Six Million Britons have no savings at all

Old_Slaphead

Joeskeppi wrote: »

I save in my current account.

!!!!ing about with ISA's for an extra £20 isn't worth my time.

Good on yer - will help to keep 'free' banking going a bit longer and gets those of us wth cash ISAs better savings rates.

jimjames

kataklysm wrote: »

He says: 'Why not make a packed lunch each day? With the warmer weather approaching why not cut down on the cost of public transport and walk or cycle to work?"

Of course! Now why didn't I think of that? Oh yes, that's right - because it's basically p!!!ing into the wind isn't it?.... ¬____¬

In the words of Tesco every little helps. Very easy to ignore the £2 you spend on a coffeee or £5 on lunch but they both add up. £100 a month would get you some decent savings over the long term and most people wouldn't miss that kind of spending with just a small change to habits.

C_Mababejive

I had a worrying mailshot from HL today..

This bit is frightening...

The current rate of inflation is 4.5 per cent. At this level, the real value of capital will halve every 16 years.

dawyldthing

This is just the half of it though. If we have any savings when something happens to us then it will more than likely be taxed, while your alive your taxed on working, taxed on savings, taxed on virtually everything you buy. In the house you have a TV licence, council tax and the gas and electric is taxed. If you buy a house over 125k (not likely round here, but happens in some areas) you have a tax on that. Buses and the like will be going up as I got told the other day in November the subsidies will be going so it will be another tax really to go anywhere (whether it be to work or to do your shopping). Half the benefits are going and the rest are being combined.

Basically its a really bad way of living, the capitalist society is at an extreme and very much the rich are definately getting richer while the less well off (I would say 80% of the country) are suffering left, right and centre!

expatdave wrote: »

What is the point in saving?

Life is short so make the most of it!

The UK sucks when it comes to treating people right, they have the human rights act that basically helps criminals most of the time.

You work hard and pay tax and NI every month and struggle to make ends meet, whilst other people abuse the benefit system and do not work. These people on benefits are often better off than people that work!

Then you get old and have to go in a care home and the government takes your savings from you or makes you sell your assets to pay for your care, whereas people who have never worked get it for free!

Who are the mugs?

Herbie_Hancock_I_wish

Stuff it in pensions . We did then we had all the old rubbish with stock market crashes , annuities decreasing like mad .Kids in my family cannot afford to move out , let alone buy . Oh well .

ceridwen

PasturesNew wrote: »

I never used to have any savings... in fact, now I don't. I do have my house fund, but that's not savings as such as that's to be spent on a house.

...and is a house purchase coming any closer Pastures? Do you feel restricted to staying in your part of the country (ie being near the oldies) or can you make life easier for yourself by moving to a cheaper part of the country?

(ie I noticed a perfectly decent couple of flats, for instance, the other day in Durham - when I was googling to see if the North East really is a lot cheaper than many areas).

This is the thing I've noticed though - ie that little terrace houses vary widely between different parts of the country (ie they are dirt cheap in some parts of the country compared to my own area for instance) but "the next level up" (ie homes to live in for life) seem to cost pretty much the same whatever part of the country one is in (with the notable exception of Lincoln - where, for some reason, there doesnt seem to be much price differential between the first three levels of housing = ie starters, semis and small detached houses).

ceridwen

C_Mababejive wrote: »

I had a worrying mailshot from HL today..

This bit is frightening...

The current rate of inflation is 4.5 per cent. At this level, the real value of capital will halve every 16 years.

Actually - I wonder if its a good deal higher than that (ie having noticed that supermarkets are charging pretty much the same for some items - but have cut the size of the packets/tins/etc) and I think there are probably a lot of hidden price rises there.

Also - the huge rises currently happening with fuel bills.

Personally - I'd believe anyone who says inflation is around 20% actually and we are being told a pack of lies that its such a reasonable level as 4.5%.

Sits back waiting for the next bit of devaluing the £ - otherwise known as "quantitative easing":cool:

michaels

And yet computer monitors have fallen from about £120 to £90 in the last few months...

Dave101t

'before its too late'?

ha!

after a life on dole, even if you havent earned enough national insurance for the state pension, they still give you a pension because they have to ensure a minimum standard of life in the UK.

its a great time to be a scrounger! (wish i was one, would be so much simpler)

edinburgher

In the words of Tesco every little helps. Very easy to ignore the £2 you spend on a coffeee or £5 on lunch but they both add up.

As a fan of American PF blogs, I find that the 'latte factor' often has more importance attributed to it as a way of wasting money than is appropriate. Granted, chucking your money at Starbucks on a daily basis is a sure way to remain skint (and confused as to where it's all going).

That said, it's the big choices (where you live, what you do for a job, whether or not you smoke, how many cars you have (if any)) that affect your disposable income the most.