The true cost of running a freezer

Freezers are a great invention don’t get me wrong but they are rather expensive to run. There is the obvious cost of purchasing a freezer along with possibly having somebody come around and fit it. But that’s only the start of the costs as the electricity to keep my freezer running costs approximately £85 per year (assuming it uses 2 units per day at current rates) and then there is the hidden cost of maintaining your food inventory.

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How the budget affects me

I had planned to write a long post today on what effect the budget has on my MillionaireAdventure but this years dull budget really doesn’t give me much to say.

I estimate that I will be £8.88 per year worse off due to tax on beer going up by 4p per pint, and wine by 14p per bottle. I don’t drive a big car so escape the so called green taxes introduced and the previously announced 2p rise in fuel duty was postponed until October.

Ok so I gain a bit from the reduction in basic-rate income tax to 20% but what the chancellor gives with one hand he had already taken with the other by raising the National Insurance earnings ceiling by £100 per week.

So in summary it’s business as usual for me after the budget.

How big is the housing bubble?

Halifax released it’s latest monthly survey on house prices today which showed prices across the UK falling by 0.3% in February, taking the annual rate of inflation down to 4.2%. This now means the average home in the UK costs £196,649 (or at least it does according to the Halifax, other surveys have different findings). What it clearly shows is that the housing market has slowed over the past couple of months but they believe that house prices can remain flat if the economy and employment levels continue to grow. Now that is a big “if” and not one I would personally like to have my house staked on.

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20% off @ Debenhams

I needed to buy a new shirt today and resisting the shrine to consumerism that is our local shopping centre I instead chose to shop online where I could shop from the comfort of my home and focus solely on purchasing what I need, rather than being sold what I don’t need.

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Double-dealing on student loans - Metro

Two weeks after I wrote an article here about Student Loans the Metro has a front page article titled “Double-dealing on student loans” detailing why graduates are furious at the discrepancy between the CPI and RPI rates of inflation which leave them worse off.

The only thing the article really adds to the debate is a comment from the Government “We think it’s important to use the same measure across the years” - something which I’ll be sure to remember when they try and justify increased council tax bills in the coming months!