ICR238: Dealing With 5 Common Financial Regrets

This week on the show, I'm talking about dealing with 5 common financial regrets. 

I was prompted to talk about this after seeing a new survey from Bankrate in the US. Apparently 73% of people there have financial regrets.

So what are these regrets? Why do we have them? Most importantly, what can we do about them?

Personal finance news

-Student debts are on the rise, with gradates in England due to have average debts of £50,800. New figures from the Institute of Fiscal Studies warn of the higher debts following a rise in student loans interest rates to 6.1%. 

-Homeowners are making a 'costly mistake' by ignoring the small print when they remortgage, according to Moneyfacts. They found the average fee charge on a fixed-rate mortgage is now more than £1,000. 

-Over 50s are being continually ignored by brands, in favour of younger consumers. This is despite being the most powerful consumer group, contributing almost £120bn to the UK economy last year. 

-Fraud is the most commonly experienced crime in England and Wales and most happens online. According to the National Audit Office, the Home Office’s response to tackling complex online fraud is not proportionate to the threat. 

-Disposable incomes are falling at their steepest rate since 2011, according to the latest official figures. The ONS reported that income after tax and benefits fell by 2% during the first quarter of 2017, comparable to the first quarter last year. 

Get answers to your personal finance questions

Do you have a personal finance or investing question for Martin?

Email martin@icfp.co.uk or ask on Twitter @martinbamford.

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