BENEFITS to first-time buyers from drastic falls in property prices are wiped out by sharp increases in mortgage costs, new research shows. House prices have dived by 40pc since 2007, which means potential buyers would need a much smaller mortgage. But a series of mortgage-rate hikes by all lenders mean that the cost of servicing even a small mortgage has shot up. Mortgage expert Karl Deeter accused banks of capturing most of the gains for potential buyers of lower prices by pushing up mortgage costs.
We were pleased to feature on the RTE 1 O’Clock news to talk about interest rates and the near term outlook as well as the effects that any change might have on Irish households. Rates remained unchanged at the most recent ECB meeting but that is widely expected to be a short term decision with a rate hike in July expected.
CREDIT cards can be a godsend and a curse. I have a friend who doesn’t have one, so I used to wonder how he booked flights or bought anything online. Recently I discovered his secret — he just lets his wife put it all on her credit card, clever man.
Also filed in Advisors.ie In the Press, Credit Cards, Financial Advice, News of the World, Savings
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Tagged borrowing credit, cca 1995, ccma, code of conduct on mortgage arrears, consumer credit act, credit cards, fix my credit, how to fix credit, manage credit
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Director of client advice firm, advisors.ie, Karl Deeter, said that ‘personal retirement savings accounts’ or PRSAs were created in an attempt to get more people to save for their retirement. He said they were billed as a universal solution with fixed fees and low costs, along with flexibility.
Also filed in ACCA, Accountant, Advisors.ie In the Press, Investment, Pensions, Savings, Taxation
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Tagged accountants, benefit in kind on PRSA, bik, how to save, pension advice, pension planning, personal retirement savings account, prsa, savings advice, where to save
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We were pleased to cover the topic of Debt Forgiveness with Angela Keegan, MD of MyHome.ie on ‘The Morning Show, with Sybil & Martin’ on TV3.
Also filed in Advisors.ie In the Press, Debt, Financial Advice, Mortgages
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Tagged angela keegan, debt forgiveness, debt management, debt restructure, debt write off, karl deeter, martin king, sybil mulcahy, the morning show
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We were mentioned in an article by Charlie Weston in the Irish Independent about Ulsterbank. They have decided to jack up their variable interest rate by 0.6%, our response is below: Karl Deeter, director of operations at Irish Mortgage Brokers, said the move by Ulster Bank meant it now had one of the highest variable rates in the market. “This increase means there is no safe haven for borrowers if you do not have an existing fixed rate or a tracker,” he said. This accurately reflects our sentiments on the matter, there are effectively no ways for consumers to protect themselves.
Also filed in Advisors.ie In the Press, Debt, Mortgages
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Tagged change in rates, financial advice, mortgage advice, mortgage help, mortgage hike, mortgage rates, rate hike, ulster bank, ulsterbank, variable rates
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We were pleased to feature in studio with Sharon Ni Bheolain of Six One news on the topic of the CSO Property Price index.
The headline this week is from the famous quote that ‘the only sure things in life are death and taxes’. We have looked at death in the past from the perspective of Life Assurance, this week it’s about taxes – and more importantly, what to do if you can’t pay them or if you are not sure about your taxes. The good news is that the Revenue Commissioners in Ireland are a fairly effective bunch and the people there are well briefed and effective (this is no surprise as their duty is to make sure everybody pays up!). Revenue are well aware of the state of the economy, and that business
Also filed in Advisors.ie In the Press, Deposit Interest Retention Tax, Financial Advice, Income Tax, News of the World, Taxation
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Tagged 2003 taxes consolidation act, deposit interest retention tax, DIRT, paye tax returns, revenue commissioners, tax deadline, tax questions, tax returns, taxation, taxation issues
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Fred Harrison talks about the way in which infrastructure spending can result in a wealth transfer which largely goes uncollected, compelling viewing.
We are told that there will be a €500m package announcement today which is described as a ‘jobs initiative’. Formerly it was to be known as a ‘jobs budget’ or an ‘alternative budget’ (note that in the link there is also talk of ‘renegotiating the bailout’ – so U-Turns are becoming commonplace), this is the first Irish ‘downgrade’ in a while that hasn’t involved S&P.
