Emma Lunn – freelance personal finance journalist
I embarked on a career in journalism in my mid-20s after completing the NCTJ pre-entry certificate in journalism at Lambeth College in 2002/3. My first job in journalism was as a reporter on the Kent & Sussex Courier.
But things have changed a lot since I covered parish council meetings and car crashes.
After a short stint on Money Marketing, I stumbled into writing about money and discovered a rather geeky interest in personal finance.
I have been freelance since 2004 – a time when house prices were going through the roof, the economy was looking pretty healthy, and borrowing money was easy.
But just three years later everything had changed and I was writing about the credit crunch and subsequent recession. I’d hoped the Global Financial Crisis might be the only recession I’d write about – but here we are in 2020 facing an even worse outlook due to Covid-19.
Whatever the economic situation, the subjects I write about remain broadly the same: Mortgages, property, insurance, banking, savings, debt, money saving, student finance, household bills, and general money management.
I work regularly for national newspapers, trade and consumer magazines, and websites.
Newspapers I have written regularly for include The Guardian, The Times, The Daily/Sunday Telegraph, The Independent, Scotland on Sunday, The Mirror and The Sun.
Websites I have contributed to include YourMoney.com, Thisismoney.co.uk, Lovemoney.com, TotallyMoney.com, Moneysupermarket.com, Zoopla.co.uk, Transferwise.com, Trussle.com, and LandlordToday.co.uk.
Specialist titles I write for include Moneyweek, Property Hub, Moneywise, Mortgage Strategy, and Homebuilding & Renovating.
I edited the Council of Mortgage Lenders annual handbook in 2011 and 2013.
I’m also happy to do PR consultancy and media training to provide both PR companies and their clients with an insight into the world of journalism, what journalists expect, what works as a PR approach and what doesn’t.
In May 2013 I won two awards at the Headline Money Awards: Freelance Financial Journalist of the Year and Household Money Journalist of the Year. The judges described me as “Refreshing and quirky” and “An ideas machine”.
I was highly commended in the Freelance category in both 2012 and 2014
In 2020, I am shortlisted for Scoop of the Year at the Property Press Awards and for Personal Finance Story of the Year at the Headline Money Awards. Unfortunately both award ceremonies have been delayed due to Covid-19.
I also have some radio and web TV experience. A slot for StudioTalk.tv talking about accidental landlords was broadcast live and can be viewed online. I have also appeared on Sky News as a financial expert.
I have been a guest on Royal London’s The Penny Drops podcast (talking about saving money).
I’ve also written a guide called “25 ways to boost your income” and a book called “The Little Book of Shocking Money Facts”.
Outside of work I like travelling, tennis, padel, hiking and fitness bootcamps.
Latest from my blog
The end of Moneywise
It’s been a sad week for personal finance journalism as it was announced that Moneywise (and its sister publication Money Observer) will be closing down after the August 2020 issue. The magazine’s parent company Interactive [...]
More coronavirus work
I spent half this week working for YourMoney.com and there was only one topic: coronavirus. Six months ago it would have seemed unbelievable to be writing about furlough (never heard of it before), mortgage payment [...]
Covid-19
The world’s completely changed in the past few months and about 90% of my work has been writing about the coronavirus pandemic. I was working in-house at Moneywise when things first “got weird”. First there [...]
Check out my book
I spent last summer writing several sections for How Money Works, published by DK. You can buy it on Amazon here. Money well spent!
Flight chaos
The thousands of people stranded at Heathrow and Gatwick at the weekend have my sympathy. Flight cock-ups are zero fun and I am still scarred by the Expedia saga of 2010 – BA weren’t entirely [...]
Are leasehold owners just glorified tenants?
Do you know the difference between freehold and leasehold? If you’re buying a property you probably should. Leasehold flat owners have always suffered at the hands of merciless freeholders and their managing agents – but [...]