Daily Financial News

Student fees hike could mean 50k debt

Garry Olman — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 04:03:16 +0000

Some students would find themselves with debts of £50,000 which they could be paying off into their 50s.

Middle-income families would be worst hit, as they would just miss out on financial support from bursaries, grants or means-tested loans. The costings, prepared by university chiefs, will be hugely influential as the Government prepares to review the current £3,145-a-year cap on fees. Vice-chancellors are lobbying intensively for a major rise. A survey shows they are seeking an average fee of £6,500 to ensure the viability of their institutions. Some want £10,000, while others say there should be no limit on the amount they can charge.

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Figures show house prices rose in January

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 17:03:56 +0000

The average cost of a home in the UK rose by 0.2% during the month to stand at £195,724, according to the Department of Communities and Local Government.

But properties lost a record 11.5% of their value during the year to the end of January - the 15th month in a row that the annual rate of house price inflation has deteriorated.

The surprise increase in house prices was driven by a 4.9% jump in the average price of a detached property during January.

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Oil firms ‘not passing on saving to motorists’

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 15:03:57 +0000

The latest Daily Mail Cost of Living Index reveals prices paid at the pumps are lagging behind the 55% fall in the value of crude oil. Diesel has come down by just 7% in a year.

The European Commission has launched an inquiry, following an official complaint from the European umbrella organisation for motoring groups, the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile.

Brent crude is currently trading at 44.55 dollars a barrel, down from 100.3 dollars in March last year - which should mean significantly lower prices across the economy.

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Will I get anything if I’m made redundant?

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 08:03:40 +0000

It depends on whether you are regarded as an employee or as an agency worker. If it’s the latter you may end up with nothing.

If you’ve worked through an agency for the same employer for some time you may be classed as an employee, but you should take a close look at your contract.

If you are not sure, go to an advice centre or speak to a union representative.

If you are classed as an employee, you qualify for statutory redundancy pay once you’ve worked there for two years. If you’re over 22 you should receive a week’s pay for each year worked at a company up to the age of 40.

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Ten jobseekers chase each vacancy

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 02:03:50 +0000

Ministers were on the defensive last night over claims that unemployment was climbing sharply in areas where Jobcentres were closing and will exceed two million this week.

The Government is diverting hundreds of officials from other posts to serve as welfare advisers. Nearly 1,000 civil servants working on child maintenance and disability claims have been drafted in to reinforce job centres.

A survey by the TUC found that in some parts of the country, the number of jobseekers far exceeds the number of vacancies.

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First eBay millionaire: ‘I started in a shed’

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:03:28 +0000

But his tiny eBay shop soon became a major success, selling everything from mobile phone accessories to protein supplements.

Now the garage has made way for a massive warehouse and 30-year-old Mr Radcliffe has become the UK’s first eBay millionaire.

He owns a £700,000 home with a £150,000 Ferrari and a £118,000 Aston Martin in the driveway.

His monthly orders of around 36,000 make him the largest eBay trader in Britain, based on sales, and the sixth-largest in the world.

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A boomer’s hindsight of the financial crisis

Garry Olman — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 00:03:00 +0000

The two major markets, stock market and the property market have tumbled tremendously as a result of the financial crisis. Bank has adopted strict policies that have tightened the outgoing loans and it has aggravated the whole economy with its credit crunch. Most of the people’s 401K accounts have started shrinking and they are getting worried thinking about how to support their retirement. Many people have got their homes foreclosed by the banks because of non payments on their mortgages and thereby having no place to live.

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What can I do about failing funds?

Garry Olman — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:03:16 +0000

Their combined current value is now only £49,000 and decreasing.

Should we pull out what is left and reinvest elsewhere or sit it out until the five-year term is up? M.B., Folkstone, Kent

Danny Cox, head of financial planning strategy at independent financial adviser Hargreaves Lansdown, replies: You are right to review your investments and consider whether they are in the best position to benefit from the recovery, when it happens.

Both of these investments have a wide range of fund options, so it is important that these are chosen correctly.

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Inflation and deflation: the twin threats

Garry Olman — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 18:03:44 +0000

Experts are battling to interpret data and use it to predict the next turn of events, but few, if any, foresee a swift return to stability and growth.

However, a rift is forming between those who fear a resurgence of inflation, sparked by rampant government spending, and those who fear the opposite - a long spell of deflation.

With inflation, the price of goods rises, reducing the buying power of your cash. This deters investment and punishes savers.

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Nationwide isn’t so different from banks after all

Garry Olman — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 11:03:10 +0000

But Nationwide, the country’s biggest building society, stands accused of hypocrisy and acting just like a bank over its plans to pull out of Bagshot, Surrey, depriving villagers of their only bank or building society branch.

Nationwide announced the closure of the branch at the beginning of the month by putting up a poster in the window, stating it would be closed on May 22.

The society claims that the branch is not making enough money and that it does not sell enough financial products to make it viable.

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