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Millions of Sky TV customers face a price rise of up to ten per cent in September in the latest blow to cash-strapped households. A warning that prices could possibly rise was sneaked out in small print on its website, where the TV giant said it may push up costs ‘in accordance with our standard terms’. It is possible prices will rise by a lower amount, but Sky would not confirm by how much. Hike: Sky revealed that it could may push up costs by 10 per cent in September for millions of TV customers. Sky would not confirm whether this will apply just to new customers or if it will include existing ones too, or whether the price rise will impact prices where TV is bundled with internet or homephone.   More... Energy bills: Is it worth switching and which are the best deals? Fix your bills: how to cut your everyday costs and keep saving money all year round Looking for a better deal on your broadband package? Compare the best deals with out broadband finder Looking to switch? Se

The number of over-65s still in work has topped one million for the first time, official figures have revealed. Office of National Statistics (ONS) labour figures for the three months up to the end of April show that almost one in 10 people over the age of 65 are still working, 615,000 of whom are men and 388,000 are women. And retirement firm MGM Advantage has said a significant proportion of working pensioners are forced to continue employment into their twilight years because of their low pension incomes. Breakdown: The number of over-65s still in work has broken the one million barrier for the first time. MGM's Aston Goodey said: 'With people living longer, the experience of retirement is changing dramatically. 'There are significant numbers of people who now no longer fully retire at a set date and are looking at alternative working patterns, sometimes part-time work or non-executive directorships and consultancy.   More... Lack of retirement savings 'bigge

Disillusionment with pensions has led to a worrying proportion of savers describing the plans they are making for retirement as 'a waste of money'. Twelve per cent of pension savers over the age of 45 told insurer MetLife that they wish they hadn't bothered saving for retirement, while another six per cent say they are unhappy with the investment returns on their savings. The past six years of economic turmoil has shaken the confidence of savers and three-quarters of those with pensions are now less than assured in stock markets to deliver their retirement ambitions. Confidence shaken: Poor investment returns during the financial crisis has led to a disillusionment among pension savers about whether it was worth saving at all. Nearly half of those surveyed said they were pleased to have saved for retirement, but are concerned about the final level of income, while 22 per cent are confident their savings will deliver their desired return. But while many will have recei

My girlfriend and I are desperate for a holiday this year and trying to find ways to raise some cash to put towards it. I have tried eBay with very little success. We have sorted all the stuff in our garage ready for a car boot sale and seem to have quite a few old electrical items between us (including outdated phones, her old laptop and a couple of cameras). Is there a better place to try to sell these rather than an ad in the classifieds? Via email OB Alternatives: If you don't have success selling your old gadgets on eBay, you can try cashinyourgadgets.co.uk Linda McKay of This is Money replies: Research has found that in general we are a nation of hoarders who could be making a lot of money from unwanted gadgets gathering dust in cupboards and drawers. Maybe that much needed holiday will be the driving force for you and others like you to finally sort out the garage, loft or bedroom cupboard and discover that hidden treasures could bring in cash. Bet you have a ‘man dr

Credit unions will go head-to-head with payday lenders after the Government announced it would raise the cap on interest charges so that unions do not make losses on short-term loans. The Treasury yesterday confirmed it will introduce legislation that from April 2014 would raise the interest rate ceiling on credit union loans from two per cent to three per cent a month following a consultation with lenders. Three per cent a month works out at APR of 42.6 per cent. Currently, restrictions on interest rates mean that while unions can make decent returns on long-term loans, loans of a similar length to those offered by payday lenders tend to operate at a loss. Helping hand: Short-term credit union loans will be more expensive, but more sustainable for unions and still well cheaper than payday loans. Raising the interest cap on the reducing balance of loans will make short-term loans from credit unions more expensive, but at a maximum APR of around 42.6 per cent they will still be si

A new credit card has been launched by Capital One that aims to give the best of both worlds for British customers when they are at home and abroad. Customers will not pay any commission on purchases made overseas using the Capital One Aspire World card, while they can get cashback of up to 1.25 per cent on transactions in pounds sterling. But users should be wary not to use the card to make cash withdrawals, as this comes with a handling fee of three per cent of the amount withdrawn, minimum £3, both overseas and in the UK. No fee: Capital One Aspire World customers will not be charge for purchases made overseas. Meanwhile in order to get the top 1.25 per cent cashback rate, you have to spend more than £10,000 on the card in the space of a year. The rate falls if you spend less than this - you'll get 0.5 per cent cashback if you spend less than £6,000 (see below). Capital One also makes it clear that only those with an 'excellent credit history' are likely to be acce

Gary Heynes, head of private clients for Baker Tilly, replies: Main residence relief is available for individuals who own their property and occupy it as their main home (subject to restrictions for homes with large grounds), and so on this basis your sister-in-law should qualify for exemption from capital gains tax) on the proportion of gain for the period to January 2009. In addition, main residence relief is extended for the last three years of ownership, even if the property is not occupied as the main home, so say that the property is sold in August 2013, then that would exempt the gain from September 2010 to August 2013.  In that situation, it leaves the period January 2009 to September 2010 exposed to CGT.  While short periods of absence on holiday or in hospital would not affect the position, a longer stay in hospital or nursing home would leave the period exposed.    More... Government's care home costs cap prompts retirement firm's move into long-term social car