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Expert Financial Adviser Answer
James Brooke
answered 3 years ago
If by change you mean remortage then the answer is no, but you do need to tell your mortgage lender that you are letting out the property and you need to get their permission. This is a normal condition of most residential mortgages.
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Expert Financial Adviser Answer
Darren Smith
answered 2 years ago
The key with insurance is all down to risk and as its not usual for everyone to take a skiing holiday or even when visiting a ski resort to participate in winter sports it would otherwise increase the cost of all policies to add this in for everyone.

it makes more sense to have a clear idea in your mind as to what you plan to do beforehand and then you can establish the cover you need. to be honest, adding on winter sports need not cost the earth but trying to save a few £ now on a policy will cost you dearly if something happens and you are not covered and the cost of travel insurance is minimal compared to the cost of the holiday!
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Expert Financial Adviser Answer
Darren Smith
answered 2 years ago
I would start by reviewing your monthly budget as you will often identify things that you dont even need to spend on which can result in a 100% saving. eg that gym membership you dont use, the breakdown service when you already get it as an add-on with your current account.

in terms of the other points you raise, the remortgage can have potentially the biggest improvement if you are on a standard variable rate with your lender or even if you are tied to a high fixed rate, with 25% equity you could get massive savings and even more with more equity but of course this will mean a little effort from you as a good IFA will be able to do most of the work with little or nil outlay from you.

the same IFA will be able to help you review your investments, pension planning and protection arrangements. Protection is important to bolster your plans, the last thing you want is that your aspirations are knocked because of ill-health or other matters beyond your control.

These are all things i review with my clients regularly, it doesnt always mean that we take action as i am mindful of my client's budget and their short term objectives but the big obstacle for many people is to realise that they need to take stock - at least you are already at that stage now!

you might find that your first "proper" review takes a lot of effort especially with a new IFA but the benefit is that all the future ones will be much easier as you will have done all thr groundwork now and will be just building on your plans and tweaking them as necessary.
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Expert Financial Adviser Answer
Paul Ross DipPFS CII(MP&ER)
answered 2 years ago
A survey by Aviva has revealed that apathy is leaving 20 million UK adults at financial risk because they don't have any form of life or income-related protection.

Figures from Aviva Life Insurance show that of those without any life cover...

more than 37% say this is because it's still on their 'to do' list or that they haven't thought about it
one in seven (15%) say they have made other provisions
one in ten (10%) haven't bothered because they have no dependents and feel no need for a life insurance policy
9% say they don't have it because they don't have a mortgage to insure
3% of people say they haven't taken out a policy because they don't understand it.
Head of protection marketing at Norwich Union, Darren Dicks commented... "These findings are cause for concern as they suggest many people are taking an 'it won't happen to me' approach to protection. Around 52% of UK adults have no life cover at all* and the remainder are either underinsured or unsure about what type of cover they hold.

"There is currently a £2.3 trillion protection gap in the UK which leaves a large proportion of the population vulnerable. Many people wait until they have a particular event in their lives, such as a house purchase or the birth of a child before they purchase life cover, but people shouldn't take the view that they need to wait."

Aviva's research also reveals a number of key 'trigger' events which motivate people to purchase life insurance cover. These events include:

Buying first home: 44%
Moving home: 18%
Divorce/separation: 14%
Getting married or moving in with partner: 13%
* Source: Swiss Re
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personalfinancefan
answered 3 years ago
7.5% APR from Nationwide
http://www.nationwide.co.uk/loans/default.htm
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MoneyTalks
answered 3 years ago
You can read more about debt management plans (DMP) and individual voluntary agreements (IVA) on the site.

A debt management specialist can "negotiate with your creditors and put together a repayment plan for your debt" - http://www.simplyfinance.co.uk/debt/debt-management.html

While an IVA "is a legally binding alternative to bankruptcy...available to residents of England and Wales...the minimum debt amount accepted of £15,000" - http://www.simplyfinance.co.uk/debt/iva.html
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MoneyTalks
answered 3 years ago
In general, the answer is no. Provided you are not aware of any pre-existing conditions, you are best served by waiting to have a medical examination after joining a private medical insurance (PMI) plan.

Medical history declarations are offered by all insurers. These usually require the completion of medical questionnaire.

A moratorium is an option with some insurers. This requires you to complete a form without disclosing any medical history. If you do have any pre-existing conditions, they will not be covered for a stipulated amount of time, which varies from two to five years depending on the insurance provider.
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anony365mous
answered 3 years ago
You should keep enough savings so that you could last 6 months without a job. If you are not strong willed enough to not touch the money in a savings account, get a savings product that penalises you for early withdrawl.
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MoneyTalks
answered 3 years ago
There are a wide range of unsecured loan providers on the market, each with different lending criteria and offering different interest rates. Unfortunately, all of the providers are unsecured personal loan products from £1,000 to £25,000 over a loan period ranging from one to five years. Also, expect rates for an unsecured loan to be higher than a secured loan. This is because unsecured loans are a riskier investment for providers as there is no security in place from which they can reclaim their funds if repayments are not met.

If you truly need £30,000 or do not have pristine credit your only option maybe a secured loan.

Good luck.
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MoneyTalks
answered 3 years ago
Based on http://www.ukpower.co.uk/home_energy/price_updates, it looks like gas suppliers and electricity suppliers change prices, tariffs, and deals almost daily.
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Expert Financial Adviser Answer
Darren Smith
answered 2 years ago
The answer is to try both. its important to have a cash reserve to fall back on so that you dont rely on credit cards especially when your credit limit can be reduced or withdrawn at any time. if you have a good credit record you should look at a balance transfer deal. the 0% deals are good if you can repay the full debt in the 0% limit but this can sometimes be only 12 months and with a 3% average fee to move balances you might be better to look for a transfer rate "for life" where you could pay a typical 4-4.5% on a balance for as long as it takes to repay it which will work out cheaper in the long run.

people have a different view of how much cash you should keep but you need to consider how long your current cash would last if you lost your job/income. a good starting place is 3 months income or outogings (the higher of the 2) as a safety cushion.
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MoneyTalks
answered 3 years ago
There are a few start-ups trying to replicate Mint's success. Most notably, MoneyDashboard and LoveMoney offer a personal finance management (PFM) solution in the UK and MoBank offers a mobile banking solution.

I know Kublax was unsuccessful, so hopefully these other players have a solution and enough capital to make it work.
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