Loan News

Up to 6.5 million people have been forced to consolidate their debts in the past three years in a bid to keep borrowing under control, new research from MoneyExpert.com shows.

Social lending pioneer Zopa (uk.zopa.com) is three years old today which also marks the third birthday of peer-to-peer lending.

As many as 1.35 million of the unsecured personal loans taken by the British public were made in secret, without family and partners knowledge, according to research from Abbey Loans. The combined value of the secret loans is estimated at £7.7 billion.

Unsecured personal loan customers could save £1.25 billion in interest by switching to a more competitive loan mid-term, according to research by uSwitch.com.

As stock markets around the world plunge, private investors choosing to escape can secure very attractive returns at extremely low risk via Zopa lending.

As the credit crunch tightens and stock markets wobble, people looking to borrow and others looking for safer returns have more to gain from Zopa than ever before.

Lenders are increasing the cost of borrowing money by amounts that far outstrip the Bank of England’s base rate rises, according to new research from MoneyExpert.com.

A review of the personal loans market by Defaqto reveals that borrowers could end up paying less in repayments by taking out slightly larger loans with the same lender.

If your new year’s resolution is the tackle your debt by consolidation, tread carefully as you could be caught out by high interest rates and over priced insurance. Lisa Taylor, analyst at Moneyfacts.co.uk investigates:

Customers looking for cheap credit along with their groceries should make Tesco their first stop, and avoid Marks & Spencer altogether.