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If you're in the process of buying a home, then chances are you'll have been nervously waiting on Chancellor Rishi Sunak's every word last Wednesday to find out if the stamp duty holiday was being extended. In the end it turned out the leaks were true. The Chancellor extended the stamp duty holiday by three months . This matters because over 300,000 people were said to be stuck waiting for their home purchases to go through before the end of March. If the extension hadn't happened, then they could have been out of pocket. In fact, the stamp duty holiday was extended to the end of June, with further reduced discounts available to the end of September for people living in England and Northern Ireland. This has led to loads of readers contacting me to ask if this is a good time to buy a property. House prices are unpredictable at best – and for every optimist there's a pessimist with a different view. Here’s an overview so if you’re thinking about making a move, you have all … [Read more...] about Is the stamp duty holiday the right time to buy a house? Pros and cons explained

THOUSANDS of pension savers are overestimating their future retirement pot by as much as £50,000. Research from consumer group Which? highlights how a worrying number of people don’t know much money they’ll get from their state pension . In some cases, savers are expecting up to £50,000 more than they’ll actually get, which could cause them money difficulties in later life. It also means some people could be saving far less than they need to in their private pensions, due to thinking that they’ll be getting a larger sum from the government. Which? found three in 10 people are overestimating their future state pension payments. In the biggest of pension gaps, one in 10 savers thought the state pension is worth £200 a week or £10,400 a year on average. What are the different types of pension? WE round-up the main types of pension and how they differ: Personal pension or self-invested personal pension (Sipp) - This is probably the most flexible type … [Read more...] about Simple pension pot error could leave you with £50,000 less than expected

HOUSEHOLDS who claim Universal Credit and other benefits can use free online calculators to work out how much money they should get. The number of people claiming Universal Credit has soared because of the coronavirus crisis. Latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions show six million people were claiming Universal Credit, as of 14 January, 2021. This is a staggering 98% increase since 12 March, 2020. But in a boost for people who claim, the amount you receive from benefits is set to rise from April when new rates come into force. You can see what benefits are rising and by how much in our guide. What to do if you have problems claiming Universal Credit IF you're experiencing trouble applying for your Universal Credit, or the payments just don't cover costs, here are your options: Apply for an advance - Claimants are able to get some cash within five days rather than waiting weeks for their first payment. But it's a loan which means … [Read more...] about Free tools to work out how much Universal Credit and benefits you should get

Labour will vote against the Tories' £8bn-a-year stealth raid on Income Tax this week, a Shadow Cabinet Minister revealed today. Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy said the party would try to block plans to freeze income tax thresholds until 2026. The challenge is unlikely to succeed as Boris Johnson has a working Commons majority of more than 80 seats. The move marks a swift U-turn days after Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds indicated the party would support the freeze. Ms Dodds said on Thursday that it would have been wrong for Rishi Sunak to impose the freeze "right now", but it will only kick in from April 2022. She added: "In the future, we're not going to oppose change to that personal allowance, the freezing of it that the Chancellor set out for the future. "Because actually what the Conservatives have done around this previously has benefited the best-off most. And they've not for example backed low income families with social security in the way they needed … [Read more...] about Budget 2021: Labour to vote against stealth Income Tax raid on families in U-turn