Online Finance Blog

Over the past six months it’s been hard to escape the adverts on TV urging you into selling scrap gold, and there’s a good reason that there have been so many. The price of gold has rocketed up during the recession, as the low value of the dollar makes currency-based investments unattractive. Looking for some other, more reliable investment, people have turned back to this older and more traditional investment, one that dates back to the Ancient Greeks and beyond.

People are finding, just as people through all of history have, that gold is incredibly valuable, and sitting on a large stockpile of it can be a good idea. This means that they’re willing to pay plenty for even a small amount of the stuff, as each bit adds to their collection. The earring that no longer has its partner, an old ring you never wear anymore, the golden strap of a broken watch, all of these can be traded in for cash. They are then melted down, purified and sold on to people looking to invest in this precious resource. That earring could end up as part of a gold bar for sale at Harrods.

People all across the country are getting cash to put towards holidays, new cars, shopping sprees or even just paying off a mortgage, all by rooting through their old jewellery and finding something they don’t even need.

George Osborne, the shadow chancellor of the Conservative Party spoke out yesterday against Britain’s Retail banks paying ‘significant’ cash bonuses to employees in finance jobs. He believes there should be a drive to plough profits back into new lending and rather than paying out large bonuses, the money should go into the banks balance sheets explicitly to support new lending. Osborne, who named no individual institutions, is believed to have been alluding to the four big high street banks, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC and Barclays.

He called on the Treasury and Financial Services Authority to work together and stop retail banks ‘paying out profits in significant cash bonuses’. Osborne’s reaction comes after Gordon Brown said that he would crack down on unreasonable bonuses, the Prime Minister said “We are continuing to act on unfair and excessive bonuses being paid in the banking system that your money helped save.” Liam Byrne, chief secretary to the treasury said ‘We have stopped short of banning all bonuses for retail banks because it is unworkable, but we are presently negotiating with RBS and Lloyds on the payment of 2009 bonuses.”

Osborne’s call for a ban, which is the strongest attack yet by the Tories on banks suggested the bonuses be paid in shares to employees in banking jobs and that they should not be cashed for at least three years and he claimed that billions of pounds in ‘subsidised profits’ threatened to worsen the credit crunch.

With the tax payers bailing out the bank to help increase lending again, Osborne argued that the move wasn’t intended to leave Britain in a position where credit was being rationed while banks return to their big bonuses.

An argument that will continue to grow and develop I am sure, but who is right? Do we run the risk of losing invaluable financing and accounting staff in the haste of a total ban of bonuses or is it ludicrous to think that any member of banking staff should receive bonuses after the tax payers bailed the banks out last year?

Prior to the worldwide economic slowdown we were encouraged to use our credit cards as a source of easy flexible credit to help fund luxury purchases. This free spending culture is perhaps best epitomised by the slogan ‘whack it on the plastic’. However for many people this led them to build up large credit card balances on which they were only able to pay the minimum monthly repayment on. If you are in this situation you probably can’t see a way of ever reducing this debt. But with the following suggestions and professional advice a debt free future can be secured.

So how can you work your way towards a clear credit card? The first step is perhaps the most obvious- stop using the credit card. The more you spend, the more you have to pay back. With every purchase you are only digging yourself into a deeper hole. If necessary cut up the card to ensure you will not keep using it.

Next switch your balance over to a credit card that offers a better interest rate than your current card. This will help slow down the rising cost of your debt. Ideally you are looking for a card that offers a 0% interest rate for a selected period. During this time you will be better able to clear your credit as your won’t be accruing extra debt in interest.

If you have any savings it may be worth using these to pay off your credit card. There is no point saving money in one place and be obligated to a debt in another. Pay off that credit card and once you are debt free you can concentrate on saving again.

However if you don’t have any savings then the only way you will have a clear credit card is to pay off more than the monthly minimum. Even if it’s only a small amount extra each month it will help you to slowly reduce that debt. The best way to arrange this is to sit down and make a list of all the money coming in and all of your outgoings. How much do you have left once the bills have been paid and you’ve budgeted for food etc? This will give you a guide to how much you can afford to pay off on a monthly basis. To ensure you stick to this budget see if you can set up a direct debit to pay off the card.

It’s not always easy to clear your credit but with careful planning and a prudent approach to your spending you can soon bring your credit card balance under control.

So you may have heard about bank charges and bank charge refunds but may be wondering what they are. Some of you may have already experienced an unfair bank charge, these are when banks will charge you £30 for accidentally dipping into your overdraft by a pound or something similar. Some people have obviously been hit a lot harder than this and received multiple unfair bank charges.

The theory on why people are making claims for refunded bank charges is that bank charges are said to be unlawful. But not surprisingly the banks don’t agree with this, so this subject has been much debated and has been taken to court.

The main argument that people are making is the banks should only make charges that are in proportion to the costs. According the Unfair Terms in the Consumer Contract Regulation a charge should not be more than the cost to the provider. So if you dip into your overdraft by a pound or have a direct debit payment that bounces then some banks have been charging up to £39 each time. The cost to the bank for this service is sending a computer generated letter to you which most people would agree does not cost the bank £39 a time. One professor has estimated that the actual costing of you going getting a bank charge is between £2.50 and £4.50.

The latest news is that claiming bank charge refunds are on hold while the courts decide which direction to take the situation. But this currently this doesn’t apply to people in financial hardship who can still claim bank charge refunds.

It is thought that hundreds of thousands of people are currently in queue to have their bank charges refunded so it would be advisable to join the queue and see if you can make a claim.

The ruling on where you stand with bank charges is changing, so it is a good idea to seek advice from a finance specialist about what you can do and whether you are eligible to have your bank charges refunded.

In times like these paying the bills can be a most stressful commitment. Meeting the needs of the bank as well as keeping the family fed can be a balancing act that many are unable to undertake. It seems that houses all around the world are at risk of being lost by the owners and those with a celebrity style status have become no exception.

The former home of Jimi Hendrix made news recently when it came to light that the home was to be torn down. Hendrix’ childhood home was declared a ‘shack’ and is to be demolished by local authorities. The Seattle council claimed that the property has become an eyesore after years of neglect. Many fans are mourning the loss of the house as to them it wasn’t a wreck but considered as the childhood home of the great legendary rock star. One of the most famous musicians to be born in Seattle some considered it a shame that no city body stepped in to intervene.

The building was purchased by developer Peter Sikov but after many attempts to relocate the property to reside opposite Greenwood Memorial Park Cemetery (where Hendrix is buried) had been turned down it seemed that the endeavor was a lost cause. Yet Sikov is still looking on the demolition of the property as a positive thing. The remains of property can be auctioned off for charity he explains “Can you imagine a guitar made out of wood from Jimi’s house?” he asks. “Who wouldn’t want that?”

Yet not all houses of the famous fall foul to the redevelopment of the local area. The National trust continues to make a great deal of effort in maintaining and preserving the family homes of the famous. One such house that the trust is now responsible for is that of former Beatle John Lennon. The property at 251 Menlove Avenue in Liverpool was the childhood home of this Rock ‘n’ Roll icon. Raised there since the age of 6 by his auntie and uncle, Lennon was brought up in the semi detached property and stayed there for many years, the national trust boasts that some of the earliest Beatles tracks where written there.

For many people the change of a developer or the National Trust buying up their house in their hour of need is a fantasy at best. There are many companies that offer a Quick Property Sale and a Cash for Property service. This service will enable you to get your finances back on track and a few of the companies also offer you the chance to stay in your home with a Sell your Property and Rent Back option. For more information on this service follow the links to the site.

In life there are many things that you can’t prepare for and one of which are accidents. If you are the victim of an accident then you could be entitled to an accident compensation claim.

An injury could leave you with long or short term pain and why should you have to suffer? If the accident was not your fault than there is a good chance that you will be able to make a claim. Perusing a UK accident claim is becoming more popular and more excepted in society. Getting justice for an accident as well as financial aid could help with the burden of any loss of earnings that might be incurred.

Many accident sufferers are unable to work due to the nature of their injury. The pain in some cases can be quite intense. A broken rib from a car traffic accident or an injured back from a work related mishap are some just some examples.

An accident, bedsides having physical implications can have a massive impact financially. This is never more true that those who have a family to look after. A reduction in income can leave the family short of money which can impact on all areas of family life. Things like, being unable to make payments on bills, loans, and the mortgage. Being unable to provide basic essential things like food, without having to borrow money from friends and family. Just these few key problems can put a lot of extra pressure on other members of the family and those around you.

There are some great accident compensation claim companies out there that will be able to help you. Taking all of these elements into consideration and being honest will maximise your claims potential. Ensuring that you get the most from your injury and offering a no win, no fee service can be a great way to know you have a good deal and really get all that you are entitled to.

One in eight British residents has apparently lost out on wages due to time off work from illness or injury, with an average loss of £5,320 per person being reported. From these statistics, we can reveal that 34% of people missed more than a week from work due to illness and injury, 58% had to have more than a month off and 17% ended up missing more than a year.

A large number of these employees who had to have time off will have lost out on a fair bit of money, but the research shows that only 8% had insurance that covered their losses. One person in nine that lost money through injury or illness, lost over £5,000 and one in twenty lost more than £40,000. This means that your solution is to take out an insurance policy or if you suffered an accident at work, you should look into making an accident compensation claim. Most people would probably think that the government would be able to help them out, but help from the state is unlikely to make up for a large drop in income. Incapacity benefit is set at £78.50 per week for people on long term sick leave.

Most people don’t think of the implications of what would happen if they had to take time off work due to long term sickness or an injury from work. Around 23% of people when asked, said they would borrow money from family or friends, 11% said they would borrow from the bank, 5% of the people asked said they would postpone any big bills like mortgage and only 8% said they currently had insurance to cover them in such a situation.

Obviously your employers have no responsibility if you develop a serious illness and have to leave work, but they are very much responsible if you suffer an injury from an accident caused by negligence. There are plenty of no win no fee companies that can help you recover costs from an accident in the workplace.

Please always contact a qualified injury lawyer when considering making a claim.

The downward slide in the housing market has many people very concerned with the threat of foreclosure but they are not the only ones that are feeling a squeeze with the outlook of the market. Many people are wondering if their current plans for retirement are going to still be enough to cover what they will need in their retirement years and are actively seeking independent pension advice.

Years ago people actually planned to use the equity in their homes to cover their costs in their retirement years. People are now realizing that this is not a guaranteed pension and they might be better off downsizing their home now before home values dwindle even more. With home values on a steady decline now and no immediate relief in site, many are concerned that by the time they need their retirement it will no longer be nearly as much as they once thought it would be.

Commercial Mortgages how can they help? In today economic environment where experts in the financial sectors, economists, politicians, banks and building societies they all seem to have a different deliberation on the future of the UK economic situation, in both the long and short term. For example, are we about to enter into a major downturn or are just a long road of slower growth, know body knows? So why keep faith with a Commercial Mortgage, when even though the interest rate is being reduced by the bank of England the end interest rate we are getting as business customers its increasing due to the credit crunch?

The main benefits of Commercial Mortgages are really still the same as they have always been in that you retain ownership of your business and your business premises. You can raise equivalent advances by using other typical investment channels and even in today market, companies I have found included general finance centre still can offer very competitive rates on commercial mortgages and business finance products.

There are a whole heap of financial terms out there that im sure everyone isn’t aware of or fully understands, here is a select few and you can browse through the rest at your own leisure here

APR

This stands for Annual Percentage Rate. Any firm that lends money is required by law to quote the APR. Introductory rates do not include arrangement fees you may be charged and also don’t reflect any higher rate of interest that your borrowings will ultimately revert to. The APR takes into account the interest on a loan plus and additional charges making it easier for you to compare products. In general, the lower the APR the better the deal.

 

Base Rate

Base rate (sometimes called the repo rate) is the interest rate set by the Bank of England which determines borrowing and savings rates.

 

Commercial Mortgage

Commercial Mortgages are used to purchase a business property or going concern, for the expansion of existing business premises or for property development. Commercial property includes shops, public houses and farms.

  

Equity Release

This is the process in which a new larger mortgage or an existing mortgage is increased to release some extra funds.