You may have noticed in the news recently, student loan interest rates have been getting a lot of attention. On July 1, 2012, the interest rates of Subsidized Stafford loans are set to climb back up to 6.8%. Heres why:
Last week, Obama spoke out about this issue and what he wants to see happen. Check out the video below to learn more.
Interest rates are a topic that causes a lot of people confusion. You’d think it was as simple as “big number bad, small number good” but sadly it can be a bit more complicated than that.
Here’s what the various terms mean and how you can make sense of a particular rate.
This is simply how much interest you pay. For example, if you borrow £100 and pay back £120, the interest rate is 20%. The problem is that this simple maths isn’t always very useful in the real world. For one thing, most loans or credit facilities charge you interest at regular intervals rather than just once. For another, you need to know how long the loan is for to know if a particular interest rate is a good deal.
Unless you are paying just one interest charge, compound interest comes into play. As an example, imagine if you borrow £100 and pay 10% interest each year. If you don’t
Whether you’re getting married or just attending a wedding, spring and summer represent peak season for nuptials. Invariably there will be a fair amount of cost involved, regardless of your involvement, so how are your finances looking?
It’s one of those rare occasions where everybody gets together and celebrates together. However, these celebrations rarely come cheaply. If you’re direct family, or perhaps even the bride or groom, costs can quickly get out of control. Without a watertight budget or effective saving, you could be left with a real dent in your finances and this could even mean that you are unable to cover the cost of the event. Consequently, you could have to cut corners or miss out on certain things entirely.
Friends and guests aren’t exempt from financial concerns either. As well as having to purchase a gift for the happy couple, you also have to consider the cost of transportation, a new outfit and drinks. Whilst every wedding is a true one-off, they all share these fundamental costs. So it i
Around 27 million households in the UK currently have at least one car parked in their driveway, and if figures obtained from the 2011 census are to believed (and I see no reason why they wouldnt be) there are currenly 31 million cars on UK roads. It is arguably the most owned consumer product, and in the majority of cases is the most expensive purchase after ones home. It therfore makes sense that in times of financial worry a vehicles owner would be able to release some of the cars value using a secured loan – just as one might on the value of their home.
In the UK a number of companies are now offering this service which is perhaps aptly named a logbook loan after a vehicles V5 logbook document. To borrow money against your car you will have to ensure that both you and your vehicle qualify with the individual lenders minimum requirements.
The majority of lenders in the arena have very similar expectations of the type of person and the value of vehicle that they are willing to consider. I
With finances getting tighter and costs rising, it’s not surprising that so many families across Britain are having to make drastic changes to their lifestyles.
According to new research, one of the biggest changes many people are making is to the foods that they are choosing when they do their shopping.
The Big Money Index survey has revealed that nearly 25% of families across Britain who are in the above average earners category are struggling to make ends meet. This index which regularly interviews around 1500-2500 people each time has found that over the past three months, many of them are having to turn their back on branded goods and go for the branded option.
This bracket of people are those who are deemed ‘successful security’ and are generally in their 40s-50s and are married, generally with second homes. Not only are they making cut backs to their branded foods, but 17% said that they have been reducing their oil, gas and electricity usage.
It’s not just those in that category that are suffering with costs, but those who are around 50-60 (in the ‘exclusive lifestyles’ category) are also struggling. These are p
In the current economic climate everyone needs to watch their spending. The credit crunch and recession have put more and more families into financial difficulty, and personal debt levels in the UK are now at an all time high.
With many people struggling to still have money left at the end of the month it becomes essential that you learn to save money wherever you can. At the end of the day there are only two ways to have more money at the end of the month: spend less or make more!
There are many books on personal finance and money saving tips but here are some the very best out there. There are lots of other good books not included on this list but this is all you need to get started on your journey towards financial health. These books will teach you how to spend less so you can start saving an investing each month.
The list includes everything from saving money, to getting free stuff, from living frugally to making extra income. Mo
Say you have the following accounts:
Now let’s say you’ve got at least $50,000 in equity in your home. With today’s record low interest rates on home loans, it makes sense to refinance, consolidating all your higher interest rates into a single loan. Right?
Not so fast.
Pros to Debt Consolidation
Sure, there are plenty of benefits to consolidating your loans through a low-interest refinance. The single biggest pro are today’s mortgage rates. While interest rates on new vehicles are also close to historical lows – just over five percent for a 60-month loan on a new vehicle – they still can’t hold a candle to the sub-four percent interest rates currently available on 30-year fixed home loans.
Another major factor in your favor? The opportunity t