Driving

Cars Are Expensive – How Do You Pay For Them?

October 15, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

Paying for a new car, whether it’s second hand or not, can get quite pricey. Even when you have a budget that you’re working well within the parameters of, you can question if forking out this much money is really worth it! After all, the car in front of you won’t last forever, and who knows if you’ll ever default on the payments?

And with all that in mind, it’s time to think about the ways to pay for a car. They’re expensive, for a variety of reasons, but there are three main financial categories you can choose from in the car world. Let’s go through them below.

Pexels Image – CC0 Licence

With Your Own Cash

Using your own cash is often the most pricey and financially risky way to go – you never know when you’re going to need your savings, after all, and now you’ve just used them all up. However, it’s also one of the safest ways to ensure you’ve got a car for as long as you need it – there’s no payments to default on, and you’ll never be out of your transportation thanks to the lease being revoked.

As long as you’ve got the savings to do so, you can pay by cash. You could also use your cash to put down an even bigger deposit than is actually required, which will stop you from having to pay too much in financing in the future.

Using a Scheme

There are plenty of car financing schemes out there – you just need to look for them! It all depends on fitting into certain brackets, such as being the right age, or being from the right financial background, and then applying to the right places.

For example, you could make use of the Motability scheme. This allows people who live with disabilities to retain their independence, and have some much needed transport in their lives. And these schemes are available everywhere, and for all car models, such as VW Motability. Next time you go into a dealership, be sure to ask for a specialist to guide you around the application process and what’s currently on offer.

On Finance

And finally, you can always get a car on finance, of which there are many different options to choose from. Depending on the money you have to work with, you’re not going to find a one size fits all financing solution here.

From hire purchase to conditional sales (which is the more traditional form of purchasing a car on finance) to PCP (personal contract purchase), you have quite a few variable rates to choose from here. However, be sure to do some more research into each one of these options before you sign one, as they all have their own benefits and drawbacks.

Paying for a car can be done in a variety of ways, and working out which is best for you is important to do beforehand. So, do your research, and make sure you’re getting the right deal here.

Adulting

Does Running The Family Car Have To Be So Expensive?

March 16, 2020 JayneLeave a comment

For most families, the act of running a car is an essential one. It’s also one of the highest monthly costs they have to pay out. The good news is there are some ways that you can reduce these costs and have more money in the family budget for fun and days out. Read on to find out what they are.

Reduce your purchase fees

Usually, the single most significant cost related to running the family vehicle is the monthly amount you need to pay towards its purchase or lease. In fact, the vast majority of families choose to pay for their cars on finance rather than buying them outright.

Of course, what that means is you must look for a used car dealer like London Motor Company that can offer the best value for money finance deals. In fact, finding a finance specialist means you end up paying less, and make the entire process of buying a car a lot simpler and easier as well.

Reduce your insurance

Next, if you are looking to keep the running cost of your family vehicle low, you must choose your insurance carefully. Of course, there is a delicate balance that you must strike here between keeping the price low and also being covered for every likely eventuality. Otherwise, you could end up in a situation where you do not have coverage, and this could cost you big.

With that in mind, doing a little shopping around and using comparison websites is the best idea. Then you can be sure that you are not paying a penny over what you need to.

Reduce your fuel

Similarly, the cost of the fuel you put into your family car will have an effect on how much you pay out over all as well. With that in mind, there are two things you can do here. The first is to reduce the amount of fuel that you use by cutting down on unnecessary journeys and driving economically.

Additionally, making an effort to look for the cheapest petrol stations is well worth the time it takes. The reason is that it can cut vast amounts off of your monthly bill.

Reduce your maintenance costs

It is also essential to keep your vehicle clean and running safely, especially when it’s the primary way you and your family get around. However, that doesn’t always mean you have to pay out for expensive professional services.

In fact, when it comes to detailing your car, you can do a professional job yourself from home. All you need to do is invest in a few tools, then follow the advice in the video below. This being a tactic that could save you a real fortune over time.

The same goes for some of the more basic maintenance tasks as well. Like changing the oil, checking your tires, and even replacing things like the windscreen wipers. Although, when it comes to functions that have an impact on the safety of your vehicle, it’s always best to get professional assistance, no matter the cost.

Saving for the Summer

June 24, 2019June 24, 2019 JayneLeave a comment

Saving for the Summer With the summer holidays fast approaching, many of us have started to think about our finances over the coming weeks. Keeping kids entertained for six weeks isn’t cheap, and the cost of summer can seem truly daunting. With that in mind, I thought I’d look at some things you can do to top up the funds, ahead of this expensive time of year.

Get a Part Time Job

Childcare can be super expensive, but if you’re not currently working and need some extra cash, there are lots of part time jobs out there which can fit around family time. From courier work to bank nursing at your local hospital, out of hours options are there, providing you’ve got someone to watch the kids in the evening.

Get a Loan

While I wouldn’t usually suggest getting yourself into debt, as long as you’re sensible with making your repayments on time a loan can be a useful buffer at this time of year, and getting a loan can even help to repair bad credit if you ensure you stick to your repayment plan. There are also loans for bad credit if you don’t have the best credit rating.

Cancel Any Services You Don’t Use

This is a great time of year to take a look at your finances and cut back on anything that you really don’t need. I currently pay £10 a month for a gym membership, which I barely use, and although a tenner doesn’t seem like much, it’s enough to make your eyes water when you think about it as £120 a year!

Streamline Your Shop

If you’re like us and end up wasting food because of less-than-savvy shopping, this is a good place to start when it comes to money saving. Sit down and look at HOW you shop (weekly, monthly, day-by-day) and work out where most of the waste is coming from. You could also think about WHERE you shop and whether there’s a cheaper option out there, like Lidl or Aldi. Meal planning is also often a good way to help you to be more frugal.

Get Your Walking Shoes On

Many families are guilty of jumping in the car for short journeys, which would actually be more than walkable. Unless you’re in a massive hurry, try to make any journey of a mile or less on foot – or even better, get the bikes out and get the whole family cycling. As well as cutting your fuel costs, it will get you all moving and will also reduce your carbon footprint – everyone’s a winner!

Do you have any fab money saving or money making tips for my readers? Do leave me a comment below, I’d love to hear from you.

Family · Health · Life

The Rising Cost of Funerals

October 27, 2015October 27, 2015 JayneLeave a comment

This time of year always has us thinking about slightly upsetting things as two family members have passed away in October of previous years. Thinking about losing family members always makes me feel introspective and often makes me think about the practicalities of dying, such as writing a will and the cost of funerals. SunLife has put together an infographic which shows the average cost of a basic funeral in different parts of the country and how those costs have risen over the years. Take a look:

Although cremation is still the cheapest option, the overall cost of a funeral including burial OR cremation has almost doubled in the 11 years since 2004. It’s an alarming statistic which definitely makes me think about investing in a funeral plan at some point because £5k is an awful lot of money for a family to try to come up with in the event of a tragedy.

I often think that funerals are more for the living than the dead – when I pass away (hopefully at some grand-old-age, after having done everything I want to do in life…) I’m happy for any viable organs to be used and I don’t really have a preference over what my family do with me once I’m gone as my body will simply be an empty vessel. One thing I do like the idea of is the tree pods, which uses your body as food to grow a new tree – something about living on as energy in a tree really speaks to my beliefs about the cycle of energy on the planet, but I’m not sure if it’s something that can be done in the UK.

The saddest thing about the info that SunLife has gathered is that 1 in 6 families now could not afford a funeral for a loved one and that over half of people need to borrow money to afford a “send off” if no previous arrangements had been put in place. The weight of responsibility on the people left behind to feel like they’ve given their loved ones a decent funeral can be huge, although so many people don’t make any arrangements at all because of some feeling of tempting fate by contemplating ones own mortality.

When it comes to it, if I were to make provision for my own funeral, the only thing which would really bother me was making things as easy and painless for my loved ones. I don’t mind what they do with me or if they decided to commemorate my life with a wake or a headstone, I just want to ease their upset as much as I can, and if that means ensuring that they don’t end up saddled with debt or money worries, then it’s something I definitely need to consider.

Money

Be Ruthless About Your Wedding Budget!

May 10, 2013December 8, 2013 JayneLeave a comment

With the average wedding now costing around £22,000, controlling your wedding costs has never been so important. But how can you have a day to remember whilst on a budget? Don’t worry; it’s entirely possible with some forward planning. Let’s look at several easy ways to trim the costs.

Don’t tell organisers that you’re having a wedding

Make enquiries instead under the guise of a party or event, as some suppliers automatically bump up the costs when they hear the ‘W’ word!

Keep the guest list under control

You only need to invite close friends and immediate family; avoid inviting long-lost relatives and people you haven’t seen in years. Simply explain that you are keeping the wedding small. Some people choose to exclude children as well, although they tend to be less costly guests than adults.

Consider going abroad

It can actually be less expensive to book an overseas wedding package for a small group of people and it saves on honeymoon costs too. Look at Eastern Europe, Italy and Morocco for popular destinations that do not cost the earth.

Pick your days

Saturday is the most expensive day by far for a wedding and you will pay a premium. Try to book your wedding on a Friday or Sunday instead and you’ll pay less for the venue. Consider having the entire event at one venue too, which saves on décor, transport and hire fees. You could even have a marriage later in the day, which would avoid the need for a sit-down dinner and allow you to serve just one buffet meal.

Choose food carefully

Apply wisdom to your choice of menu. Do you really need to serve a full sit-down dinner, or could you arrange a cheaper, quirkier choice? Options include a Sunday fête-themed buffet, a vintage tea party or even an Asian-inspired meal. Do you need dessert when you have a wedding cake?

Avoid an open bar

This is a quick way to damage your wallet, particularly as many venues will charge high premiums for their bar drinks. People also tend to drink too much when the booze is free! Instead, consider offering to pay for everyone’s first drink. Remember too that sparkling wine is just as good as Champagne for toasting – and costs far less!

Funding the day

Avoid getting into costly and complicated credit card debt and consider a secured loan from a specialist such as Evolution Money so you can manage the repayments within a certain time-frame and avoid having the debt hanging over you for many years afterwards.

In collaboration with Evolution Money