Recession occurs when a country’s Gross Domestic Product falls bellow 0 for two full quarters(the GDP’s growth must be negative for a full 6 months period for a country to be in recession). The current global economic downturn hit the UK during the second quarter of 2008. During the last quarter of that same year, the UK’s GDP dropped a further 3%. A consequence of this was the rise in personal insolvency that reached 27,702 during the 4th quarter of 2008. This rise in personal debt levels also generated a rise in the number of people looking for debt management. The level of Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVA) also rose considerably, reaching 10,041 during that same periods.

The recession has caused high unemployment rates, hard working families struggling to hold on to the “American Dream” are presently faced with the potentiality of losing their home. According to estimates, 1 out of every 200 homes will be foreclosed on. With each passing day a family some where is looking for possible ways to save their home. When it comes to foreclosure, one of the biggest mistake that people make is failing to openly communicate with their lender about their circumstance. Sadly, homeowners often wait too late to attempt to negotiate a deal to save their home. The smart thing to do is to educate yourself on the options available.