Money
Mind-boggling £4.5MILLION mansion hides incredible secret behind its doors – it’s a house hunter’s wildest dreams
A HUGE mansion valued at £4.5million hides an incredible secret feature behind its front doors.
The Grade II-listed property in Lymington, Hampshire, has been dubbed every child’s “dream” home.
The massive home boasts nine bedrooms, seven bathrooms, five reception rooms, a detached coach house and a south-facing garden.
However estate agents Spencers say the house is guaranteed to “liven up any dinner party” thanks to its most unusual asset – a slide from the first floor to the ground floor.
The stainless-steel tube allows guests to descend from the first floor in style through a glass door and is designed ‘for those with a sense of fun’.
There is also a games room, library and a cinema while all the bedrooms house a full media suite and surround sound system.
The listings reads: “A second means of descending from the first floor is via a polished stainless steel tube slide which passes through a glass floor, designed for those with a sense of fun and a great talking point to liven up any dinner party.”
A Spencers spokesperson added: “It’s one of the unique houses in Lymington.
“It’s been designed around a certain lifestyle and with a life that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
“The house itself has a huge amount of history and has been recently updated by the current owners in a particularly stylish fashion.
“Not every house that we market has an indoor slide. It’s quite fun.
“It’s the sense of fun that it brings. It’s a great family house. Good for kids. It’s really the whole package.
.”Everything has been designed around comfort and convenience. It’s designed as a house for someone to live in who wants to enjoy life.”
Spencers say the 8,000 sqft family home promises “great grandeur and history” and “imagination” and even sports a sunken ice trough “from which to serve fresh sea food or champagne”.
Many users have praised the novelty structure on social media, with one user commenting “we all dreamt of this as a kid, right?”
Another user posted: “Super cool.”
While a third user wrote: “If I won the lottery.”
A fourth person said: “I love it.”
Another unusual home went on the market last month and it would definitely (maybe) ideal for an Oasis fan.
Elsewhere, you could get your hands on the corner shop that featured in the hit comedy show Open All Hours.
If those properties are out of your price range then a terraced house in New Tredegar, Wales, has gone on the market for nothing – but you may want to take a look inside first.
Money
First-time buyers must act NOW to save £15k on property purchase – cheapest places to get on the ladder
THOUSANDS of first-time buyers have been warned to act now to save up to £15,000 in Stamp Duty.
The amount you can spend on a property before incurring Stamp Duty will fall on March 31 2025, penalising thousands of would-be homeowners.
Stamp Duty is a tax you may have to pay if you buy a home in England or Northern Ireland that is worth more than a certain price.
For most homeowners this is above £250,000.
But the amount that a first-time buyer could spend was increased to £425,000 in the September 2022 mini-budget.
First-time buyers also benefit from a further discounted rate on property purchases of up to £625,000.
From April these thresholds will plummet.
Properties with a value of up to £300,000 will not incur a Stamp Duty charge, while the reduced rate will only apply to homes worth up to £500,000.
The changes will mean that someone buying a property worth £425,000 would currently pay no Stamp Duty but from April will owe the taxman £6,250.
But in some areas of London first-time buyers could be slapped with tax bills which are £15,000 higher than before once the thresholds are slashed.
Should I act now?
It usually takes around 25 weeks from listing a property to completing a sale, according to property website Zoopla, which means buyers have limited time to beat the deadline.
David Hollingworth, of mortgage broker L&C, said first-time buyers should act now to avoid being penalised.
“First time buyers wanting to be sure that they can take advantage of the elevated Stamp Duty relief before it reverts to the lower levels in March will want to be in the process as soon as possible.”
Although a first-time buyer may be able to move quickly, the person they are buying the property from may be in a transaction chain, he explains.
This is when you want to buy a house but need to wait until your seller buys their next property.
How to get the best deal on your mortgage
IF you’re looking for a traditional type of mortgage, getting the best rates depends entirely on what’s available at any given time.
There are several ways to land the best deal.
Usually the larger the deposit you have the lower the rate you can get.
If you’re remortgaging and your loan-to-value ratio (LTV) has changed, you’ll get access to better rates than before.
Your LTV will go down if your outstanding mortgage is lower and/or your home’s value is higher.
A change to your credit score or a better salary could also help you access better rates.
And if you’re nearing the end of a fixed deal soon it’s worth looking for new deals now.
You can lock in current deals sometimes up to six months before your current deal ends.
Leaving a fixed deal early will usually come with an early exit fee, so you want to avoid this extra cost.
But depending on the cost and how much you could save by switching versus sticking, it could be worth paying to leave the deal – but compare the costs first.
To find the best deal use a mortgage comparison tool to see what’s available.
You can also go to a mortgage broker who can compare a much larger range of deals for you.
Some will charge an extra fee but there are plenty who give advice for free and get paid only on commission from the lender.
You’ll also need to factor in fees for the mortgage, though some have no fees at all.
You can add the fee – sometimes more than £1,000 – to the cost of the mortgage, but be aware that means you’ll pay interest on it and so will cost more in the long term.
You can use a mortgage calculator to see how much you could borrow.
Remember you’ll have to pass the lender’s strict eligibility criteria too, which will include affordability checks and looking at your credit file.
You may also need to provide documents such as utility bills, proof of benefits, your last three month’s payslips, passports and bank statements.
Buying a property can also take longer than people think as it may take time for an offer to be accepted because of practical issues or completing legal paperwork.
He adds: “Having as long as possible to keep things on track for a March deadline will be important, especially with Christmas on the horizon.”
The festive season frequently brings the property market to a standstill which can slow the process of buying a house and push completion dates into the New Year.
Incentives such as Stamp Duty “holidays” can also create a cliff edge deadline, which can create a busier period in the property market as buyers rush to complete their purchases.
But there may be hope for buyers who have not yet started the process.
The Chancellor could unveil plans to extend the policy in the Budget on October 31, which would give buyers more chance to complete their purchase.
The last Stamp Duty holiday was extended for three months in order to allow buyers to complete on their purchase if they were stuck in a housing chain.
The holiday had been introduced to help keep the property market afloat during the pandemic after thousands of property transactions fell through.
It was extended after calls from home buyers and experts to allow more time to finalise property sales.
Where are the cheapest areas to buy?
The average price of a first-time buyer property can vary substantially depending on where you live.
Hull is the cheapest area in the UK to purchase a home for the first-time.
A typical first property in the area is worth £114,300, more than half of the average sold price of a home in the UK, which is £328,457 according to Zoopla.
Sunderland comes in second place at £122,600 for an average first home.
Meanwhile, Burnley and Dundee were also ranked as affordable areas, coming in third and fourth place respectively at £128,800 and £131,700.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Money
Grainger points to strong rental growth during financial year
Occupancy across the group’s portfolio stood at 97.4% at the end of September, according to trading update.
The post Grainger points to strong rental growth during financial year appeared first on Property Week.
Money
Chancellor set to scrap plans to change pensions tax relief
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to scrap plans to change pensions tax relief on personal contributions in the upcoming Budget, according to a report in the Times.
There had been widespread speculation that Reeves might target pensions tax to help plug a £22bn ‘black hole’ in the nation’s finances.
However, there are now reports that she no longer plans to do so.
Individuals currently receive tax relief at their highest marginal rate of income tax.
There were rumours that this might be changed to a flat rate, somewhere between the basic and higher rates of income tax.
Aegon pensions director, Steven Cameron, said that a flat rate of relief of 30% would have been a boost for basic-rate taxpayers.
However, he added that higher- and additional-rate taxpayers would likely have faced a “double whammy” of less generous tax relief on their personal contributions and a new tax bill linked to employer pension contributions.
Director of public affairs at the Lang Cat, Tom McPhail, described the news that the government has “had a rethink” as “unsurprising”.
“It would have broken an election pledge (to not increase income tax); it would have been fiendishly complicated to do and it would have upset millions of public-sector workers,” he said.
“More likely now, is that they’ll introduce some form of death tax on unused pension funds (unless passing to a spouse) and perhaps a cut to employers’ relief on National Insurance contributions.”
Money
Nostalgic ‘battered’ toy car with peeling paint & cracked door to fetch a hefty £2.4k – do you have one gathering dust?
A “BATTERED” toy car which has seen better days is still set to fetch a whopping price of £2,400 when it goes under the hammer.
The toy van has a crack in it and the paint is peeling off but is still expected to fetch the huge sum as it is a rare pre-World War 2 example.
The pale green Palethorpes Delivery Van was one of the earliest Dinky models made in the 1930s.
It has a crack on its passenger door and part of the lettering has faded away over the decades.
But it is still set to spark a bidding war at Vectis Auctions, of Stockton-on-Tees, Teeside.
The 3.75ins long lead toy has been consigned by a British collector.
Andrew Reed, Vectis specialist, said: “We believe this Palethorpes delivery van was made between 1934 and 1936 so it is one of the earliest Dinky toys from the Liverpool factory, boosting its appeal with collectors.
“Some like the toys to be in pristine condition but others prefer them to be in ageing and showing wear.
“There is a nostalgia among wealthy older buyers for Dinky toys.
“They would have played with the toys as children and have the disposable income to collect them as they have paid their mortgages off.”
Dinky Toys were made by British toy company Meccano Ltd from 1934 and pre-dated other marques like Corgi, Matchbox and Mattel’s Hot Wheels.
The Dinky trade name was bought up by Matchbox International Ltd in the late 1980s.
The sale takes place tomorrow.
In April this year, a pensioner sold his extensive collection of toy cars for a massive £75,000, after his grandkids didn’t want to inherit them.
Harrie van de Bosch, 80, put over 800 mini car toys up for sale and made the tidy sum on them at an auction.
Among the pricey collection was iconic Ferrari and Maserati models and a particularly unique Weetabix truck.
How to spot valuable items
COMMENTS by Consumer Editor, Alice Grahns:
It’s easy to check if items in your attic are valuable.
As a first step, go on eBay to check what other similar pieces, if not the same, have sold for recently.
Simply search for your item, filter by “sold listings” and toggle by the highest value.
This will give you an idea of how much others are willing to pay for it.
The method can be used for everything ranging from rare coins and notes to stamps, old toys, books and vinyl records – just to mention a few examples.
For coins, online tools from change experts like Coin Hunter are also helpful to see how much it could be worth.
Plus, you can refer to Change Checker’s latest scarcity index update to see which coins are topping the charts.
For especially valuable items, you may want to enlist the help of experts or auction houses.
Do your research first though and be aware of any fees for evaluating your stuff.
As a rule of thumb, rarity and condition are key factors in determining the value of any item.
You’re never guaranteed to make a mint, however.
The final set of toys consisted of over 150 Dinky Toys and hundreds of Bedford Vans that were almost all fully boxed.
The collection started off with the classic Matchbox cars followed by Corgi Chipperfields models before he started to find the more premium toys.
His first ever Dinky Toy was a Citroen Philips Van.
Money
Assura reveals ‘strong strategic’ start to year following £500m hospitals acquisition
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Money
True Potential hires new CEO from Tesco Bank
True Potential has announced Tesco Bank CEO Gerry Mallon as its new chief executive officer.
He will replace the platform investment firm’s co-founder and CEO Daniel Harrison, who announced last week he was standing down after seven years in the role.
Mallon will join True Potential as its CEO in early 2025, subject to regulatory approval.
True Potential’s chief information officer, Jeff Casson, will take on the role of interim CEO until Mallon starts.
Mallon most recently served as chief executive of Tesco Bank for over six years and was also a member of the Tesco Plc executive committee.
He was previously chief executive of Ulster Bank Ireland and Danske Bank UK.
He has also held leadership and advisory positions at McKinsey & Co, Bank of Ireland and the UK Civil Service.
Commenting on his appointment, Mallon said: “I am looking forward to building on the impressive work of Daniel Harrison and his fellow co-founders, and to working with the highly talented team of colleagues to continue to help our clients do more with their money.”
True Potential chairman, Andrew Sibbald, added: “Gerry has excellent credentials, having served as the CEO of several large, consumer-centric financial-services businesses both in the UK and Ireland.
“He understands the entrepreneurial culture of True Potential, the critical role advisers play in our business and that our customers are at the heart of everything we do.”
True Potential is partly owned by private equity firm Cinven.
The firm said Harrison’s departure last week was part of a planned transition following the acquisition in September 2021.
Partner and head of the financial services and consumer teams at Cinven, Maxim Crewe, said: “We have been focused to ensure that the next stage of leadership for True Potential will continue to uphold the key client-centric values that attracted us to invest in the business.
“Gerry, with his relevant experience, is well-placed to continue to support True Potential on its growth journey.
“We are excited to welcome him on board in due course, and for now Jeff will be focused on his interim role.”
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