There has been some good news recently with regard to death rates from breast cancer; a report has revealed that the death rates from this disease in the UK have fallen faster than any other major European country. The British…
Try a Different Method of ‘Saving’
At the end of each month, if we’re lucky, some of us will have had more money go into our bank account than has gone out. It’s good to have extra cash in case of an emergency, but once we…
Choosing a Mortgage with Options
When we are looking for a mortgage, the main things we usually look for are the interest rate, how long the interest rate will remain as it is, and how much we have to pay in setup fees. These aren’t…
Certainty In an Uncertain World
Last week the Bank of England held the base rate at 0.5% for a record 19 months. The base rate we currently enjoy is the lowest rate we have had for over three hundred years. Unfortunately all good things have…
Capital Gains Pain
If the first budget from the new government goes ahead as it has been trailed, it could have a profound effect on the buy to let market. It looks possible that the capital gains tax could be increased from 18%…
Buy Something A Little Different This Christmas
Even though decorations have been up around Morecambe and Lancaster since late October, now is about the time of year when the rest of us will be looking forward to Christmas. Like most people I do enjoy the atmosphere around…
Building Societies
Recently I managed to arrange a mortgage with a Building Society that I was unable to place with any other lender including the High Street Banks. The reason for the bank’s reluctance to lend was due to a blemish on…
Beware of the Headline Rates and Offers
Everyday we see advertisements from companies, telling us why we should spend our money with them instead of their competitors. Marketing experts have come up with lots of different ways to sell yourselves and make you want to buy their…
Beat the Bank, or we’ll give you £100
Lately we have noticed that banks seem to be charging excessive premiums for life insurance. The amount that banks are charging could be a couple of pounds more, or sometimes can even be over £10 or £15 more than what…
100% Mortgages 100% Loans to buy a home
It has been some time now since we saw the last of the 100% (Or sometimes even 125%) mortgages. With the realisation that property prices won’t keep going up forever, lenders have become wary of letting us buy a home…