saving money

None of us like paying tax, but some of us could be paying too much. Subscriptions to professional bodies such as unions etc are tax deductible. Check to see if the professional bodies you belong to are tax deductible and then let the tax office know what bodies you subscribe to and how much you pay. This amount is then added onto your personal allowance hence you have less to pay tax on. Ok it won't be a major saving but every penny counts.

I'll admit I'm not a major fan of premium bonds as unless you hold a large number you are more likely to win nothing at all than one £50 in a year. However, with the latest cut in the BoE base rate to 1.5% this means that yet again savers lose out as banks and building societies will cut the rates on savings by more than this. It may be worthwhile as a tempory measure investing some of your savings from your lowest interest account into premium bonds. If you say add £200 into a savings account each month you could switch and buy that number of premium bonds instead. Each month you stand a chance that each of the bonds you hold could win at least £25. The good point is that you don't lose the capital. When interest rates go back up simply cash them in and put the money back into your savings account. If you win a prize either bank it or reinvest it in more bonds. Please note that the maximum amount you can hold is £30,000 worth of bonds and you can only buy them in...

Many experts believe that the bank of England will cut interest rates again. Most banks and building societies have cut their rates effective from 1st Jan. However there may still be some good fixed rate accounts available. These usually have a fixed term of availability but the bank can withdraw them early. It may be worthwhile shopping around to find a good fixed rate account say for one year and transfering some money to it. This means that whatever the BoE changes the interest rates to the interest on your money remains the same. However, remember that only £50,000 per person per institution (hence a joint account is protected up to £100,000) is protected by the government should the bank go under. Remember that is per bank NOT per account. Also this protection only applies to savings and bank accounts. Any money in stocks and shares is NOT protected. If put all your money into shares and the company then goes under - you lose the lot. However, you were warned when you took out the...

ok it's been a while but one of the cashback sites has just got better. http://www.TopCashBack.co.uk/toptip/ref/index.htm Now you can earn up to 110% of the normal cashback offered. How does it work? well the cashback is now teired so the more cashback you earn one month the higher the percentage cashback you earn the next. The minimum is still the 100% the site states it gives you. It's still also time to shop around for good interest rate accounts as the recent cuts in the base rate to 2% probably won't be the last. Alternatively it will be a good idea to start to increase your mortgae payments if you can afford to do so when rates go back up there will be less capital for the interest to be applied to.