Finance Matters

• 27Jul

  Debt Collection Agencies could change ownership

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  One in six companies in the UK debt collection agency industry could change ownership as a result of the current economic climate, claims a new study by financial analysts Plimsoll.
  The analysts claim that while a “surprising” number of cash rich competitors wait in the wings, the market could be set for a prolonged period of consolidation. Plimsoll analysed 208 companies with a turnover of more than £1m per annum and the company picked out 64 that it claimed are primed to be taken over.
  David Pattison, author of the new Plimsoll Industry Analysis – Debt Collection Agencies, said: “I am sure any director worth his salt would agree that, in the current climate, there are simply too many companies chasing too little market. With many directors eyeing the exit doors and highly leveraged buyouts consigned to history for the time being, it really is a buyer’s market out there for cash rich companies.”
  Pattison added: “In the Plimsoll Industry Analysis…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Debt Collection Agencies could change ownership

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  One in six companies in the UK debt collection agency industry could change ownership as a result of the current economic climate, claims a new study by financial analysts Plimsoll.
  The analysts claim that while a “surprising” number of cash rich competitors wait in the wings, the market could be set for a prolonged period of consolidation. Plimsoll analysed 208 companies with a turnover of more than £1m per annum and the company picked out 64 that it claimed are primed to be taken over.
  David Pattison, author of the new Plimsoll Industry Analysis – Debt Collection Agencies, said: “I am sure any director worth his salt would agree that, in the current climate, there are simply too many companies chasing too little market. With many directors eyeing the exit doors and highly leveraged buyouts consigned to history for the time being, it really is a buyer’s market out there for cash rich companies.”
  Pattison added: “In the Plimsoll Industry Analysis…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Are IVAs easier to obtain ?

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  Banks and other lenders seem to be relaxing their payment thresholds for individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) and are approving lower-repayment applications for the first time
  Previously, only debtors able to commit to monthly payments of at least £200, paid over five years, were accepted, which is beyond the means of many people. In the past few months, though, creditors have agreed to hundreds of more flexible IVAs with monthly payments of under £200.
  The main IVA selling point, as an alternative to bankruptcy, is that debtors are able to reduce their debts to a single monthly payment and have a legally binding agreement to become debt-free upon completion of the arrangement. From the creditors’ point of view they can claw back a proportion of what they are owed in a relatively short amount of time, and IVAs offer better returns for lenders than bankruptcies.
  While lower monthly payments may be welcome to some debtors who would have been unable to meet a £200 payment,…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Are IVAs easier to obtain ?

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  Banks and other lenders seem to be relaxing their payment thresholds for individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) and are approving lower-repayment applications for the first time
  Previously, only debtors able to commit to monthly payments of at least £200, paid over five years, were accepted, which is beyond the means of many people. In the past few months, though, creditors have agreed to hundreds of more flexible IVAs with monthly payments of under £200.
  The main IVA selling point, as an alternative to bankruptcy, is that debtors are able to reduce their debts to a single monthly payment and have a legally binding agreement to become debt-free upon completion of the arrangement. From the creditors’ point of view they can claw back a proportion of what they are owed in a relatively short amount of time, and IVAs offer better returns for lenders than bankruptcies.
  While lower monthly payments may be welcome to some debtors who would have been unable to meet a £200 payment,…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Credit card use is declining

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  With the credit meltdown of last fall and all the fallout in the business since then, it was only a matter of time before you’d get a letter from your credit card issuer phrased something like this.
  “We’re notifying you that the terms of your account are changing.”
  The Hodges house got one of these from Capital One this past week. It’s a Visa with no balance, and we don’t use it any more (part of the credit card purge we and many others have done). The old annual percentage rate (APR) was 12.65 percent for purchases and a 19.74 percent rate for cash advances.
  The letter advised us of a new rate at 17.9 percent for purchases and balance transfers. As with many deals, it’s adjustable and is essentially 14.65 percent added to the prime rate. The default rate, which is triggered when your payment is late twice in any 12 billing periods, will be 29.4 percent.
  It was the rationale that got my attention.
  “Due to extraordinary changes in the econ…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Credit card use is declining

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  With the credit meltdown of last fall and all the fallout in the business since then, it was only a matter of time before you’d get a letter from your credit card issuer phrased something like this.
  “We’re notifying you that the terms of your account are changing.”
  The Hodges house got one of these from Capital One this past week. It’s a Visa with no balance, and we don’t use it any more (part of the credit card purge we and many others have done). The old annual percentage rate (APR) was 12.65 percent for purchases and a 19.74 percent rate for cash advances.
  The letter advised us of a new rate at 17.9 percent for purchases and balance transfers. As with many deals, it’s adjustable and is essentially 14.65 percent added to the prime rate. The default rate, which is triggered when your payment is late twice in any 12 billing periods, will be 29.4 percent.
  It was the rationale that got my attention.
  “Due to extraordinary changes in the econ…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Untitled

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  This is a busy week for the insolvency industry. The insolvency stats come out this Friday and they will likely show an increase in IVAs and Bankruptcies.
  IVA.co.uk Petition for the abolition of the Insolvency Register
  Full name of petition: We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to ‘abolish,regulate or limit private company access to the Insolvency Website.
  The petition will now be handed to the government.
  Petition: http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/InsolvReg/
   
  Insolvency Register for some – but not for others!
  Staveley’s name does not appear on the register of individuals authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
  It seems that there are ways to avoid being on the register (which probably involve having powerful friends)
  Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/nov/04/amanda-staveley-barclays-debts-iva
  Insolvency rate to rise 41% by end of 2009 (for small companies)
  Smaller company insolvencies are set to rise by a “catastrophic 

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Untitled

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  This is a busy week for the insolvency industry. The insolvency stats come out this Friday and they will likely show an increase in IVAs and Bankruptcies.
  IVA.co.uk Petition for the abolition of the Insolvency Register
  Full name of petition: We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to ‘abolish,regulate or limit private company access to the Insolvency Website.
  The petition will now be handed to the government.
  Petition: http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/InsolvReg/
   
  Insolvency Register for some – but not for others!
  Staveley’s name does not appear on the register of individuals authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
  It seems that there are ways to avoid being on the register (which probably involve having powerful friends)
  Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/nov/04/amanda-staveley-barclays-debts-iva
  Insolvency rate to rise 41% by end of 2009 (for small companies)
  Smaller company insolvencies are set to rise by a “catastrophic 

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Two-thirds of advisers fail equity release test

  Mortgages No Comments

  From This is Money:

  Just a third of the 40 advisers checked on met all the tests and only five out of 12 equity release specialists passed the benchmarks. This compared to eight of the 28 general financial advisers.

  Of those tested, 23 failed to carry out the fact-find they are meant to do on a customer before giving recommendations and seven did not even ask what the applicant’s income was: vital for working out how much they need to boost it.

  Some advisers didn’t say how quickly debt grows or discuss compound interest, which boosts debt when none of it is paid off.

  Martyn Hocking, of Which? added: ‘If you’ve been hit by plunging pensions, it might be tempting to release some much-needed money using your home. However, opting for an equity release plan is a big decision and it’s not one that should be taken lightly.’

  The equity release industry has defended itself against Which?’s attack, but admitted that there needs to be serious improvements in advice given.

  ‘But continuous i…

  Click to read the full article »

• 27Jul

  Two-thirds of advisers fail equity release test

  Mortgages No Comments

  From This is Money:

  Just a third of the 40 advisers checked on met all the tests and only five out of 12 equity release specialists passed the benchmarks. This compared to eight of the 28 general financial advisers.

  Of those tested, 23 failed to carry out the fact-find they are meant to do on a customer before giving recommendations and seven did not even ask what the applicant’s income was: vital for working out how much they need to boost it.

  Some advisers didn’t say how quickly debt grows or discuss compound interest, which boosts debt when none of it is paid off.

  Martyn Hocking, of Which? added: ‘If you’ve been hit by plunging pensions, it might be tempting to release some much-needed money using your home. However, opting for an equity release plan is a big decision and it’s not one that should be taken lightly.’

  The equity release industry has defended itself against Which?’s attack, but admitted that there needs to be serious improvements in advice given.

  ‘But continuous i…

  Click to read the full article »

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