HOUSING DOWNTURN THEATENS BRIGHTON & HOVE BUILDING TRADE BOOM - BUT DEBT ADVICE IS ON DOORSTEP                        

• Brighton & Hove boom industry vulnerable to global financial gloom
• Outlook for builders gloomy as demand on construction firms nosedives
• Impartial one-to-one debt guidance from Brighton-based IVA.com beats going to mass market debt solutions factories

WORKERS in the building and construction industries which have enjoyed a boom in property hot spots like Brighton & Hove are now facing hard times as the housing market continues to buckle under the strain of the economic crisis, according to local debt solution comparison firm IVA.com.

The number of workers in the building trade calling IVA.com for professional help with their debts has steadily increased as the brakes go on house building, movement in the housing market grinds to a halt and people shelve home improvements due to lack of funds.

“In the past when borrowing was cheap and easy and the rise of the housing market seemed unstoppable, work for the building and construction trades was plentiful. But for those who relied on this trend continuing and lived beyond their means, the downturn we see today has left them high and dry,” says IVA.com’s director Terry Balfour.

“There’s been a lot of talk about the credit crunch over the past year but I would say it’s only now that the effects are really hitting their target and ordinary workers and business-owners are taking the blows.”

Balfour’s comments echo the findings of a survey by the Federation of Master Builders which show the construction industry to be suffering the lowest levels of demand for a decade*.

Small firms, in particular, are finding the current climate very difficult and expect their workload over the next two quarters of 2008 to fall even further.  This follows research from the Office of National Statistics which shows overall construction levels fell by 19 per cent in June alone.

Building and construction is not the only industry to bear the brunt of this year’s straightened circumstances. IVA.com also reports an increased number of enquiries from HGV drivers who are deciding it’s time to put the brakes on their ballooning debt problem as the road haulage sector suffers from the hikes in fuel duty.

But with the alarming rise in the number of UK consumers struggling with huge debts, the shame and stigma of being in deep debt is waning.

“Debt is now a fact of life and managing it is a mainstream activity,” says Balfour. “It’s something to be dealt with so that people can recover and move on with their lives.”

IVA.com is a first port-of-call for anyone who has accumulated more debt than they can cope with. After explaining the details of their financial situation, callers are directed towards an insolvency practitioner who is best placed to provide the most beneficial professional help. This could be one of a number of options including an IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement), debt management plan or bankruptcy.

Unlike the bigger debt solution firms, IVA.com is small enough to be able to provide callers with a personal, one-to-one service that will refer them to the most appropriate option, not the one that’s going to earn the adviser the biggest fees.

“Our aim is to find the solution that is best for the individual, otherwise it’s not going to work, and that’s no good for anyone,” says Balfour.  

“No-one gains from giving bad advice. That’s why the feedback available on our site from those who have used us is so valuable. And as well as directing people to genuine and practical solutions, it’s very comforting to discover that others have been in a similarly situation and come out the other side.”

There are nearly 1,000 IVA providers listed on IVA.com’s database covering the whole of the UK. The service allows clients to find an insolvency practitioner who is close enough for them to meet face to face and ensures they don’t leap from the frying pan into the fire by putting their financial security in the hands of a firm that cannot deliver.

And most importantly, it weeds out the few who don’t have their clients’ best interests at heart.

– Ends –

General enquiries: 0800 324 7011 / www.iva.com

Press enquiries:

Terry Balfour, Director
0800 324 7011
IVA.com
Terry.balfour@iva.com

Lucie Ager, Consultant 
01273 774109 / 07796 878263
David Andrews Media Ltd                                               
lucie@davidandrewsmedia.co.uk

David Andrews, Senior Consultant - Director
01273 774109 / 07941 255855
David Andrews Media Ltd
david@davidandrewsmedia.co.uk

Editor's notes
Founded by its managing director Terry Balfour in 2007, IVA.com is the first IVA comparison website in the UK. It is a free interactive online service for consumers looking for an IVA firm most suitable to their needs. Its database has over 1,000 UK-based IVA firms and insolvency practitioners (IPs). IVA.com brings transparency to the market by employing its unique rating system based on the real experiences of IVA customers. There are over 500 reviews and many more ratings that provide people with details of how IVA firms are performing.
IVA.com enables smaller firms to compete more effectively with the larger IVA factories.