Happy new year? 2017 rings in more commuter misery and higher bills

Happy New Year Song 2017

Many people will be understandably relieved to say goodbye to 2016, a year when the currency and stock markets went into flux at Britains decision to leave the European Union. Unfortunately, in personal finance terms at least, 2017 also looks bleak as consumers are expected to start seeing the full effects of the Brexit vote and how the drop in value of sterling will translate to the supermarket shelf.

Elsewhere, householders can expect an increase in the cost of electricity, while motorists may see premiums on the up. Commuters, already worn down by strike-interrupted trains, can expect to see ticket prices go up yet again.

There is some light at the end of the tunnel the national living wage is due to go up in April, while for homebuyers, house price rises are expected to slow, although this will be tempered by an increase in demand as a result of the lack of housing stock on the market.

So with the unlikely events of 2016 behind us, here are some of the key things to look out for in 2017:

High street price rises

There is expected to be a headache for consumers when they return to the tills as prices rise on the back of fluctuations in the post-EU referendum pound.

Spikes in prices on high street goods, ranging from milk and wine to headphones and TVs, are expected as retailers hedges against currency fluctuations a form of insurance policy against movements in the pound end. Apple Mac users saw raised prices on machines in October as the technology giant updated the cost in line with the low exchange rate between the dollar and sterling.

Raid on buy-to-let landlords

Former chancellor George Osborne announced in July 2015 a cut in tax relief on mortgage interest payments for buy-to-let landlords.

These changes, which will see mortgage interest deductions slashed from 100% to zero, will be phased in between this coming April and April 2020. Instead, when income tax on a landlords profits from their property, and any other income sources, are totted up they will be granted a tax credit worth 20% of the mortgage interest to offset against income tax, whatever rate they pay.

HMRC has estimated that just one in five landlords will be affected by the changes, but representative groups have said it will have a devastating impact on their finances.

House prices versus demand

Anyone hoping to buy a house in the coming year will be both heartened and dismayed by some of the latest predictions.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has said it expects house price growth to be half that of 2016. However, demand is expected to outstrip supply as a result of insufficient housebuilding.

It is expected that the number of sales will reduce from 1.25m in 2016 to between 1.15m and 1.2m. Property firm Savills predicts prices will remain flat across the UK, with falls in the north of England, Wales and Scotland. In the east of England it expects 2.5% growth. Nationwide said it expects the average UK price to increase by 2% over the year, below the rate of growth reported in 2016.

More commuter frustration

Another year, another train fare increase for weary commuters. The Campaign for Better Transport has estimated that fares have gone up by 23.5% between 1995 and 2016 and 2017 isnt expected to show any respite.

The rail industry has announced that they will go up by an average 2.3% from 2 January, a move which has been criticised by unions.

The increases are being driven by much higher increases on the reprivatised east coast route. While regulated fares, such as season tickets and off-peak returns, which are set by the government, are to increase by 1.9%, fares on Virgin Trains East Coast will go up by 4.9% overall.

Increased protections

The amount of cash savers will have protected in banks and building societies that go bust is likely to be raised to 85,000 from the end of January because of the slump in the value of the pound since the Brexit vote.

The limit was cut to 75,000 in July 2015 when sterling was stronger, to keep the UK banking system in step with the rest of the EU. But the increase is required to keep the UK in line with an EU-wide deposit protection limit of 100,000.

A cap on London Airbnb

From the spring, Airbnb will ban hosts in London from renting out entire homes for more than 90 days a year without official consent. The San Francisco-based company will automatically stop people letting their homes for more than this limit unless they have the necessary planning permission from a local authority.

London is the third biggest city in terms of places to stay on the sharing economy website, with a listing of more than 40,000.

It is already against the law to flout the 90-day rule, but local authorities complained of not having the resources or data to enforce it. With the move by Airbnb, there will be automated limits to ensure listings are not shared for more than 90 days.

Rise in national living wage

This will increase from 7.20 to 7.50 an hour from April. The governments target is for it to reach 9 by 2020.

New Isa

A lifetime Isa to help young people save for their first home or retirement or both will be available from April.

The account allows for savings with no tax on the interest earned, and a government contribution equal to 25% of everything saved. The maximum amount which can be saved into the Isa each year is 4,000, and the government will give a 1,000 bonus on that amount. The account can be opened by people at any time between the ages of 18 and 40, and a bonus earned each year until they reach 50.

Increase in energy prices

Householders should brace themselves for bigger bills when they turn on the lights or put on the kettle. EDF Energy has said it will raise electricity prices by 8.4% from March, with the other big six energy providers expected to match the increases.

The French company also said that it will cut gas prices by 5.2%, but blamed rising costs for the increase in its electricity tariff. The changes mean that dual-fuel customers (those taking both electricity and gas) with EDF will see their bills rise by 1.2%, to an average of 1,082 a year.

the announcement followed a rise in wholesale energy prices, which are up by about a third since last spring.

Insurance also on the up

It is expected that car insurance will rise from June as insurers pass on higher costs, and the rise in the insurance premium tax takes effect. Drivers typically pay about 50 a year to the Treasury for this, but it will go up to more than 60 from June.

Average underlying insurance premiums rose sharply in 2016 on the back of problems with whiplash claims and the cost of replacing advanced technological features such as parking sensors on bumpers after accidents. The AA has said that it expects the average shop around premium to break 600 in 2017.

And finally

The deadline for online self-assessment tax returns is well publicised as being at the end of January, but that never seems to stop the imaginative excuses for tardy paperwork.

HMRC has said that among the excuses rejected this year were someones details being engulfed in a yacht fire, while anothers were the victim of a childs scribbling. If you are filing, do it on time or else risk a fine of at least 100.

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&ct2=us&usg=AFQjCNE66VodOdr85N2rC91K6Clw3hWycQ&clid=c3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331&ei=jzZqWMi-DYal3gGe7KtA&url=https://www.theguardian.com/money/2017/jan/02/new-year-2017-commuter-misery-higher-bills-national-living-wage-lifetime-isa