P543 Teletext 543 May20 23:10:12 —— HELPING WITH A CHILD'S MORTGAGE ———— Dear Teletext My daughter and son-in-law have bought their first home and have little left over at the end of the month. I want to give them £10,000. Should I pay this towards the mortgage to cut down on their outgoings or invest it in a unit trust or similar im case of redzndancy or sicknrss. J Gordon, Knockholt ——————————————————————————————————1/8—— Savers Selection 546 Ta| Cliniq 54 SHARE DEALING SERVICE-SEE PAGE 535 Property Plus Your monty Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:1X:37 ] ——— PAYING A DAUGHTER'S MOTTO—GE pppppp Teletext replies: Independent mortgage consultant John Charcol says the best advice a father can give initially is to focus on monthly outgoings. Can improvements be made bz changing the mortgage, finding another inszrju, amalgamating debts? If few changes can bj mads, you could consider using part of the money to reduce the mortgage. ——————————————————————————————————2/ —— Drawbacks of reducing the mortgage > MONEY NEWS UPDATES DAILY p541 Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:18:50 ————— WHY NOT REDUCE A MORTGAGE? —————— Teletext replies: Ljndjrs generally like to point out the drawbacks in reducing a mortgage: Once capital is gone, it can't be got back in emergencies Mortgage Interest Tax Relief pays 20% of the interest on the first £30,000 of the loan. That reduces a mortgage rate of say 7n64% to 6.112% financial penalties are often imposed for prepayment. ——————————————————————————————————3/8—— The Halifax view > WHY NOT WRITE TO TELETEXT? DET—ILK Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:11:18 ——— REDUCING MORTGAGES: HALIFAX ——p———— Teletext replies: Halifax suggests if the mortgage is at or below MIRAS level (£30,000), invest the monj8 to 8rovide incomjW If not, and you can get more interest from an investment than the quoted mortgage rate, invest the money. Otherwise, you could use the money to get the mortgage down as close as possible to £30,000. cont... ——————————————————————————————————4/8—— The Abbey National view >>> HALIFAX HOUSE PRICE INDEX p545 Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:11:25 —— MORTGAGE REDUCTION: ABBEY'S VIEW ——— Teletext replies: Abbey National thinks redeeming part of the mortgage might be sensible if a bigger discount is available for 1 bigger deposit. But you have to weigh the balance. None of the lenders favoured investing in unit trusts or shares because of the risk of loss of capital. Abbey recommended a high-interest savings account. cont... ——————————————————————————————————5/8—— Look around for the best investment >> PROPERTY PLUS UPDATES TUE & FRI 544 Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:11:45 K ——— HLPING CHILDREN WITH MORTGAGES ———— Teletext replies: When considering investments, compare the advice of your bank, building society and an independent 1dviugy. None of them charge for initial consultations. Halifax notes that when making your final decision, you should bear in mind the wishes of your daughter. ——————————————————————————————————6/8—— Latest premium bond winners 549 PENSIONS CONSUMER CHECKLISTS 542 Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:19:34 ——— HAVE YOU A QjESTJON? —————————p———— Write to: TELETEXT: FINANCIAL LETTERS PO BOX 297, LONDON SW6 1XT fax no: 071 386 7808 All answers will appear on screen only. Seek independent financial advice before taking any investment decision. ——————————————————————————————————7/8—— Advice Clinic will updatu on Tujsda= ALL THE LATEST MONEY NEWS p541 Property Plus Your money Tax IndexP543 Teletext 543 May20 23:19:54 X ————————————————————————————————————— Welcome to Teletext Advice lines with IFA Promotion, the body which campaigns for indjpjndjnt financial advice. (Calls last 3 mink average) Investing lump sums..... 0891 141 327 Undiscovered Billions... 0891 332 188 Indjp. Financial Advice. 0891 141 330 Getting the right deal.. 0891 141 325 Health insurance........ 0891 141 323 Which mortgage for you?. 0891 141 328 The lines update weekly to offer you a range of financial advice. T+ ——————————————————————————8/8—— Calls cost 39p/min cheap rate 49p/other ADVICE CLINIC UPDATES TUES & FRI Property Plus Your money Ta| Index