By cashking in Debt Advice on May 23 2008
Get debt advice now. Anyone who has serious debts that are unsecured should really get some professional help and advice before risking a bankruptcy. An IVA can be a good solution. Ideally this should be from an organisation such as the Citizen’s Advice Bureau or the Debt Helpline, which offer impartial advice on managing finances and what to do. They do not charge any fees.
It is best to avoid companies that are not well known and who may contact people via phone, email or post, offering to reduce debts to a more manageable level by taking on another loan. Some people who are desperate may turn to these types of companies when they are most vulnerable.
Legitimate debt help will assist those in debt to make a budget of essential outgoings and look at where any savings can be made, as well as advising on cutting back on spending and making loan and credit card payments at a higher amount than the minimum to avoid interest mounting up.
By cashking in Debt Advice, Debt Consolidation on May 6 2008
It is so easy to get into debt, but not as easy to get out of debt. The first thing you need to do is set a realistic household budget.
List all things you have to spend money on i.e. gas, electric, mortgage, then list all the things you want to spend money on. The goal is to separate between ‘Need’ and ‘Want’ for example you ‘need’ to eat or you ‘want’ that new CD. The idea is to look at your outgoings and see where you can make cut backs, as in setting yourself a shopping budget for food.
Some examples of how to save money on groceries, household bills:
1. Ask your supermarket what time they mark down their products, and purchase these when they are cheaper.
2. Grow your own vegetables and fruit - a lot cheaper than buying.
3. Use price comparison sites to check you are not paying too much for your gas, electric or mortgage.
4. Check with your energy supplier to see if you have an economy setting, do your washing etc in the evening as it is cheaper.
5. Take a shower instead of a bath, it’s cheaper.
6. Do you really need the heating on? Can you just put on another layer of clothing?
7. Hang clothes to dry on a rainy day indoors over the bath or use a clothes airer, it’s cheaper than the tumble dryer or radiators.
8. Use natural products for cleaning its cheaper and better for your health!! i.e. vinegar for cleaning windows.
Overall just think about ways to do things on the cheap, research and you will save money and get out of debt. Think pennies make pounds and pounds make rich men.
By moneyhungry in Uncategorized on May 1 2008
I think this actual depends on the type of student loan you have for example, there are: Tuition fee loans, maintenance loans, grants, and bursaries.
Many of these loans are joined together for instance you will get part tuition loan and past maintenance loan; in other words your tuition fee is paid or part paid and you may also be eligible for a loan to cover living expenses. These loans however do have to be paid back, but usually not until you actually start work, and then they are paid back in instalments. The down side of this is it could take a very long time to pay back the loan and you do have to pay interest on them.
Grants and bursaries on the other hand tend to be given to a select few occupations, such as teachers and nurses, these do not have to be paid back, I do believe this is slightly unfair as in many ways it does push people into these professions.
It is also important to remember you have to be in full time education to apply for any of the above loans or grants, unfortunately.
By cashking in Uncategorized on April 29 2008
Over the last twenty years, a degree has changed from being something available to the most intelligent, into being a low-grade qualification available to almost all. One result of this has been the devaluing of the degree’s status, whilst another has been the inability of the economy to provide free tuition to those studying as undergraduates. Making debts a routine and savings almost impossible.
The introduction of the student loan has meant that the intellectual elite of the country are brought to see debt as a necessary or even desirable correlate of progress. Small wonder that servicing the average household debt now accounts for 10% of household income.
Add to this a situation where student loans are incompetently administered, many students find it difficult to get a first post-graduation job, and education is no longer available to all due to inability to pay. If the government had meant to make education more inaccessible, they could not have done better!
By doughmaster in Student Loans on April 28 2008
Student loans are the cheapest loan youll ever get. The interest charged is the rate of inflation which means, while there is interest on them, its so low that what you pay back is the same VALUE (in terms of what you could buy with the money on that particular day) as when you took it out. No other loan is like this.
Thats why Id say take one even if you dont need it. If you dont want to use it you can put the money in a high interest savings account and end up making more in interest than the interest youre accruing on the loan! A lot of people dont know this but having a student loan wont affect your credit score and therefore your ability to get a mortgage. Its also paid straight out of your salary only once youre earning over the threshold, so if you arent earning enough you dont need to pay, and because it comes out of your pay before you even get it you wont notice the repayments anyway.
By moneyhungry in Credit Cards on April 25 2008
When i didn’t have one a credit cards and looked around that every friend of mine got atleast one i got curious and finally managed one.And after i have one i really didn’t need to use this or you can say didn’t find a proper way to use this and told myself off for having this.But down the line after 3 years wow never find anything else life saving like this.
That simple card end up having a lumpsum balance on it when i end up with unemployment.This unemployment of mine lasted 5 months yes 5 months.And i know whats it likes endup without any money.And you survive this period of time totally on credit.I really dont know what i would have done if didnt have this so called credit card.
Now this days the good thing about them is they offer 0% on balance transfer which is fantastic to me.And i found out that for that limited period it is cheaper than having a Loan.I had 2k balance on one card on which i was struggling with the interest rates.Then friend of mine suggested Balance transfer and now i am relaxed.Not extra stress for 12 months.Thanks to Balance transfer and friend.
Finally i want to say that in emergency its awesome.I am going to state my last instance when i was away from 3 days to get paid from my job and i also had to pay for my exam fees because that was the last date.Bingo my credit card again been a life saver.Thanks to my credit card.Your friend can turn you down for borrowings but not your credit card though they charge interest on it but still thats the natural rule of the world which works like give and take.
By moneyhungry in Credit Cards on April 23 2008
Credit cards are a reality of modern living. Most of us have at least one and, used properly they can help us control our finances efficiently.
When you choose a credit card you need to have decided how you intend to use it. Are you looking for cheap short-term credit? Then a 0% balance transfer card will suit you best. Do you pay off your card in full each month? In that case a card with an added bonus like airmiles or cashback will benefit you most.
There are many cards out there, it’s just a matter of getting the right one to suit you.
I always pay my card off in full every month. The APR is therefore of limited concern to me. I like the fact that I don’t need to carry much money with me as my card is accepted almosty everywhere. I also take my credit card on holiday with me as a back-up in case I overspend or need emergency funds.
I enjoy the fact that I get up to 6 weeks credit with my card without it costing me a penny and that they pay me cashback for using it. Now that’s what I call a good deal.
By cashking in Credit Cards on April 22 2008
Provided that you have good credit you should be able to choose the most best card available. The main factor many people look for is a competitive rate of APR, but there are a number of other important considerations. The best thing to do is ensure that you repay your outstanding balance in full as that way you won’t be paying just interest.
If you spend thousands of pounds every year, why not seek out a cash back card? You could receive 1 - 2% of your total expenditure as a bonus every 12 months? Other card providers offer discounts off associated products that their subidiary companies offer.
What are you using your card for? If you are using your card for online gambling it is worth checking with the card provider whether they will be categorising the money you spend as a cash advance. This can result in numerous additional charges being applied to your balance each month.
It isn’t as simple as just seeking the best APR. Ask yourself what you need the card for and what your activities are likely to be before proceeding.
By doughmaster in About IVA, Car Loan on April 18 2008
An IVA is a fantastic way to pay off your debt. Usually you need to owe in excess of £10,000 and not be able to afford your minimum payment every month. What an IVA is is that it takes into account all your incomings and your outgoings (including money for you to have a social life!) and whatever is left is paid to an organisation who specialise in this. The payment is taken every month from your bank account by direct debit and is then split between all your creditors.
The adverts that stipulate you can write off so much of your debt don’t tell you that individual circumstances are taken into consideration and that usually your debt must be completely unmanageable before they will inform you of this.
In my opinion, an IVA is not too good to be true. Yes it takes longer to pay off your debt, yes it shows up on your credit file and yes it can cause you problems in obtaining credit for up to 5 years after you have completed it. IVAs however, are the solution for many people who have got into a lot of debt and simply cannot get out of it any other way. These people are often at breaking point and at the end of their financial tether, an IVA helps them sleep at night knowing they wont have to answer the phone to creditors and be ready with an excuse for why their payment date has been missed or expect a ccj in the near future!
If you feel an iva is your only solution then i say go for it! They are set up free of charge and you are still committing to paying off your debt but at an amount that suits you rather than one which is set by your creditors. Many people have one of these plans in place and i am yet to meet one who has regretted it.
By doughmaster in About IVA, Bankruptcy, Debt Consolidation, Uncategorized on April 18 2008
If you are struggling with debt and don’t know what to do, an IVA can help, but the most important thing to do is get some good advice.
An IVA Individual Voluntary Arrangement is a way of negotiating with your creditors a fair and affordable amount of money to pay to them over a fixed period of time (usually 5 years).
The benefits of an IVA is that it is ‘affordable’, meaning that your finances are made manageable, the downfall of this is that you have to have a high enough income to be able to offer a ‘fair’ amount to the creditors. If you cannot your IVA offer may be refused. Another benefit is that IVA’s usually only last 5 years, so after 5 years your debts are resolved even though they will not have been fully settled.
One of the downfalls of going down the IVA route is that at any time you default in your IVA payments, any creditor can apply to make you bankrupt. So to begin an IVA you must be sure you can afford to repay.
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