Monday 7th of December 2009
If you currently have no spare cash to put into a savings account to prepare for your loved ones’ future then getting some individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) answers could reassure you that there is a way to get out of the red and into the black.
A new survey from National Savings and Investments (NS&I) reveals that just 47 per cent of you save some cash every month.
One reason why you may not be able to look to the future is because your unsecured debts and interest repayments could be eating the majority of your income.
Despite this, 54 per cent of you claim your new financial priority is to start saving for emergencies. But in the past, you may have covered unexpected expenses with credit cards or personal loans and the repayments could be causing you a monetary headache.
IVAs could answer your debt problems, however. An IVA can freeze the interest on your repayments and merge all your unsecured debt commitments into one, more manageable monthly repayment.
Once you are back into the black, you can think about saving for those unexpected events, or even for your loved ones’ futures like university fees, a new car or a deposit on their first home.
"The recent financial instability appears to have encouraged many of us to set money aside, to act as a financial safety cushion in the event of the unexpected," explains Tim Mack, NS&I’s savings spokesperson.
"While this is key to making sure we are financially secure, it is also important not to forget about other major expenses that occur at different life stages where we may need to draw on savings, or credit if no other funds are available," he adds.
Once you have cleared your debt through an IVA you may never need to draw on savings or credit again to cover unexpected expenses.
By Mark Waterman
- House price rise 'may not indicate recovery'
- Equity release 'needs to be increased'
- Need for IVA help could increase as expert predicts reduction in lending
- Government announces 'breathing space' for those needing IVA help
- Lack of subprime lending creating need for IVA help, expert suggests
- Return of lending 'will take time'
