| Figures released from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) have shown that 11,054 homes were repossessed between April and June of this year, which when compared with the same period in 2007 shows a 71% increase. The FSA have also shown that the number of people falling behind with their mortgage repayments for at least three months has been rising steadily for more than a year. If you are struggling to pay your monthly mortgage repayments each month, or are fearful of repossession, contact your lender as soon as possible and seek free and independent advice from a charity such as Shelter or the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS). Let’s now review the top money stories of the past week commencing the 27th October 2008. More of us are dissatisfied with energy firms – Recent research from the price comparison site Uswitch has revealed that this year has seen UK customers becoming more dissatisfied with their energy provider. The survey questioned 5,465 customers are found that 41% of customers are unhappy with their provider, compared with 33% last year and less than half of those questioned said that they thought energy companies offered value for money. However the results of this survey have been questioned by the Energy Retail Association who represent the big six energy suppliers in the UK, as they say the number of official complaints has actually fallen. One explanation for the discrepancy in these results could be that although customers are satisfied with the service they receive from their energy provider, they are dissatisfied with the sharp rise in the price of gas and electricity, which on average this year has risen 38%. As we head into winter, if you are feeling worried about the cost of gas and electricity it can be worthwhile checking out sites such as Uswitch to see if you can save money by switching providers. Mortgage lending rose in September – Figures from the Bank of England have shown that 33,000 home loans were approved in September which marks the first time that mortgages approved for house purchases have risen in a year. Although mortgage lending is still low, the approval of an extra 1,000 home loans shows that you still can get a mortgage, it is just much more difficult than it was a few years ago. One reason that could explain the rise in the number of mortgages approved is that the government slashed stamp duty on properties under £175,000 at the start of September. Credit card borrowing rises –The amount that we borrow on credit cards has risen for the third month in a row according to Bank of England. The amount owed on credit cards has risen by £1.1bn to reach £55.7bn. Credit cards are not necessarily bad, but anyone with a card should always try to pay off more than their minimum balance each month. Check out the MoneyBasics Credit Card Calculator to see how long it will take you to clear your balance if you only pay the minimum repayments. House prices fall in October –The latest figures from the Nationwide Building Society have shown that house prices continued to fall in October, as they dropped by a further 1.4%, which brings the annual fall in house prices to 14.6%. Fionnuala Earley the Nationwide’s chief economist says that homes are now taking 60% longer to sell than a year ago with the average house priced at £158,872, which is almost £30,000 less than a year ago. The continued fall in house prices has brought them to their lowest level since 1974, yet Nationwide predict that prices will fall by a further 1.4% by the end of this year. Job cuts likely – A survey conducted by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and consultants at KPMG has said that more than a quarter of employers are preparing to make workers redundant in the next 12 months. The survey looked at more than 700 employers in the private, public and voluntary sectors and found that 26% had “contingency plans to make new or further redundancies.” It is thought that older workers might feel the brunt of the job cuts as almost 1 in 5 said that they would be enforcing more rigorously rules that allow them to make over 65s redundant without having business reasons for doing so. If you are worried about losing your job, check out the “When Things Go Wrong” section of MoneyBasics, for advice on what to do, should the worst happen. Prepared for Moneybasics by Joanna Parsley, Advocacy Officer (Credit Action). |
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