Fall in love with lava in wild and woolly Iceland July 25, 2010 THIS year Iceland became infamous for the deeply inconvenient glacial eruption of “that” volcano – Eyjafjallajökull (pronounced “AY-uh-fyat-luh-YOE-kuutl-uh”). Its extraordinary qualities as a country were overshadowed by the chaos of grounded planes. Yet it is starkly beautiful and untamed, overflowing with adventure, history and plenty of volcanic action (brilliant to watch when it doesn’t spoil [...]
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 [...]
How Osborne’s budget affects the housing market June 24, 2010 THERE are not many ways to make a 10 per cent tax hike look business-friendly, but Chancellor George Osborne pulled off a neat trick this week by doing just that. Expectations of a massive capital gains tax (CGT) rise had been building since the Liberal Democrats, who had promised to raise CGT to close to [...]
THE TIPSTER May 19, 2010 THE airline that once billed itself as the world’s favourite is set to report fourth quarter results on Friday, but it has hardly been an upbeat few months for British Airways. Although these profit figures will not include the disruption caused by the volcano in Iceland, the carrier has been mired in an industrial dispute [...]
Nasty double whammy for investors May 18, 2010 WITH all the focus on growth and the deficit, too little attention has been paid to inflation. Yesterday’s disastrous figures show how unwise this has been. The rise in the official consumer price index inflation to 3.7 per cent is bad enough – but I suppose it can be tolerated, given the ending of quantitative [...]
Buy a fraction of St Lucia paradise April 15, 2010 THE Caribbean can be a paradise for second homes: but you have to choose wisely. You don’t want to end up in a tourist trap or an area that has been overdeveloped. And if buying into a new development, you want to be sure it’s managed well and properly financed. The new residences and villas [...]
WHAT DOES THE CHANCELLOR’S BUDGET MEAN FOR YOU? March 24, 2010 KATE SOLWAY, 30 FUNDS CONTROLLER AT PRIVATE EQUITY FIRM COGNETAS Kate is single and lives in rented accommodation with flatmates. She also owns two investment properties – one a London flat with a mortgage which she rents out, and the other a holiday home under construction in Cape Verde, which she owns outright and will [...]
Caribbean is back on investors’ hot list March 18, 2010 IF you’re considering a spot in the Caribbean that will be both beautiful and a savvy place for your cash, the island of St Lucia is as good as it gets. Its natural beauty is considered by many to be the most intense in the Caribbean – and it also has a strong local culture [...]
Shared ownership suits City workers, not just teachers January 28, 2010 LONDON house prices might have risen some 5 per cent since last January but as any first-time buyer will tell you, it is tougher than ever to get on the property ladder. With mortgage approvals still below their long-term average and deposits often as high as 40 per cent, even young professionals earning a decent [...]
Bag a bargain and get some late summer holiday action August 16, 2009 THAILANDAnantara, on the north of the island of Mai Khao Beach, is wonderfully tucked away from the main tourist areas of Phuket and Kuoni is now offering seven nights for the price of five, a saving of £366 per person. Each of the 82 villas comes with its own 33 square metre pool, set either [...]