Worldwide Credit Crunch - Surviving Turbulent Times
The credit crunch has affected just about everyone in the World, apart from the filthy rich who tend to socialize with other members of the Loadsa Money Club and might therefore be immune to the tiresome inconveniences of running out of cash.
Credit is something we all took for granted for as long as we can remember.
It is a way of life for some, whose primary financial decisions were based on buying everything on credit, from the family home and car to the food in the refrigerator.
Such people are reeling in a world where credit has been mostly withdrawn from all except those who could actually survive without it.
The average household survives by receiving a given income and then paying a monthly obligation of bills and outgoings, using the balance to pay for extras such as clothes, restaurant meals, movies, gifts and entertaining friends.
Some are sensible and save a little each month for unforeseen events: some are not.
For those who struggled to save a certain amount of money and squirreled it away for a rainy day, the outlook is still bad but not tragic.
For those who did not, the future is somewhat darker and likely to remain so for some time to come.
It is no longer possible to buy a new car or re-decorate and take out a small loan to cover the shortfall for a few months.
Such arrangements are no longer an option and those who apply for them are shocked to find their requests refused by the banks and credit companies they have patronised for years with a flawless repayment record.
The collapse of property markets everywhere has sent the asset profile of just about everyone with an ongoing mortgage into free fall and trading up and down the housing market is something no longer viable or profitable for those with a flair for renovation.
The gridlock caused by the credit squeeze has frozen the options of the financially responsible along with those of the less sensible and the strong are succumbing to financial hardship along with the weak; an unfair situation made even more unpalatable by the garbage interest rate being returned on savings.
The popular belief is that the credit crunch may be 'sat out' by those who are fortunate enough to have a house that is paid for and a job that provides a steady income.
The grisly reality is that despite being able to survive the crunch, it is unlikely that anyone will be able to avoid the fallout as shops and businesses everywhere fold in the face of unpaid overheads such as mortgages and payrolls.
Credit is something we all took for granted for as long as we can remember.
It is a way of life for some, whose primary financial decisions were based on buying everything on credit, from the family home and car to the food in the refrigerator.
Such people are reeling in a world where credit has been mostly withdrawn from all except those who could actually survive without it.
The average household survives by receiving a given income and then paying a monthly obligation of bills and outgoings, using the balance to pay for extras such as clothes, restaurant meals, movies, gifts and entertaining friends.
Some are sensible and save a little each month for unforeseen events: some are not.
For those who struggled to save a certain amount of money and squirreled it away for a rainy day, the outlook is still bad but not tragic.
For those who did not, the future is somewhat darker and likely to remain so for some time to come.
It is no longer possible to buy a new car or re-decorate and take out a small loan to cover the shortfall for a few months.
Such arrangements are no longer an option and those who apply for them are shocked to find their requests refused by the banks and credit companies they have patronised for years with a flawless repayment record.
The collapse of property markets everywhere has sent the asset profile of just about everyone with an ongoing mortgage into free fall and trading up and down the housing market is something no longer viable or profitable for those with a flair for renovation.
The gridlock caused by the credit squeeze has frozen the options of the financially responsible along with those of the less sensible and the strong are succumbing to financial hardship along with the weak; an unfair situation made even more unpalatable by the garbage interest rate being returned on savings.
The popular belief is that the credit crunch may be 'sat out' by those who are fortunate enough to have a house that is paid for and a job that provides a steady income.
The grisly reality is that despite being able to survive the crunch, it is unlikely that anyone will be able to avoid the fallout as shops and businesses everywhere fold in the face of unpaid overheads such as mortgages and payrolls.