Daily Mail - 28.08.2019

Page 46 Daily Mail, Wednesday, August 28, 2019
46 MoneyMail

Debt to last a lifetime

OUR home is usually one of

our most valuable assets.

So it is hardly surprising that

increasing numbers of retirees are

looking to tap into this wealth with

a so-called equity release loan.

But it’s hard not to feel a little

jittery at the astronomical growth

in this type of borrowing.

Over-55s released a staggering

£1.08 billion of cash from their

properties in the final three

months of 2018.

This is nearly four times the

£274 million withdrawn in the

same period a decade earlier.

There is no doubt that equity

release is an invaluable option

for those in retirement who are

property-rich, but cash-poor.

Many need the money to carry out

urgent home improvements, clear

debt or, as we reveal on Page 43,

help out younger relatives.

However, this is not easy cash

— it is a debt intended to last

a lifetime.

And, despite interest rates

falling to a record low, if you

allow the charges to roll up each

month, your debt could double,

triple or even quadruple by the

run into trouble — but the firm

doesn’t even seem to know where

Harry’s money is, let alone how

much he stands to get back.

When disaster strikes, people

need reassurance. This just isn’t

good enough.

Human touch

A Big well done to Nationwide

for ‘branching out’ — terrible

pun intended.

The building society is opening

two branches in new areas, which

is great news for the thousands

of people who prefer to do their

banking face to face.

One of the most common gripes

we hear about branch closures is

that there is little to no parking

near their next closest bank.

So offering customers access to

free parking by opening a branch

in Meadowhall Shopping Centre

in Sheffield is a real bonus.

Super service

ENdiNg on a summery note,

Money Mail reader Brian doolan

wrote to me last week to sing the

praises of tour operator Riviera

Travel. Brian and his wife had

suffered a lengthy delay on their

way home from Milan after their

flight was cancelled due to poor

weather conditions.

But Brian says: ‘We have all

heard the reports about holidays

that went badly and the lack of

help from the travel companies.

For a change, i would like to thank

Riviera Travel for its assistance,

despite the delay being totally

outside of its control.

‘We arrived home to a letter

in which it apologised for the

disruption and advised that it

had made a goodwill payment

into our bank account.

‘it also offered to assist in our

claim for any expenses incurred

and, to our surprise, reimbursed

us not only for beverages and

snacks, but even the additional

car parking charges.’

He adds: ‘Riviera Travel also

agreed to postpone the departure

date of our next holiday, as we just

cannot face the inside of another

aircraft for some time.’

Keep your holiday tales — good

or bad — coming.

[email protected]

time it is repaid. So, no matter

how desperate you are to gift

struggling loved ones a house

deposit, it is vital you do not take

out this type of loan too early.

The average life expectancy is

now 79 for men and 83 for women.

if you release cash from your

home at the age of 55, therefore,

you could be accruing interest for

nearly three decades — which

would likely wipe out any future

inheritance for your family.

Many of the complaints in our

inbox are from family members

who had no idea their mum or dad

had taken out an equity release

loan and can’t believe they would

have agreed to such punitive

interest charges. Be sure to talk

through the decision with loved

ones first so there are no unhappy

surprises down the line.

Cautionary tale

HARRy MOUNT’S tale on Page

35 sent a shiver down my spine.

We all know that investing is not

risk-free. Markets can go down as

well as up, so you might not get

back all the money you put in.

But you don’t expect suddenly

to be barred from accessing your

cash altogether.

Tens of thousands of investors

trusted this stockbroker with

their life savings. it’s one thing to

MONEYBEST BUYS

... OUR PICK OF

THE TOP DEALS

ENERGY

CURRENT

ACCOUNTS

CPI INFLATION +2.1 pc RPI INFLATION +2.8 pc HOUSE PRICES +0.9 pc BASE RATE 0.75 pc

MORTGAGES

GREEN NETWORK

ENERGY

n GNE Summer Saver V3

n Fixed for 12 months

ANNUAL BILL

£949 0800 520 0202

Basedonnationalaverageusage

GREEN

n Oak

n Variable

ANNUAL BILL

£868 03452222525

GREEN NETWORK

ENERGY

n GNE Summer Saver

n Two-year fixed

ANNUAL BILL

£997 08005200202

BRITISH GAS

n Energy Plus

Protection Green

Aug 2020v2

n Fixed to 31/08/20

ANNUAL BILL

£955 03332029802

CREDIT CARDS

CUT the cost of new uniforms for when

the children go back to school.

Supermarkets including Aldi, Lidl and

Asda often offer polo shirts for as little as

£1.75 for two. Meanwhile, if you sign up to

TopCashback.co.uk by September 15,

you’ll get £15 cashback when spending

£15 on schoolwear at Matalan.

Also keep an eye out for second-hand

uniforms in local charity shops.

This week

you should ...

MOSTLY IN THE RED

MOSTLY IN THE BLACK

BUY-TO-LET

Post Office 1.69 pc to 30/11/21 40 pc £495 0800 077 8033

Ipswich BS 3.15 pc to 30/09/21 20 pc £1,149 0330 123 0773

Barclays 2.19 pc to 31/10/24 35 pc £1,795 0333 202 7580

Sources: L&C Mortgages, GoCompare,

Energyhelpline, ONS inflation

TWO-YEAR FIXES

Santander 1.28 pc to 02/12/21 40 pc £999 0800 100 802

Barclays 1.57 pc to 31/10/21 15 pc £999 0333 202 7580

Newcastle BS 2.59 pc to 31/10/21 5 pc £498 0345 606 4488

FIVE-YEAR FIXES

Santander 1.65 pc to 02/12/24 40 pc £999 0800 100 802

Santander 1.95 pc to 02/12/24 15 pc £999 0800 100 802

Coventry BS 2.25 pc to 30/09/24 10 pc £999 0800 121 8899

BASE-RATE TRACKERS

HSBC Base +0.59 pc for two years 40 pc £999 0800 494 999

HSBC Base +0.89 pc for two years 15 pc £999 0800 494 99 9

Newcastle BS Base + 2 pc to 31/10/21 5 pc £0 0345 606 4488

NATIONWIDE FLEXDIRECT

5 pc on balances up to £2,500 for first 12 months

n Topinterestrateyou’llfind

0800302010

TSB CLASSIC PLUS

3 pc on balances up to £1,500

n Youmustpayin£500everymonth

03458353844

BANK OF SCOTLAND

1.5 pc variable

n Noyearlyfee03457213141

FIRST DIRECT 1ST ACCOUNT

0 pc overdraft to £250

n Youmustpayin£1,000amonth

03456002424

NATIONWIDE FLEXDIRECT

0 pc overdraft for 12 months

n Nominimumpay-ineachmonth

0800302010

LENDER RATE DETAILS DEPOSIT FEE CONTACT

BALANCE TRANSFERS

PROVIDER CARD BALANCE TRANSFER RATE FEE

Virgin Money 29-month Balance Transfer 0 pc for 29 months 3 pc

Barclaycard 28-month Balance Transfer 0 pc for 28 months 1.75 pc

Virgin Money: 0800 389 2875. Barclaycard: 0800 151 0900

SPENDING

PROVIDER CARD INITIAL RATE APR

Barclaycard 27-month Platinum Card 0 pc for 27 months 19.9 pc

Sainsbury’s Bank Dual Credit Card 0 pc for 25 months 20.9 pc

CASHBACK & PERKS Amex: 0800 032 7642. Tandem: 020 3370 0970

PROVIDER CARD APR PERKS

American Express Platinum Cashback 22.9 pc 5 pc cashback up to £100 in first 3 months

Tandem Cashback Credit Card 18.9 pc 0.5 pc cashback on purchases

Barclaycard: 0800 151 0900. Sainsbury’s: 08085 40 50 60

THE LAST

WORD

By Victoria Bischoff

MONEY MAIL EDITOR

V1