What I learned about the cost-of-living crisis today from speaking to LBC listeners

What exactly are people worrying about when it comes to their household finances right now?

At the start of the cost-of-living crisis, there was a clear answer. One thing in particular was keeping us up at night: our energy bills. Everyone was being hit by rising bills at the same time, and everyone agreed that decisive action was required. 

In 2024 the cost-of-living crisis hasn’t gone anywhere. But it has changed. Things are more complicated now, with different households and families facing distinctly different problems. Anyone coming off a cheap fixed-deal mortgage is being hit by huge increases to their monthly housing costs. Record numbers are struggling with energy debt that built up last winter. And millions of others are struggling to afford their mobile and broadband payments. 

And some households face all of these challenges at once.

Research shows that inflation and the economy remain the British public’s biggest concerns. We know that people are worried, but the polls don’t tell us much about the individual issues affecting each family.

This week, I got a front row seat on this when I joined Nick Ferrari on his LBC breakfast showIn the Ask the Experts slot, I took calls from LBC listeners seeking help and advice with their household finances. 

More than anything, I came away feeling privileged to have been able to do something practical to help people cope during such a tough time for so many. It's great that LBC made this happen, and listeners clearly really appreciated it. We might have got used to the cost of living squeeze, but that doesn’t mean it’s got any easier.

We covered everything from saving up for a wedding to finding an independent financial advisor. And while each caller’s situation is unique, a few themes emerged.

Getting on the property ladder is harder than ever

As inflation bites into people’s disposable incomes, saving to buy a home has become even harder. The average UK home now costs £288k, which means full-time employees in England can now expect to spend more than 8.3x times their salary to buy one. 

For LBC listener Lisa, who was renting privately after previously experiencing homelessness, the challenge of saving for a deposit was an acute concern. Rising costs were taking up more and more of her disposable income, and putting money aside was a struggle. 

High interest rates have made things even tougher for households like Lisa’s. At the beginning of 2022, according to Bank of England data, buyers with 25% deposits could expect to secure a mortgage rate of around 1.6%. Today, that number is over 5%. 

For anyone in this position, it’s best to get professional advice from a reputable mortgage advisor to make sure they can see the options for their circumstances.

Nous can help here: we offer mortgage support, which allows our customers not only to get the best advice but also to put a considerable amount of money back in their pockets through membership rewards.

People are struggling to access the help they’re entitled to

Research shows UK households are missing out on £19bn a year in unclaimed benefits. One caller, Lizzie, told me that red tape and the risk of delays meant she was no longer confident she was accessing the benefits she was entitled to after a change in her circumstances.

Think of the £130 million of energy support payments for prepayment customers (who are more likely to be vulnerable and on lower incomes) that went unclaimed last year. Complicated processes are stopping help from getting to the people who need it most. I recommended she look at the benefits eligibility calculators from Turn2Us and EntitledTo as a first port of call, and Citizens Advice as a useful source of advice and support for making a claim. 

Making the most of savings is confusing

The issue of savings and investments came up for several LBC callers. This makes sense. A difficult two years mean those lucky enough to have some money put aside want to make sure they've got something to fall back on if another crisis hits.

Meanwhile big banks are doing as little as they can get away with by way of passing on higher interest rates to savings customers. So people are right to think they can’t just leave their money in their current account and expect a healthy return.

My advice here is to look beyond high stress banks for savings accounts with more favourable interest rates. Some of the best rates in the last few months have been available via online or app-only banks.

At Nous, as we continue to build a business on the side of consumers that saves them time and money, it’s essential we know about the issues they’re worried about. My thanks go to the LBC listeners for sharing their stories with me. If you think there’s an issue that we should be shouting about, let us know at hello@nous.co. 

And of course, Nous is a great way to stay on top of all your household finances. We can save a typical UK family over £500 by getting our arms around mobile, broadband, mortgage and energy bills. Sign up for free today at nous.co.