Consumers are increasingly taking the time to search out the best deals on personal loans and credit cards.
Financial advice site Moneyfacts said since the onset of the credit crunch, Brits who need to borrow money are shopping around for the lowest interest rates.
Darren Cook, Moneyfacts spokesperson, said: “The Bank base rate being maintained at a [...]
Interest rates on personal loans are finally starting to fall.
The average interest rate on the top ten loan deals has fallen to 8.35%, the lowest level since the Bank of England reduced the base rate to 0.5% last March.
When the Bank of England first lowered the base rate, mortgage and current account providers followed suit, [...]
Demand for second hand cars is in decline as consumers increasingly opt to buy new models under the car scrappage scheme.
Research by Sainsbury’s Finance found 8% of adults plan to buy, or have bought, a used car between September 2009 and February 2010.
This is compared to the 10% of consumers who planned a used car [...]
Consumers are using their spare cash to pay off debts rather than stashing it away in a savings account, Moneyfacts has observed.
Michelle Slade, spokesperson for the consumer advice site, said many people are using money they’re saving due to low interest rates on mortgages to pay off personal loans and credit cards.
Slade believes low-interest rates [...]
Britain’s level of debt increased again the second quarter of this year, with almost double the level of borrowing compared to the first quarter of 2009.
Consumers borrowed £5.5 billion between April and June, nearly twice as much as the £2.9 billion borrowed between January and March, said financial advice site unbiased.co.uk.
Savings levels grew to £21 [...]
Consumers taking out a personal loan are “paying through the nose” due to soaring interest rates.
Banks are now charging an average APR of 10.32% on personal loans even though the Bank of England’s base rate has been held at a record low of 0.5%.
This compares to an average personal loan APR of 8.71% in 2004.
“Despite [...]