Blog – Expert Opinion

Around an extra 100,000 homeowners are benefitting from the lowest interest rates in history, as their mortgage debt management is eased following the end of a fixed-rate term. According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), 42% of existing mortgage-holders are still enjoying a fixed rate deal. For those whose introductory rate has come to [...]

There may be a few more people who leave behind a death bed full of debt problems, as the average cost of dying soars to over £7000. According to a recent survey, the cost of an average death has risen to £7,098 this year and is anticipated to rise again over the next five years [...]

According to figures released by the Bank of England, UK citizens owe around £233 billion on overdrafts, personal loans and credit card debt. Debt advice agencies are struggling to cope with the demand, for their services, from hard up consumers. Since the start of the credit crunch, and the recession that followed, many people have [...]

The number of people in Britain who may need to seek debt advice could increase, following research that reveals their inability to understand household bills. According to a report by comparison website uSwitch.com, only one in seven people (14%) could successfully add up a bill from an energy company, despite being allowed the use of [...]

Handouts to children have meant that around 1.3 million pensioners are having to cope with debt management issues, as they are still paying off their mortgages and credit card debts. As increasing numbers of pensioners are forced to give handouts to their adult children, one in six pensioners still finds themselves trying to get out [...]

Many homeowners with “interest-only” mortgages are facing debt management worries, according to the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Figures from the FSA show that many of the four million interest-only mortgage holders haven’t made sufficient provisions to repay the amount of their capital sum once the loan expires, and run the risk of developing serious debt [...]

In the UK there are approximately 150,000 people with a secured loan (often called homeowner loans or second-charge loans), but these have been under fire recently and have been blamed for causing debt management issues. These type of loans exist alongside your current mortgage but they are also secured against your house. This means that [...]

Shoppers spending on their plastic are being trapped by the companies that take money from their cards each month, adding to the overall credit card debt owed. The problem starts when companies set up ongoing payments that allow them to dictate the ongoing payments taken from the card, but which aren’t stopped when the customer [...]

Calls to regulate the practices of doorstep lenders have been made after research by charity Barnardo’s found that vulnerable families suffered from ongoing debt management issues after being targeted. They call for stricter regulations to curb “extortionate” interest rates and prevent vulnerable families from being targeted by companies. Following its report Counting on Credit, the [...]

Council tax bills are set to increase next year to a record £1,500, causing widespread concern over household debt management issues. Over the eleven years that the Labour government have been in power, council tax bills have more than doubled from an average of just £688 – to a whopping £1,500. This has sparked furious [...]