What you need to know to shop smarter.
As we've reached the dreaded (by some!) back to school time, and then head into the run up to Christmas, there’s a few things you can do to take some of the pain out of shopping (and hopefully leave you with more left in your pocket or purse!) As a starting point,...
How to remove the Stress from your finances
Considering that everything you eat, everything you wear, where you live, what you drive, where you travel to, and so many more aspects of your life are all related to your finances, most people don't take the time to plan them effectively. A couple of reasons for...
How much cover should you have?
One of the difficulties with people being aware of the correct levels of cover they should have, is that it often only becomes important at the time of a claim, and at that stage, it's too late to do anything about it. Let's face it, spending time arranging things...
What people in rented accommodation should be aware of.
There are obvious differences between those that have mortgages and own their homes and those that rent their accommodation, such as getting a deposit together to purchase a property and qualifying for a mortgage, versus being able to move location at relatively short...
Don’t wait until your health prevents you getting the best value.
"It'll never happen to me", would appear to be the thought process behind the lack of preparation many people are guilty of, when it comes to planning for negative events. Let's face it, nobody wants to think that anything "bad" will happen to them but the reality is,...
Budgeting Smarter – How To Have More Money.
Every choice you make, every activity you do, every change you contemplate, are in some way connected to your finances. You have income. You have expenditure. The aim is that the first one is always greater than the second, that leaves you with "disposable income"....
Unfair taxation of Cohabiting Couples Reviewed
When I covered this topic over a year ago, the number of people that shared the link to the blog, was 20 times more than what would usually share a blog link. No surprises there with tens of thousands of people potentially affected by harsh taxation of cohabiting...
What happens if you don’t review your cover?
"Let's not watch TV this evening, instead let's open a bottle of wine and review our financial planning", said NOBODY (well, hardly anybody) ever. There are certain activities we tend to put off and put off and put off. With some aspects of financial planning...
What you should know about Serious Illness Cover.
If there is one aspect of protection that crops up time and time again, it's Serious Illness Cover (a.k.a. Critical Illness Cover or Specified Illness Cover) but not always for the right reasons! Quite often, the topic comes up because someone has received unpleasant...
What the banks don’t want you to know!
Most people use banks for a variety of services and products for convenience. In many cases, people assume that their bank is giving them the most suitable products for the best value but is that really the case? Quite often, a bank is limited in the range of options...