Taking out an offset mortgage enables you to use your savings to reduce your mortgage balance and the interest you pay on it.

Offset mortgages can help you save money over the course of your deal as there’s less interest to pay over the longer term. Interest rates on offset products can be higher than on an equivalent standard repayment deal, but thanks to the savings placed aside, these are charged on a smaller loan amount. This means you will pay less mortgage interest while the savings are offset.

An offset mortgage can help to lower...

Hardly a day goes by without the cost of living hitting the headlines. For many homeowners the increasing costs of owning and running a home is having a huge impact on household budgets. For those borrowers with a fixed rate mortgage, the recent increase in mortgage interest rates may not have an immediate impact. However, as mortgages are more expensive now than they were two years ago, you may see your mortgage payments rise when you next come to remortgage.

Overpaying on your mortgage now could save you more on interest down the line and...

After several months of economic and political uncertainty the new chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, has delivered his autumn statement.

With announcements relating to energy bills, Income Tax, the State Pension, tax allowances, and Stamp Duty, there are plenty of ways your finances could be affected in 2023 and beyond.

Here are the key points of the autumn statement and what they mean for you.

You may pay more Income Tax in 2023/4The chancellor’s announcements mean many millions of workers are likely to pay more Income Tax over the next few years...

• The main income tax allowances and thresholds, the main national insurance thresholds plus the inheritance tax nil rate bands will stay at their current levels for an extra two years to April 2028.
• The threshold for the 45% additional rate of income tax will reduce from £150,000 to £125,140 from April 2023.
• The dividend allowance will reduce from £2,000 to £1,000 from April 2023 and be halved again to £500 from April 2024. The capital gains tax annual exempt amount will be cut from £12,300 to £6,000 for 2023/24 and halved to £3,000 from ...

Money and financial goals are still sometimes viewed as taboo subjects, even within relationships. If you’ve been putting off conversations about finances, creating a plan together could have many benefits.

Actively talking about money can be positive for both you and your loved ones, and research suggests it’s something younger generations are more likely to do. According to Royal London, 76% of 18 to 24-year-olds spoke to their parents about money matters when they were growing up. In contrast, this falls to 43% for those over 65.

If mon...

The Bank of England has raised interest rates and warned further hikes are likely in the coming months. This will mean bigger bills for some homeowners.

On 3 November 2022, the Bank of England raised interest rates from 2.25% to 3% - the eighth hike since December 2021 - in a bid to combat soaring inflation. And, the Bank’s Governor, Andrew Bailey, has warned people to expect further rises in the coming months.

It is now widely anticipated that rates will rise to over 5% by Spring next year. This has had a huge impact on the mortgage ma...