Hi
(members name), Roz here, Homeowners Club secretary
Take a break, grab a cup of tea/coffee and take some time out to read your Homeowners Club newsletter. In this edition we have a lot of great features including your chance to win an amazing handheld Sudoku puzzle game - an excellent free to enter competition, exclusive to Homeowners Club members and one not to be missed. Also featured "do you know your consumer rights?" a great article, never get ripped off again with our new series on consumer rights.
Happy reading... |
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Brits save £4bn by taking holidays in overseas homes of friends or family.
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UK holidaymakers are saving £4 billion a year by taking advantage of friends' and family's free accommodation, according to a Barclays survey. The research, by Barclays Buying Abroad and YouGov, found that 41% of Brits regularly take a holiday at a flat or house abroad owned by someone they know, with 13% admitting that, to some extent, they stayed at friends purely to use the property.
Over half (53%) thank the owners with only a 'thank you' card, a bottle of wine, box of chocolates or some other small token of appreciation. Only 7% spend the value of what they have saved entirely on gifts and treats for their hosts. Furthermore, 44% eat some or all of the food they find in the house or flat and 36% drink some or all of the alcohol left there by the owners. When it comes to leaving, nearly a third (27%) dash to the airport without even washing the sheets. |
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Richard Exton, head of Barclays Buying Abroad says: "Buying abroad either as a permanent home or a holiday destination is now easier than ever before. The market is flourishing and many more Brits are taking the plunge and purchasing – either as a buy-to-let, a permanent home or just somewhere they can holiday with friends and family. We are seeing record numbers of enquiries and purchases in Spain, France, Italy and Portugal, as Brits are realising the savings that can be made on holidays by purchasing property abroad."
(Re-printed courtesy of Travel Mole article by Bev Fearis)
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"Hammer - In ancient times a hammer was used to inflict pain on one's enemies. Modern hammers are used to inflict pain on oneself." |
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Know your Consumer Rights.
Welcome to the first part of a series of articles from the Homeowners Club which covers important advice and information on rights when shopping for goods and services, dealing with faulty goods, on scams and on rip-offs. We will provide you with vital links to find out more about your rights.
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Today’s topic is your rights as a shopper: |
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Consumer Direct
The Consumer Direct website gives help and advice for consumers in Great Britain. There is advice on topics such as holidays, buying electrical appliances and using estate agents; information on particular situations or issues like buying on credit, counterfeit goods and doorstep selling; and practical help with how to complain.
For more information click here - http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/ |
Office of Fair Trading (OFT)
The Office of Fair Trading publishes a range of consumer advice for shopping in the high street, shopping from home and shopping over the internet. It provides advice on specialist areas such as buying a computer, secondhand cars, extended warranties, pawn broking, ticket agencies and internet auctions.
For more information click here - http://www.oft.gov.uk/oft_and_cd/ |
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Trading Standards
Local authority trading standards also issue consumer advice. Many will provide individual advice for people living in their area. Their site also provides contact details for all trading standards departments around the UK.
For more information click here - http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/consumers/consumers.cfm |
Sale of Goods Act - faulty goods
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has a useful factsheet on the law and faulty goods.
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"The floors of buildings are called stories because early European builders used to paint picture stories on the sides of their houses. Each floor had a different story." |
Free to enter exclusive competition
Do you enjoy solving Sudoku puzzles? If so, you must enter our free competition to win one of 50 Super Sudoku hand held machines we have to give away - for free. This exclusive competition is open to all Homeowners Club members - no strings! Click on the 'enter' button and fill in your details. This is a free to enter competition from us to you - we guarantee none of your information will be passed on to anyone else. |
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The competition to win an automatic Sudoku machine is open till 31st October. We will select 50 lucky winners out of the hat and post your prize well in time for Christmas as it could also make a great gift for somebody.
How to play Sudoku?
The idea is simple, you must fill in a 9x9 grid with the numbers 1 through to 9 in every row, every column and every 3x3 box (which is a lot trickier than it sounds - believe me). Come on, try your luck and Enter now.
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A couple of years ago the buy-to-let business really took off, with many 'amateur property speculators' chancing their arm. Interest rates were low and people were able to fund purchase of property to let from low rate mortgages in a rising house price market. Property rentals could in almost every case easily cover mortgage repayments whilst the capital value of the property continued to rise. But has that win-win bubble now burst?
Higher interest rates, (and set to increase further with the problems of mortgage debt in America) means more expensive money and higher mortgage repayments. So, given this situation we might have expected to see a slow down in the buy-to-let market. But, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders, buy-to-let accounted for 12% of all new mortgages in the first half of 2007.
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Although, higher interest rates has resulted in higher mortgage repayments on buy-to-let properties, it appears that rent charges have increased to more than off-set the higher borrowing costs. Apparently, rents have increased by well over 10% in the last twelve months to absorb the higher borrowing costs. People renting, particularly young people, waiting to get on the property ladder are yet again it seems being squeezed out.
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"There were two people robbing an apartment. The first one said, "I hear the owner coming! Quick, jump out the window!" The second one said, "Are you crazy? We're on the thirteenth floor!" The first one said, "This is no time to be superstitious!"
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"Q: Was Newton sick very often?
A: Yes, so often that he called himself "I sick" Newton." |
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An Englishmans shed is his castle
When can and can't you put up a shed? If you do not live in a listed building or an "Area of Outstanding Beauty" you can build a structure in your garden without planning permission so long as: |
- Its use is ancillary to the house. This means that a garage for a private car, hobby room, a playroom, a garden shed are acceptable. A separate dwelling or a garage for a commercial vehicle are not; both of these uses would require planning permission, whatever the size of the structure.
- It is no more than three metres high, or four metres to the ridge of a pitched roof.
- It stands in its own space. If it has a volume more than 10 cubic metres and is placed within five metres of the house, it will be counted as an extension to the house, not a separate building, in computing the extension (usually 15 per cent the of the volume) to the house that you are allowed to build without planning consent.
- It does not result in more than half of your ground being built over.
- It is not closer to the road than the main house.
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(Extract from an article by John Winter in Daily Telegraph, property section 15/09/07)
If you are unsure whether planning consent is required consult your local authority Planning Department.
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We're giving you the chance to win a luxurious London apartment worth up to £400,000 for FREE!
You pick the location and specification you want. The PRIZE
is a flat or apartment in London to the value of £400,000.
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"There are no sheds on the surface of the moon, but if there were they would all lean slightly and contain at least one spider." |
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Cheers,
Roz, Homeowners Club secretary. |
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