Jan
6
Get Back In The Black
Filed Under Financial
If you're new here, you may want to SUBSCRIBE for FREE by using the updates box on the right. Hope you enjoy the site and thanks for visiting!
If you have spent a fortune over the festive period you may be worried about how this will affect your finances during 2008. Not only that, you may have concerns about the much talked about credit crunch, high interest rates (you may be renewing your mortgage this year) and the price of oil ($100 a barrel). With all of this considered, it’s likely that your bank balance will be showing signs of stress. So if you’re looking for a way of restoring the (bank) balance, James Daley and Kate Hughes of the Independent show us a raft of ways you can save money without even getting out of your armchair. Arm yourself with a computer and a phone, and get started on cutting down your monthly bills.
Mobile phone
Mobile phone bills are accounting for an increasing amount of people’s expenditure every year. And while competition has been driving costs down over the past few years, it doesn’t take much to accidentally step outside what’s included in your bundle and to find yourself nursing a monthly bill of upwards of £100.
The first step towards saving money on your mobile phone bill is to make sure you’re on a contract that suits your needs. If you’re using more minutes or texts each month than your current contract offers for free, then you can probably save money by upgrading. Although this might mean you’re paying a higher monthly charge, this is likely to work out much cheaper than paying the high call or text charges which you’re hit with once you’ve used up your free allocation.
Car insurance
The golden rule when it come to saving money on your insurance, be it car, home or any other kind of cover, is to make sure you shop around when your existing policy comes to an end. Most insurers will rope you in with attractive prices in the first year, only to start ratcheting up your premiums thereafter.
If you’re looking to reduce the cost of your car insurance, Ashton Berkhauer of Uswitch.com, the price comparison site, says that you should start at the top - and consider whether you really need the car that you have, or whether you could get by with one with a smaller engine. “The bigger the engine, the more damage you can do,” says Mr Berkhauer. “Hence the bigger your premiums will be. This is particularly true for younger drivers.”
Home insurance
Ensuring that your home is well secured is one easy way of reducing the cost of your home insurance. Uswitch’s Mr Berkhauer says it’s important to have a five-bar mortice lock on your front door, as well as key-operated locks on every ground floor window. Installing a burglar alarm can also reduce your premiums, but most insurers will insist that it is Nacoss approved and maintained.
Another way to reduce the cost of your home insurance is to ensure you are not over-insured. Although your flat may now be worth £500,000, following the recent boom in the housing market, that doesn’t mean you necessarily need £500,000 of insurance. Your buildings cover needs to provide enough to rebuild the property. So make sure you’re not over-insured.Water
Most houses in Britain are still given water bills based on the average usage for a property their size. This means that you can leave the taps on all day and still get the same bill as you would if you’d not used a drop. However, if you think that you use less water than average, try asking your supplier whether they can fit you with a water meter, so that you only pay for what you use.
Broadband and home telephone
Buying your home telephone and broadband from the same supplier is starting to become much cheaper. However, many of the bundled packages leave you with a slow broadband speed, so it’s important to be clear of your needs before you sign up to any deal. For example, buying phone and broadband from Talk Talk will set you back just £17 a month, including line rental. However, while the package is advertised as giving speeds of “up to 8Mb”, many users have reported getting much slower speeds.
Energy
The average household energy bill now stands at a staggering £912 a year, according to the price comparison site uSwitch.com. With fuel prices on the rise, don’t expect any respite next year. Nevertheless, you may be able to beat the price hike by shopping around for a better deal.
Start by looking for duel fuel deals, where you get your gas and electricity from one supplier. You can compare deals on sites such as Uswitch.com and Moneysupermarket.com, and you can sign up online. Make sure you pay by direct debit, as this can also cut your bills. Meanwhile, improve your energy efficiency by turning off lights and dropping your central heating temperature by just one degree - it could save you 10 per cent of your bill.
Mortgages
The mortgage market is going to be challenging to say the least in 2008, and as the housing market continues to cool, lenders will be fighting for remortgage customers. But lenders are also tightening up on risk, and borrowers with more difficult situations will be harder pushed to find an attractive deal. The high fees of 2007 are expected to continue next year as they become more important to lenders’ profitability.
As a basic precaution, watch out that you have not lapsed into your lender’s high standard variable rate, and start shopping around several months in advance of the end of your term to make sure this doesn’t happen. If you are a new borrower or looking for a remortgage deal, a variable or tracker rate offer is likely to be more cash-savvy than a fixed deal because at least one more quarter-point reduction is forecast in rates, if not two. Make sure you aren’t distracted by cheap rates of interest, though. Work out the total cost - the rate plus the fees - when comparing deals.
Current accounts
Although the impending bank charges test case means that banks are holding back from refunding any unfair charges, it’s still worth looking back over your previous bank statements to identify any onerous fees that you’ve been made to pay. Once the case is out the way, sometime next year, you should be able to claim back any unfair fees.
Meanwhile, make sure you’re not wasting money by losing out on interest on your current account. Most of the big banks pay just 0.01 per cent interest on their current accounts, but you can get more than 7 per cent if you shop around. Look out for incentives, too. Some banks will pay you £50 or £100 cash for switching your account to them.
Credit cards
If you’re nursing a Christmas hangover on your credit cards, make sure you’re paying as little interest as possible in the New Year. There are still a number of 0 per cent balance transfer deals, and while most will charge a fee, there are still a handful that don’t. Britannia Building Society is offering a 0 per cent balance transfer offer, with no fee. However, it is only valid for five months.
If you’re looking for a longer interest-free period, Virgin Money offers a 0 per cent balance transfer for 15 months. However, it charges a fee of 2.89 per cent on the transfer. As always, watch out for the rate you’ll be paying at the end of these introductory rates.
Savings
When it comes to savings, the consumer is in the driving seat as the financial institutions fight for your money in the midst of the credit crunch. And the number of people moving around for the best rate is increasing. If you haven’t reviewed your savings account recently, the chances are you’re not getting the best rate - and are missing out on valuable interest each month.
The best Mini Cash ISA rates, like the one offered by Saffron Building Society, come in at around 6.30 per cent. Meanwhile regular saver rates are also healthy, with Skipton Building Society offering savers 7.55 per cent.
See the original full version of this article.
Popularity: 20% [?]
Comments
One Response to “Get Back In The Black”
Leave a Reply
Secured Home Loans for UK Homeowners…
a list of secured loan brokers and sites that offer advice for homeowners looking for secured loans…