Friday 21 December 2012

Brits are planning to put Christmas on their credit card this year, according to new research from uSwitch.com, the independent price comparison and switching service. Four million turkeys are being bought this way and more than half (59%) of consumers are using their credit cards for their Christmas shopping. 

After another difficult year, with pay rises failing to keep up with hikes in essential living costs, Brits are turning to their flexible friend to keep up the festive cheer. According to the research, the average consumer expects to put £448 on their credit card over the season and more than one in ten (13%) would rather go further into debt than tell their nearest and dearest that they couldn't afford presents this year.

Michael Ossei, personal finance expert at uSwitch.com, said: "In true British spirit, Brits are determined not to let money worries cast a shadow over the festive cheer this Christmas. Many are turning to their flexible friends to help see them through to the new year.

"The last thing people want to do is scrimp at Christmas, but it's easy to get carried away and spend more than you mean to at this time of year. The high number of consumers willing to put themselves deeper in debt just to stave off the embarrassment of not giving presents sends alarm bells ringing.
"If you know you can clear your balance straight away, using a credit card can be a very practical way to shop, and can even earn you money if you use a cashback card. But for those struggling to make ends meet, relying on credit to pay for Christmas can be both risky and costly - and will mean starting the new year in even more debt.
"If you do need to use a credit card it's important to choose the right card to suit your spending needs and not get caught out by high interest rates. Also consider cards which offer 0% on purchases, as these can give you some breathing space and help you avoid a new year financial hangover by giving you the time to save the cash to clear the balance while avoiding interest charges." Source Business Money.

Thursday 20 December 2012

Business Loans For Any Purpose Up To £500k


We are very pleased to announce that Business Loans for any purpose, (including cash-flow, asset purchase & stock purchase) are now available:

From £5,000 to £100,000 unsecured.
From £101,000 to £500,000 with security i.e. Company Debenture (second charges are acceptable). Note that 100% LTV can be provided on fixed assets or assets to be purchased.
We can also arrange commercial finance on assets From £20,000 to £500,000 - no deposit required, up to 120% LTV

Interest Rates from 6.4% AER.
Fixed Rate, monthly repayment loans over 1, 3 or 5 years.
No Up-Front Application Fees or ERC's.

Personal Guarantees will be required for most unsecured loans and some secured loans.

Criteria:
Limited Companies & LLP's only.
A minimum of 2 years accounts must filed with Companies House.
All directors must be UK based.
No CCJ's above £250 allowed.
Minimum turnover £100k per annum.

Totally independent from your business banking, giving you the flexibility to run your business effectively.

Funds generally available to successful applicants within 17 days.

Join our extensive list of happy clients and take advantage of this outstanding product now. Don't just take our word for it!:

Recent cases

Tyre supplier looking to buy & import stock £50,000 unsecured loan= 7.8%

Computer solutions company looking to develop expand software £75,000= 7%

Rehabilitation Centre looking to consolidate finances £100,000= 9%

Wednesday 19 December 2012

Payday loan firms offering Buy Now pay Later retail Finance

Something that caught my eye this week was the news that Wonga have entered the market offering short term instalment plans for people buying goods online. It has generated some words of caution already;

In response to the news that Wonga has launched a new buy-now-pay-later service via retailers' websites, Michael Ossei, personal finance expert at uSwitch.com, said: "Short-term lending at rates of 7% may seem like a great way to ease the burden of a purchase, but there are cheaper ways to fund your shopping.
 "As well as the overall cost of using Wonga's new service being relatively uncompetitive compared to some credit card deals on the market, there is a bigger cause for concern - what happens if consumers can't pay off their bills in time?
"Unfortunately, there have been a number of worrying incidents in the past where vulnerable customers have been subject to heavy-handed debt chasing practices. The worry is that this could become more widespread as Wonga expands its offering and becomes more readily available, especially if customers aren't fully aware that it's Wonga they are borrowing from in the first place.
"Although some retailers might believe the service helps their customers, by giving them another way to help pay for things, it could lead to confusion if Wonga's terms and conditions aren't clearly stated upfront. Consumers need to make sure they know exactly what they're signing up to. There is a real risk of mis-selling and unless retailers are careful, they could end up attracting the attention of the Office of Fair Trading." Source

 There may indeed be cheaper ways to pay for your goods online, straight from your bank (assuming you are not using an overdraft generating interest charges) is best. However I think the point is being missed here. There are always cheaper ways to pay for things, insure things, borrow for things but that assumes that everybody has the same credit profile, is the same age or share the same general demographic as the rest of the population.

I am not championing Wonga though I suspect if it was AN Other bank or credit provider and not the high profile Payday loan providing guest star of Watchdog there would be little of no fuss. I am merely saying that a lot of people like the convenience of instalment based payment schemes that soften the blow of paying for goods and services and give them the comfort of knowing that the balance will be settled within a pre-determined timescale. How many people for example use catalogues for example? The typical APR here is usually circa 30% on longer credit terms and although interest free terms are offered over 20 - 52 weeks the cost of the products more than allows for this service. 

Take the iPod Touch - available to buy from one popular catalogue for £219 with interest free terms of up to 12 months. Sounds good? Not when you consider you can buy the same iPod for £150 elsewhere which even if you allow for a chargeable APR of 30% you are still far better off buying it this way than putting it on your catalogue account. The catalogue however offers payment terms of 12 months and this it what appeals to people, being able to pay £4 or so a week. The equivalent APR when comparing the cost of buying the iPod online and paying catalogue terms is actually around 100%

People need to read the terms of any credit agreement and I wouldn't suggest anything else in this case either but I do think that people need to take a broader view. The new Wonga product is is merely a niche lending product that will suit some and not others, if you fear you won't be able to afford it then seriously consider why you are looking to borrow it in the first place. These are the same guidelines for any personal loan or finance scheme.



Wednesday 5 December 2012

Short term finance and Bridging Loans


Another new offering from Money Solutions Uk 

Please find attached some more information on our Commercial and residential Bridging Loans.

We can offer finance in the whole of England, Scotland and Wales with LTV Of up to 60 %.

The suitable property deals that we can offer short term finance on are:

1. Unfinished new Build Developments.
2. Structurally Impaired Houses
3. Renovating Derelict Houses
4. Non Mortgage Structures
5. Land with detailed Planning Consent for up to 6 houses.

We can add value with this offer with the following unique selling points:

1. We deal with the Principle Lenders who are privately financed
2. We will receive direct communication from the Directors of the business
3. We can arrange funding for people with adverse Credit.
4. We can offer second charges on residential Properties and also Commercial properties.

We are also interested in the following loan proposals:

1. Taking out existing Bridges
2. Taking out trustee in bankruptcy and IVA
3. Commercial Property.
4. 2nd Charge with heavy adverse

For more information about this and other commercial mortgage offers contact us via the website or email