If you have a poor credit record, low earnings or have recently moved to another country, you may be classed as “sub-prime” by lenders if you apply for a loan or a mortgage.

There’s no escaping this Mark of Cain even if the only flaw in your situation is that you have recently taken a new job or become self-employed.

Banks and mutual lenders treat sub-primes in a straightforward fashion — with high interest rates. Indeed, the unfortunate sub-prime will often have to approach a specialist lender to negotiate their loan.

The recent falls in stock markets around the world were partly caused by a rise in sub-prime defaults in the U.S. following 17 rate hikes in two years. Many had taken out second mortgages to pay off other debts and were unable to meet repayments.

However, these cases should be set in perspective against a background of very low levels of mortage default in both the U.S and the UK.

If you think you may be assessed as sub-prime, try going to standard lenders first and explaining any mitigating factors. For example, that new job may represent a substantial increase in salary.

Should you be knocked back by the big boys despite the good news, the bad news is that you may have to bite the bullet and pay more than the average to get a mortgage.

Once the conditions that make you sub-prime have been relieved, however, you should remortgage at normal rates as quickly as you can.

More financial journalists have been giving their top tips for shares on the London Stock Exchange during 2007. Here’s a list of their suggested buys :

Lucy Farndon : Royal Bank of Scotland.
Brian O’Connor : Ark Therapeutics.
Alex Brummer : Prudential.
James Ashdon : Vodafone.
Geoff Foster : Redstone.
Ian Lyall : Oakdene Homes.
Tamsin Brown : Rank.
Manfreda Cavazza : Tesco.
Karl West : ICI
Sam Fleming : Geiger Counter.

All of the above are from the Mail Group of newspapers.

We hear many horror stories about personal loans. As it’s Halloween here’s a bit of advice for beginners.

If you’re looking to borrow a sum of money then the chances are that you’ll look to take out a personal loan rather than any other type. The term personal loan is simply used to describe standard types of borrowing – i.e. a loan taken out by a consumer rather than a business for general purposes (but not for a mortgage which is obviously dealt with by a mortgage loan).

The majority of personal loans can be used for any purpose and the chances are that your lender won’t even be hugely interested in what you want the money for. Their primary concern is checking that you’ll be able to repay your loan! This situation can be different with specialist loans (which also fall under the banner of personal loans) such as home improvement loans and car loans, for example. These loans are expected to be used for their specified purpose – i.e. a major DIY project or a car purchase.

Apart from this fact the majority of personal loans work in much the same way. You apply for your loan, get your money and then spend it as you intended. You will then make a regular payment (usually on a monthly basis) to your lender to repay the money you borrowed for the period of time in your loans agreement. This payment will be made up of a sum of money that goes to pay off the original sum you borrowed plus a sum that goes towards paying off the interest you’ll be charged. So, at the end of your loan term you’ll have repaid your original borrowings and the interest attached to your particular loan.

One difference worth noting here is that between unsecured and secured personal loans. Unsecured loans are given to consumers without security (or to those that choose not to use available security to get a loan). These loans will generally have higher interest rates attached to them than secured loan options and you may be restricted in how much you can actually borrow here. Secured loans, on the other hand, will have lower interest rates and can be taken out for higher sums. The reason behind this is the fact that this kind of loan will use your property (usually your home) as a guarantee against your loan. So, if you default on your repayments your lender has a cast-iron guarantee that they will get their money back via the property you used as security.

If you aren’t a home owner then you will generally be restricted to taking out unsecured loans here but, if you do own your own property, then you’ll have to make a choice between a secured or unsecured loan. This really boils down to personal preference and how comfortable you are using your home as security in order to get a better deal. In the majority of cases this isn’t an issue and most people will opt for secured loans to get the right kinds of rates and loan amounts for their purposes.

Do be careful to make sure that you understand both how personal loans work and how to get the best rates for the loans you take out before you sign up to anything. There are hundreds of sites on the Internet that can give you more detailed information or that can even help you apply for a loan – take a look online for personal loans in a UK search engine (such as msn.co.uk for example) before you start for some useful information.

Our guest writer, Gary Tallon, is a UK finance author with over 10 years of journalistic experience behind him. To read some more of his wisdom visit his http://cheap-personal-loans.blogspot.com & http://life-insurance-cover.blogspot.com blogs.

The Money Blog has no connection with the author or the websites.

What are the best strategies for saving money on mortgages? Here Seymore Hennigan gives us the lowdown.

We all like to save money. Why pay more for something, when you can pay less? We could all use an extra few dollars in our pockets, couldn’t we? Most people don’t realize that there are a number of ways to save money on their mortgage. If you were to take out a mortgage on a 25 year term, chances are that by the time you repay the entire loan you will have paid the bank double the amount you borrowed. And you wonder how the banks are making record profits?

One of the best ways to save money on your mortgage is to put down the biggest down payment you possibly can. This way, the initial amount you are borrowing from the bank is lower and the interest you are paying back will be less than if you borrowed a larger amount. Most of us do not have tens of thousands of dollars sitting around. If possible, why not consider borrowing your down payment from a family member? The banks are not particularly keen on this practice, but if someone in your family can afford to loan you the money without interest it can be very helpful in the long run.

Another thing to consider, once you have been approved for a mortgage, is your repayment frequency. Most people opt for a simple monthly payment. There are other ways, however, to approach this. Why not increase the rate of repayment? If you can manage making a mortgage payment either weekly or bi-weekly, you will save thousands of dollars over the term of your mortgage. Many banks will also allow you to make an annual lump sum payment on the principle of your mortgage. It is wise to take advantage of this opportunity, as you are paying directly on the principle amount of your loan.

For most people, purchasing a home is the single greatest investment they make in their lifetime. Owning a home provides stability for your family, and in time you will have a significant amount of equity tied up. Buying a house can be considered an investment, and you should look at ways to maximize your investment. There are ways to save money on your mortgage, and you would be wise to consider all of your options. Wouldn’t you rather make your money work for you, than to always work for your money? Short term compromises can lead to long term savings. Think ahead!

Our guest author, Seymore Hennigan, has worked in finance for many years. When he is not crunching numbers or advising his family and friends on investments, he writes freelance articles for mortgageguide101.com – an independent mortgage guide filled with extensive information about buying a new home - http://www.mortgageguide101.com/buying-a-house.aspx, home buying tips - http://www.mortgageguide101.com/articles/when-you-shouldn’t-buy-a-house.aspx, first time home buying - http://www.mortgageguide101.com/first-time-home-buyers.aspx and more.

The Money Blog has no financial connection with the above websites and businesses.