The Universe 6th May 2016

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u • FINANCE 10 FRIDAY 06.05.16 How to handle buying a house The spring housing market is heating up and activity has been buzzing. And while a recent stamp duty increase for buy-to-let investors may have dampened some interest in the market, house sellers remain bullish. The average price tag on a property coming to market now stands at an all-time high of over £307,000 across England and Wales, according to website Rightmove. The new rates of stamp duty apply to purchases of additional properties in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, stamp duty has been replaced by another tax – the land and buildings transaction tax. A similar hike in this tax has also come into force in Scotland on the purchase of additional homes such as second homes or buy-to-let properties, to mirror the changes in the rest of the UK. A separate report, from HSBC, shows that the average home buyer takes just 26 hours to decide to make an offer on a house purchase – perhaps fearing that with the supply of homes still tight, the home they have their eye on may be snapped up by someone else. This 26-hour period is around the same amount of time we spend deciding on whether or not to buy a new pair of shoes – at 25 hours – according to HSBC’s survey. Poundnotes ‘Full nest’ parents’ costs revealled The “Peter Pan” generation of young adults who are yet to move out of the home they grew up in is costing parents an extra £1.2 billion a year collectively, a report estimates. Parents with grown-up children who are still living at home spend an extra £456 on them a year compared with “empty nesters””, according to the Centre for the Modern Family think-tank, which has been set up by pensions provider Scottish Widows. The research found that as well as shouldering the cost of their child’s basic bed and board, parents are also forking out for services used by their adult u finance By Vicky Shaw So with competition in the housing market still strong in many parts of the UK, how can would-be buyers give themselves an “edge”? TV property expert Phil Spencer (right), a spokesman for the HSBC report, gives his tips... Is it still possible to pick up a bargain in the current housing market – and if so, how can someone go about it? “Yes it is still possible, but you need to put dedication into your research, contracts and really build knowledge about the housing market you’re interested in.” Before someone makes an offer on a property, is there a financial check- list of things they should have got in place first? “For your mortgage, you’ll be asked for pay slips, bank statements and tax returns at least, so you might as well have them ready to go and don’t leave them to the last minute.” children such as mobile phone bills, holidays, haircuts, clothing and even beauty treatments. Many of 2016’s retirees ‘will be reliant on state pension’ Around one in seven people retiring this year have no personal pension savings and will be either completely or heavily reliant on the state pension, a survey has found. Women retiring in 2016 are three times as likely as men to have made no pension provision, with nearly one in four (22 per cent) women relying on the state How... can you trace lost cash? According to research from Which? Britons have lost millions collectively in unclaimed Premium Bond prizes, dormant bank accounts and unclaimed pension savings – equating to around £54 for every UK household. A survey of more than 1,300 Which? members in February found 10 per cent believe they have lost track of Premium Bonds, 8 per cent think savings have gone astray and 3 per cent have untraced pension savings. So how can you get your cash back? Which? highlights a free service at mylostaccount.org.uk, which helps people trace their account or savings. The website is administered by NS&I, the Building Societies Association and the British Bankers’ Association. Which? says the more information people can provide about their account, the more likely it will be found, such as details of the branch where the account was held, the address the person lived at when they used the account and any passbooks. Meanwhile, people looking for help with lost pensions could try the Pension Tracing Service – at gov.uk/find-lost-pension – or someone at their former employer. The Pensions Advisory Service – www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk – can also offer help. How many visits to a property should you ideally make before putting an offer in? The new research from HSBC shows one in 10 people make up their minds in two minutes of visiting a property. Sometimes you need to follow your gut instinct, but it’s also important to know what to look for when you’re viewing and try to visit at least twice, at different times of the day.” What should people be looking out for when they view a property? “Everything. You should be engaging your senses and switched on. Think compared with 7 per cent of men, the research from Prudential found. Overall, 14 per cent of the 1,000 people intending to retire this year surveyed had made no pension provision other than the state pension. More savers ‘maxing out’ ISA allowance, survey finds Growing numbers of determined ISA savers have “maxed out” their annual allowance in recent years, research suggests. More than one in five (21 per cent) ISA savers surveyed said they managed to put away the maximum allowance in the 2015/16 tax year, according to Nationwide Savings. This is up on the 18 per cent of savers who said they used their full allowance in 2014/15. about what feelings it gives you, what you see and smell. Predict what your life might be like in 18 months to two years times and ask: Will the house still accommodate you at that time? “And remember, you can change most things in a property, but you can’t change the amount of light the house gets, so see where the sun goes.” Is there anything that buyers can do to give themselves an “edge” over other buyers when making an offer? “Time can make all the difference when it comes to making an offer on a property. Buyers should be efficient and make sure they have everything in place for their mortgage application. “Secondly, it’s not always about being the highest bidder – your ability to get your finances in a row and solicitors organised helps to show you are a committed purchaser. Buying a house is a business transaction and you are going to need to tackle it in this way.” How do you think the recent changes to stamp duty for buy-to-let investors will affect the housing market in the coming months? “It’s a bit ‘wait and see’ at the moment. The extra percentage of stamp duty will have more of an immediate effect, but the other changes will take some time.” Are there still decent opportunities in the housing market for people looking to make buy-to-let investment purchases? “There are opportunities, however, in order to do well, you need to be more informed and strategic about the investment opportunities.”
FRIDAY 06.05.16 u • FOOD 11 Food just got good for gluten-free fans Coeliac disease is not new – but it’s only in the last decade that modernday supermarkets have caught up and started catering to those with the illness, which affects around 1 per cent of the UK population. A disease – rather than an allergy or intolerance – when people with coeliac eat gluten, their immune system mistakes it as a threat and attacks healthy tissues. Symptoms include bloating, diarrhoea, nausea, wind, constipation, tiredness, anaemia and sudden or unexpected weight loss – which can be very similar to symptoms caused by an intolerance. However, with coeliac, cutting out gluten completely is absolutely essential for avoiding, possibly serious, long-term damage and complications. Coeliac UK notes that up to half a million people are believed to be living with coeliac disease undiagnosed, and it can take up to 13 years for a diagnosis. It’s no wonder the free-from sections are starting to take up more of the supermarket aisles, and brands like PizzaExpress, Young’s Fish Fingers and Nestle Cereals are all introducing gluten-free alternatives into their product ranges. Mintel research reckons the free-from market is worth around £365 million, and predicts it will grow another 50 per cent by 2019. One man who has watched the free-from rise with interest is Coeliac UK ambassador and TV chef Phil Vickery. He published his first glutenfree cookbook, Seriously Good! Gluten-free Cooking in 2009 – which has sold more than 250,000 copies to date, with a revised edition out this year – and his latest, Phil Vickery’s Essential Gluten-free, is due for publication on 12th May, during Coeliac Awareness Week. But when he first suggested a gluten-free title, his publisher, Kyle Books, were not 100 per cent convinced. “I said, ‘It might not be right now, but I think it’s going to be a big thing’. Anyway, [they] called me back on the Monday and said, ‘Oh go on then, we’ll give it a punt!’” The This Morning regular and his family – wife Fern Britton and four children– don’t have any need to stick to a gluten-free diet at home. Instead, Vickery discovered the importance of cooking for people with coeliac and gluten intolerance quite by chance, 15 years ago, when after a shortage of flour for his Christmas puddings to sell at food fayres, he switched to rice flour, got the Coeliac UK stamp of approval, and they u Food By Kate Whiting started selling like proverbial hot cakes to his delighted customers. He’s pleased by the increased availability of gluten-free alternatives now but still doesn’t think the need for gluten-free cooking has been embraced universally yet: “Chefs pay lip service to it; I’m astounded at those who just think it’s a fad.” As an ambassador for Coeliac UK, he knows there’s “a very clear distinction between having a disease and choosing [to eat gluten-free] as a lifestyle choice”. Vickery, who turns 55 in May, is on a bit of a mission to make gluten-free cooking more widespread. He’s just signed up with Saga Cruises to teach gluten-free cooking on board, and has started work on another “allergy science-based” book, which comes out in September. Give some of Vickery’s gluten-free dishes a go for yourself... Borlotti bean, chilli and pine nut bake (Serves 4-6) 200g gluten-free pasta shapes (available in all good supermarkets) 2tbsp olive oil 1 x 425g can borlotti beans, well drained Finely grated zest of 1 large lemon 40g pine nuts 4tbsp roughly chopped fresh parsley Pinch or two of dried chilli flakes 350ml double cream 1/2 x 10g gluten-free vegetable stock cube (available in all good supermarkets) 200g mozzarella cheese, sliced or 50g Parmesan cheese, grated (optional) Salt and freshly ground black pepper Green salad with rocket and onion, to serve Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Cook the pasta for half the time stated on the pack. Drain well. Toss in the olive oil to stop the pasta sticking together. Meanwhile, place the beans, lemon zest, pine nuts, parsley and chilli in a bowl and mix well. Add the pasta to the bean mixture. Place the cream and stock cube in a small pan, bring to the boil, whisk well to dissolve the cube, then pour over the bean mixture and stir well. Taste, then season if needed. Spoon the mixture into a 28 x 28 x 4cm baking dish. Top with the sliced mozzarella or grated Parmesan, if using, and cook for 20-25 minutes or until well browned. Once cooked, remove from the oven and cool for five minutes before eating. Serve with a green salad with plenty of onion and rocket. Fudgy almond cake with mint syrup and frosting (Serves 6-8) For the cake: 200g unsalted butter 200g gluten-free dark chocolate (minimum 70 per cent cocoa solids), broken into pieces – lots of good quality dark chocolate is gluten-free, but always check the label 5 medium eggs, at room temperature, separated Pinch of cream of tartar 240g caster sugar 1tbsp vanilla extract 200g ground almonds 50g chickpea (gram) flour For the syrup: 100g caster sugar 4tbsp chopped fresh mint 100ml water For the frosting: 500g mascarpone 50g honeycomb, chopped 100g clear honey Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Line a 24cm round, 7cm deep, loose-bottomed cake tin with baking parchment. Place the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, take the pan off the heat but leave the bowl over the pan to keep the mixture warm. Place the egg whites and cream of tartar in a bowl and whisk until thick and foamy, then add half the sugar, and whisk again until creamy and thick. Add the rest of the sugar and whisk until very stiff, but still a creamy consistency. Stir the egg yolks, vanilla extract, almonds and chickpea flour into the warm chocolate and butter, then straight away add half the meringue, mixing well. Finally, add the rest of the meringue and fold in. Spoon into the lined tin and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until well-risen and firm. Remove from the oven and cool slightly in the tin; it will collapse a little. Make several holes over the surface of the cake with a skewer. Meanwhile, place the sugar, 100ml of water and the mint in a small pan and boil until the sugar has dissolved, then strain. Spoon the syrup over the cake and leave to soak in and cool completely. Once the cake has cooled, beat the mascarpone, honeycomb and honey together with a wooden spoon or spatula. Do not whisk or the mascarpone will be too soft and not hold its shape on the cake. Turn out the cake carefully onto a large, flat plate. As there is no gluten in the cake it will have quite a soft texture, so be careful. Cover the cake with the honey mascarpone. Eat straight away or chill for one hour. If you want to keep it for the next day, remove from the fridge one hour before eating. Seriously Good! Gluten-Free Cooking by Phil Vickery, photography by Steve Lee, is published by Kyle Books, priced £16.99.
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The Universe 6th May 2016

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