quick property sale

According to a survey carried out by Legal & General, millions of households in the UK are struggling to get by. The rising cost of living over the past 12 months has left some 12 million of the UK’s 21 million households with no money left over after paying their bills.

The number who spend all their hard earned income on bills and debt payments has increased from 10.7 million just nine months ago.

The official figures provided on fuel poverty were deemed to be out of date and have underestimated the number of householders in the UK finding difficulty meeting the cost of rising energy bills.

In 2009, figures from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) revealed that 5.5 million households in the UK were suffering from fuel poverty, which was up by a million on the previous year.

The increase in the number of affected households was put down to a 14 per cent increase in gas bills and a 5 per cent rise in electricity in that year.

The depressed housing market remains slow with the traditional spring boom failing to lift homebuyers to even half the level seen prior to the housing crash.

According to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders, mortgages for home purchases increased by just 700 from April to May, which is unsurprising given the headache facing those wanting to move home. Those already on the property ladder need deposits of almost £60,000 and first-time buyers need to earn around 30 per cent more than the average wage, to meet strict lending criteria.

Home loans could be cheaper until 2014, after the Bank of England members voted to keep rates at a record low of 0.5 per cent, potentially offering borrowers a lifeline.

However, it’s not such good news for savers who will see their money grow much more slowly while their buying power is hit by inflation.

According to reports in the press, there will be no rate rises for the next three years, thereby offering some reprieve to families already hit with threats of job losses and increasing living costs.

Recent figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders showed property purchases at around 60 per cent below the levels seen prior to the financial crisis hitting and first-time buyers are still scarce on the ground as they have difficulty getting the deposit required and meeting the tough lending criteria set by banks and building societies.

Many people, put off from moving up the property ladder, are instead investing in their homes and adding to what they already have.

Put off from moving home, with the high costs of fees, such as stamp duty, tougher lending criteria, difficulties in obtaining the necessary deposits and the tough housing market, homeowners are putting their energy into improving their current property.

Figures released by property website Rightmove revealed the first drop in asking prices this year, showing house sellers may finally be ready to drop their asking prices in order to encourage buyers.

Rightmove reported that the number of unsold properties on estate agents books had hit a record average of 78, with around 70 per cent of properties put on the market this year having failed to find a buyer.

Housebuilder Barratt Developments said first-time buyers were rushing to apply for the Government’s FirstBuy shared equity scheme.

First-time buyers have found it increasingly difficult to get a foot on the property ladder due to the high deposits demanded by lenders and under the £250million FirstBuy scheme, aimed at helping 10,000 families get onto the housing ladder, the Government and housebuilders provide a joint 20 per cent loan to top up the first-time buyers deposit of 5 per cent.

Official figures showed that the number of people claiming unemployment benefits rose to more than 1.5 million, the fastest rate for more than two years.

Last month, the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance increased by 24,500 over May and was the biggest monthly increase since May 2009.

The total unemployment figure, including those not eligible for Jobseeker’s Allowance actually fell by 26,000 to 2.45 million in the last quarter. However, those out of work for up to a year increased by 11,000.

Families are being pushed into spending an additional £260 a year on the weekly food shopping bill, due to food prices continuing to increase at a worrying rate.

Even though inflation has fallen slightly from 4.5 per cent in May to 4.2 per cent in June, in the last year, food prices have increased by an alarming 6.5 per cent. This is the biggest rise for over two years.