If you can’t afford your mortgage: What the FCA’s lender guidance means for borrowers March 10, 2023 Successive interest rate rises are increasing mortgage costs for millions of borrowers, according to both regulators, lenders and advisers. One of the main City watchdog shas estimated an extra 356,000 mortgage borrowers could face payment difficulties by the end of June 2024, in addition to those who are already behind. The Financial Conduct Authority has issued final [...]
Londoners most at risk of being among the 350,000 UK borrowers who will struggle to repay their mortgage, regulator warns March 10, 2023 An extra 356,000 mortgage borrowers could face payment difficulties by the end of June 2024, in addition to those who are already behind, according to the City regulator. This has been reduced from a previous estimate made last September that an additional 570,000 mortgage borrowers could become financially stretched by the end of June 2024, [...]
Use your Isa allowance to invest against the Chancellor’s ‘Budget raid’ on savings March 8, 2023 What are your options if you plan to use your Isa to buy stocks and shares. We explore the different assets and explain why it’s more important than ever to use your Isa allowance this tax year. More taxpayers than ever are falling into the higher rate tax bracket of 40 per cent. According to [...]
State pension: Government extends National Insurance top-up contribution deadline March 7, 2023 The government has confirmed the deadline for filling gaps in state pension National Insurance (NI) contribution records will be extended from 5 April 2023 to 31 July this year The April deadline applied to back payments from 2006, but concerns had been raised people were struggling to get through to jammed HMRC phonelines. The update [...]
UK gender pay gap widens as childcare costs worsen ‘motherhood penalty’ March 7, 2023 The UK’s gender pay gap has widened as sharp increases in the cost of childcare has worsened a “motherhood penalty”, pricing many women out of work altogether, according to a new report. The nation’s average pay gap widened by 2.4 percentage points to 14.4 per cent in 2021, accountancy giant PwC found in its Women [...]
Could A 4 Day Work Week Be Coming To Your Workplace? March 6, 2023 | Sponsored Four day work weeks have long been hailed as the future of work. But are we ready for such a monumental change in our working patterns and schedules? Earlier this month, 4 Day Week Global released its 2023 report, the contents of which have created quite a bit of debate across the fintech industries. The [...]
Who wants to be a millionaire? Isa do! The fund and trust-based savings accounts that have made a mint since 1999 March 3, 2023 Savers who have ferreted away their annual tax-free individual savings account (Isa) allowance since the scheme was launched in 1999 would have seen some serious returns. While Isa millionaires, are few and far between there are some funds that have helped savers grow their Isa pots to over six figures. According to savings platform AJ [...]
Food shortage: Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Lidl and Morrisons warn salad will not be on the menu for ‘a few weeks’ March 1, 2023 Brits are being advised to avoid salads for the next “few weeks” as supermarkets have kept restrictions in place on tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and lettuce. Reports of adverse weather conditions in the Mediterranean has forced Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons and Lidl into restricting the sale of produce. This comes after social media users took to [...]
Unpaid overtime forcing public sector workers to quit February 25, 2023 Public sector workers are becoming “burnt out” and quitting their jobs after putting in millions of hours of unpaid overtime last year, according to a report. The TUC urged everyone to work their proper hours as part of its annual campaign against excessive unpaid overtime. The union organisation estimated that employers claimed £26bn of free [...]
Pensions better than property? And, how a nudge might make you wealthier in later life February 24, 2023 The property boom of the last few decades has given rise to the idea of a home not just as a castle, but as bonafide crock of gold which can be used as an alternative to a pension. Pension provider Standard Life has carried out research that shows how different generations are answering the age-old [...]