Credit Crunch Still (business website design) Affecting Personal Finances

September 2nd, 2008 admin Posted in finance |

By Abbi Rouse

The effects of the credit crunch are still having an effect on people’s personal finances and the country’s economy has not yet returned to its normal state, it has been claimed. Economist at the Centre for Economics and Business Research Charles Davies said that both consumers and businesses are being affected by the credit crunch, with growth continuing to slow.

And not only is the credit crunch biting people’s finances, continuing inflationary pressures are also having an effect, Mr Davis suggested. Indeed the British Chambers of Commerce recently reported in its Quarterly Economic Survey that there is now a serious risk of recession across the country.

“The situation has still not really completely normalised and what you have seen is the effects of it start to seep through to all different sectors of the economy. Clearly, the financial system is fundamental to the functioning of the market economy and as funds drying up have had an impact on firms, there has also been a very great impact on consumers,” said Mr Davis.

He added that this has had an ongoing effect on the housing market and that banks are still reporting weaker results than in the past few years. Indeed there is still a level of uncertainty about banks recapitalising, he added.

But people who are perhaps feeling the effects of the credit crunch may now wish to consider the benefits that a secured loan can bring to payments, as all debts can be consolidated so that monthly outgoings can be paid off in one. Such a move may prove to help minimise the effects of the credit crunch, as outgoings can be kept under control.

Mr Davis noted that the inflationary pressures on the economy are proving to be a “dual hit” on the country’s purse strings and are making things “very difficult” for people. A recent study conducted by Nationwide, in partnership with TNS, found that consumers are now less confident than they were about the overall state of the economy, borrowing and loans on the whole.

The research, published in the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index, found that overall consumer confidence is now down 18 per cent on the level it was at last year. Spending has also fallen, to stand at 54 points in July this year, down from 65 points the same time a year before.

Indeed some 61 per cent of people do in fact believe the current economic situation is bad and some 85 per cent are of the opinion that the situation will get worse over the coming half-year. And opting to take out a loan to help cover any outgoings may be one way to cover costs such as mortgage or debt repayments.

Last month, research from mortgage advisory group mform found that people looking for new mortgage deals are now seeking out longer-term deals. Indeed the organisation found that some 11.5 per cent of people wanted to sign mortgage deals for the duration of their borrowing period and some 13.5 per cent of people wanted deals of longer than five years.

Abbi Rouse is Editor in Chief for All About Loans. Our visitors have access to cheap online loans of all types: From home improvement loans to bad credit debt consolidation loans.

Jobs with Banks - What’s Available and What You Need
By john mce

Banks can be great places to start a career. Here’s 3 jobs available in the banking sector which may help you find the job you’ve always dreamed of.

Customer Service Advisor

As a customer service advisor or cashier, you are the first point of contact for a bank’s customers. That’s either in branches serving customers, or in ‘contact centres’, answering telephone calls and emails.

You would process payments and withdrawals, deal with general enquiries, sell financial products and services, update computerised account details, issue foreign currency, help customers with applications and carry out more general administrative duties.

Employers will generally ask for four or five GCSEs, including English and Maths for these kinds of positions, although many have their own entry exams upon application. Experience of customer service and handling cash is an advantage, as are basic computers skills and office experience.

Mortgage Adviser

Mortgage Advisers help customers find, understand and apply for suitable mortgages. If you worked for a bank or building society you would only be selling your own mortgage products. As an estate agent or mortgage broker you would offer mortgage products from a range of providers.

You would advise customers about the home-buying process, assessing their finances, explaining the different kinds of mortgage products, helping with the application, explaining elements of them and selling other related financial services. Your role may come with sales targets and requires a constantly updated knowledge of the products and the law.

There are strict sets of guidelines laid out by the Financial Services Authority regarding selling the financial products, acting fairly and giving the correct advice.

Communication skills and experience in customer service, sales, or financial services are considered more important than educational qualifications for this role. During your training and career development you would obtain FSA-approved qualifications.

Financial Adviser

As a financial adviser, you would help clients to choose between financial products and services, such as investment opportunities, savings, pensions, mortgages and insurance. There are three ways of working; tied, multi-tied, and independent.

Tied means working for a bank of building society and only offering their products and services, Multi-tied means selling services from a selection of companies, and independent means you offer advice on the whole of the market.

Your duties would involve setting up meetings with clients, finding out about their financial situation and future plans, researching financial products, explaining these products to the clients to help inform their decisions, meeting sales targets, keeping records, producing financial reports, updating clients, keeping up to date with the market and the law.

There are strict rules set out by the Financial Services Authority to ensure you act fairly and are properly qualified to give financial advice.

Again, communication skills, ‘people skills’ and a background in customer service, sales or financial services can be more important than educational qualifications. The normal promotion route would lead from a customer service role to a tied adviser after achieving a FSA-approved qualification.

John McE writes on behalf of Commercial Finance People, a financial recruitment consultancy, which was established in 1998 to place candidates in asset finance jobs, invoice finance jobs and banking jobs

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