It’s Time To Start Counting The Pennies and Taking It Seriously
A recently published survey has found that three in ten Brits are at the point where increases in their living costs would mean they would struggle to make ends meet. Thirty per cent of Brits are at the ‘affordability tipping point’ meaning that an increase of under £100 in their monthly expenses would result in them not being able to pay all their commitments.
Equally unnerving news, is that almost a quarter of families have reported that any increase in living costs whatsoever would cause them to be unable to afford to pay their bills. This is frightening news, when we are seeing the prices of commodities such as petrol and diesel and general daily living increasing rapidly by the day.
Moving Back From the Edge: While little can be done about commodity prices, we can all find ways to economise. Reducing the number of car journeys, and driving in a higher gear can help to minimise the fuel bill, whilst swapping brand names for supermarket own-lines can help to shrink the food bill during the weekly shop. TVs and DVDs left on standby can add an unnecessary burden to your electricity bill.
Simple actions like clearing out the odds and ends from the boot of your car, making sure tyres are at the correct pressure and being frugal with luxury features like air conditioning can make a huge difference to your fuel economy. Think money when you are driving, motoring in a sensible manner, by accelerating and braking gently, also enables fuel to go further.
To reduce your weekly food bills, consider buying supermarket own brand or budget products which tend to be cheaper than popular brands. Buying items in bulk – such as ‘buy one, get one free’ offers – can also save money, particularly if you have a large storage area or freezer at home. Being more careful with your weekly grocery shopping can take some time although it can help you make significant savings.
To save on your home energy bills, why not turn your heating down one or two degrees? This helps reduce your usage as well as helping the environment. You can also save money by installing energy saving bulbs in your home which use less electricity than traditional bulbs.
All these economies can help you reduce your expenditure on a monthly basis. And, whilst these savings will all add up over time, there are a number of other options available to you if you are nearing the ‘affordability tipping point’.
Remortgaging Options: If your mortgage deal is coming to an end – perhaps your fixed rate product is expiring – then you could save money by remortgaging. There are some great remortgage rates available which could help you save money on your repayments.
If you took a five year fixed rate mortgage around 2006 or 2007 it is likely to be more expensive than the equivalent deal now. That’s mainly because the Bank of England Base rate has reduced from 5 per cent in late 2006 to just 0.5 per cent today.
It is important to remortgage soon however, as interest rates are set to rise again by the end of this year, so the advice is to get looking for your remortgage deal now while interest rates are still very low.
Timothy Frodsham writes for JustRemortgages.com one of the UK’s top sites for the latest remortgage rates and best remortgage deals.