have fallen every month since August 2010 apart from in January, after a slight increase was recorded.
Many home owners looking to sell have seen an influx of cash buyers – an attractive breed of buyers that offer an attractive option for sellers.
This new trend appears to be lead by the older generation who are looking to downsize and pocket the difference from previous purchases during the boom times.
One home buyer – Terry White, explained that this payment method ‘reduces hassle’ and offers ‘a good place for investment’.
“Once my children grew up and moved out, I was left with a 4 bedroom house with a large summerhouse in a sought after part of London,”
“I decided that it was time to move on – if I sell my house, I could invest in other properties.”, said Mr White.
“By offering cash I was able to simplify things, as I was not relying on funding to purchase a new property, making me more attractive to sellers.” Read more >>
Savers must stay on top of their savings
Savers should check the interest rate paid on their Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) to avoid being caught out by bonus introductory offers.
Generally speaking, the best ISA rates available on today’s savings market come with a catch – the high rates on offer are likely to fall after 12 months.
This is due to providers offering bonus rates in order to attract more custom. However, once the bonus rate expires, the level of interest paid on your savings is likely to fall significantly, leaving you earning less than you could be elsewhere.
A report from the Office of Fair Trading found that just 11% of savers that hold an ISA will switch to a new provider each year.
Savings plan Read more >>
Fixed Rate Bonds offering the highest rates
Any savers prepared to lock their savings away for an extended period of time have the potential to earn the best interest rates on the savings market, according to the financial information company Moneyfacts.
The firm has revealed that interest rates paid on fixed rate bonds with relatively short fixed terms have been rising since last August.
However, despite increasing rates savers are still worse off than they have been in recent years as decent returns are still had to come by due to record lows to the Bank of England base rate which has been sat at 0.5% since March 2009.
The encouraging movement suggests the Bank rate will rise in the coming months which would be passed on to savers through improved returns on savings accounts.
According to Moneyfacts, savers can expect to lock in on a rate of 2.85% with the average one-year fixed rate bond which marks the highest levels in over a year. Read more >>
Junior ISA to offer tax-free savings
The replacement to the Child Trust Fund – announced at the end of last year, will be launched on 1 November 2011.
According to the government, the tax-free Junior ISA will allow parents to make contributions of up to £3,000 per year into these savings accounts – substantially higher than the recently scrapped Child Trust Fund which allowed just £1,200 of deposits per year.
In last year’s May Budget we leaned that Labour’s Child Trust Fund was to be axed, which soon became a highly controversial and high profile spending cut enforced by the coalition government. Read more >>
Share Dealing Accounts
Share Dealing Accounts
Share dealing accounts offer an effective tool to manage your stocks and shares from one easy-to-access place, making it simple to track the progress of your investments giving you the potential for earning money online from the comfort of your own home.
With a share dealing account you can get access to shares listed not just on UK markets, but also on international stock exchanges.
These account can not only be used to buy and sell shares, but also provide the option of trading in many other types of investment including Funds (such as OEICS and Unit Trusts), Corporate Bonds, Investment Trusts and Gilts, helping you to make the most of the stock markets. Read more >>
Last chance to top up this year’s ISA
Topping up your ISA
With this years tax year ending on Tuesday (5 April), savers have been reminded that they have until this date to use up the remainder of their tax free ISA allowance – or they will lose it.
However, as tempting as it is to leave this until the last minute it is not advisable, as many banks offering the best ISA rates will soon run out of budget and be forced to pull these high paying accounts before the deadline.
All savers in the UK currently have an annual tax free savings break of £10,200, half of which can be set aside into cash ISA and the rest (or up to the full £10,200) into investment ISAs. Read more >>
2012 Olympic Games fans ‘must use Visa to buy tickets’
Sports fans hoping to buy tickets for the London Olympic and Paralympic Games next year will be unable to complete the purchase unless they use a Visa card.
This restriction has been enforced as a result of an exclusive deal made between Visa and the Olympic organisers, which will see the estimated 10 million ticket sales go through the credit card payment system.
The official London 2012 ticket site states: “In recognition of Visa’s support of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, London 2012 is proud to accept only Visa payment cards (debit, credit and prepaid), along with cash and cheques. Sponsor support is crucial to the staging of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games and the operation of organisations throughout the Olympic Movement. Read more >>