At the same time, the U.K. debt is climbing fast and will have to be brought down soon, one way or another.
The spreads, or gap of U.K. government debt over similar German debt has widened less than the spread of French debt over German paper.
And even the OBR's modest projections may be overly optimistic, especially if the U.K.'s debt binge of the past 15 years artificially inflated trend growth.
McKinsey estimated the U.K.'s total debt including financial institutions stood at 469% of GDP in 2008, the highest proportion in the world.
And given the servicing the U.K.'s massive debt load requires, this would leave people feeling only slightly better off after austerity than they do now.
Imagine inflation at 5.5% for five years, approximately the rate of inflation in the U.K. This takes a debt down in real terms by a quarter over the five year period.
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Positive behaviors that appear to be now entrenched include saving more in 401(k) plans, paying down debt and taking greater care to invest wisely.
Some of the leading crowdfunders fall into different categories like Equity ( see my earlier post), Donation, Reward and Debt (a.k.a.micro finance and peer-to-peer lending).
What is more likely holding back the U.K. is private-sector debt of more than 200% of GDP, one of the highest levels among developed countries.
Earlier this year, Lombard Street Research estimated the U.K.'s total net debt excluding the financial sector at 237% of GDP, slightly higher than Japan's and nearly as high as Spain's.
First, securitization of U.K. consumer, mortgage and business debt has all but collapsed.
Almost all 401(k) plans require you to eliminate the debt within 30 to 60 days of your departure.
The company reports in its 10-K that it expects to incur substantial additional debt (including secured debt) in the future to help cover the costs of its fleet.
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Paying off the debt made sense because even with the tax benefits, he was unlikely to earn as much in his 401(k) as the 12% that his debt was costing him.
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Increased saving is not only being used to repay debt but also to rebuild 401(k)s.
The core economies have deep structural problems and the world economy is in a state of disequilibrium, says Jan Dehn, an economist at Ashmore Group in the U.K. Ashmore has its hands in emerging market debt.
Second on the list of free-falling property markets is the U.K., a nation of consumers with twice the debt of the average European.
Even after paying 25% of that in taxes, she still would have earned more in her 401(k) than she would have paid in interest on the debt.
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Some of the areas where you can exercise some control include: consumer debt, discretionary spending, savings, 401(k) allocations, your emergency fund and most importantly your overall goals.
Where the U.K. desperately needs radical action to address the stock of debt in both the public and private sector, what it gets from Mr. Osborne is incrementalism.
U.K. consumers, who have some of the highest personal debt levels in Europe, are bound to start watching their spending more closely this year, and many economists expect interest rates and taxes will gradually start to rise, which will crimp spending further.
Importantly, note that these figures include both debt reduction and contributions to pension plans and 401(k)s.
So assuming she uses her debt free status to save more in her 401(k), it looks like a good deal.
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Even factoring in the U.K.'s role as a global banking center, that debt load was 380% of GDP, the second-highest in the world.
Similarly, the pound has tumbled in recent weeks against the euro and dollar as the euro zone's debt crisis has subsided, laying bare the U.K. economy's stubborn problems and weakening sterling's appeal as a haven alternative to the euro.
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Leaders from the European Union countries France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the U.K. issued a statement today explaining how proposals being considered there regarding debt would not apply to current instruments.
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