Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="delericho" data-source="post: 6296679" data-attributes="member: 22424">Yep. Also worrying is that that same low interest rates have made it really easy to rack up big debts.In the UK, at least, there are loads of people who are mortgaged to the hilt, and can just barely make the interest payments provided that interest rate doesn't go up. The big problem there is that the Bank of England base rate is currently at 0.5% where the long-term average is closer to 5% - it seems likely it'll be going up at some point.We (that is, my wife and I) are in the process of rebuilding our emergency fund - between buying our flat, cars, a new bathroom, and paying for a third of the wedding, it's somewhat depleted. Once we've done that, we'll have to look into our investment options, because it's right enough that there's no point using a savings account if the rate of interest is less than inflation - that just loses money more slowly.(But the point of an emergency fund, even if it does gradually lose ground against inflation, isn't really to build money; it's to have money available if you need it. As such, a good rate of interest is a secondary concern.)</blockquote>