The SARB’s monetary policy committee (MPC) unanimously voted to leave the repurchase rate (repo rate) unchanged changes at the 14-year-high of 8. 25%.
These were some of the findings from DebtBusters’ Q3 2023 Debt Index, a quarterly review of data drawn from debt-counselling applications.
Many drivers are unaware of the link between their credit score and their car insurance, while some people don’t know if there is a link to start with.
Rich people have always used their equity portfolios to tap into cheap loans and avoid large tax bills.
As inflation and the cost of living continue to rise, a growing number of households in South Africa are struggling to meet their financial obligations. In many instances, despite various avenues available to the consumer to seek assistance, households avoid it, leaving debt to spiral out of control.
According to the National Credit Regulator’s (NCR) Credit Bureau Monitor for March 2023, South Africa currently has 27. 07 million credit active consumers with 90. 44 million accounts in the country. The number of consumers with impaired records increased to 9. 82 million whilst the number of impaired accounts increased from 19. 09 million to 19. 13 million. It further indicates that 6. 8% of consumers missed one or two instalments, 16. 05% missed three or more, 4. 25% had adverse listings and 0. 86% had judgements or administration orders. The NCR is a South African government agency that regulates the credit industry in the country.
South Africans are struggling to keep up with their monthly expenses in the wake of a string of interest rate hikes that have seen steady and steep increases in loan instalments, leading to more people defaulting on debt repayment, especially with regard to home and vehicle financing.
Money lessons that South Africans were forced to learn during the Covid-19 pandemic are quickly being forgotten as high interest rates and inflation take their toll and drive up their financial stress and debt levels.
The Reserve Bank’s Quarterly Bulletin for the fourth quarter of 2022 states that consumers spend 62. 3% of their net disposable household income to service debt. This figure is very worrying. It clearly indicates that consumers find themselves in a debt trap, causing stress, and anxiety, eroding productivity and limiting consumers' ability to achieve their financial goals by Jeremy Chetty.