PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS July 15, 2010 BP: ONCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY At last, some good news for BP. Its stock has sunk so low – closing yesterday at 401.75p – that investors are jumping at the chance to snap up cheap stakes in the oil giant. Clients of Barclays Stockbrokers have been piling into the stock – a third of [...]
FOCUS ON: BASILDON, ESSEX July 15, 2010 COBURG LANE, Price: £152,500 This smart two-bedroom maisonette would be ideal for first-time buyers. It comes with off-street parking and access to communal gardens. There’s no onward chain. Contact: Balgores on 01268 271110, www.balgoresproperty.co.uk SAMUEL ROAD Price: £280,000 A spacious four-bedroom house with plenty of storage and a well-sized back garden. It is within walking [...]
The ascent of prime London’s new hotspot July 15, 2010 FITZROVIA, the area around the BT Tower, bordered by Oxford Street, Tottenham Court Road, Great Portland Street and Euston Road, should be Londoners’ idea of property heaven. The West End is on your doorstep, as is Regent’s Park. The ever-more exciting restaurant and bar scene of Goodge and Charlotte Streets, and the more established prettiness [...]
Don’t let your prime real estate abroad stand idle while you slave away at work July 15, 2010 WITH global growth likely to be sluggish in the coming years, it might seem like a poor time to invest in a holiday home. But with a clear strategy for renting out the place when you’re not in residence, it is easily possible to make back the cost of maintenance and to generate a little [...]
London hit by house price drop July 13, 2010 HOUSE prices in Britain rose by 0.7 per cent in May on the previous month, pushing the annual increase up to 11 per cent, the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) said yesterday. Consequently, the mix-adjusted average house price in the UK stood at £209,505 in May 2010. Annual average house prices paid by [...]
BMW driven to hike 2010 sales outlook July 13, 2010 Germany’s BMW raised its 2010 pretax profit and sales outlook yesterday, citing better-than-expected earnings at its automotive business and buoyant luxury car markets around the world. Shares in BMW and archrival Daimler jumped on the news as robust demand for high-performance autos like the BMW Z4 roadster and the new 5-series continues to rebound from [...]
The markets are on the turn, but only in the short-term July 11, 2010 THE success of Paul the octopus at predicting the outcome of World Cup matches has left many spread betters green with envy at his powers. What would be better than being able to predict with accuracy the bottom of the market? But in the absence of any psychic ability, traders have to rely on market [...]
Chinese firm in exclusive talks to acquire Tower 42 July 4, 2010 THE SALE of London’s first skyscraper came a step closer to completion yesterday after it emerged that Chinese Estates Group had entered exclusive discussions to buy Tower 42. The group, chaired by Hong Kong-based billionaire Joseph Lau, is said to have won a three-month auction with a bid near the asking price of £300m. Moorfield [...]
Keep it real in the Caribbean, just the place for sun, sand and security July 1, 2010 THE appeal of white sand, turquoise sea and a developed infrastructure all in one is too strong to be destroyed by an economic downturn, even this one. While prices sank by 20-25 per cent in two of the British Caribbean’s hottest spots, Barbados and St Lucia, the market has far from stalled. In fact, buyers [...]
Cotswolds classics are always in demand July 1, 2010 PICTURE the idyllic country home and the chances are you’ll conjure up some quaint, mullioned stone cottage in the Cotswolds. Far beyond a fad, the Cotswolds are home to what many consider England’s most appealing rural villages. They ooze a well-heeled ambiance but provide countryside and an equestrian community that is second to none, all [...]