British teens lack financial knowledge say National Homebuyers

Two-thirds of British teenagers do not believe that they have a good knowledge of finances.

[UKPRwire, Fri Nov 02 2007] New research by Nationwide shows that many youngsters are simply clueless when it comes to handling their finances.

It means that many more are likely to find themselves unable to purchase a home, spelling bad news if you are looking for someone to buy your property in the future.

"We are in danger of seeing the young people of today grow up without the confidence or understanding to make informed decisions about their money and plan for their financial future," said Stuart Bernau, executive director of Nationwide.

"We want the next generation of homebuyers and investors to use credit to their advantage and make the most of their savings.

"Through financial education we can equip today's teenagers to make the most of their money," he added.

Fast property sale expert Chris Newman of National Homebuyers says, "People are poorly educated about the property market.

"An unhealthy reliance on popular media is not a substitute for education. The mass media have been happily broadcasting that the property market is fine, when all the evidence pointed to a downturn.

"Once we are in downturn, it's a media frenzy which accentuates the problems and causes consumer distress. We feel that the leading property organisations, including the major lenders should be clear and factual with the information they provide to the media".

Mr Newman is a director of National Homebuyers, the UK's leading fast property purchase firm that guarantees to make an offer on any property in the UK for vendors who need a quick sale.

The research found that one in five teenagers do not view debt as a bad thing, while 77 per cent are completely unaware of what a direct debit is.

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