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More than 4 million fear they`ll be made redundant Consumers took on more mortgage debt in July Debts called in by parents Teenagers `scared of debt` Rising household costs could pressure people in debt Pensions debt may impact workers` retirement funds Welsh young adults `at highest risk of debt problems` Over 50s can`t afford to enjoy retirement because of debts Budget: tackling the nation`s debt Short-term debt: `no need for price control` The cost of clearing debt Education debt Tackling the national debt Number of mortgage deals on offer exceeds 3,000 Almost 5 million take on debt to pay household bills OECD: household debt more than 120% of disposable income Petrol price falls help people in debt Amount of mortgage debt taken on at lowest level in ten years Northern Ireland sees significant IVA rise Overdraft debt `becoming more expensive`

Borrowing, saving and paying off debt

21/09/2009

`Have we become a nation of savers?` asks an article on the BBC website. Reviewing some of the financial trends of the last decade or so, it looks at how we`ve moved from taking on debt to paying it off.

As recently as mid-2007, it points out, taking on debt was easy - `borrowing money seemed so secure, so easy, and so cheap`, and eventually there were 56 million credit cards in the UK.

Savings, on the other hand, were in decline. In 2008, we were saving under 2% of our household income - less than a fifth of what we`d been saving in 1995.

Recently, much has changed. `As financial institutions wavered, and occasionally collapsed - most notably the Icelandic banks that had offered high levels of interest - savers decided to value security over opportunity.`

Today, the low base rate means many people with debt are choosing to reduce their debt rather than save. This July, we collectively repaid more debt than we borrowed - the first time this had happened since the Bank of England started keeping records on this in 1993. This was a significant event - between 1993 and July 2009, personal debt had risen constantly, increasing by around £1 trillion (£1,000,000,000,000).

`People in work,` the article notes, `are finding that borrowing has become considerably more expensive, and saving is bringing very little return, so many are looking to pay off debts instead.`

Even so: `Total household savings in July 2009 stood at £1.1 trillion - with banks holding a 70.2% share, building societies with 21.1% and NS&I with 8.7%`.

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Debt Advisers Direct offer free debt advice and a range of debt solutions, including debt management plans, debt consolidation loans and IVAs (Individual Voluntary Arrangements).

More than 4 million fear they`ll be made redundant 16/12/2010 - According to R3`s quarterly personal debt tracker, more than 4 Consumers took on more mortgage debt in July 26/08/2010 - Consumers took on £2bn more mortgage debt than they repaid Debts called in by parents 26/08/2010 - According to research, `the bank of Mum and Dad` is Teenagers `scared of debt` 19/08/2010 - Nearly two thirds of teenagers are `scared` of debt, according