Blowin Cheese

The number of loan providers giving up on the secured loans market is still rising, lowering the level of consumer confidence and their belief that this finance option will no longer be available to them.

The beginning of July saw First Plus announce that they will no longer be accepting new customers. They aren't the first to declare this, and no doubt won't be the last. They have already joined a number of other companies withdrawing this option, including Alliance & Leicester, Capital One, Picture Financial, Loan One Intermediaries, SPPL, Breeze Loans and Money Partners.

However, a financial analyst from Moneyfacts believes that consumers will just have to wait and see whether remaining providers continue to offer their services, or decide to throw in the towel as well. Many lenders are no longer finding secured loans a viable option, and it isn't guaranteed that other providers will survive this crunch. You can still search online though, to see if there are lenders out there who are willing to lend to you in your financial hour of need.

Everyone wants the perfect wedding. But perfect weddings can cost an arm and a leg. But there is an easy way to save a hefty amount of cash. Planning your wedding away from the peak months could save significantly.

Holding a wedding outside the summer months can be much cheaper, as can arranging your wedding to be mid-week.

You can also save money by sending email invitations, offering wedding cake as dessert and holding an evening buffet instead of doing multiple meals.

A wedding in April, mid week, can cost up to 30 or 40% LESS than one on a saturday in June.

But, if you still want to splash the cash and have your weekend wedding in July, you may need to search online for personal or secured loans to help you. More and more people are paying for their big day this way.

I'm sure everyone is suffering in some way due to the current credit crisis, whether it's extortionate fuel, food and energy prices, increased school and university fees, increased APRs orjust not being able to sell your home. Times like these ask for desperate measures, as more and more people are applying for secure loans to keep them afloat.

Many people are having to go down the secure loan route, just to cover basic expenditures, emergency repairs or whatnot. Secured loans can, quite often, be the best option, offering more competitive rates and increased affordability. That's because the providers know that if you guys don't keep up with their repayments, they have your house. Sort of an incentive to pay on time isn't it?

For whatever reason, people can search online to compare the best deals and find a homeowner loan which is suitable for them.

Not much good for me though. I rent.