Kitting Out the Kitchen

UK homeowners have spent a whopping £76 billion kitting out their kitchens with the latest culinary gadgets, with the average household splashing out £3,113, according to research by Churchill Home Insurance.
The insurance company found that the average British kitchen contains £1,539 worth of equipment at any one time, ranging from coffee grinders to microwaves.
Cookery fans are also buying increasingly pricey utensils, with the 3,063 homeowners questioned spending an average of £486 on cutlery, chopping boards, pots and pans.
But despite these large sums of money, Martin Scott, head of Churchill Insurance, believes that many homeowners are dangerously underinsured for damage caused by accidents in the kitchen. "The research shows that the kitchen is full of expensive electrical equipment and accessories so it is imperative that house-holders make sure they are covered against any accidental damage," Mr Scott said. "Otherwise, it’s easy to see how an everyday accident could make a real dent in the household finances."
He pointed out that nine per cent of all domestic accidents take place in the kitchen, with the average accidental damage claim for this coming to £496.
One of the more unusual claims received by Churchill relating to kitchen incidents involved a policyholder filing an accidental damage claim after his pressure cooker exploded, coating the entire kitchen in stew.

Yet Another U-turn

In another extraordinary u-turn, the Chancellor is now proposing that SIPP holders can invest directly in student halls of residence and indirectly in other residential property within a syndicate of just eleven or more members, reports Assetz.

Last week, the details of the definition and tax treatment of residential property within SIPPs were divulged in Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC) Guidance Notes. These are only draft documents at this stage but are expected to become law as part of the Finance Act in July 2006.

The documentation outlines the conditions under which SIPPs will be able to invest in residential property. The key points are:

SIPPs can invest directly in dedicated student Halls of Residence but not individual flats that happen to be let to students They can also invest directly in hotels, residential homes, hospices and prisons They can invest in residential property so long as it is via a “genuinely diverse commercial vehicle”, or indirect investment. This includes UK REITs and Funds such as onshore Property Unit Trusts, as expected, but also residential syndicates of only 11 or more people. The following limitations apply to indirect investments:

The SIPP must own no more than 10% of the property The total asset value is at least £1 million, or at least 3 properties are held in it Syndicate members cannot hold any more than 10% No personal use of the residential property is permittedStuart Law, Managing Director of Assetz comments: ”This is fantastic news for pension investors. The Government has been sensible in permitting residential property that is of a true investment nature, and allowing people to supplement their retirement income with the proceeds of buy to let and residential capital growth, as well as more traditional commercial property that was already allowed."

He continues: “The residential syndicates proposed would be able to borrow up to 85% of the value of the property, as the SIPP would own a share in the syndicate but the syndicate itself would borrow using non-recourse lending, enabling investors to bypass SIPP lending limitations of 33% of the value of the property.”

He added: “This opportunity will be extremely popular with investors who understand the benefits of gearing.”

Southend on Sea tops for Golden Oldies

Southend-on-Sea came out as the best UK retirement destination in research commissioned by Yours magazine.

The magazine for the over 50s ranked 60 retirement locations in the UK according to a wide range of considerations for older people. These included house prices, council tax levels, shopping facilities, crime rates, hospital waiting times, the availability of NHS dentists and the weather.

The study awarded first place to Southend which it concluded was a "bargain" retirement location with a low violent crime rate. Other factors helping Southend pip its competitors to the post were the fact that it is relatively flat with a pedestrianised centre and that it has a council tax that is almost £100 lower than the UK average for a band G property.
Editor of Yours magazine Valery McConnell said: "Southend-on-Sea may not be the average person's idea of an idyllic retirement town but it's got everything older people really need."
Poole in Dorset came in second place due to its natural harbour and its waiting times for hip operations that are lower than the national average. Whitehaven in Cumbria was third, again helped by good waiting times for hip replacement operations but also due to its house prices that are nearly half the national average.

Other places to make it into the top 10 included Swansea in Wales, Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, Stirling in Scotland, Leamington Spa in Warwickshire, Skegness in Lincolnshire, Weymouth in Dorset and Southport, Merseyside.

But Southend isn't just for the oldies. It also boasts seven miles of award-winning beaches and more than 80 parks and open spaces, pulling in visitors all year round.

Malta sees double digit increases

The Mediterranean island of Malta has recorded the strongest growth in property prices from countries in the European Union, and recent news could help see property inflation in double figures for the next few years.

Figures released by the European Mortgage Federation show Malta’s rise of over eighteen per cent was higher than both France and Spain.

Two EU countries, Germany and Austria, saw house prices drop, while Portugal, Greece and the Netherlands were barely into positive territory.

And property insiders on the island are predicting that strong growth could be around for a few years yet, giving Malta the potential to be seen by investors as a good place to buy.

Sustained property inflation at levels seen in Malta are rarely seen in other countries, but new economic activity on the island could see property demand at good levels for some years to come.

A new ‘Smart City’ is planned which could see Malta competing with the rest of Europe as a business destination for internet and other high-tech companies. English is spoken fluently in Malta, and coupled with relatively low salaries locally it is hoped that inward investment and 5000 new jobs will help the Maltese economy which in turn will boost the property, hotel and holiday markets.

The tourist industry is vital to Malta’s economy, and it is hoped that the arrival of low cost airlines providing new flights to Malta will benefit the Malta holidays industry as well as the many hotels in Malta.

If Malta can combine the attractions of a Mediterranean holiday island with a modern infrastructure and high tech friendly business in a low tax environment, today’s property prices could look like a bargain in five years time.

The introduction of low cost flights to Malta from the UK will open up the possibility of more buyers looking at the island for holiday homes that could be used for long weekends, and the Malta hotels industry could reap the benefits of the 3 and 4 day tourist seeing the island as a viable place to visit.

Malta has traditionally seen the majority of her visitors from the UK, but this could be changing to a more diverse mix in future years.

Last year saw a record number of visitors from Italy, and increased enquiries have been received at estate agents across the island from Scandinavia, Holland, France and Belgium, helping to increase the demand for Malta properties.

After some years of wondering how Malta would fit into the modern world, property agents, hotel owners and the Malta holidays industry are beginning to see the future with some optimism.

Bulgaria Booming

I just cannot understand this lemming like leap to invest in Bulgaria. All I can say is do your homework thoroughly before parting with your money. Ask yourself are the promised gains realistic? If in doubt. STAY OUT

The Spring Assetz Property Investment Tracker shows Bulgaria has moved into prime position at the top of the table, with Cyprus in close second and France third.

Conversely, investors in both South Africa and Florida should beware of rising interest rates and plummeting returns.

Detailed research from Assetz, the UK’s leading property investment specialist brings together all the key investment criteria for UK buy-to-let and overseas property hotspots, to form the only comprehensive and authoritative investment tracker.

Assetz main announcements:

Bulgaria – With yields shooting to 12% and capital gains staying high at 36%, the total return on cash has been a very healthy 116% for the last year

Turkey – Despite mortgages not currently being allowed, prices are still rising well. But investors should prepare for a rule change in 2006 permitting borrowing that will ignite the market further

South Africa/USA – With interest rates rising in both these countries, Assetz warns that some investors must be prepared to make a loss, particularly with new build in the USA

Bulgaria leads the pack

The Tracker reveals that in the first quarter of 2006 Bulgaria has stormed past Cyprus to the top of the table, offering a staggering 116% return on cash invested. Deposit levels of 30% are easily accessible to most investors due to the relatively cheap property, with a typical two-bedroom apartment costing in the region of £80,000. Bulgaria is now establishing a stable resale market and proving it has staying power as an investment destination. Although the level of house price growth is expected to tail off slightly during the remainder of 2006, Assetz predicts that overall market growth will remain high, alongside excellent yields of 12% in quality areas such as the ski resorts of Bansko and Bovorets.

Cyprus is not far behind and offers a lower-risk opportunity for investors. Low deposit levels of just 15% are possible now and Swiss Franc mortgages are available with rates of just 3.25%, making borrowing more affordable. Capital growth is likely

Re-Evaluate Your Life

Commit yourself to investing time, money and energy in the things that mean the MOST to you.

Commit yourself to planning your life,to living your values, and to making the most of your talents. Use the opportunities to live well, rather than being merely busy.

A GREAT life is no accident. It is the result of planning, preparation and commitment to working at the few key priorities you have chosen for your life. Do less, live more!

The Department of Health has published public health information for people travelling to countries affected by bird flu.

The leaflet and website provides guidance on how to reduce the risk of exposure to the virus in a country affected by an outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza, the symptoms of infection and what to do if a person thinks they may have been infected.

Advice includes
:
do not visit bird or poultry farms and markets

avoid close contact with live or dead poultry

do not eat raw or poorly-cooked poultry or poultry products, including blood

wash your hands frequently with soap and water

Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer said: "The information we are distributing today is to make sure that people travelling to countries affected by H5N1 have up-to-date health advice."

"H5N1 avian influenza is predominantly a disease of birds. The virus does not pass easily from birds to people and has not yet been shown to pass from person to person. Where people have been infected, it was as a result of close contact with infected poultry or birds. The virus has caused severe disease and a high proportion of people have died."

"H5N1 infections have not been reported in this country, but it is important that travellers from the UK have clear factual information to assist them."

If you have been in contact with live or dead poultry in an affected country be aware of the symptoms of bird flu in humans. They are similar to ordinary flu symptoms and can appear suddenly. They may include:

a fever (temperature of 38°C or more)

cough

shortness of breath

headache

sore throat

sore eyes

muscle aches.

If you have these symptoms whilst abroad and have been in close contact with live or dead poultry you should seek medical advice locally.

If you are travelling from an area affected by bird flu and have had contact with live or dead poultry and have the above symptoms within seven days of your return, then seek immediate medical attention.

The leaflet will be available from GP surgeries, health centres, and English air and sea ports and is also available from the Department of Health website:

Easyjet expands its network beyond the EU

Easyjet has announced new routes to Marrakech, Istanbul and the Croatian cities of Split and Rijeka, marking the low-cost carrier’s first foray outside the EU.

Daily services will operate from Gatwick to Marrakech from July 4th and from Luton to Istanbul from June 29th; there will be flights four times per week from Luton to Rijeka from June 30th and from Gatwick to Split from May 2nd; and there will be flights 3 times per week from Bristol to Rijeka from 22nd July.

The low cost airline is hoping to exploit the growing leisure and business travel markets in emerging hubs neighbouring the EU zone. easyJet chief executive Andrew Harrison said: "Croatia, Turkey and Morocco are forging an ever-closer relationship with the UK and Europe. As a consequence, the demand for low-fares to these countries is growing quickly."

In flying to Marrakech and Istanbul easyJet becomes the first major European low-fares airline to start services from London to Turkey and Morocco, expanding its operations into wholly-new markets. Andrew Harrison said: “This is probably our most significant expansion since the start of our new routes to Central and Eastern Europe in May 2004. easyJet continues to seize opportunities and to stay ahead of the industry – both geographically and technically, as highlighted by our recent introduction of on-line check-in."

Implications for property investors

The arrival of low-cost airlines often proves to be a major driving force behind the growth of overseas property markets. Wizz Air recently announced extended flights from London to Zagreb from 27th March, running four times a week. Commenting in Overseas Property Professional magazine on the impact this will have on property in Croatia, Sancia Keogh - marketing manager of CR Investment - said: "The new flights into Zagreb will not only increase visitors over 2006 but will raise interest in the property sector making Croatia just as accessible as other western European cities and allowing businessmen to travel more frequently.
"Croatia is attracting more investors due to its high capital appreciation within the residential property market. Accessibility is one of the main pulling factors for investment and will raise more interest in the country not to mention a great factor for gaining entry into the EU."
Croatia, which saw a 7% rise in visitor numbers last year, is fast becoming a key location for UK tourists and property investors.

New flights to Lisbon

EasyJet have also announced a new route from London Luton to Lisbon, Portugal, from 1st March. The new route is the first by a no-frills airline into Portugal’s capital and many believe will sharpen investors' interest in the country’s Silver Coast, less than an hour from Lisbon, which has until now has been muted.

Over the last 10 years easyJet has brought low-fares to 18 countries in Europe and expects to carry in the region of 35 million passengers this year. Today about one-third of Europe’s population live within one hour of an easyJet airport.

The following words were written on the tomb of an Anglican Bishop in the crypts of Westminster Abbey:


When I was young and free and my imagination had no limits, I dreamed of changing the world. As I grew older and wiser, I discovered the world would not change, so I shortened my sights somewhat and decided to change my country

But it too, seemed immovable.

As I grew into my twilight year, in one last desperate attempt, I settled for changing only my family, those closest to me, but alas, they would have none of it.

And now as I lie on my deathbed, I suddenly realize: If I had only changed myself first, then by example I would have changed my family.

From their inspiration and encouragement, I would then have been able to better my country and, who knows, I may have even changed the world

Anonymous

Michael Portillo round about 1980, got it right when he raised the subject of “The Silent Majority” – tens of millions of Brits who quietly ignore vociferous protest groups, the ban-everything brigades, the politically correct, the single-issue eccentrics, the swollen army of social workers and civil servants with ever-more power and ever-less sense. The incompetent successive governments, the “Private Members Bills”, which together, worked to slowly erode remaining personal freedoms and our traditional way of life. Parents are no longer trusted to discipline their children. A law was created that allowed children to “divorce” their parents. Divorce itself became easier and more common in the wake of the breakdown of family values. We see pregnant 12 year olds, cocaine in the First Grade and the removal of classroom discipline. We have an arrogant police force bogged down by paperwork, while serious crime blossoms and minor crime goes unreported.

Why bother? An Englishman’s castle turned into an alarmed fortress. We can’t stop drug dependency, so let’s legalise it, treat drug abusers. Alcoholism is on the rise, so we’ll extend opening hours. The highest personal debt figures in Europe – so we’ll open casinos! Old Age Pensioners who throughout their working life contributed to the wealth of the fifth largest economy in the world – now dubbed a drain on the Working Class Taxpayer. So you will have to keep working until you reach seventy – unless, of course, you are a Civil Servant, an MP or part of the Ruling Class – then you can retire at sixty.

You see, the “Silent Majority” was led to believe that National Insurance Contributions were in part put aside for pensions….. Not true! The money was squandered elsewhere, such as on Benefit Fraud, Sickness Pay, a shambolic Health Service, War and jobs for the boys.

Am I peed off? No. I phoned my Mum at Christmas… she’s 95. “Hello Son, bit slow in coming to the phone. I was smoking a fag, wanted to make sure I stubbed it out”. She lived through two world wars and countless recessions, smoking Capstans Full Strength, Woodbines and.. when there was nothing else those evil smelling Pashas. When I was a kid, cinemas had cigarette trays on every seat – the projector was wreathed in smoke. We, the “drain on the taxpayers” are the 11 million or more survivors of “passive smoking”. Why?, because we failed to die from obesity, cancer, stress, AIDS, drugs or any of the new ways our society has found to kill us.

Of course, smoking is a filthy habit. It impregnates clothing, discolours TV screens / windows /decoration. But scoffing fast food, obesity, laziness, poverty, stress, pharmaceuticals, insecurity, debt… Why not ban everything? Indeed why not ban Freedom?

I came across this blog and thought it quite fascinating, a day to celebrate the internet

WHY

To the people who ask “why would you celebrate the web? It’s just a tool. What are you going to celebrate next, a freeway?” we at OneWebDay have this answer:

We think the Web is much more than a tool, and we don’t think it should be taken for granted. We think it makes new kinds of human collaboration (not just shopping, not just watching movies) possible, and we think the world is still at the very beginning of the Web’s history. We think of OneWebDay as a chance to remember the impact of the Web on lives around the world, and to make the Web more visible. Its health and diversity is crucial for human flourishing in the future, just like good air quality and environmental diversity are crucial.

The Web has changed more than a billion lives already. Soon it will be changing more. It’s the very first communications network whose hardware isn’t inextricably intertwined with its software; it’s the first communications network that is more like an ecology than a way to efficiently move train cars from point A to point B. It’s the most important technological phenomenon of our lifetimes, and we want to make sure that it continues to grow and change in unpredictable ways.

The Web makes it possible for a billion people around the world to, acting separately, create sources of value that are more than the sum of their parts. Very simple actions online create patterns that are complex and fascinating, and we’re planning that OneWebDay projects will allow people to do very simple things that will result in beautiful creative collaborative online “events.” We see OneWebDay as a “big tent” kind of celebration — it doesn’t have any particular political angle. It’s just a celebration.

We think the Web is transformative and important and shouldn’t be taken for granted. So that’s why we’re celebrating OneWebDay on September 22.

http://onewebday.org/