Guides
Short, practical reads on UK money, tax, and property. Every guide ends with a calculator so you can run your own figures rather than take our word for it.
Why paying the credit card minimum keeps you stuck, in numbers
A worked example showing exactly how little of a minimum credit card payment goes towards the actual debt, and what happens when you pay a fixed amount instead.
VAT for small businesses, without the jargon
When you're actually forced to register for VAT, what the 20%, 5% and 0% rates mean in practice, and what registering does to your prices once your customers can't reclaim it.
What your BMI does, and the bits it quietly leaves out
BMI is quick, free, and tells you less than most people assume. What the number actually measures, where it breaks down, and what to check alongside it.
Salary sacrifice into a pension: the catch-free pay rise most people miss
How giving up salary for a bigger pension contribution saves tax and National Insurance for you and your employer, worked through with a real payslip example.
Buy versus rent: which one actually leaves you better off?
The usual comparison of rent against mortgage payment misses the biggest cost of buying: what your deposit could have earned elsewhere. Worked through with real numbers.
How big should your emergency fund actually be?
The 'three to six months' rule is a starting point, not an answer. How to size an emergency fund around your own job, your own bills, and where to actually keep the money.
How compound interest quietly does the heavy lifting
Why compound interest feels slow at first and then runs away with itself, worked through with a real UK example and the costs that quietly eat into it.
Should you overpay your mortgage? The maths, and when it backfires
What a small monthly overpayment or a lump sum actually does to your mortgage, worked through with real numbers, and when overpaying is the wrong call.
How rental yield really works, and what counts as a good one
Gross yield, net yield, and the running costs that quietly eat into both, worked through with a real UK example.