Friday, October 16, 2009
Category:
Secured Loans
According to Abbey Savings, Brits have accessed £11 billion worth of ISA savings over the course of the past year.
Findings revealed that over 7 million savers have dipped into their ISA accounts in the past 12 months, to make an average withdrawal of £1,573. In contrast, this figure stood at £579 a year earlier, thus marking a rise of 171 percent.
With regard to the reasons behind the withdrawals, it would seem that living expenses have been the driving force for 39 percent. Luxury purchases and high street purchases have reportedly dropped since last year – from 26 percent to 22 percent and from 8 percent to 5 percent, respectively. Furthermore, 13 percent have had to rely upon their savings as a result of redundancy or lower income, and 19 percent have had to turn to their savings to finance unforeseen expenses.
The research also revealed that parents with young children have been utilising their savings more so than the majority. In fact, their withdrawals were recorded at £4,015 over the past 12 months, with living expenses being the main cause for 58 percent.
Director of Savings and Investments at Abbey, Reza Attar-Zadeh, said: "The sharp increase in the amount that people are withdrawing shows that many of us may have needed our savings to make ends meet, and just goes to highlight the importance of having savings to fall back on.
"There's no denying it's been a tough year so it's understandable that people have turned to their savings in these trying times. It's vital that we all keep some money aside in the event of an emergency but raiding your ISA account can prove costly in the long term as what you take out you can't replace".
……………………………………………………………………………………………….......
Homeowners whose finances have become tight amid the recession, and who have several credit and store cards they would like to consolidate, may wish to consider taking out a
secured loan to do so. One of many finance options available, a secured loan for debt consolidation could be used to re-organise existing debts by tying them up into one place. In taking this approach, multiple monthly repayments will be placed into one. Additionally, the new, single, monthly repayment could even be lower than current outgoings. However, when considering a secured loan for debt consolidation, it should be remembered that consolidating your debt may increase the amount you pay back overall and extend the repayment periods of your debts.
