Most home buyers purchase life assurance when they arrange a mortgage, but only a minority obtain another form of financial protection that they are five times more likely to need before they reach retirement. Critical illness assurance pays a tax-free lump sum on diagnosis of any one of [ Read More → ]

IF YOU want to get the best return on your money and have already put all you can into a cash Isa this year, you may want to consider equity Isas – Isas that invest in stocks and shares. Equity Isas have a number of advantages over their cash counterparts. [ Read More → ]

WASHINGTON—Aspiring homebuyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit for first-time owners that expires in November, driving up the number of signed sales contracts for the seventh straight month in August. Construction spending also rose unexpectedly in August on the biggest jump in housing activity in nearly 16 years, another [ Read More → ]

NEW YORK—On football and soccer fields across the nation, small business owners are taking advantage of a huge marketing opportunity: sponsoring local sports teams. Just about every sport, from T-ball played by 5-year-olds to semi-pro baseball or basketball, offers small businesses a chance to get some name recognition and create goodwill [ Read More → ]

NEW YORK - The cost of making phone calls has been dropping rapidly in the last few years. If you want take full advantage of that, you’ll need to try some new things, because the phone companies aren’t going to thrust savings on you. Here are 10 tips on how [ Read More → ]

Massachusetts home sales posted the second consecutive month of year-over-year increases in August as more buyers came off the sidelines and prices continued to rise, the clearest signs yet the housing market is beginning a recovery, analysts said. Three groups released data measuring various aspects of the housing market yesterday, but [ Read More → ]

Most people don’t realise that once they have split from a partner or spouse, their ex- can still have a damaging effect on your credit rating. Credit file myths explained Thousands of people are be affected by this problem, dubbed the “ex-factor” by credit [ Read More → ]

The High Court has dismissed a claim by Whangarei pensioners Judy and Bruce Bartle that GE Money (GE Custodians) was in breach of its duty of care by lending them around NZ$640,000, which they then used to buy a Blue Chip apartment. GE Money is now able to enforce its [ Read More → ]

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has revealed a package of measures to protect consumers in the Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) market and ensure they are better treated when buying PPI or complaining about it. Single premium PPI products have long been controversial, particularly with consumer watchdogs who claim that the policies [ Read More → ]

“I have a college degree, but you know, I just don’t know anything about mortgages and what’s the right thing to do.” When I heard a South Florida home buyer say this the other day, it sounded so familiar. I hear that sentiment so often, not just about mortgages, but about [ Read More → ]