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To anyone outside the buy-to-let world, it seems as if landlords are sitting back and raking in profits. While this was never really true, a few years ago there was some justification for the perception. But no longer. A combination of increasing hidden costs and Government measures such as increasing Stamp Duty have left landlords in a position where the average annual return is hardly more than £2,000 on each prope

If you’ve owed a debt for a long time (or if you’re a creditor) it’s important to understand there’s a time limit, beyond which a creditor can no longer take certain actions. However, there’s a lot of uncertainty about when a debt is or isn’t “statute-barred” — and what exactly that means. What Is “Statute-Barred”? A debt is statute-barred when no action has been taken to recover it for a specified time (usually six

One of the worst things about being in debt is that it can seem there’s no way out. You might certainly think negotiating with your creditors is a non-starter. After all, they hold all the cards, don’t they? It’s not as bleak as you might think, though. In some cases, a negotiated settlement could be your way out of debt. How Does a Negotiated Settlement Work? What you have going for you in negotiations is that your

It’s simple enough — if your business doesn’t have enough money coming in, it isn’t viable. And that’s cash in your bank account, not invoices you’re trusting will be paid promptly, or work you haven’t done yet. It’s staggering, though, how many business owners have no idea of their cashflow. Whether you manage your own finances or employ someone to do it for you, if it’s your business, you need to know all about you

Personal debt is currently at a record high, which means that more people will be consulting debt advisors or insolvency practitioners. In general, it’s the best possible thing to do in this situation — as long as you’ve chosen a reliable advisor. The Current Debt Crisis As I reported in a recent blog, personal debt is at its worst level since the height of the economic crisis following the 2008 crash. With income ha

If you’re an SME owner who’s plagued with late-paying customers, you’re not alone. According to recent research by the Institute of Directors, almost half of all SMEs are in the same predicament. The Scale of the Problem Out of 787 business owners surveyed by the IoD, 48% reported having had problems with late payments since April 2017. Many cited “excessively bureaucratic” payment syste

Takeovers are a fact of business. They’re sometimes good for the customers of the companies involved, sometimes less so, but business never stands still. Debt collection is no exception, although it tends not to get the media attention given to media, engineering or major retail companies, and two significant takeovers have recently been announced in the sector. Two Recent Takeovers Cabot Credit Management, con

I was intrigued to read that a northern council is mulling over the idea of setting up an in-house debt collection agency to chase outstanding council tax. The council involved is Redcar and Cleveland and the plans, while at an early stage, will be discussed by councillors before the financial year ends. The story was broken by the Northern Echo, after the newspaper received a letter from a whistleblower who was conc

A leading debt advice charity published a single figure a few  weeks ago that helps explain why the Bank of England governor, Mark Carney, is casting about for reasons not to increase interest rates when unemployment drops below 7.1%. In what was billed as Debt Awareness Week, the StepChange charity was contacted by new clients who owe a total of £230 million. It’s not clear how many people sought advice on managing

News from the Money Advice Service that nine million people in the UK are living with serious debt is just the latest statistic to capture the scale of the problem. According to a survey by the government-backed service, only 17% of these people have asked for the free advice that is readily available to help families manage their debt burden. No wonder, then, that increasing numbers have turned to payday lenders and