Tips for Buying a Flat With Friends

Many times friends decide to pool their resources and buy a flat together. The combines resources and credit ratings gives them more borrowing power, which in turn allows them to purchase a larger flat in a better area of a city. Read more

Tags: house buying, Mortgages, best process, group mortgages, buy flat with friends

Rate Matcher customers charged increased arrangement fees

Back in April of this year the high street lender HSBC announced the launch of a new mortgage product designed to help homeowners who were on cheap fixed rate mortgages that were due to come to an end. The bank promised to match the current interest rate of those on low rate fixed mortgages with any other lenders, which meant that homeowners whose cheap fixed rate mortgages were due to end would not have to worry about going onto a high standard variable rate. Read more

Tags: Matcher, arrangement fees, lender, chancellor of the exchequer, idea

Parents should open bank accounts for children ‘as early as possible’

Providing children with bank accounts as early in life as possible will enable them to have a better understanding of money say independent financial advisors.

MDM Associates said that opening a bank account as early as possible parents can then talk children through statements and show them where interest has been added.

Older children could receive an account with a debit card said the company.

Lisanne Mealing, managing director of MDM Associates, said: “That then starts to give them the idea of some financial responsibility – you’re trusting them because they’ll have access to that account themselves.”

Providing monthly pocket money to children can also be a good way to teach children about budgeting, she added.

According to an article on the Times Online, a recent survey by NatWest suggests that 51 per cent of young people want more advice from parents about how to manage money.

Many respondents said they were frustrated by well-trodden cliches such as ‘money doesn’t grow on trees’.

Tags: pocket, Business Finance, respondents, MDM, cent, idea

Holidaymakers pay extra in credit card fees

British holidaymakers will pay up to £258 million in fees over the summer as their credit card companies charge them for making transactions abroad, a new study has found.

According to the report from the Post Office, Britons will collectively spend around £9.4 billion, though many are unaware that they will incur extra costs for borrowing while overseas.

Of those people questioned, nearly half said that they had no idea that such extra charges would apply, while 37 per cent believed that their lender did not levy an additional fee, despite research showing that the vast majority of firms charge on average 2.75 per cent per transaction made.

In addition, 26 per cent of people admitted to failing to budget for their holidays before they went away, meaning that they left themselves vulnerable to having to borrow and get into debt.
“We are now four times more likely to spend on plastic abroad than 10 years ago,” said the PO’s Gary Fitton.
“It’s shocking not only to see how much people are being penalised to use their cards on holiday, but how few are aware of this.”
The findings come soon after the UK payments association Apacs revealed that fraud committed abroad on UK-issued cards totaled £118.2 million last year, an increase of £36 million.

Tags: fee, idea, United Kingdom, london, finance, apacs, summer, plastic

FSA makes MEAF statement

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has released a statement on mortgage exit administration fees (MEAF).

The organisation was responding to recent concerns which have been raised about MEAFs which have been unfairly increased.

It means that some consumers have been charged higher exit fees than was originally agreed and has made switching mortgage lender and paying a mortgage off early more difficult.

FSA officials have now said that lenders have four options, one of which they must settle on by February 28th.

Lenders can either charge no MEAF whatsoever, charge the original MEAF, a revised MEAF or the current increased MEAF.

“We expect that these measures, agreed with the Council of Mortgage Lenders, will stop borrowers from being surprised by unexpected increases in these fees,” said Clive Briault, managing director of retail markets at FSA.

“People will now know when they sign up for a mortgage what fee they will pay on exit, or should be given a clear idea of how the fee might be increased fairly.”

FSA is also calling for previous customers to be given the same treatment as new customers, meaning if a customer has paid a higher MEAF than current borrowers, he or she should be refunded.

Tags: idea, meaf, administration, Financial Services Authority, clear idea, mortgage lenders, council of mortgage lenders, customer