Debt is nothing to be ashamed of. It is the oil that ensures that the economy keeps growing by financing the purchasing and investment decisions of millions of people, companies and other organisations across the country. Without debt, there would be no growth and there would be no income for savers because the banks and other lenders would not be making money on interest repayments.

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If you’ve never made a budget before, you may be surprised at where all of your money goes – and maybe even disappointed. Once you’ve crunched the numbers, you might realize that you have just enough to cover your expenses (or near enough) each month. This might come with a sigh of relief; it’s certainly better than coming out in the red! But it’s still not a good sign. Without any extra income, there’s no wriggle room or savings to be made. Should something unexpected you didn’t budget for come along, you’ll have no means to pay for it.

Although I’ve written hundreds of posts here on MonveySavingBlog about saving
money and making the best of what incomings you have, sometimes it seems
impossible to meet your financial requirements each and every time,
especially when it when unexpected bills and expenses. Although there
are some great tips on budgeting to be found Online (go here), unexpected
bills and commitments might be a part of your financial life which
require some additional and ‘off the bat’ research.

You are not alone
Borrowing money is something that millions of people do each day in the
UK, be it in the form of an ‘Over-Draft’ or even a ‘subsidy’ from your
employer or work (if your boss is nice enough to allow this) or even
looking for small personal loan or unsecured loan is something which
thousands of people are doing right now online. If the first two options
here are not open to you, perhaps your are currently unemployed or don’t
have an overdraft facility on your bank account then indeed, looking for
a an unsecured, personal loan is a solid option providing you can meet
the required standards to be accepted by the loan company in question.

Here are my tips for finding and towards dealing with a UK loan
company
Look for a Direct Loan Lender or loan company in your local area, this
way the company is local to you and you can form a tighter relationship
than with a phone number. Many UK lenders have branches throughout the
UK and in some of the top cities around and about making it easy for you
to go in and sign up for a loan or even pop along to pay cash over the
counters… Brokers traditionally are smaller and more remote than
direct lenders thus by cutting out this middle man you can often secure
a better repayment rate post approval.

Know your credit score
To know who might approve you for your loan you may need to know a
little more detail about your actual credit score or credit reference
that the company will perform post approving you and actually lending
you the money. Some companies use public records to see if you are who
you say you are and to see where you have lived previously. It is
possible for something as small as an unpaid electric bill is negatively
affecting your credit score and causing lenders to either increase your
APR based on the credit check or reduce the loan amount, sometimes both.
By checking out your credit score it is possible to positively affect it
over time by addressing the issues which are marked on your personal
file. Things like you address for the past 3 years, any other or
additional loans you currently have and other financial commitments
shall appear on your credit check. This is then looked at by the loan
company in questions underwriters who appraise your ability to repay the
loan amount successfully. Check out some of the tips ONLINE which can
help you bring back your credit score to a place where you will be
approved in the future.

How quickly do you NEED the money?
In the fast paced UK, getting a loan if you are in a stable financial
position can be achieved in little over a few hours (see here), should
you have a low or poor credit score, your chances and the time it takes
to find a lender may be significantly increased, try to allow enough
time to have a loan company approved you and send you the money before
you desperately need it, the additional stress could be curtailed by
seeking a specialised Bad Credit Loan lender or lender who loans to the
unemployed, with many different rates of APR offered in the UK the
choice is plentiful but Everyday Loans are an expanding UK company who
can approve you the same day if you call into one of their UK branches.

People always talk about minimizing their expenses so that they can save more money, but not all of them are successful in doing so. This process can be a little tricky, difficult, and it requires effective strategies so it is achieved. Saving money is very important not only for the future but also for emergency purposes. It gives a sense of financial security. There are a lot of ways and tips that can absolutely help one in reducing his or her expenses so that one can save money. If followed efficiently, it can absolutely make a big difference.

• Record all expenses – Keep all receipts and make a list of all the items bought, all the expenses and check it at the end of each month. Check if all the items that they bought are really necessary, if some of them are not. Make sure not to buy the item again next month and save the money for more useful stuff.

• Limit the use of credit and debit card – If they think that they can buy a certain item before the end of the month in full, and then try to limit the use of a credit card to avoid interests, and for debit cards, minimize the spending as well for the money that they don’t have yet so that once they receive the exact amount, they would be able to budget it, and budgeting absolutely helps a lot in saving money.

• Keep the loose change – They can put their loose change into a coin purse to save them and they would be amazed on how big the amount that they saved over a year in saving as low as fifty cents per day.

• Discounted items – In shopping different stuff, it is always good to look for sale, discounts, or couponing where in one can surely get if not a free item, a very great deal, but always remember that it does not mean if an item is discounted and it looks great, they can just buy it and that would be a great deal, make sure its going to be useful and necessary. It’s very easy to find a bargain deal through a coupon website or you can also sign up stores emails for special promotions.

• Bring food – Bringing food at work can surely be a great help in reducing the expenses, instead of buying or eating lunch at a certain fast food or restaurant and spend more, try to prepare and bring food it will not only reduce the expenses, it will also give an assurance that they are eating a clean and healthy meal.

• Stick to the list – Preparing a list before going to the grocery is a must to reduce overspending. Once they made the list, stick to it, do not buy any additional unless it is necessary or they forget to include it.

Majority of people knew how to save money but they just don’t know how to effectively implement it, by following these tips together with self-discipline, they can absolutely reduce their spending to save more money in no time!

If you are finding it difficult to keep on top of your debts and seem to be almost constantly juggling with your finances, it may be that consolidating what you owe into one easy-to-manage loan may well be a good solution.

Consolidating your borrowing can help you turn a number of different outgoings into one manageable payment so it is right for you?

Loan consolidation explained

The concept behind the idea of loan consolidation is very simple and it works by calculating how much you owe on different loans and credit cards and then comparing the cost of borrowing the sum of money required to clear these debts against the amount you pay individually on each loan.

It is not advisable to borrow any more than your need as you will end up paying back more in interest than you have to and most lenders who are prepared to offer loan consolidation tend to offer between a minimum of £2,000 and a maximum of £25,000 depending on your circumstances and credit history.

Secured loans

You can sometimes get a larger loan than £25,000 but that will often mean applying for a secured loan which means putting your property up as security. You will probably be offered a longer term to pay the money back with a secured loan but you need to counter the perceived advantage of a lower monthly repayment with the added interest charged for borrowing over a greater period and the risk that you can lose your home if you are unable to make the payments.

Benefits

There are some attractive personal loan offers around at the moment where you may well be able to find the lowest APR rate offered for some while, so you could possibly take advantage of this situation and apply for a loan to consolidate and tidy up your finances.

The benefits of consolidating are having one loan amount to pay rather than several bills to worry about and the fact that your new loan could save you money overall compared to the interest rate you are paying on your existing debts. Taking out a consolidated loan will certainly help you to manage your finances more easily and focus on making just one monthly payment rather than worrying about making numerous payments at different times of the month.

Check the details

As with any financial contract that you enter into it is important to check the details relating to the loan so that you are satisfied it is exactly what you want to do. Check that the interest rate being charged for the loan is the same as the one quoted, as it is possible that the rate quoted was a representative rate and the figure could have been adjusted to account for your credit history.

Also check whether there are any restrictions or penalties for settling the loan early, as you may want to clear the debt earlier and don’t want to incur additional charges for doing so.

Loan consolidation can be a good idea for many but you should certainly check all your options and work out how much you actually need before you go ahead.

Molly Perkins understands the complications and stresses of personal money management. She enjoys writing about the breakdown of improving financial health for the everyday person.

You should start saving a deposit for your new home as soon as possible and safe gradually and steadily. Remember every penny counts so resist temptation and take these few simple steps to increasing your bank balance and building your deposit more quickly.

1. Open a bank account dedicated to saving for your deposit. This can be a notice account, giving you slightly higher interest and make sure you do not have a debit card or credit card linked to the account. By keeping your deposit savings in a separate account to your current account, you will be less likely to withdraw the money and use it for other purposes.

2. Set up a direct debit so that as soon as your monthly pay check goes into your normal checking account, a small amount is paid automatically into your deposit savings account. This does not have to be a lot as every little helps, even just £5 a month will start to add up over time.

3. Leave your credit card at home when you go out shopping or for a meal. This way you will not be tempted to spend more than you can afford and be left paying off interest on your credit card each month from money you could be using towards your deposit.

4. Look out for bargains when shopping. Choose two for one options, buy whatever is on special offer and plan ahead for the week’s meals so you are not having to spend fuel on additional trips to the supermarket for one or two items. Collect vouchers that are available on certain items and use store loyalty systems to save a little extra and put the small amount of savings into your deposit account.

5. Invest in a Slow Cooker. They cost only a few pounds and are far more economical to use than an oven, they are easy and simple and as food is cooked over a longer period you can then buy cheaper cuts of meat and make savings this way.

6. Cut down on those little extra treats. If you smoke and usually go through 5 packets of cigarettes a week (or around 20 a month) try and cut it down to 4 packets a week. Not only will your health benefit but the extra few pounds you save can go towards your deposit. If you normally treat yourself and the family to a take out every week, change this to once a fortnight and put the savings into your deposit account.

7. Turn your heating down a degree and wear an extra jumper. Electric is expensive and if you can just save a few pounds a month on your bill, you can build your deposit more quickly.

8. Walk instead of taking the car where-ever possible and save money on fuel.

9. Look out for free events and special deals for days and evenings out. If you usually go to the cinema on a Friday, check the schedule as you might find you can get half price tickets on say a Wednesday evening. Find out if there are any other local free events you could attend for an interesting time out, instead of spending money.

10. Finally go through all those drawers and wardrobes, all those boxes of clutter lying around and list items on bay or do a car boot sale to raise some cash and tidy up your home. Place any money you make into your deposit savings account.

By making just a few small changes to your routine and how you live your life you will soon be able to save a deposit for your new home. As the old saying goes – look after the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves.

© Rachel Gawith is a freelance writer and marketer, specialising in real estate topics and writing for www.whathouse.co.uk property portal as part of their marketing team.