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Money blog: Britain's best and worst cities to live in ranked; pub chain offering free drinks this weekend

Today in Money, we have our weekly Mortgage Guide after the Bank of England held the base interest rate at 4% yesterday. Plus, a pub chain is offering free drinks this weekend and a new report has ranked Britain's best cities to live in.

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Britain's best and worst cities to live in

York has been named Britain's most prosperous city outside London, according to a new report.

The city's job offering and quality of life have blown its competitors out of the water in PwC's new growth report.

A thriving high street, good transport links and better housing were among the factors that put York at the top of the annual leaderboard.

The report ranks British cities based on metrics like house prices, earnings, healthcare facilities, crime rates, and schooling.

Edinburgh and Bristol came second and third in the study, followed by Exeter and Swindon.

Plymouth, Southampton, Reading, Portsmouth and Norwich complete the top 10.

Some of the names in the bottom 10 might surprise you, with Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham all making an appearance.

See how your city performed below...

UK borrowing jumps higher than expected to £18bn

Government borrowing was higher than expected at £18bn last month, according to official figures.

The Office for National Statistics said it was the highest August borrowing figure for five years.

Most economists had expected government borrowing to come in at £12.8bn. 

Borrowing for the first five months of the financial year was £83.8bn - £16.2bn higher than the same period a year ago.

The figure will cause a headache for Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who is already expected to announce tax increases at the autumn budget in November to stay on track to meet her fiscal rules and avoid unsettling financial markets.

ONS chief economist Grant Fitzner said: "Although overall tax and National Insurance receipts were noticeably up on last year, these increases were outstripped by higher spending on public services, benefits and debt interest. Total borrowing for the financial year to date was also the highest since 2020."

James Murray, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said the government has a "plan to bring down borrowing" to ensure taxpayer money is spent on the country's priorities. 

"Our focus is on economic stability, fiscal responsibility, ripping up needless red tape, tearing out waste from our public services, driving forward reforms and putting more money in working people's pockets," he said. 

Get a free pint, glass of wine or soft drink this weekend

If you're thinking of heading to the pub this weekend, it might be worth popping into your local Young's. 

It's offering customers who use its On Tap app a free pint, glass of wine or diet Coca-Cola until 21 September. 

The drinks included in the offer are: 

  • Young's Original
  • Asahi Super Dry
  • 175ml glass of Morande Coleccion Privada Sauvingnon Blanc
  • 175ml glass of Morande Coleccion Privada Merlot
  • 16oz Diet Coke
  • 16oz Coca-Cola Zero Sugar
  • 330ml Coca-Cola 

New and existing app users can claim the deal. 

Add one of the drinks above to your basket in the app, and the treat will be automatically redeemed at the checkout. 

It's worth checking your local Young's pub is taking part in the deal here.

Lender cuts mortgage rates for new and current customers

Nationwide is cutting its mortgage rates by up to 0.18 percentage points as of today. 

The country's biggest building society is reducing rates across its two, three and five-year fixed-rate deals for new and existing customers. 

Here are some of the new rates available...

First-time buyers: 

  • Three-year fixed rate at 85% LTV with a £999 fee is 4.34% (reduced by 0.15%)
  • Two-year fixed rate at 75% LTV with a £999 fee is 4.09% (reduced by 0.10%)
  • Three-year fixed rate at 95% LTV with no fee is 5.21% (reduced by 0.18%)
  • Two-year fixed rate at 60% LTV with a £1,499 fee is 3.99% (reduced by 0.04%)

Existing and new customers moving home: 

  • Two-year fixed rate at 90% LTV with no fee is 4.52% (reduced by 0.16%)
  • Two-year fixed rate at 60% LTV with a £1,499 fee is 3.80% (reduced by 0.07%)
  • Five-year fixed rate at 95% LTV with a £999 fee is 4.81% (reduced by 0.13%)
  • Three-year fixed rate at 80% LTV with a £999 fee is 4.24% (reduced by 0.10%)

"We regularly review our rates because it's important that, as Britain's biggest building society, we maintain a competitive position in the market," said Carlo Pileggi, Nationwide's senior mortgages manager. 

"These latest changes will be particularly good news for those looking to move home, with rates now starting from 3.80%, and for first-time buyers as we make a wide range of cuts across those product ranges." 

Borrowers can't afford to sit back as there's still risk of rates rising - but there's an upside

Every Friday, we take an overview of the mortgage market with industry experts and round up the best rates with Moneyfactscompare.co.uk

Borrowers may be wondering whether the Bank of England will cut the base rate again this year after Thursday's decision to hold it at 4%.

Two members of the Monetary Policy Committee wanted a 0.25 point reduction, but the majority were set against it.

On the upside, the average two-year fixed rate at the beginning of this month was at its lowest level since September 2022, according to L&C Mortgages' tracker.

But borrowers can't afford to sit back when there's still a chance of rates edging higher, L&C's associate director David Hollingworth said.

The average two and five-year fixed rates stand at 4.98% and 5.02% respectively, unchanged from a week ago.

Lenders increasing rates included TSB, by up to 0.15%, and First Direct, by up to 0.20%. 

In contrast, Barclays cut fixed rates by up to 0.44%.

Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfacts, said: "Uncertainties surrounding the outlook for interest rate moves have been evident in recent weeks, with volatile swap rates leading to a more cautious approach from lenders to make any significant changes. 

"Not only this, but many will be waiting with bated breath for the budget. 

"This waiting game, alongside forecasts for inflation to remain above target, makes it less likely for the Bank of England to make further rate cuts this year."

She said more affordable housing is needed, as buyers who can only borrow at higher loan-to-values run the risk of falling into negative equity if house prices plummet. 

"It's worthwhile trying to overpay each month to reduce the overall mortgage term."

Remortgage customers may be looking to save on the upfront cost of any deal and might also want a deal to cover a valuation or legal fees.

A Best Buy mortgage could be the most cost-effective choice in this instance - check out the options from Moneyfacts below...

Is your name Kat or Sue (or close enough)? You can get a free katsu curry

Listen up Kat, Katherine, Sue, Suzy and those of you with a similar name - you can get a free katsu meal at Banana Tree next week. 

The restaurant chain is offering the free dish, worth up to £16.75, to anyone with a name close to Kat and Sue to celebrate national katsu curry day. 

You can claim the deal from Monday to Thursday next week from 4pm each day. 

You need to sign up for the free Big Flavour Club loyalty membership scheme and show your ID to your server to get the offer. 

You can choose from three dishes: 

  • Katsu curry (£16.45)
  • Katsu burger (£16.75) 
  • Katsu carbonara (16.75) 
Britons £20,000 worse off than they should be, report finds

Britons are £20,000 worse off than they should be, according to a new report.

If growth had continued at the rate achieved in 2005, the typical family would now be earning £51,000, the Resolution Foundation found.

Instead they are bringing in just £31,000 on average, revealing the scale of decline in UK living standards.

"The existence of a permanently precarious group of working people, forever denied the rising prosperity that others enjoyed, has got worse, not better," says Clive Cowdery, Founder of the Resolution Foundation.

"This makes our economy weaker, and our society and politics less stable."

Since 2005, typical incomes for working-age families have grown by just 7%.

Some groups have fared better than others. Pensioner incomes have grown by 21%  and owner-occupiers by 14%.

The incomes of working-age families in private rented accommodation have increased by just 4%.

Earn up to £125 cashback with credit card perk

New users of the Amex cashback everyday credit card can get 5% cashback up to £125 over the first five months - but, of course, you should take the usual caution before getting any credit card. 

This is an improvement on the card's previous welcome offer, which gave shoppers the chance to earn up to £100 cashback over three months. 

After five months, you can earn 0.5% cashback on spending up to £10,000 and 1% cashback on spending above this amount. 

There's no limit on the cashback you can earn after the offer ends, but you need to spend at least £3,000 a year to continue to qualify for the reward.

The card comes with a purchase APR of 29.7%  and does not allow any balance transfers. 

You pay that rate of interest if you don't pay off your full balance by the due date each month.

Your purchase and cash interest rates will move up and down in line with the Bank of England base rate. 

Rates may also vary based on your individual circumstances. 

It's important to note that not everyone will be eligible for this card and there may be others that better suit your personal needs. 

You can compare credit cards before you apply to help you find one that covers your needs best.

Read the full terms and conditions of the Amex Cashback Every Day Credit Card here