Finance Today

August 25th, 2011 admin_my_finance_guide No Comments »

Today people watch the advertisments on television and it creates a general dissatisfaction with what they already have. They want new and they want it now. Being able to borrow some or even all of the money is the answer. Restrictions on the percentage you can borrow, for example a car purchase, have been gradually reduced.

Back in the 70′s , the use of credit cards began to take hold. As I remember Barclaycard were the first to appear back in the 1960s. Whilst not actually being a loan, it did mean that if you could not afford to pay the entire amount of credit at the end of the month, you could postpone making the full payment over several months by just paying a minimum amount.

There was also the fact that people felt uncomfortable owing money. It was not how their parents or granparents had lived. It took a while to get used to their new found debt but as their relatives and friends fell into the same “trap”, it no longer felt odd. It could be talked about and discussed, not such a taboo subject.

Every avenue that the lending companies could make money from was persued, effectively milking the system, with no regards for the consequences.

Now it’s not uncommon for students to leave University with not just a degree, but unfortunately laden with debt of somewhere around £25000, which they will have incurred during their college or university education.

The ex student is then quite used to living in debt and having left University (where most if not all of their friends will also have

similar debts), they carry on in life amassing more loans and greater debts. Good news for the banks.

The crunch comes when the debtor can’t afford to continue with the payments, so they lose their house or their car is repossessed.

Rest assured that the lending companies will have a contingency plan now that the “bad times” have come along. They can afford to have some loans go bad. The good ones will well support these. The banks will never lose out.

Financial Stability

August 25th, 2011 admin_my_finance_guide No Comments »

It is so important to ensure some sort of financial stability.

It does not need to be a strict finacial budget, but once you have worked a budgeting scheme out, it needs to be adhered to for as long as possible.

Long term, imposing financial measures to ensure that your money works more efficiently.

Coupled to money management, financial budgeting is a responsibility that we should all partake in.

You can keep your finances on an even keel making your money work harder and go further.

Getting into debt is far too easy and getting out of it, debt that is, is like trying to lose weight, near impossible. Once you have got it it is so hard to get out of it, if not impossible.

In today’s fast living fast moving society, offers of loans and credit are absolutely everywhere you look.

They encourage you to buy that item you have always wanted, immediately, rather than saving and waiting for tomorrow, throwing financial budgeting out of the window.

My own recollection is from my childhood, when in the 1960s it was virtually unknown to be in debt. People at that time generally rented their homes and lived week to week on their hard earned weekly salary or other income.

There were home owners with mortgages, but in those days these were few and far between.

Society was not suited to buying without paying for it by using borrowed money. If there were loans, they would be very short term, maybe for a special event or ocsassion, such as Christmas or a holiday.

Following on from the Second World War and the hardship that it created with subsequent rationing, not only during the war years, but in some countries well after the war, certainly into the 1950s, people lived frugally. They were happy, but people generally preferred to spend what they earned as they earned.

Banks and other lending organisations recognised that there was tremendous potential to make a great deal of money by enticing clients to borrow money to buy that dreamt of item. Live for today, forget about tomorrow. Big time credit was born.

Television and other media advertising sources were also responsible for this vast credit boom.

Finance Savings

August 25th, 2011 admin_my_finance_guide No Comments »

If you have a family, and you are experiencing financial problems, then ultimately everyone in the family should contribute. No one person should take on the total responsibility for the restructuring the family finances and be faced with having the worrying burden of doing all the work alone.

Make sure that your spouse and children fully understand that the family is having some financial problems and together they must pull together and take a series of steps that will get the finances back on track. It is necessary to make sure that all your money is put to good use, with no waste. It is too difficult to come by so why throw it away?

When finances are squeezed due to one reason or another it is vital that every way to save money is rigorously investigated.

Draw up a strict budget and relentlessly stick to it like glue. That includes a weekly or even daily check of your spending, ardently monitoring figures and regular outgoings, so you know exactly what the money is being spent on.

Review all your monthly outgoings. If there is a possibility of somehow reducing payments, without incurring financial penalties, investigate them. Most financial organisations will at least listen, so consider contacting them.

Put all your loans in one basket, so to say, by consolidating them. The repayments on several smaller loans can often be reduced significantly by consolidating them into one big loan. This will help to reduce repayments, freeing up a tidy sum that could be spent more usefully.

Do not buy impulsively. When you see something that you had not planned to buy, avoid doing so. Think it through thoroughly. Do not be pressurised into buying by pushy salespersons.

Adjust your medical insurance to the lowest possible level, as long as there is adequate Buy something only if you can afford it at the time. Do not take risks by putting off loan reapyments, hoping to repay them some time in the future.

Your ability to pay then may be worse than the present time. Tomorrow comes round fast nowadays. cover should the worst happen.

Avoid high rents and real estate payments. Consider refinancing your home if payments are difficult to meet.

Avoid loans or credit from a third party. The commitments are as binding as if you were the borrower in the event of default by the holder.

Financial Savings

August 25th, 2011 admin_my_finance_guide No Comments »

Whilst I would not recommend wasting money on frivolous purchases, I do recommend that you buy a newly introduced electrical gadget that lets you know as to how much electricity you are using on a particular appliance.

Available from DIY stores and electrical retailers, you just plug this clever meter in and watch to see what the electrical consumption is of your TV or computer or whatever. When you realise how much it costs to run some of today’s gadgets you’ll be more cost conscious and save money on your electricity bill.

Do not make high-risk investments. Be conservative and opt for certificates of deposits, money market securities, and so on.
Look for ways to invest your money wisely. Rather than eating in an expensive restaurant, get a take away or go out for a picnic.

Make use of buying secondhand items. There is so much on the market nowadays that may be used, but is as good as new and considerably cheaper. Charity shops are an excellent source of good quality cheap clothes and other goods. There are so many online sources offering secondhand goods nowadays.

Take a long hard look at the weekly shopping and try to buy at a cheaper store. In the UK, instead of shopping at Sainsburys or Waitrose, try to go downmarket to Aldi or Lidl. Compare prices at all stores and shop where you can buy cheapest. It is important that you find the time to do this, because you have to eat and shopping is a must, but go for the cheapest. One way of saving money is to buy non brand name products. Saving £10 or £20 per week or more on the shopping bill soon mounts up and the amount saved could be spent elsewhere.

Where possible look at all your outgoings and ask yourself “Do I really need this?” If the answer is no, then if possible and their is no contract with whatever it is, cancel the agreement. Mobile phones, or Satellite TV, or Internet access are all good examples. If you feel that you do need them, then at least investigate to see if there is a possiblity of going onto a lower tarrif thereby reducing your monthly outgoings.

If you own a car, maybe it is on hire purchase or a loan or finance of some sort. Why not consider selling it and buying an older car, or even not having a car at all, maybe go to work by bus or buy a bicycle and cycle to work. The money saved by not owning a vehicle is quite considerable, saving on fuel, insurance not to mention maintenance and other running costs.

Take a walk to the public library and read up all you can on finances in order to help your financial situation.

It’s all a matter of tightening your belt sufficiently to enable you to successfully ride through these rather turbulent and stormy economic times.

My Finance Guide

August 24th, 2011 admin_my_finance_guide No Comments »

Welcome to My Finance Guide 

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