Save Money With Investments & Online Savings

The Internet is a great way of saving money, and with a little bit of surfing, it isn’t too hard to find yourself some attractive deals. I have listed just 3 ways of saving money, and these 3 will likely appeal to the majority.

Stock Market Investments

A great way to build capital is through the shrewed investments that can be made on the stockmaket. Lots of very stable growing companys will make you greater returns than conventional banking. Using a good broker service and a nice spread portfolio you can make sure money do very well.

Home Insurance

Insurance premiums, the name for payments made to insurance companies, depend on the insurer, the level of cover and how risky you’re perceived to be. Therefore start by defining your cover and ensuring you’re as low a risk as possible.

Plus, if you’ve not got ‘normal’ circumstances eg, you’ve made a claim in the past few years, are in an area prone to flooding or subsidence, do ensure you tell the insurer. If you don’t and then try to claim, even for an unrelated issue, your whole policy may be invalid. With insurance the golden rule is to ‘tell them the whole truth and nothing but the truth’.

Beware ‘pay monthly’ options – usually the insurer actually just loans you the annual cost and then charges interest at hideous rates on top. So either pay for it in full, or if you can’t afford it, use a credit card with a lower APR rate (or better a 0% credit card for spending ensuring your repayments are big enough to clear it within a year).

Some insurers currently have online promotions where you can pay monthly at no extra charge.

A common mistake is to cover the house’s market value (the amount it could be sold for), meaning many people are over insured, paying too much.

The amount you cover (called the ‘sum insured’) should be the ‘rebuild value’; simply the cost of rebuilding the property if it were knocked down.

So the real key isn’t location, but cost of materials, labour and architects. However it’s important any building policy covers the cost of somewhere for you to stay while your home’s rebuilt.

To find a rebuild value, commissioning a survey is most reliable, but is expensive unless you’re getting one anyway (eg, buying a new home). The best online resource is Moneysupermarket or asking an insurer to give you a rough value based on standard assumptions.

Credit Cards

Sometimes simply calling and asking for an interest rate reduction works. The credit card market is competitive and interest rate matching policies are common. If you’ve already got a cheaper rate on another existing card, this should help you batter them down. Simply call up and say, “I need cheaper debt, but I prefer not to leave you.”

Transferring a balance means you move debts to a credit card from another card for a fee of around 3%. For example, if you balance transfer to the Barkercard from the Corbettcard, in practice the Barkercard pays off the Corbettcard for you, so you now owe it the money instead.

The absolute best balance transfer offers used to be preserved for introductory offers for new cardholders, but an increasing number have existing cardholder offers too.

Some card companies offer special deals applying online, some have official set rates, others target individuals, but before you make your Finance Choices, it is important to be prepared.

Holidays

There may be a recession on, but we all still want to go on holiday. The media might think that staycations are the newest craze and holidaymakers will be flocking to British holiday locations, but if you still want to jet off abroad you can do it – on the cheap. Here’s are our top tip for cheap travel this summer.

The first port of call when booking a holiday has to be the Internet. Whether it’s a package holiday or you’re booking accommodation and flights separately online deals outstrip those available on the high street or with telephone booking services. This is simply because these services involve having a sales team which the company has to pay, so their salaries are added to your holiday prices.

Now people are left trying to figure out how to spend the money they’ve been refunded. What follows is a series of tips for managing and investing your PPI refund money.

• Save your PPI refund. – If you opt to receive a lump sum for your PPI claims, don’t spend it right away. It is best to hold onto that money and look at just what your options are in order to best use and manage it first.

• Spend your reclaimed PPI funds on the debts. – If you took out PPI claims on a debt, you may consider spending that money back into your debt in order to pay it off more quickly and thus owe less money. This option is both ironic and gratifying to yourself if you’re able to do it with multiple debts that you’ve accumulated. Plus, you may actually pay some debts off with your PPI refund and therefore be less burdened with payments.

• Put the reclaimed PPI funds into a savings account or another type of short term investment. – This option is often advised for individuals looking to keep funds for a rainy day. PPI claim money put into an interest bearing savings account will both accumulate more money and be able to be withdrawn for use anytime you need it. Short term investments will earn more money and become available after some time. For the best types of investments, you’ll need to contact a PPI claim advisory group.

• If you don’t have any necessary needs, use your PPI refund as you would like. – While it is generally recommended that you should invest PPI refund money elsewhere for a rainy day, if you’re already in top financial condition it would make little sense not to spend the funds.

It has been argued that the removal of this concession could be hugely detrimental to a housing market which has been subdued for years, and could bring about further problems for the property market, significantly slowing sales by discouraging people to either buy or sell.

NAEA president Wendy Evans-Scott said: “As our member agents predicted, the termination of the stamp duty holiday helped to fuel a last-minute rush from people hoping to escape this tax on aspiration….the Governments decision to remove such vital financial support for what is an extremely fragile part of the housing market seems short-sighted”

Already the slow market seems to have been having an impact on the number of people who are putting their houses up for sale, as numbers have been dropping consistently for months.

Evans-Scott continued, “The slight drop in reported supply levels suggests some caution amongst sellers, who were waiting until the full facts of the Budget were established and how that might affect house prices”

Because of this uncertainty, estate agents and financial institutions are recommending investment in buy-to-rent properties. As people continue to struggle to find loans and mortgages to purchase a property of their own, there has been a boom in demand for rental properties. Samuel Duckworth, a private landlord based in Buckinghamshire commented;

“When relocating a few years ago, and wanted to sell my house fast but there just wasn’t a market for it. Because of this I decided to let the property so I could complete my move without having to worry about things like bridging loans and second mortgages. I found quickly that there were many benefits to renting a property and decided to invest in further houses. My income is now sufficient enough that I have been able to quit my original job and focus solely on my investment properties”

Property has always been a solid investment prospect, and though the UK market is changing, this still remains the case, even if rentals need to be considered before an eventual sale.

This comes at a time when recent forecasts have predicted that although Britain will be fortunate enough to avoid the double-dip recession that was feared, the economy will remain fairly stagnant until 2013 with growth of just 0.8% forecast for the coming financial year.

The market has already seen some well-known high street names enter administration over the last few years and has resulted in many businesses frantically searching for new ways to reduce their overheads in order to survive the financial crisis. Michael Patton, a representative for a leading cost management company said yesterday:

“Small businesses struggle the most, particularly those that are run by people with no financial experience. It can be really difficult for them to understand where costs can be cut and it can cause a lot of stress for them which is where we come in. We have the relevant experience that can make the difference between the survival or death of the business, I think a lot of people are starting to realize that now.”

Although some areas of industry seem to be fairly robust at the moment and the export market looks surprisingly healthy, the country’s economic prospects for the next year still seem fairly bleak. Patton continued;

“There is so much uncertainty at the moment that people are finding increasing necessity to operate at maximum cost-efficiency. Unemployment is at its highest rate in years and no-one wants to lay people off. I think that’s why we have seen a huge increase in business.”

Trade fairs can be hugely beneficial for growing companies

Giving away promotional gifts can be an effective way to advertise your company and raise your company profile. The range available today is huge and includes everyday items that can work for almost every company such as pens, mugs and key rings. These items can be given away en-masse for general advertising. Branding on novelty or more specific items are best targeted towards a certain audience which means you can put your company logo or brand name on almost anything. Either way they are perfect for making your company memorable and increasing your profile.

If considering using promotional items as a marketing technique, you will need to consider your audience carefully as well as your budget. You should ensure that you do not over extend yourself, and that your products match the needs of the demographic you are attempting to reach out to, for example, if you work in the wet trade, you should target things like bottle openers and cork screws.

Company employees can also be effective in acting as ambassadors for the company, and promotional clothing can be a fantastic means of establishing your company name. Uniforms bearing the company’s logo will give your staff a smart, professional appearance.This also has the added benefit of aiding people to recognise the employees in a work place, improving customer recognition and therefore service.

As with any form of marketing technique, you will need to undertake comprehensive market research before you approach companies for products. Ensure that you decide upon something useful, practical, and something that will last – well targeted promotional items can keep advertising long after they have served their initial purpose.

Eric Pickles is convinced that new planning legislation will boost the economy

The original draft policies were forced back to the drawing board after causing much controversy within environmental focus groups such as the National Trust and Friends of the Earth, who were dissatisfied with the impending effects they believed the plans would have on the countryside including the development of brownfield sites.

Pickles believes that the new proposals however will appease and even please everybody. He offers “five guiding principles” within the framework namely: “living within the planet’s means; ensuring a strong, healthy and just society; achieving a sustainable economy; promoting good governance; and using sound science responsibly”

These new proposals come at a time when new developments are in high demand but when construction has slowed right down, and Pickles believes that this reform will help to get things moving again. He argues that the planning processes had become too complex and were resulting in people shying away from development, slowing down economic growth and stunting social mobility. It is also hoped that these measures will ease the impending housing crisis the country is facing.

With the new framework, local councils will be guided through drawing up plans which will then be taken into consideration by planning inspectors. Labour have come out in favour of these new proposals, with Hilary Benn stating that they welcomed a “U-turn on playing fields and open spaces” but are also somewhat sceptical. He also added;

“Far from giving us certainty, there is likely to be a delay as developments are held up by appeals and by the courts having to rule on a new and untested approach.”

Business leaders have praised the government for maintaining their approach to sustainable development and their attempts to get the construction industry moving again, helping the country’s economy recover. Environmental groups seem somewhat satisfied with the amendments to the proposals but remain largely unconvinced with Dame Fiona Reynolds, director-general of the National Trust has said she would be watching “to see how it works in practice”

CEO of Cartier Bernard Fornas

According to an interview in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week, Bernard Fornas, Chief Executive of the prestigious Cartier watches is optimistic about the future of the company after an unexpected boom in the luxury goods market. This boom, fueled by a high demand for luxury goods in emerging economies in Asia, has led to a 30% rise in sales in the first nine months of the 2012 financial year.

In the interview, Fornas also seems to be hopeful for European and US markets that have been hit significantly by the economic downturn, believing that tourism will help to lessen the effects of struggling markets:

“Europe, on gross figures, including tourists, is faring quite well. I don’t know how far down, stable or up Europe will go, but Chinese tourists will cushion the landing if things get worse. The Far East is doing very well, still, and the Americas are faring much better than I thought. The Middle East is doing well because of the price of oil.”

Although there are fears that the Chinese market may begin to slow down soon and not continue to drive the surge in demand, Fornas believes that Cartier can weather the storm, emphasising the idea that the luxury products represent a solid investment opportunity:

“The beauty of Cartier is a lot of added value. Take a watch: there is so much more than diamonds and gold. If I were selling a 20-karat gold ring, then the increase in the price of gold or diamonds would have a big impact on the final price. But what we are selling is more creative; everything we sell to our clients has a strong creative, technical, design or specific materials added value”

Cartier Tank Watch

The world-renowned French jewellers, whose Cartier Tank watch starts at £5,375 believes that the key to survival in tough climates is to adapt to market demands but believes that despite money being tight, people will still be willing to pay for quality; “People want beautiful products even when business is difficult, and they want to be reassured by something that is authentic”

In March this year, Jaguar Land Rover signed an historical deal with China’s Chery Automobile, renewing hope for improved sales of cars and Land Rover spares in these now budding markets, and with the announcement of the creation of a further 1,500 jobs in their West Midlands plant, JLR’s miraculous recovery following near state bailout in the first throes of the economic crisis seems to have been confirmed. The key to this turnaround has undoubtedly been the push into emerging markets in China and Russia, as the new elite seek the luxury of these iconic, British born vehicles.

After the UK and the USA China represents the biggest export market for JLR, purchasing one out of six cars manufactured last year. The market has increased at a staggering rate, rising 60% in 2011 with sales figures of 42,000, and representing 17.2% of Jaguar Land Rover’s exports in the third quarter of last year. This joint venture, if approved by regulatory bodies, will be key to further development in the market and give a much needed confidence boost to the manufacturing industry.

Jaguar Land Rover have stated that if the move goes to plan, they will first begin the production of Land Rover SUV’s with Jaguars to follow. It is hoped that with new joint owned facilities, they will be able to establish new research and development facilities, and build on the strength of knowledge each one can provide. This in turn, is hoped to have a positive knock on effect for the UK’s luxury car manufacturing industry.

Recent changes in the law could act to prevent controversies surrounding using limited companies for tax evasion purposes. IR35, brought in by the Labour government to ensure that contractors employed by a company pay tax and national insurance as an employee, even when working through a limited company. This change to the law was brought in as it is widely believed that individuals are using company formation as a means to disguise basic employment relations, thus making it difficult to claim the correct amount of tax from an individual.

However this move has not been without controversies of its own. Many contractors have hit out against the bill, stating that it acts as a disincentive to business and unfairly labels those freelancers who have been working within the law. The Professional Contractors Group has been set up to lobby against proposed measures, believing that they would be detrimental to small contractors and freelancers and the coalition government have recently announced that they will review proposals to make them friendlier to small businesses. Chris Bryce, PCG representative commented “We are delighted our message was heard and action taken…Freelancing is a growing and valuable part of the UK economy”

There have been a number of high profile cases in the past few years that have highlighted the exploitation of loopholes in the law regarding LLC’s in which employees have been found to flout the law, and operated with their employer as two companies trading together.

Although clearly there is a case for modifications to the law, the PCG argue that it has failed. Projected government figures suggested that the changes would bring in a further £220 million pounds worth of revenue per annum but has in fact brought in just £1.5 million. However, HMRC have fought back suggesting that this low tax intake was actually indicative that workers were working as employees instead of using limited companies to hide their employment status, and that the law was therefore effective.

This is in part due to the rise of its popularity in the Middle East. After the economic downturn of 2008, many people have sought alternative investment opportunities, and much like investing in gold, jewellery and other precious metals, art has provided an opportunity to acquire something that is not only aesthetically pleasing, but will also see a good return. In fact, statistics show that during the last year, art has consistently out-performed equity bonds with a return of 8% per year.

The rise in popularity of art in the Middle East has also been mirrored in the UK, with the London Gallery launching their “Unveiled” exhibition, showcasing talented artists from the Arab nations, and the popular Jameel Gallery of Islamic Art opening its doors in London under the patronage of the Saudi Royal Family, but despite this these up-and-coming artist’s work still remains comparatively inexpensive; the Middle East art sales catalogue showing prices of just $1,500 – $20,000.

But this trend is by no means confined to Middle Eastern art and art dealers. There has also been a surge in the Asian art market. As economies like China’s continue to grow and prosper, there has been an increased interest in traditional art and culture. Similarly, antiques from the Far East have consistently been going for astronomical prices in auction houses all over the world as the prosperous nations buy back goods acquired by westerners during periods of colonialisation.

These trends show no signs of abating any time soon, as emerging economies continue to exhibit their dominance on the global stage, these vital status symbols not only provide a solid investment opportunity but also act as a means to display just how prominent they have become.