House repossession figures, a myth?

New statistics were published on 14 August 2009 by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) on mortgage arrears and possessions.

Debtwizard feels these figures are mis-leading and are really masking the truth about the state of the home repossessions in the UK.

You can read more on this including the three points that Mike says are masking the truth.

Read the full article Misleading house repossession figures - the hidden truth.

Support the unemployed

The younger generation has been hit hard with those in the age group 18 - 24 claiming for over 6 months now at 77,800.

Those out of work for more than a year now number 528,000, the highest for 11 years.

Unfortunately some will drop into depression or turn to alcohol, gambling or even crime in an attempt to solve their debt problems.

Read more on this and the debtwizard's call to support your family member or friend that is now unemployed here.

Claims management regulator knocks out its 100th company

Misleading claims that debt can be written off as unenforceable, high pressure selling and cold calling in person will not be tolerated – tough message from Claims Management Regulator, Ministry of Justice (MoJ) as 100th company cancelled.

We details examples of mis-leading claims that you can report to the regulator and show you how to check to see if such a firm is regulated, all for free and on-line!

You can read more on this article and the debtwizard's top tips when approaching 'claims management firms' here.

Are you dying to get into debt?

It is not unusual for some people to think that when they die their debts will die with them. This may be the case if they have no assets, savings, investments or insurances.

If you do have assets then these are likely to be sold to clear any debts. Debts in joint names with your partner for example are payable after your death. But they become the responsibility of your partner.

More here dying to get into debt.

Door step lenders

For some, it’s hard to find credit easy to come by, especially if there is no or a poor credit history or if means are limited because of unemployment.

Many consumer groups criticise doorstep lending firms for the high rates they charge for small sums of credit, which in some cases can be over 1,500% for a loan of £100, this means the total repayable is £1,600 for borrowing £100.

debtwizard guide to door step lenders

Bankruptcies and IVAs soar 27.4% as consumers’ battle to control their debts.

Insolvency involves an individual either going bankrupt, or successfully proposing an Individual Voluntary Arrangement, IVA, which is seen as a less stringent form of insolvency.

Mike believes this to be the tip of the iceberg as he sees too many people that have debts they have no realistic hope of repaying and should be going insolvent. Instead they are languishing in long term repayment programmes with no debt or interest relief.

Read Mike's forecast for insolvencies for 2010.

Mortgage approvals climb

The number of mortgages approved for house purchases by the major High Street banks has risen to a 17 month high according to data released today by the British Bankers' Association (BBA).

More on this as well as the debtwizard comment can be found here.

Not sure if you can afford a mortgage? Why not try our budget form, it's completely web based and private and can be found here, free budget form.

Trouble brewing in the MPC camp?

At the recent Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee meeting it was voted to keep interest rates at 0.5%.

What the Governor did not expect was to be out voted on the amount to inject into the quantitative easing programme. Mr King wanted 75 billion and only got 50 billion.

You can view the full minutes of the meeting and see who voted for what here.

Quantitative easing explained here.

The latest debt related news since the last email.

· House repossession figures, a myth?

. Door step lenders, what are they?

. Regulator knocks out 100th company

. Are you dying to get into debt?

. Mortgage approvals climb again

· You need to support the unemployed

. Bankruptcies and IVAs soar

. We want to hear your story

See the news archive

Radio and television appearances can often be at short notice.

If you are interested in Mike's shows then keep checking the home page for details, homepage.

Every Wednesday - 6.10pm
BBC Essex - John Hayes Drivetime
Topical discussion on debt and consumer related issues

DebtWizard Budget Form - free

Designed to identify exactly what is going on with your finances. This form is unique with its built in debt predictor. If things look grim you can send it to us for further help.

· Start your own budget form

Radio/television/press

Mike has been really busy since our last email of 6th August 2009.

As well as radio and TV, Mike is involved with some of the national newspapers; you will find all these on our media page.

We upload the shows on a regular basis and there are still more to be added over the next few days.

· debtwizard media page

UK Credit stats for July 2009

33,600 applications for credit have been turned down every day during the past six months.

Citizen Advice Bureaus dealt with 7,423 new debt problems every day.

· View more credit stats here

Blog & Twitter

Mike is blogging and twittering, just click on either link

· blog · follow Mike on twitter

Top 5 sections on website

1. Budget forms - free
2. Unenforceable credit agreements
3. Reclaiming bank charges tool
4. Bank charges latest updates
5. Unenforceable credit agreements - firms that help

We want to hear your story

If you're happy to share, we have numerous TV stations and newspapers looking for your story.

Have you been made bankrupt? Applied for an IVA? Do you have a horror story about dealing with a lender or company that you owe money? Are you harassed by debt collection agencies?

We are interested in your story, can we help you? More can be found here