A report by property firm Cushman & Wakefield has revealed New Bond Street in London is Europe’s most expensive retail location with rates soaring by 19.4% on year. Store rents grew to £536 per square foot per year, higher than those on Paris’ Avenue des Champs-Elysees. New Bond Street is home to exclusive brands such [...]
The Government recently unveiled plans to crackdown on credit card and store companies, which will see a change in the order of priority for credit card repayments, so that the most expensive debts are paid off first. The proposals are being put out to consultation by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS). The [...]
Research from price comparison service, uSwitch.com, has found that while Payday loans may offer quick and easy cash, they are one of the most expensive forms of loans in the UK, with some APRs of up to 9889.3%. According to uSwitch.com, a consumer taking out a payday loan of £750 could end up owing £1,687.50 [...]
Specialist motor insurance for women and older drivers is often more expensive than traditional insurance, claims moneysupermarket.com. Research by the price comparison site found that a 30-year-old woman driving a Ford Focus would pay an average of £622 with a women-only brand. This is 60% higher than the average cover price of £388 from traditional [...]
Moneysupermarket.com is cautioning homeowners struggling with their finances against switching from a repayment to an interest only mortgage. The idea will tempt many as on the average £150,000 loan, moving to an interest only deal could reduce monthly payments by up to £236. However, the price comparison website warns that such a move will dramatically [...]
Mortgage approvals fell unexpectedly in March
Economists had expected mortgage approvals to increase to 34,000 in March but instead the latest figures from the British Bankers Association show they actually fell, to 31,888. This was significantly lower than 32,840 in February and the 25-month high in January, when 38,233 mortgages were approved. The slump in March represents an 11-month low and [...]
The number of houses sold in the £1 million to £2 million price bracket fell by 5% to 6,911 in 2011 according to a report from Lloyds TSB based on figures from the Land Registry. The figures represent the first annual fall in million-pound sales since 2009. In contrast, sales of homes priced above £2 [...]
The cost of car insurance is starting to fall according to the AA’s British Insurance Premium Index. The average ‘shoparound’ quote for comprehensive car insurance fell by 1.1 per cent to £1,132 by the end of March. The Shoparound premium is an average of the five cheapest premiums quoted by around 50 insurance providers. Over [...]
Mobile operator O2 has become the latest entrant in the mobile payments market with the launch of a new app. The O2 Wallet app, which allows users to transfer up to £500 via text message, follows the launch of a similar service, Pingit, by Barclays. Barclays’ free ‘Pingit’ app allows the bank’s UK current account [...]
36 credit card fraud sites closed down
A global police operation involving the UK’s Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) has closed down 36 websites selling credit card details following an investigation which spanned two years. Raids in the US, Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Romania and Macedonia led to the sites being closed, many of them after being monitored for months. The [...]
Provisional figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that the UK economy has contracted for two consecutive quarters, which means it has fallen back into recession. The economy shrank by 0.3% in the fourth quarter of 2011 and the latest figures show a contraction of 0.2% in the first three months of 2012 [...]
Over-50s face 11-year retirement delay
People over the age of 50 will need to work for a further 11 years after they reach state pension age according to a new report. The Pensions Policy Institute claims that those who are unable to carry on working will struggle to maintain their standard of living. The report suggests that a single person [...]
Household finances continue to deteriorate
Lower earnings, increased levels of debt and inflation worries took their toll on household finances in April, with the Markit Household Finance Index falling for the second month in a row. The Index fell at the steepest rate for three months to 37.0 in April from 37.8 in March, with a score under 50 indicating [...]
ISA savings rise while pension contributions fall
While Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) are growing in popularity, pension contributions continue to decline, prompting the Institute of Directors (IoD)to call for the government to take action on savings. According to data compiled by the IoD in association with Lucida, the amount paid into ISAs increased from £35.7 billion in 2007, to £43.9 billion in [...]
Mothers accumulate debt on maternity leave
Three quarters of mums are unprepared for a fall in income while they are on maternity leave and nearly a third go into debt. A study by price comparison site uSwitch.com suggests that the average debt accumulated by mothers while they are on maternity leave is nearly £2,500. As well as facing a 50 per [...]
About | Privacy | Disclaimer | Resources | XML Feeds | Press Releases | Directory | Contact us
