The report notes that:

(1) Contractors in most core disciplines are seeing a surge in online opportunities, with October’s Monster Employment Index increasing by 6%

(2) The KPMG Labour Market Outlook highlighted the drop in IT recruitment

(3) Manufacturing is still outperforming sluggish service and construction sectors, although all three are now in positive territory.

(4) Contractors are likely to be a crucial component in securing the UK’s future prosperity, according to a radical plan proposed by McKinsey.

The lending drought that has forced homeowners to stay on their lenders Standard Variable Rate (SVR) seems to be well and truly over as lenders compete to release their lowest rates since the credit crunch hit.

Before the ‘crunch’ it was common practise to remortgage after your mortgage term had ended so that you could move your loan to a more competitive rate. However, when lending dipped and the base rate fell to its current historic low of 0.5%, the lenders SVR was often more competitive than the remortgage rates available. As such, many Contractors have been biding their time on the SVR until lending recovers and the rates pick up… that day is finally here!

New rates for Contractors

The average SVR is currently around 4% for most lenders but we now have access to a range of competitive fixed and variable mortgage rates that are under 3%. The great news is that many of these rates are available with our contract based underwriting which enables us to arrange your mortgage based on a multiple of your annualised contract rate alone. We are the only contractor mortgage specialist with access to an exclusive fixed rate of 2.99% for two years. This Clydesdale mortgage has an arrangement fee of just £999 which is far cheaper than the 3% that some lenders charge.

If you are after a fixed rate mortgage then Barclays are offering their current account holders a 2.88% two year fixed rate mortgage and many Barclay’s customers will already have a pre-approved mortgage limit. Our advisers can assess your eligibility for a pre-approved mortgage which would save you the hassle of providing accounts or payslips. Simply call our advisers with your name, date of birth, Barclays sort code and account number, and we will take care of the rest.

What should you do now?

There is speculation in the industry that the base rate may be forced to rise over the next two years because of rising inflation. We would advise clients that need to be able to stick to a monthly budget, to opt for a low fixed rate mortgage now so that you know what you will need to pay over the next few years. If you can be more flexible or would like to benefit from what could be another six months or more of the low base rate then a tracker mortgage may be better. However if the base rate begins to rise then your mortgage repayments will increase so it is important to consider affordability.

If you are interested in discussing your remortgage options with one of our independent mortgage advisers then you can call 0845 062 8888 or email mortgages@contractorfinancials.com and they will discuss your requirements in more detail before locating the right mortgage to suit your needs.

Experian’s UK managing director, Charlotte Hogg also said that such micro companies will provide the impetus for a growing economy over the next few years”

“If you ask where is the growth in the economy going to come from in the next few years, micro businesses becoming bigger businesses will be critical.”

The Experian study revealed that younger men were leading the march to becoming directors of companies, with a 62% rise for those under the age of 24. Female directors also increased in number, though less than the men, and the biggest increases in women were in the over 60 age group.

New research conducted by NatWest and the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) found that 71 per cent of small firms have been paid after the agreed date in the last 12 months, with the total value of late invoices amounting to around £62.87 billion.

The study also showed 12 per cent of firms said more than 60 per cent of their invoices are paid late, while around £15.7 billion in payments are over 120 days in arrears.

In addition, it revealed that just 45 per cent of small enterprises have taken steps such as invoice discounting and factoring to improve their cashflow.

Peter Ibbetson, chairman of small business at NatWest and RBS, said: “Bad debts and late payment of invoices are endemic problems for UK businesses.”

Earlier this month, the Forum of Private Business claimed that 35.5 per cent of small firms’ turnover is tied up in late payments.

A new report from Savills claimed that total commercial development activity in the UK dropped by 2.8 per cent in June, after seeing growth for the two previous months.

Commenting on the research, Federation of Master Builders director general Richard Diment pointed out that recovery from the recession is still fragile and this is having an impact on the construction industry.

“It is disappointing [to see a fall in activity] but probably not overly surprising, given everything else we have been hearing over the last few months,” he commented.

Mr Diment also pointed out that the public sector spending cuts are likely to damage building activity for several years to come but predicted that some organisations will still need to invest in new developments.

Last month, Recruitment and Employment Confederation construction chair Simon Noakes highlighted the importance of the building industry to the wider economy.

New research from the Fair Investment Company found that 86 per cent will study their financial affairs while the Bank of England holds the base rate at its historic low of 0.5 per cent.

The organisation noted that this is a significant increase on the 67 per cent who said this when polled in October 2009.

George Ladds, head of pensions and investments at the Fair Investment Company, said it is not surprising that people will use low interest rates as a prompt to find better savings products.

“Financial needs change over time, as do the performance of different types of savings, which is why it is important to review them regularly to make sure you are still getting the most out of your money,” he added.

Last month, a spokesman for the Consumer Credit Counselling Service stressed the importance of IT contractors and other self-employed workers maintaining a distinction between personal and business finances.

Speaking at Mansion House for the first time since being appointed chancellor, Mr Osborne announced a series of overhauls to the regulatory regime and said that City watchdog Financial Services Authority (FSA) will “cease to exist in its current form”.

He also revealed that a new prudential regulator will be created as a subsidiary of the Bank of England to oversee the activities of retail and investment banks, building societies and insurance companies.

In addition, the chancellor said that a Financial Policy Committee will be established to tackle macroeconomic issues facing the UK, while serious economic crimes will combated by a “powerful” Consumer Protection and Markets Authority.

“What we are proposing is a new system of regulation that learns the lessons of the greatest banking crisis in our lifetime,” Mr Osborne told the audience.

The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 gave the FSA its current form by granting it a range of statutory powers. Its role is to “promote efficient, orderly and fair financial markets”.