10/ Kicking the habit – Although the smoking ban and upping the legal age of smoking has caused many to quit smoking, the credit crunch is having an even bigger effect on smokers. Since the credit crunch rocked the country, smokers have started to see the addictive habit as a huge drain on their finances. According to recent reports the average British smoker spends around £120,000 in their lifetime on cigarettes….which is (roughly) enough to bring up two children to the age of eighteen.
9/ Better borrowing – Banks have had to re-think there lending decisions thanks to the credit crunch, which means more sensible lending options for us. No more paying back eight times more than you’ve borrowed and funding the fat cats upstairs in their diamond chairs and gold suits.
8/ Stag and hen do’s still cheap – Although people are spending more on stag and hen do’s the actual price of flights and activities are reasonable. And thanks to companies such as Eclipse leisure the whole event can be organised and arranged as a great money saving deal….just make sure you make it to the chapel.
7/ Brides consider cost of wedding – The credit crunch has finally got the brides thinking more about the long term effects of an expensive wedding and therefore are reconsidering the huge bunches of roses costing £2000 and are settling for the grooms idea of daisies from the local park…..
6/ Your very own shed – Who needs a mansion when you can buy yourself a studio flat. They’re cool, easy to clean and you can reach the fridge while you’re lying in the bath. Property prices are out of reach of most young professionals, which is why many 20 something’s are converting their parent’s sheds and paying £10 a week rent….as long as you don’t mind having the lawnmower as a flat mate, why not.
5/ Obesity – Unless you own an allotment and grow your own food you will find food costs climbing at a substantial rate causing many to skip meals and eat less. On the plus side the 24% of obese people in the UK could be reduced to a mere handful. The credit crunch may be a good reason to start getting in shape and eating cheaper, healthier foods.
4/ Reclining road rage – The credit crunch has propelled petrol prices and caused more rage than a Big Brother episode, however, this has also seen many motorists turn to their bicycles, which is reducing traffic (apparently) and therefore slowly ending the constant cursing and violent fist waving associated with the city driver……..so get on your bike.
3/ Fewer divorces – The prospect of being a single parent in the midst of the credit crunch is daunting ……so, many couples are staying together. Divorce rates are the lowest in over 20 years, which means happier children and fewer moody teenagers.
2/ No more traffic wardens – The British people have a great distaste for estate agents, tax officers and lawyers but when it comes to traffic wardens we hold a special place in our raging hearts for the Gollum like road patrollers. With petrol prices soaring and congestion charges (not to mention the environment) people are leaving the car at home, which is giving our trigger happy ticket giver’s little to do…..thing’s are looking up.
1/ The extinction of the estate agent – And at number one of our top 10 positives that have come from the credit crunch has to go to the downfall of the estate agent. With the rise of house prices and mortgage rates, estate agents and there strange little cars have slowly become as useless as a wooden frying pan.
