Archive for the ‘Finance’ Category
Is an IVA the only option for unmanageable debt?
An IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) is one option that could help people facing unmanageable unsecured debts. It’s a formal, legally binding agreement with your lenders in which you’ll repay a portion of your debt over a set number of years (usually five), after which any remaining debt will be written off.
IVAs are designed to help people who can’t keep up with their payments and have no realistic chance of repaying their debt within a reasonable period of time. You’ll only qualify for an IVA if this applies to you, and you’ll also (in most cases) need to be able to commit to regular monthly payments for the duration of the IVA. If you’re a homeowner, you may also be required to release equity from your property so you can pay more into the IVA.
But even if you do qualify for an IVA, there may be other options for tackling unmanageable debt. You should always consider all your options before you make any firm decisions. There are three forms of personal insolvency in England and Wales.
To find out if an IVA may be suitable you can use this IVA calculator.
Retirement Planning for Your Financial Future
Retirement planning is for some something they don’t think about until they’re past time to make the most of the opportunities available when they were younger. Retirement planners agree that in order to enjoy the same lifestyle in retirement that you do now you will need 70-90% of your pre-retirement income. The best part is that it’s really never too late to start, or, as the old saying goes, “better late than never”. Here are some ideas to help you with successful retirement planning at any age.
Most retirement planning specialists will tell you that one of the first keys to successful retirement planning is starting early. It’s simple, the earlier you start saving for your retirement the more money you will have due to compounding of dividends and interest. The difference can be startling. If you started saving at the age of 40, you’d have to save over three times the amount of money that you would have if you had started at the age of 25 to have the same amount of money at age 55.
Eliminate Your Credit Card Debt
Can a debt consolidation loan eliminate your credit card debt? A consolidation loan might (or might not) be the key. There are several things you must consider when making the choice to consolidate debt using a debt consolidation loan.
First, is a debt consolidation loan your best choice to eliminate or substantially reduce your debt? There are other options available to you, including credit counseling and bankruptcy. Obviously bankruptcy is a last resort. You must examine several factors when making your decision on which debt reduction / elimination strategy to use. You need to get information on debt consolidation to make the correct decision. ‘How much outstanding debt do you have?