Let’s face it, there’s nothing fun about being a “glass is half empty” person. Take control – especially when it comes to your finances – and stop looking for the silver lining. Instead, turn that cup into half or completely full by creating the silver lining it yourself. How? Instantly improve the quality of your life and increase your wealth all through spending less and becoming a master of invention and transformation.

The best place to start is your attitude. Problems and challenges don’t need to be a source of frustration. Instead, view them as opportunities to stretch your creativity and outwit your situation. A large part

Read full post…

Villages being affected by bank closures

It has been reported recently that many villages in the UK are being affected by bank closures, with many bank branches having closed since the turn of the century. An investigation was carried out by the Campaign for Community Bank Services (CCBS), and this suggested that more than two thousand bank branches had closed since 2000, and this has left many people living in smaller villages stranded when it comes to conducting their banking.

For many of those living in rural areas and small villages there is a particular problem because lack of broadband facilities makes it difficult for them to benefit from other options such as online banking due to lack of internet access.

Read full post…

You can use credit counseling to help ease the financial burden you may be suffering under. If you are having trouble paying your bills on time or if you are facing bankruptcy, you can use a credit counseling agency to educate yourself about your situation and the rights you have to protect yourself and your assets. In addition, your consumer credit counseling agency can work with your creditors to bring collection activity to a halt. This can give you valuable time and headspace to work out a budget that will allow you to pay off your debts. There are three common ways bankruptcy credit counseling can help ease the burden of your debts:

1.

Read full post…

House sales doubled since January

Housing market transactions increased for the second consecutive month in July, according to the LSL/Acadametrics House Price Index.

The Index, which is based on every house sale in England and Wales, showed an 11% rise, to 72,100, meaning that activity has doubled since January.

July also saw house prices increase for the first time in five months, with an 0.1% rise taking the value of a typical home to £220,685.

The research suggests prices in England and Wales have remained stable over the last three months, although annual inflation has slowed to 8.1%, owing to stronger year-on-year comparisons.

LSL Property Services commercial director, David Brown, comments: “The influx of quality properties on to the market in recent months has alleviated upwards pressure on prices, while buyers took advantage of a slight easing in lending conditions to secure their new home.”

He Adds: “We don’t expect a return to the mini-boom of late last year, but the likelihood of a significant downturn is small too.”

In the short term, the managing director is predicting that monthly house price fluctuations will continue.

He is also expecting considerable regional differences as Government spending cuts due in the autumn are likely to hit some parts of the country worse than others.

It is concerning that jobs are not growing. Economic indicators reveal that jobs are still lagging. The economy cannot recover until and unless more people become employed. The month of July has seen a worse-than-expected loss in jobs and that is a result of the temporary census jobs that have closed up.

Though July has seen a gain of 71,000 private sector jobs, it still falls below the expectations of economists. It is very obvious that jobs do not pick up until the economy does, but then there is something very unusual about the 2008-2009 recession. In 2001 as well, the world experienced a recession. But then it was not the same then as the economy experienced a business-led slowdown.

This current recession has a shortage of jobs.

Read full post…