Banks report weak lending figures

Banks report weak lending figuresConsumer lending remained weak in May, according to the latest figures from the Bank of England, suggesting that a level of uncertainty still exists amongst banks.

However, major UK lenders did report a slight improvement in net lending in the form of personal loans in June.

The Bank said that major UK lenders had not reported any plans to increase the availability of credit to consumers in the near future, and they had not seen any significant signs of an increase in demand.

A spokesperson for Think Banking said: “Although some people are beginning to talk about economic recovery, there is still a lot of uncertainty with regard to what will happen in the economy over the next few months.

“June`s slight improvement in lending is encouraging, but we`ll have to wait a while before we can see if it is the beginning of a longer-term recovery.”

Ways to save money on textbooks

Ways to save money on textbooksTrue, getting a good college education will help you succeed financially in the long run, but the cost of tuition, books and supplies sure does eat away at your finances until you find yourself on a strict college budget.

The typical student plops down $900 per school year on textbooks alone! You can save money on textbooks will preperation and creativity.

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Teach Kids how to Manage Money

As a parent, it is your job to teach your children lifelong lessons and strategies to succeed in the “real world”, and schools can only teach so much. Money management is obviously one of the most important components of adulthood, you use money to pay your rent, utilities and other bills.

Unless children are taught otherwise, they may just grow up without the skills they need to be successful. Take an active part in your child’s upbringing and teach them the value of a dollar. Here is a few ways how…

1. Where is it going?- Show your children exactly where money goes, whether that is on rent, utilities, groceries and entertainment explain to them that you earned this money, and if you spend it all, its gone. Try taking them through a budget worksheet like these great houshold budget examples from christianpf.com. Continue reading

The Best Kind of Credit Cards

The Best Kind of Credit CardsA lot of people have multiple credit cards – including most of you that are reading this article. Truthfully, it has been rather easy to get credit cards in the past, so you will have some credit cards that are better than others. You know which of you cards have the higher interest rates and which ones are great. This means that some are costing you more than others. Here are some tips about how to get some really beneficial credit cards.

When you really think about it, a credit card is either helping you to save money, or it is costing you to have it. This makes the best credit card one that you owe no balance on – simply because this is the only way to avoid paying any interest. Apart from that, however, there is an even better way to save money on a credit card. Continue reading