Ways to consolidate debt

In todays society, most people have their fair shere of debt, me included. getting out of debt is becomming more of a strategic proccess more than ever with many companies offering the service of getting you out of debt.

Like weight loss; everybody says their strategy is the one that works. Realistically there are only 3 ways of getting out of debt:
(1)make more money;
this may include taking on extra hours at work, getting another job or finding a creative way to make money in your spare time.

(2)manage your money better:
This includes cutting down on your spending, moving your debt around if its on credit cards, taking out a loan with better conditions to consolidate your existing debt.

(3) get help.
Help may come in forms of advice from proffesionals (preferably for free) or government help to avoid bankruptcy in the form of an IVA.

Ideally the three methods should combine to create the perfect solution to debt.

MBNA will charge you for having money

You may think its a good thing to pay your credit card bill, but apperently not so with MBNA:

The MBNA bank has warned customers that they face a £10 fine if they leave
a positive balance on their credit card.
Some cardholders were sent a
letter at the end of January telling them that
they risk facing what the
firm calls a "credit balance service fee". full story: [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/working_lunch/6376405.stm
]

So now it costs to have money too?

I wonder why it should bother mbna that someone has money on their credit card, it shows that the customer is carefull...

if anything, MBNA should just invest that money and make a tidy profit of it..

Mortgages becoming more and more impossible

according to the Department for Communities & Local Government 'the average house price in the UK has now passed £200,000,'

What's worse is that prices are expected to increase even further in the coming months.
What then for new buyers trying to get a first mortgage?
perhaps the best option is to wait for the housing market to crash, analysts predict that it will soon!
The government also started several schemes to help young people onto the property ladder.

either that or we'll all have to opt for that IVA Mortgage

things really do change quickly, back in 2001 you could've got a £80,000 mortgage for a two bedroom house, today that same house will cost you £200,000.

India to overtake UK?

'India could overtake Britain and have the world's fifth largest economy within a decade as the country's growth accelerates.' [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6294409.stm]
thats the prediction from a report by investment bank Goldman sachs.
The report goes on to say that india could even overtake the US in the next 50 years, along with China...
the biggest advantage these two countries have is huge populations, both weigh in at over a billion people, they can afford to produce cheaper manual labour, much cheaper...
Perhaps this would good for the world, but where on earth would the resources (oil etc) come from to support such Huge, (rich) populations?

IVA saves 110000 people from bankruptcy

'According to accountants KPMG, £1.4bn of bad debts were written off this year after people signed up for Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs).
Also this year, about 110,000 people became insolvent, topping the 100,000 mark for the first time, KPMG said.

Earlier this year government figures showed that the number of personal bankruptcies had declined as more consumers signed up for IVAs, which allow people with debts to work out a repayment plan with their creditors. ' [http://news.bbc.co.uk]

Good news, if only those IVA's could work for everyone. Sadly though you must owe atleast £15000 and be able to maintain payments of about £350.
for more on IVA's see: IVA Information.

Its Christmas but how about last chrismas' debt?

Its Christmas 2006, nearly, but according to a news report (can't find the source), a number of people in the UK are still paying back the debt they acquired due to christmas 2005.

so, what will happen to these people if they have to borrow the same amount this year to buy as many presents as last year?

Or more importantly, why get into so much debt that it takes you more than a year to pay it back? are presents really that important? i think kids would understand if you can't afford expensive presents, as long as you get them some sort of present...

People who get into this type of unnecessary debt are careless, in my book anyway..

Yet Another Personal Finance Blog is born

My first post.....
This is a blog about personal finance, and that means; credit cards, debts, student loans and all of that.

views are expressed, tips are given...