Whatever Chancellor George Osborne pulls out of his hat in next week's Budget, workers in Nick Clegg's "alarm clock Britain" will be unimpressed when the "age of austerity" dawns barely a fortnight later.
No fewer than 15 tax rises and benefit cuts take effect on April 6: the threshold for higher rate (40%) income tax falls by £1,400 to £42,475, while National Insurance rates (paid by employees) rise 1% to 12% on wages up to £817 per week.
Freezing local housing allowances could drive many tenants into cheaper accommodation and landlords could lose out too, either because more homes stand empty, or because they have to take lower rents from tenants on less benefit.
David Kilshaw, chair of private client advisory at accountants KPMG, says: "This year's Budget is unusual as we have been told about the measures for the next Finance Bill already - in other words, the changes come in on April 6.
"But the Chancellor can still add 'emergency' measures on March 23, so we don't rule out any surprises on tax.
"Even without significant extra developments, there are enough changes for many to feel an impact in the next tax year."
Months of talk about public sector spending cuts are about to become a grim reality at a time when household finances are stretched by soaring petrol bills.
Benefit cuts for non-dependants will be increased, hitting claimants with adult children still at home; the value of child benefits will fall as they are frozen - at £20.30p for the first child, and £13.40 for additional children - for three years at a time of steeply rising inflation.
From April 6, tax relief on childcare vouchers will be restricted to the basic rate.
"If you have got children," says KPMG's Kilshaw, "a range of charges in the pipeline will affect you."
For lower earners, at least, there is some good news; the amount of income they can earn before paying tax rises from £6,475 to £7,475 - and this adjustment benefits earners up to £100,000 a year.
Kevin Mountford, head of banking at finance website Moneysupermarket.com, says: "Instead of letting rising costs diminish their spending and saving power, consumers must take control of their own finances and be their own 'chancellor' by reviewing their own household budget.
"Sitting on uncompetitive or unsuitable deals will see you out of pocket when there are better deals to be had."
With less money in our pockets from April 6, and inflation rising - food price inflation is already 6.3% per year - your money must work more efficiently.
Mountford adds: "Money makeovers make a difference, but people don't bother. If there was ever a time to evaluate household finances by getting the family around the laptop, this is probably it."
Here's some potential savings on the Moneysupermarket.com checklist:
:: Mortgage: of typical potential household annual savings of £2,443 per year, nearly half - £1,029 - could be saved by switching a £150,000 mortgage from a standard variable rate (SVR) at 4.74% to a two-year fix - say, Santander's deal at 2.79%.
However, the Santander loan won't suit everybody. The maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratio is 60%, and the initial fee is £1,995, with reversion to an SVR loan (currently costing 4.24%) the likely option in two years' time.
Making big savings on mortgage repayments could be much harder for borrowers with small amounts of equity in their home.
:: Current accounts: the scope for savings may be limited, as the average interest paid on balances has shrunk to 0.19%, with many paying nothing at all.
Santander's Preferred In-Credit Account pays 5% on balances up to £2,500 for the first year, reducing to 1% after 12 months. Another attraction is a fee-free arranged overdraft after 12 months, but at least £1,000 must be paid in each month.
:: Savings accounts: the problem for many people is how to combine a decent interest rate with easy access to cash.
Moneysupermarket.com highlights the West Bromwich BS WebSaver account paying 3.01% - earning £301 interest a year on a £10,000 deposit.
Santander upped the rate on its eSaver Issue 3 account to 3% on a minimum £1 deposit, with easy access online. But that includes a 2.50% bonus for the first year, so savers must be alert to the rate beyond that.
:: Personal loans: with M&S Money rates from 6.9% APR, savings of £105 a year are possible on a five-year £7,500 loan. Getting a low rate, again, requires an impressive credit rating.
:: Credit cards: Barclaycard's move this week to launch Britain's first 20-month 0% balance transfer offer means somebody with £2,000 on their card and making minimum monthly payments could save just over £441 - after deduction of the balance transfer fee of 3.2%.
Kevin Mountford thinks Barclaycard's rivals could top the 20-month interest-free deal in the coming weeks.
:: Insurance: while paying annually rather than monthly invariably saves money, motorists face swingeing rises on premiums in 2011. However, Moneysupermarket.com made annual savings of £282 on car cover and £124 on home insurance.
:: Utility bills: up already by 5.9% since November, household bills look set to go higher after the earthquake tsunami in Japan.
Energyhelpline.com fears a £170 rise is possible because Japanese demand for liquefied natural gas is sending gas prices soaring - lifting the average annual bill for UK households to more than £1,300.
The lowest energy bills invariably go to households on online tariffs. Duel fuel tariffs, providing gas and electricity through the same supplier, and payment by monthly direct debit also cut costs, but beware signing up to deals which are costly and complex to unscramble.
Moneysupermarket.com reckons the cheapest online tariffs save more than £213 a year.
:: Getting down to basics, Moneysavingexpert.com makes a case for buying postage stamps for the next few Christmases, if you still send cards, that is.
The 12% jump in the cost of stamps on April 4 means a first class letter costs 46p, second class 36p - but stamps labelled 1st and 2nd remain valid, whenever you eventually get around to using them.
Poundnotes
:: Japan's nightmare should not panic investors into abandoning the region, says fund manager Tom Becket at PSigma Investment Management.
"In the medium term, we strongly feel our patience with Japanese equities will be rewarded," he says.
"Facts important for companies before the crisis, such as an improving global economy and cheap valuations, remain in place and a key part of our argument was that Japanese exporters were likely to benefit from a weakening currency in the next few years, a tailwind for them."
However, Becket fears global bond investors could suffer.
"Japanese bonds were extremely unattractive investments before this crisis and are even more so now," he says.
:: Late ISA investors beating the April 5 deadline for the 2010/11 tax year must avoid the 'bonus rate' trick, says Andrew Hagger of Moneynet.co.uk after weeks of frantic activity in the 'best buy' league.
Although only 0.35% covers the top five instant access ISAs, the bonus element of these accounts varies widely.
The bonus on the Barclays Golden ISA 3 is just 1.00% whereas with the latest deals from Santander and Halifax it accounts for a hefty 2.80% and 2.50% respectively of the quoted rate.
For savers who switch ISAs when their bonus expires, no problem. Others may not realise that accounts with big bonuses suddenly offer a much poorer return,
Hagger says: "When you open an ISA, make a note in your diary a couple of weeks before your rate is due to plummet, so you're in a position to move your cash before returns hit a derisory level."
:: Fixed rate mortgages jumped sharply in price in January/February, says Ray Boulger at brokers John Charcol, who fears that for at least a third of all borrowers a remortgage is out of the question, either because of insufficient equity or because they can no longer meet lenders' tougher lending criteria.
Charcol figures show the percentage of borrowers taking 'fixes' peaked at 81.4% in April 2009 and sank to 17% by March 2010. Last month, it hit 55.4%, amid fears of rate rises.
Boulger says fixes could get cheaper later this year, or in 2012, so no need to rush.
:: The decision by Ofcom to slash the mobile termination rate for mobile phone users from 4.3p to 2.66p on April 1 should halve network rates "almost immediately," says Ernest Doku at uSwitch.com.
"But whether consumers see these rate cuts as quickly as the networks make them is another matter," he warns.
:: High five savers
Phone No Rate Account Period Deposit Interest paid
AA 0845 603 6302 5.00% (F) Fixed Rate Account Five Year Bond £1 Yly
Santander 0800 234 6065 3.30% Flexible ISA Issue 3 Instant £1 Yly
Close Savings 0207 392 1772 3.15% Premium Gold 180 Day 180 Day (B) £10,000 Qly
Manchester BS 0161 923 8015 3.01% Premier Notice Iss 24 60 Day £1,000 Yly
Cheshire BS 0800 243278 2.95% 30 Day Postal Saver 30 Day (P) £1,000 Yly
:: Top five borrowers
Phone No Rate Period Max% Adv Fee Incentive
HSBC 0800 494999 2.29% variable for term 60% £99 Yes
Vernon BS 0161 429 6262 2.49% disc for two years 75% £495 Yes
ING Direct 0845 032 8800 2.50% disc until 31/03/13 70% none Yes
First Direct 0845 610 0100 2.79% variable for term 65% £199 Yes
Furness BS 0800 220568 3.29% (disc) for three years 80% none Yes
Code:
*K- Operated by Internet, Telephone, or Post
*F - Fixed
*P - Operated by Post
*B - Operated by Post/Telephone
*T - Operated by Telephone
*W - Operated by Internet
*H - Operated by Internet/Telephone
*S - Available only to those aged 50 or over
*R - Available to those aged 60 and over.
:: Source: Money£acts - Tel: 01603 476 476 (All rates subject to change without notice).
