It's Time To Start Counting The Pennies and Taking It Seriously

Almost a third of UK citizens are becoming unstable financially and at the point of almost being unable to deal with their finances, a survey has recently revealed. The point of instability, according to the survey, is when the family would be unable to afford their monthly living costs if their bills increased by £100 per month.

The survey also found that over one in five households - 22 per cent - would not be able to bear an increase in their living costs. Rising costs of food, fuel and home energy have left many families struggling to keep on top of their monthly bills.

Moving Back From the Edge: Although we are unable to make a difference to the cost of the goods and services that we pay for, it is possible to reduce your monthly outgoings by just using a little more caution, and by cutting costs on various monthly outgoings, such as household bills, food shopping and mortgage repayments. We will now explore these various cost cutting ideas.

Simple actions like clearing out the odds and ends from the boot of your car, making sure tyres are at the correct pressure and being frugal with luxury features like air conditioning can make a huge difference to your fuel economy. Think money when you are driving, motoring in a sensible manner, by accelerating and braking gently, also enables fuel to go further.

To reduce your weekly food bills, consider buying supermarket own brand or budget products which tend to be cheaper than popular brands. Buying items in bulk - such as 'buy one, get one free' offers - can also save money, particularly if you have a large storage area or freezer at home. Being more careful with your weekly grocery shopping can take some time although it can help you make significant savings.

Saving energy in the home can reduce your monthly outlay too. By choosing a low temperature for your washing you can dramatically reduce your utility bills. Try drying clothing on the washing line rather than using the tumble dryer while also wash up in the sink rather than using the dish washer. Swapping normal bulbs for energy efficient bulbs uses far less energy and thus costs less to run.

But cutting costs on your household bills and daily expenses isn't the only way that you can save money. Your credit outgoings such as mortgages and credit cards should also be shopped around for to lower your monthly costs.

Remortgaging Options: By looking for a remortgage, you can often obtain a lower priced deal in terms of interest rate, which could mean you'll be spending hundreds less each month.

If you have a mortgage that had an introductory rate, such as a fixed or a discounted mortgage, you can look elsewhere to obtain a cheaper deal when the rate on your mortgage expires.

But with interest rates set to be increased by the Bank of England in the near future, now is the time to remortgage if you're going to do it, as once the base rate increases the mortgage deals will follow suit.


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Timothy Frodsham writes for JustRemortgages.com one of the UK's top sites for the latest remortgage rates and best remortgage deals.