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Latest News All parents should read this
16th August 2010 Have you ever had a loan or credit card with any of these lenders?
16th August 2010 Interest and Mortgage rate update
16th August 2010

Latest News from Simplicity Financial Services

All parents should read this 16th August 2010 Like any proud father I am telling anyone and everyone that my wife has just had a little boy. Freddie Townley Downham was born on the 11th August weighing 6 pounds 9 ounces. Childbirth is...

Have you ever had a loan or credit card with any of these lenders? 16th August 2010 Have you got - or ever had - a loan or credit card with so-called "Payment Protection Insurance", or "PPI", or "ASU", added to it? Most banks tried to add it on as a matter of...

Interest and Mortgage rate update 16th August 2010 Despite interest rates remaining stable at 0.5% for the last 17 months, there has actually been quite a lot of changes over this period as to what people think is going to happen and when. At the...

Interest rates unlikely to rise before 2014 28th July 2010 I received this article via email this morning and though I would add it to our site. It is the longest range forecast I have seen showing interest rates staying at 0.5%.However, it appeared well...

Interest rate outlook 23rd July 2010 The latest Barclays interest rate guide is now available. It concurs wiht our thoughts.  these are... Interest rates will remain very low for the...

Is now the time to remortgage? 3rd June 2010 Uncertainty about what will be in the June emergency Budget is unsettling the property market and if you believe that prices are in for another setback, now could be the time to remortgage –...

House prices edge closer to boom time peak 3rd June 2010 House prices continued rising in May and are now just 9.5% below the October 2007 peak, according to figures from Nationwide. The building society reported a 0.5% rise in prices, to an average of...

More cash for borrowers who buy to let 11th May 2010 The buy-to-let market is set for a strong rebound if demand for private rented accommodation continues to increase until 2014 as expected. <p...

Simplicity Directors complete first book 11th May 2010 Simplicity Directors and financial advisers Chris and Rob Downham have completed their first book. Simplicity clients (and prospective clients can download it for free...

To fix or not to fix? That is my mortgage question 12th March 2010 An interesting article below that I came across today, many people will be asking themselves the same question. Rob and I can discuss the optios with you and help you make the right decision for...

House prices and interest rates 2nd March 2010 This article is based around the February 2010 Nationwide House Price Index that was released on 26th February 2010. <a...

How to Improve Your Credit Score 24th February 2010 I saw this article this morning from MoneySavingExpert and thought it was good and hence I have added it to our blog. Warning! Not registered to vote? It kills credit scoresNow you can register online...

What is going to happen to interest rates! 8th February 2010 They will go up! Ok, so you knew that already. The question is when will they go up and by how much? That unfortunately is a much trickier one to answer. I have recently been studying...

The 8 rules to GUARANTEE FINANCIAL FREEDOM 7th February 2010 Ladies and Gentlemen, the book that the world has been waiting for, the oracle that promises to deliver us from the clutches of the credit crunch and remove financial worry from your life is now...

Confidence improving according to the Nationwide 4th February 2010 Below is some information analyzing the recent NCCI from a positive perspective! The Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index (NCCI) recorded a three point increase in January to 73, almost double the...

House prices continue to plummet - but finally signs of hope, says NAEA 18th December 2008 House prices across the UK plummeted in November, according to the monthly market report from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA).However amongst the gloomy figures revealed by the survey...

UK Property Prices fall as arrears rise. 16th December 2008 It is now expected that house prices will bottom out at approximately 30% less than the peak in the summer of 2007. Currently prices are down between 15% - 25% down with the lower % not really...

PRESENTATION TO SIMPLIGROUP IN SHEFFIELD FOR SUPPORTING RESERVISTS 15th December 2008 With over 10,000 companies and organisations throughout the UK openly supporting and encouraging over 8,000 volunteer reservists, SaBRE (Supporting Britain’s Reservists and Employers), which is part...

Mortgage Rate Update Further Reductions 9th December 2008 Customers unable to re-pay their mortgages to Royal Bank of Scotland will be given six months before their homes are repossessed. The bank’s chief executive Simon Hester made the promise just...

Seen a property bargain? 9th December 2008 The property market is stagnant with new purchases at a 15 year low, and finance difficult to obtain. This has resulted in a plethora of motivated sellers struggling to sell their property....

New Business provides New Service 9th December 2008 The SimpliGroup are delighted to introduce our newest service, in our continuing effort to bring a complete financial service to our clients.SimpliBusiness is our new business-focussed service. Using the...

The Government introduce a new savings scheme 9th December 2008 Having deliberated since 2001 over a scheme to encourage working age people on lower income to save, the government has launched the Saving Gateway to commence in 2010. It has been designed for those on...

Interest Rates Cut by a further 1%!! 4th December 2008 The Bank of England announced at 12:00 GMT today a cut in the Base Rate by to 2%, from 3% following November’s rate cut. This is the lowest interest rate for over half a century. Worsening fears...

RBS to give six month respite from repossession action 1st December 2008 Customers unable to re-pay their mortgages to Royal Bank of Scotland will be given six months before their homes are repossessed. The bank’s chief executive Simon Hester made the promise just days...

Alistair Darlings Pre Budget Announcement Part Two - Video Summary 26th November 2008 Click Here to view the Video of the summaryWILL INCOME TAX CHANGE?From April 2011 a new top rate of income tax, at 45%, will be introduced for people earning £150,000 or more. This will affect the...

Alistair Darlings Pre Budget Announcement 24th November 2008 In his Pre-Budget announcement, Alistair Darling has just announced a number of measures to aid families, businesses and the economy at large. The main points which affect the population directly: -...

Cost of private medical cover could fall 12th November 2008 With so many rising costs recently, SimpliIndependent brings news that an importantform of insurance could be going the right way…. The cost of privatemedical cover for cancer may fall after the...

Mortgage Rate update 12th November 2008 Well who saw that coming?! After last weeks shock reduction in theBank of Englands base rate of 1.5% down to 3%we have yet been unable to assess the fallout. The lenders will generally getan idea of the...

My Finance Map 12th November 2008 “We all have things that we want in life but most of us don’t end up achieving them. This is often because we lose sight of our goals, never put together a plan and don’t take...

Worried about redundancy? 12th November 2008 With alarming figures being released daily about rising unemployment, how would you pay your mortgage should you get the dreaded notice? Admittedly, predictions are to be taken with a pinch of...

Interest Rates Slashed by 1.5% 6th November 2008 Simplicity bring borrowers good news! The Bank of England has taken another unprecendented move this month, by slashing the Base Rate by 1.5% to 3%, the lowest rate since 1955. A cut was...

Rates Update 14th October 2008 In a week that will have an impact on all of us for the rest of our lives and with events which we will tell our grandchildren about it could seem trivial to discuss such things as mortgage rates but...

Credit Crunch Benefits 14th October 2008 Every cloud …… As the UK economy seemingly crashes from one disaster to another, it might sound like lunacy to point out that it’s not all bad! They say that you learn more from your failures...

The Financial Rescue Plan 14th October 2008 The Rescue Plan: The Government recently announced its rescue plan, with a 4 pronged attack on the liquidity crisis. What is it? Will it work? What is the cost to us? These are the questions we all...

Pensions in the current Financial Climate 14th October 2008 At a time when savings and pensions are under closer scrutiny than ever, it is important to remember that saving for your future is essential. Admittedly, you need to be careful about where to save,...

Interest Rates Cut by 0.5%!! 8th October 2008 Interest Rates Cut by 0.5%!! The Bank of England announced at 12:00 GMT a cut in the Base Rate by 0.5% to 4.5%. This follows a global central bank cut, with 7 countries all taking steps to...

The Bank of England has kept interest rates on hold at 5% 11th September 2008 The Bank of England has kept interest rates on hold at 5% for a fifth month as we see the struggle to deal with a slowing economy and soaring inflation. Reports are still signaling the economy is...

Insurance under watchdog spotlight 11th September 2008 Premium protection insurance has come under investigation recently. In theory it is a good idea. Policies differ, but in general if you have an accident or sickness and can’t work, or are made...

How healthy is your workplace? 11th September 2008 In these times of economic difficulty it has never been more important to ensure your company is firing on all cylinders. An efficient, effective workforce is vital to any company and a Sheffield seminar...

Whirlow Hall Farm Fayre!!! Sunday 14th September 2008 6th September 2008 Back by popular demand!! Events include: Falconry and Gun Dog DemonstrationFerret RacingThe Ultimate Children’s PartyHorse Riding DisplaysDog ...

Stamp Duty 3rd September 2008 Effective as of today the 1% stamp duty level will be raised to £175,000 from £125,000 for 1 year to try and encourage home movers. The Land Registry shows that around 15,000 transactions...

MORTGAGE RATE UPDATE: 18th July 2008 Better news this month folks!! After what seems like years of increases in mortgage rates and doom and gloom we have finally seen swap rates plunge this week so let's hope this trend continues. This...

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR FIRST TIME BUYERS!!! 18th July 2008 The housing market is in a tough position and the economy is on the verge of a recession, but what does this actually mean for people looking at buying their first house? The most important...

Inflation at 11-year high of 3.8% 15th July 2008 Rising food and fuel costs pushed UK inflation up to an 11-year high of 3.8% in June from 3.3% in May, figures show. The rise means inflation is now well above the government's 2% target, and may...

Did you quit smoking when the ban came in? It’s a year on – so now you can save! 2nd July 2008 Most financial policies class a ‘non-smoker’ as someone who’s been smoke-free for a year. The savings you can then make on policies that pay out on death or illness can be huge,...

Mortgage Rates May 2008 20th June 2008 UK interest rates have been left unchanged at 5% following the latest meeting of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Thursday 5th June. The decision to hold rates had been...

Armour Up and Make Yourself Crunch Proof 20th June 2008 With the economy looking like it has caught the flu and the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse being sited on the hills, now is an ideal time to arm yourself and get ready to protect your clan from the...

See the future of planning for your future. 20th June 2008 As you’re getting closer to retirement, it’s a good time to review your pension arrangements to see if you could benefit from alternative, innovative products on the market. Until...

NAEA: buyers "wait and see" 27th May 2008 National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) members have reported that the picture is still very regional but elements of the market are stabilising. Members reported stability in the sales agreed,...

House Prices 15th April 2008 Whenever people talk about the property market they are talking about the UK market as a whole and not the little micro-economies that appear up and down our great nation. With that in mind a...

Mortgage Rates 15th April 2008 Following the drop in the Bank of England Base Rate to 5% on Thursday, are we going to finally see the decreasing rates passed on by mortgage lenders?Probably not. Most of the better fixed rate deals have...

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee 14th March 2008 The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee has this month voted to hold the base rate at 5.25% following last months cut. We are now seeing lenders scaling back on loan to value ratios dramatically...

Buy-to-let market still thriving 27th February 2008 The buy-to-let property market is still thriving, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).The number of buy-to-let loans rose by 23% last year, taking their number to 1,038,000 and accounting...

Bank voted 8-1 for cut to 5.25% 27th February 2008 The Bank of England's rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted by 8-1 to cut interest rates to 5.25% earlier this month, minutes have shown.The bank decided to lower rates by a quarter of a...

Young buyers are forced to produce a deposit, This is the end of 100% mortgages 20th February 2008 Mortgages which let people borrow more than the value of their home were radically scrapped yesterday. Before Christmas, a third of lenders offered mortgages of 100 per...

Bank of England Reduces Bank Rate by 0.25 Percentage Points to 5.25% 7th February 2008 The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee today voted to reduce the official Bank Rate paid on commercial bank reserves by 0.25 percentage points to 5.25%. The prospects for output...

Bank cuts interest rates to 5.25% 7th February 2008 The Bank of England's rate-setting committee has cut interest rates to 5.25% from 5.5% amid signs that the UK economy is slowing down. Analysts had widely predicted the move, which followed recent...

FSA 'failed over Northern Rock' 29th January 2008 The Financial Services Authority is guilty of a "systematic failure of duty" over the Northern Rock crisis, a key parliamentary committee has said. The Treasury committee said the UK's financial...

Helping your children buy their property 15th January 2008 With property prices already out of reach for many, and uncertainties around interest rates, first-time buyers often struggle to get their foot on the property ladder. "The Bank of Mum and Dad" is...

Abbey Mortgages urges Britons to prepare for changes 10th January 2008 Abbey Mortgages is advising people to make sure they are financially prepared to meet unexpected changes in the coming year. According to research from Abbey Mortgages, 62 per cent...

The lowdown on property taxes 9th January 2008 An increasing number of people are facing tax charges on the sale of their homes where they own more than one property or are selling off land for property development. However, profits made on the sale...

Libor falls to lowest level since credit crunch 9th January 2008 Is property in the UK heading for a crash? Or can we still prosper, despite the wobble? In the first of three special reports on the housing market in 2008, Phil Thornton pinpoints the issues...

Look beyond the low rates of mortgage 'bargains' 9th January 2008 SHOPPERS can save thousands of pounds on a mortgage in the New Year sales, but they should consider more than just the headline rate or it may cost more than they expect.HSBC is offering a two-year...

Your survival guide to the year ahead 9th January 2008 <h2>Is property in the UK heading for a crash? Or can we still prosper, despite the wobble? In the first of three special reports on the housing market in 2008, Phil Thornton pinpoints the issues...

Lenders ''should automatically pass on rate cuts'' - buy to let mortgages 24th December 2007 Mortgage lenders should immediately transfer the benefits of base rate cuts to their customers rather than delaying or passing on partial cuts, moneysupermarket.com has said. The...

Options open to avoid repossession 20th December 2007 Homeowners who fall behind on their mortgage repayments still have options available to them but they must take action, it has been claimed.According to the Repossessions Advice Centre, homeowners must...

Rics predicts 2008 housing market 20th December 2007 The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) has predicted that house prices will remain broadly unchanged in 2008 but acknowledged that the market could face short-term weaknesses.Following the...

A borrower’s guide to Mortgages 17th December 2007 Perhaps it's not surprising we're all so concerned when oneconsiders that the housing market is something that affects us all,whether we're already homeowners or are considering our fist...

Rate cut costs homeowners £10m a month 17th December 2007 Homebuyers are paying about £10m a month more than they need to in mortgage repayments because lenders are refusing to pass on the latest cut in interest...

First-time buyers not put off 5th November 2007 Not to be put off by the recent slow downs in the property market, first-time buyers are fighting back, according to new research.Fairinvestment.co.uk has found the number of first-time buyers making...

Borrowers feeling the pressure 22nd October 2007 Following five interest rate hikes, borrowers are feeling the pinch and cutting down on savings, a survey has revealed.According to Alliance & Leicester's latest figures the appetite for unsecured...

Buy and rent-back is 'disaster' 22nd October 2007 Firms that buy homes at knock down prices and then rent them back to the occupier have been criticised by the Citizens Advice Bureau.Some companies pay less than 60 per cent of a home's market value and...

Hips still not popular 12th October 2007 The public remain unconvinced by Home Information Packs (Hips) according to London & Country.The fee-free mortgage broker believes most of the public do not understand what you actually get when...

Darling Raises IHT But Ignores Stamp Duty In Pre-Budget Report 11th October 2007 The Labour government is being accused of stealing Tory policy in their pre-budget report yesterday. The Chancellor raised the threshold for inheritance tax, closed the loopholes for wealthy...

Mortgage Market Report 11th October 2007 Mortgage Market Report 11 September 2007 Market Commentary Economic Background - Inflation Credit Cards ...

Flooding swells insurance costs 9th October 2007 Home insurance costs have risen at their fastest rate since 1994 after this summer's widespread flooding, according to the AA. Buildings premiums jumped by 3% in the past quarter, reflecting the...

Act now to beat mortgage squeeze 11th September 2007 The turmoil in the global financial markets may soon force up certain home loans so borrowers should move quickly to snap up the best deals Hundreds of thousands of borrowers coming to the end of cheap...

Buy-to-let alive and well 11th September 2007 Buy-to-let investors are continuing to pile into the property market in spite of rising interest rates, lured by strong rises in rents, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said today. Demand...

Base rate held for second month running 7th September 2007 The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have voted to freeze the Bank of England Base Rate at 5.75 per cent. By holding interest rates at their current level for the second consecutive month, the MPC have...