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Homeowners are seeing mortgage rates rise despite the Bank of England’s base rate remaining stuck at rock bottom. 

New data shows that UK Consumer Prices Index inflation remained unchanged in May, holding steady at 4.5%.

The most recent survey put out by the Nationwide building society shows that the housing market in the UK remains subdued.

UK mortgage lending remained at low levels in February as the housing market remained "stuck in a rut", lenders have reported.

The economic situation in the UK remains grim. Recent unemployment figures show that joblessness continues to hover around 8%, jumping to 20% for 16 – 24 year-olds

The amount of mortgage deals on offer to borrowers has suddenly dropped, after rising towards the end of last year. 

Unemployment levels for 16 to 24- year-olds are now record high after rising to over 1 million this October.

Consumers have been experiencing a decrease in take-home pay for nine months this August.

Peak house prices and competitive lending conditions in 2007 have left many borrowers in negative equity, It is calculated that in June 2011 over 827,000 loans are in negative equity, of which nearly a third are from loand taken out in 2007.

Unemployment numbers in the UK have increased greatly by 38,000 to 2.49 million within the past few months.

Average pay gaps between employees in the private sector and those of the public sector have widely increased a great deal.

Average pay settlements are around 2.5% during July and because of this many consumers have to endure cut backs in their outgoings and struggle to pay off personal loans and mortgages.

Figures from the Pension Protection Fund reported the deterioration of UK pension schemes in July 2011.

A recent survey questioning 1,800 UK businesses claims the biggest threats to UK companies are due to a weakened domestic demand.

According to the IMF, higher prices for oil, economic turmoil in the eurozone, impact of spending cuts, and plummeting prices could throw the economy off course.

Since May, the UK economy has drastically weakened, escalating Europe's debt crisis and fears of contracting in the US.

Since the government expects to make changes with public sector pensions, people have expressed their concerns.

The Halifax reports that home prices fell in the spring, but that the lender expects prices to stabilise later this year.

 Social housing costs are proving too expensive, resulting in housing benefit changes currently going through Parliament.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) warns that home repossessions will likely rise again in 2012.

Argos has reported a big drop in sales for the past three months after it experienced worse-than-expected trading conditions, according to its owner.

People aged between 30 and 50 are falling behind older people in saving for retirement, according to a recent pensions report.

Chairman of the eurozone finance ministers, Jean Claude-Juncker, recently announced that Greece may need further assistance via financial bail-out.

A recent survey shows that UK manufacturing growth is slowing, with April growth at the weakest in seven months.

Centrica, which owns British Gas, has put out a warning that customers may soon see an increase on their energy bills.

The governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, has warned that higher utility bills could push inflation up to 5% later this year.

There has been a huge rise in the number of home buyers paying for their new homes in cash.

The taxman is targeting plumbers and others who work for cash in a new campaign against people not paying tax.

Barclays, the UK bank has reported a 9% fall in pre-tax profits for the first three months of the year to £1.66bn.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has closed down four companies that misled people in debt

Thousands of Jobcentre staff are set to strike after a dispute about working conditions and management targets.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has recorded its worst fall in sales since records began in 1996, which is a further signal of difficult times on the High Street.

The Nationwide building society reported an increase in home prices in March – up 0.5% from the previous month and about 0.1% from the same month last year.

Psychiatrists have warned that changes in Western society could fuel a rise in the number of men with depression.

Recent figures suggest that economic problems may be leading to a rise in depression in England.

Due to a shortage of parts coming from Japan, Honda is to halve production at its factory in Swindon from Monday

Higher UK postage prices have come into force –with the result that a first-class stamp now costs 46p.

The Royal Mail will be cutting more than 1,700 jobs and close two mail centres in London.

According to the Chancellor George Osborne, the UK economy will grow more slowly this year than previously expected.

Telecoms giant BT has announced that, from 28 April 2011 call charges will increase by 9% and the monthly standard line rental charge will increase by 30 pence.

British taxpayers hoped that after they nationalised lender Northern Rock, the bank would begin to recover.

According to a survey carried out by Vocalink, private sector pay at UK listed companies has risen at the slowest rate on record.

There has now been no change to UK interest rates for two years, even though inflation is currently twice the Bank's target rate.

Figures from the British Bankers' Association indicate that the stagnation in the UK property market is continuing.

A research group recently predicted that house prices in the UK will fall by another 1.7% in 2011.

According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), a prominent economic research group, approximately 750,000 additional UK residents are poised to pay higher tax rates in April.

Figures show that 2010 saw UK mortgage lending fall to the lowest level in nine years.

Research conducted by Incomes Data Services (IDS) suggests that a majority of workers in the UK are facing a real possibility of declining incomes in 2011.

R3, the Association of Business Recovery Professionals, estimates that there are 961,000 UK residents struggling with debt.

Leading energy company bosses told the Parliament’s Energy Committee that they expect increases in energy bills in the coming years.

A new report suggests that administration fees are taking a considerable bite out of UK residents’ private pensions.

According to HM Revenue & Customs, property sales are still down in the UK with October sales 11% lower than the same month last year.

According to a warning from the Bank of England, the UK economy’s future continues to be uncertain.

Sellers continue to outnumber potential homebuyers, which has led to housing prices still being under pressure to decrease.

A new report suggests that nearly 1 million UK jobs could be lost due to public spending cuts by the government.

Alliance Boots, a provider of chemist, health and beauty products, announced plans to cut 900 non-store jobs over the coming three years.

A report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed an unexpected drop in retail sales in the UK in August, which was the first time retail sales has dropped since January.

According to the Markit UK Household Finance Index, savings are still low as consumers focus on paying down debts amongst concerns regarding economic difficulties ahead.

The Office of Fair Trading has given 129 debt management companies three months to come into line after finding that some firms are overly focused on sales and even posing as charities.

the month of July, first-time home buyers found their share of the mortgage market at the lowest level seen in three years.

Complaints filed with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) increased by 2,076 in the first half of 2010, compared to the number received in the preceding six months.

In August, property values dropped for the second month in a row, prompting surveyors to come forth with their expectations that house prices will continue to fall.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) announced that the poorest families are the hardest hit by the first budget put out by the coalition government.

The Policy Exchange has put out a warning that interest rates could need to increase to 8% in an effort to combat mass inflation. The think tank speculates that a wave of money could be unleashed as a result of the economic recovery.

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have seen a rise in bank fees this year, which is only making it more difficult to stay afloat and recover from the recent economic crisis.

The new coalition government has scrapped Labour’s flagship Saving Gateway savings plan, which was meant to start in July with the goal of encouraging the UK’s poorest to start saving.

In the 12 months to Q1 2010, banks and building societies in the UK wrote off loans to individuals totaling £9.6 billion.

Official figures show that new public sector borrowing in the month of June was higher than expected.

More and more pensioners are being forced to unlock equity from their homes as a last resort option for paying off debts and other bills.

The UK government has proposed changes to how some private sector pensions are calculated.

The economic crisis has touched us all in one way or another, which was evidenced, once again, when it was learned that even the Royal Family has faced budget cuts.

According to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), the collective deficit for final-salary pension schemes in the UK’s private sector increased in May.

Starting in April 2013, unemployed people who claim Jobseekers Allowance for more than 12 months will experience a 10% cut in their Housing Benefit after the 12-month mark.

New restrictions on benefits for expectant mums and new parents are poised to make raising children significantly more expensive.

A survey conducted by the CBI business group found that UK High Street sales hit their lowest point in 14 months this May.

Both new and current borrowers are seeing higher interest rates on mortgages as of 1 June 2010.

During the first three months of 2010, unemployment in the UK increased by 53,000; bringing the total to 2.51 million.

Petrol prices have been on the rise for a number of reasons, including the higher cost of refining, increasing oil prices and the relative strength of the dollar.

Regardless of which party prevails in the coming elections, UK residents can anticipate an increase in taxes.

Several new rules and guidelines have recently come into play regarding consumers, credit and debt.

It is no secret that personal debt has been steadily increasing for over a decade and that the number of people going bankrupt or being declared insolvent has risen alongside it.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders has released a report showing a slowdown in mortgage lending in recent months.

As if many people were not already facing enough financial challenges, interest rates on credit cards are on the rise.

In September 2009, nearly 200,000 mortgages had fallen into arrears by at least 2.5% of the outstanding balance.

November 2009 saw a record high in the UK’s public sector net borrowing, which reached £20.3bn.

Borders, a major bookseller in the UK, announced they will be closing up shop and attempting to sell their group of 45 stores.

There is more rough news for the job market in the UK, as Jaguar announced that it is axing 300 jobs from its Halewood plant on Merseyside. With more people set to lose their jobs, sell and rent back options rapidly gaining in popularity.

Since 1 July 2009, The Sell and Rent Back Sector is now regulated by the Financial Services Authority, the same industry regulator for mortgages, banks and share trading.

The CML (Council of Mortgage Lenders) has announced that mortgage lending in May was 2% lower than in April - at approximately £10.3bn - and 58% lower than May 2008.

Homeowners increasing look  to alternatives for a fast property sale.