A survey conducted by the homelessness charity St Mungo’s has revealed some very interesting results. Of the 2, 014 adults it surveyed, 18% said they feared becoming homeless and 67% said that they had reduced their spending in recent months. Even more telling is that St Mungo’s discovered that 93% of people using its hostels in London became homeless in part due to financial pressures. These figures show how the “credit crunch” which was once considered by many people to only effect big banks, is now having a much more visible impact on the everyday lives of many Britons. If you are worried about the prospect of losing your home it is vital that you take action and seek advice. Call the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) on 0800 138 1111 for free, independent advice.

Let’s now review the top money stories of the past week commencing the 10th November 2008.

Tuesday 11th November

Lack of mortgages in the housing market - The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has pinpointed the lack of available mortgages in the housing market as a reason for the fall in housing sales. Ian Perry, a spokesperson for Rics said that “the general lack of mortgage finance remains a major blockage in the housing market for a large majority of would-be buyers”. Rics figures have shown that the number of house sales in the UK has fallen to a 30-year low over the past three months. The fall in interest rates however might help to encourage buyers back into the market as mortgage deals could become more attainable.

Help for small business owners - The past few months have been extremely difficult for many small businesses as they have found it increasingly hard to obtain credit and have experienced their overdrafts being reduced. A survey carried out by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) found that 31% of responding firms said that the cost of their existing finance has increased in the past two months. These difficult times have led David Frost, the director-general of the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) to say that if these conditions continue many UK businesses could go bankrupt by Christmas. However, the government announced today that it will create a new panel to monitor how much banks are lending to small businesses. This is a step forward to try and ease the squeeze that many small businesses are feeling. If you are feeling worried about the future of your business then Money Advice Trust have a dedicated free phone helpline on 0800 197 6026 that provides free, independent advice for small business owners.

Wednesday 12th November

Unemployment reaches 11-year high - The latest figures released from The Office for National Statistics have shown that unemployment in the three months to September rose by 140,000 to reach 1.82 million. There has also been an increase in the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance, which in October rose by 36,500 to 980,900, the biggest monthly rise since December 1992. This was the ninth consecutive month that the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance increased, which has meant that the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance is 154,800 higher than a year ago. These figures have come in a week when several companies have announced big job cuts. If you are worried about being made unemployed Moneybasics has some useful advice.

Oil price falls to new lows - The price of brent crude oil fell to new lows today as it dropped by $3.34 to reach $52.37 a barrel. This massive fall in the price represents a 60% fall since peaking at $147.27 a barrel in July this year. This fall in the price of oil will increase the pressure on utility companies to reduce the amounts they charge customers.

UK is “probably in recession” - The governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, said today that he thinks the UK entered into recession in the middle of 2008 and that “we are probably in recession now”. The Bank’s quarterly inflation report showed the economic landscape has changed considerably since August and now forecasts that the UK economy could shrink by 2% in 2009, which is worse than its previous forecast.

Friday 14th November

Eurozone officially in recession - Figures from the EU have shown that in the third quarter of this year the economy shrank by 0.2% across the 15 member states of the Eurozone. The Eurozone also experienced a 0.2% contraction between April-June of this year (Quarter 2) so this negative growth puts the Eurozone into recession, which is defined as two quarters of negative growth.

Increase in number of people pursuing bankruptcy - Recent figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 13,653 people filed for bankruptcy between July and September this year, which marks an increase of 7% when compared with the same period last year. The increase in this figure has been blamed on rising unemployment, tighter credit conditions and more people becoming trapped in negative equity. Bankruptcy is an option to you if you are burdened by high levels of debt; however it is not something that should be entered into lightly. Get free, independent advice from charities such as the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) on 0800 138 1111 before you take action.

Prepared for Moneybasics by Joanna Parsley, Advocacy Officer (Credit Action).