Unsecured debt levels remained steady in April but mortgage debt has increased, according to new debt statistics.
Credit Action, the UK’s financial education charity, has published its latest figures for June 2013 and they reveal that the average household debt, including mortgages, was £54,015 in April; up from £53,991 in March.
However, when mortgages were excluded, this figure dropped to £5,971 which is down from £5,972 the month beforehand, indicating a level of stability.
Michelle Highman, Chief Executive of Credit Action, said: “Unsecured debt levels have remained consistent; something that’s been on-going for the past few months. While this trend could be seen as encouraging, in that people’s debt burden isn’t increasing, it may also suggest that some are struggling to pay down their debts, leading to a static picture overall.
“Meanwhile, average debt including mortgages showed an increase, which no doubt reflected the positive impact that schemes such as Funding for Lending and the imminent Help to Buy programme are having on confidence in the housing market. As with all forms of borrowing though, when taking out a mortgage it’s crucial to make sure that you can afford your repayments on a sustainable basis.”
Further findings include:
- £165 million of interest was paid every single day on personal debt in April.
- 1,534 people were made redundant every day between January and March.
- 902,000 people have been out of work for over a year.
- Every 16 minutes and 26 seconds, a property was repossessed during Q1 2013.
- During the same period, every 5 minutes 15 seconds someone was declared bankrupt or insolvent.
- In May, it cost £66.70 to fill a 50 litre tank with unleaded petrol.
- It costs on average £29.02 a day to raise a child from birth to the age of 21.
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About the Author: This article was provided by Ian Chase on behalf of www.solvemydebt.co.uk, one of the leading experts in debt management. If your debt is having a huge strain on your well-being and you need help to get it under control, speak to our specialist team of advisors today for professional support.
