Words About Things

Whilst searching for information about vw van hire I came across an article with an intriguing  photo beside it. The photo showed a white haired old man in a jumper made from a bunch of old flags. At first I thought that the man I recognised was Doc Brown from Back To The Future, but the vehicle beside him was no Delorian, it was a Volkswagen California.

Then it dawned on me, the gentleman in question was that crazy old cigar smoking fiend Jimmy Savile. It turns out that VW fixed it for Jimmy to drive the one of the comfy camper vans on his trips to the Lake District.

‘I’ve had two other Volkswagen campers over the years, I had a used caddy but this California is the all-singing, all-dancing dream vehicle for me. I’m a wanderer, and always have been, so I love motorhomes and especially sleeping in them. Sometimes I get home, check my post, shower and still sleep in the campervan outside!

It’s not all doom and gloom for young people in the UK, economically speaking at least. Petrol prices, rental costs and council tax may all be at an all time high but house prices are actually falling. This is either a very good or very bad thing depending on weather you have brought a house yet or not.

Average house prices have fallen an estimated 16 per cent in the past year.

Those of us who are renting are pleased to hear that first homes are becoming increasingly affordable. Some are suggesting that now is a good time to buy, before prices hit rock bottom and it’s too late.

In order to get a mortgage that wont completely strangle your finances you will need as much money as possible in your savings account. In fact, if you have enough of a deposit you could pay a lot less on a mortgage then on rent. Spending money on owning your property every month feels a lot more like making  investments than paying a landlord.

So is now the best time to buy? It all depends on your financial situation, good luck!

Starbucks used to be famed for its ability to constantly be opening new stores even opening them opposite existing stores. Their growth was almost viral and they once boasted of planning to open 40,000 stores. They currently have around 16,120 stores but plans are afoot to close another 300 with the loss of 7000 jobs.

Last year the coffee chain was forced to close 600 under performing stores. It seemed that their usual technique of saturating the market didn’t work so well in the midst of an economic crisis. They have even had to stop brewing decaffeinated coffee in the afternoon. If you aren’t pregnant they I can’t see any reason to drink decaff anyway.

The drop in sales at Starbucks is most likely due to consumers feeling less confident about their financial state. Sales of those coffee mug/flask hybrids have presumably gone up. Maybe Starbucks will concentrate on selling coffee rather than helping formerly credible artists like Bob Dylan and Sonic Youth annoys their fans by selling albums exclusively in their stores.

A recent study has shown that those of us who save some money every month feel more secure than those who do not. Even if we only save a small amount the act of putting away money makes us feel more positive and secure about our financial futures.

The study showed that when we reach a small saving goal it empowers us and makes us feel more positive about our ability to increase our savings. As the economy struggles it’s good to know that you have some money to fall back on should you experience difficulties. It is worth bearing in mind that the FSCS covers the first £50,000 per person per institution for standard bank account (the rules for investments are different).