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Sample column >> Filed every Thursday afternoon

Bad bank yarn a familiar tale

Review of Other People’s Money by Justin Cartwright

By Bert Wright

 Bankers behaving badly is a sore subject in the current economic climate but it’s one which is only beginning to attract the literary attentions of novelists. One of the best such novels has just been published by the prize-winning London-based South African writer Justin Cartwright.

Other People’s Money tells the story of an upper-crust, family-owned private bank, Tubal & Co, which gets into trouble when it deviates from its age-old mission of looking after the toff’s money and diversifies into the murkier world of investment banking.  Family patriarch, Sir Harry, has suffered a stroke and is recovering in his villa inAntibes.  This leaves his son and new chairman, Julian Trevelyan-Tubal, free to take the sort of liberties Sir Harry would never have countenanced.
Julian has lost the bank a packet on a dodgy hedge fund and now, in an effort to sell the bank behind Sir Harry’s back, he needs to pad the balance sheet, moving money around to make it look more saleable to the Americans poised to purchase the house of Tubal.  Sound familiar?

Things begin to go awry when a regular endowment to Artair MacLeod, the first husband of Sir Harry’s wife, Fleur, becomes one of the first casualties in the makeover of the bank’s finances.  A local paper takes up the story and attracts the attention of a whistle-blower eager to dish the dirt on Julian and his nefarious scheming.

With Sir Harry near death, the urgency to sell the bank and resolve the succession brings out the worst in a memorable cast of characters which includes the trophy wife, the black sheep, the scorned but faithful secretary and the memorable Artair who, however buffoonish, represents the enduring values of art while the barbarians are at the gate.   There’s also an intriguing Irish theme involving Flann O’Brien and Daniel Day-Lewis.

This is a cracking satire on a topical subject and it’s beautifully observed.  Enjoy!

Some of the topics which will be covered in the coming weeks include:

• What to do if you fall behind with your mortgage
• The first steps to addressing debt
• The support agencies that can help you with your money problems
• Budgeting made simple
• Spotting the signs of debt stress
• Getting a good return on your lump sum

Give your readers even more from their weekly paper with this ideal addition to your lifestyle or business sections.

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Sample column >> Filed every Friday morning

What to do when you can’t pay the mortgage

Anyone can get into difficulty managing their debt. Even small changes in circumstances can put huge pressures on your finances and can quickly result in missed loan repayments and mortgage arrears.

When you find yourself falling behind in a loan or mortgage, it’s important to talk to your lender as soon as possible. Never simply ignore missed repayments or correspondence from your bank – the problem won’t go away and you simply intensify your stress levels.

Being in financial difficulty can leave you in a constant state of worry and it’s easy to panic and ignore your situation. But the longer you’re struggling the more debt mounts, so it’s better to act fast.

Obviously, a thorough review of your budgets and outgoings is the first step to getting out of arrears difficulties.

Assuming you have completed this process, you need to do two things; engage with your bank to renegotiate the terms of your loan and find out if you are entitled to any income supplements.

Arrange to meet your bank and let your account manager know where you stand. Show them your budgets and explain that your current repayment schedule is simply not workable.

You can get free independent money advice from agencies such as the Money

Advice & Budgeting Service (MABS) or www.itsyourmoney.ie. Be sure to speak to an advisor before making any drastic moves – especially if you’re thinking of borrowing money from other sources to pay off existing debts.

There are a number of solutions possible to get you out of an arrears predicament.

Term adjustment – Depending on your age and other circumstances, your bank may agree to extend the term of your loan. This will reduce your monthly payments although it will mean you eventually pay more interest over the life of your mortgage. Remember, however, you may be able to reduce the term later when your finances stabilise.

Interest only – Many mortgage holders in arrears difficulties are switching to interest-only loans. This is a loan where you only pay the interest, not the capital, reducing your monthly outgoings. At the end of the term, however, you will still owe the full amount so this option should only be considered if it’s really necessary. Even then, it should only be a temporary solution.

Reduced payment – Depending on your circumstance, your bank may be willing to accept reduced monthly repayments temporarily until you are in a better financial position. This solution is usually put in place for a six-month period but you should note that making reduced repayments will increase the amount of interest due until this shortfall is fully repaid.

Where else can you turn when you’re in mortgage difficulty? A good start is to find out your social welfare entitlements. For example, if your wages have been reduced you may be eligible for Mortgage Interest Supplement.

You’ll have to meet a number of conditions to qualify. You’ll need to prove you could afford the repayments when you began your mortgage, you must be habitually resident in this State and your house may not be up for sale.

The payment is means-tested and net income from your employment, social welfare payments and most HSE payments will be taken into account.

To find out if you’re eligible for this supplement, contact your local Community

Welfare Officer at your Local Health Centre or visit www.welfare.ie. And remember

– if your application is unsuccessful for whatever reason, you’re entitled to appeal it.

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Sample column >> Filed every Thursday afternoon

Home from home in Argentina

By Kate Hopcraft

I am getting married next October and I would like to travel to Buenos Aires for my honeymoon. My fiancée is slightly hesitant as Argentina is so far away however I know she will be thrilled once we get there. Can you recommend some things to do while there to really make our honeymoon special and worth the journey?

Buenos Aires is very reminiscent of European cities like Madrid or Barcelona so I assure you that your fiancée will feel right at home once you touch down. A culturally diverse place, Argentina’s capital is filled with world class architecture and old world charm.

October is a great time to visit as it is right at the start of summer so you will benefit from warm days and cool sea breezes. You will never experience a dull moment in this wonderful city as there is so much to do.

For a romantic evening and to sample some of the city’s finest cuisine, head to a restaurant called Artemisia. They serve the famous Argentine steak or for vegetarians like me they have goat’s cheese and pumpkin salad or delicious tapenades with freshly baked bread. You might need to loosen your belt on leaving here! For something more casual, El Cuartito at Peurto Madero is great for pizza and pasta in a romantic setting.

Your fiancée may not like the idea of watching a football match on honeymoon but a visit to see the Boca Juniors football team play at their home ground La Bombonera is a must-see when visiting Buenos Aires.

If the team is playing local rivals, Club Atletico, you will be promised a boisterous and exhilarating experience. Football is a true passion for the Argentines and it is fascinating to see their loyalty and love for the game first hand.

The pedestrian area of Caminito is a few blocks from the football stadium and is made up of brightly coloured corrugated iron house structures. Restaurants and trinket shops crowd the streets whilst ‘tango-ing’ couples demonstrate their passion for tourist’s attention and their spare change. Tango is a must-see and Caminito is one of the best spots to experience it.

The Cementario de la Recoleta is one of the world’s oldest cemeteries, home to the graves of Eva Peron and County Mayo born Admiral William Brown, founder of the Argentinean navy. Take a trip here on a midweek morning when the area is quiet and you can truly appreciate the dozens of tombstones which line the labyrinth of passageways.

The areas of Palermo and Soho offer great retail therapy with many vintage boutiques, antique shops and stalls. Local leather brands can be bought here along with better known labels such as Diesel and Lacoste.

Where to stay:

Hotel Madero (*****)
Prices start from €151 per room per night on Hotels.com

Located in Peurto Madero, otherwise known as the cinema district of Buenos Aires, this hotel is close to the Boca Juniors stadium and the city harbour. There is a multitude of restaurants located close by with plenty of great bars. Guests can enjoy a treatment in the hotel spa or catch up on sightseeing in the vicinity.

The Glu Hotel Boutique (****)

Prices start from €147 per room per night on Hotels.com

Situated in the neighbourhood of Palermo and close to Plaza Serrano and the Botanic Gardens, lies the Glu Hotel Boutique. Guests can make use of the hotel spa or visit the nearby attractions of Plaza de los Congresos and the Estado Monumental.

Park Plaza Unique Hotel (****)
Prices start from 51 per room per night on Hotels.com

This hotel is located in Recoleta with the Plaza Libertad and Teatro Nacional Cervantes all within walking distance. The hotel cocktail bar serves a wide selection of refreshing cocktails and long drinks.

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Sample column >> Filed every Thursday afternoon

Firing up your Living Room

I am removing a drab eighties fireplace with a marble hearth in my living room and installing a modern fireplace with a stainless steel back panel and a natural beech wood finish.  The existing décor is quite dated so I would like to modernise the room and turn it into a space that we enjoy spending time in. Can you help?

Your new fireplace addition sounds fabulous and will be a key feature for creating a modern living room.

The living room is the most versatile room in the home. It is not just a relaxing space for family and friends but it also functions as a focal point for the entire house. It is important to create a comfortable space as too often people make a picture perfect living room that visitors feel uncomfortable in.

It is a good idea to choose calm neutral shades in order to create a modern space. Grey tones are renowned for their subtle calming effect. By using this shade you can then incorporate accent colours through the use of soft furnishings.

The key is to find a shade which works best with prominent colours. I recommend taking a look at the Indulgence range from Crown Paints, which contains a fabulous collection of grey tones. Gallery White, Aspen Silver and Mink are three elegant shades that will create a modern sophisticated space. Subtle shades on your wall will allow for your statement fireplace to stand out.

Warm sensual shades are also a good choice for your living room as it will help create an inviting and ambient space that your family will enjoy spending time in. Shades such as Tiramisu, Avantgarde and Silk Gown from Crown’s Indulgence range will help your room appear warmer and more inviting.

The position of your furniture should centre around this new focal point in the room. It is a good idea to avoid making the television the focus as can happen in so many homes. Your new fireplace will add real character to the space.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that all major pieces of furniture must be placed against the wall. Furniture can be a great way to help divide up a large room. New shades and design such as contemporary sectional sofas have replaced our everyday rectangular styles. You can also use rugs to define seating areas and create a cosy space.

Lighting is key to creating a modern living room. The seating area should be on a dimmer control so it can be adjusted to suit the mood of the occasion. You might like to consider a modern Pendant light for over a coffee table. Table and side lamps are another great way to create a relaxed tranquil space.

Try to avoid positioning the lamps in a way that they cause a reflection on your television.

Bright modern art and family photographs add instant warmth to a living room. Spot lighting is a great way to emphasise these pieces on your wall. A large mirror over your fireplace is another great trick – adding to the illusion of more space in a room.

Using neutral shades allows you to update the space with soft furnishings and accessories as you wish without having to worry about a complete makeover. It allows you to add lots of colour and decorative pillows helping you create a more inviting space.

Let your accessories steal the show with a striking modern twist by adding subtle hints of earthy red and biscuit with hint of orange or green. Opt for two-tone cushions in these contrasting earthy tones. Florals are back in a big way for 2010 but think big and bold prints!

I hope these ideas help you create a modern living room that you, your family and friends will enjoy spending time in.

Happy decorating!

Also filed with hi-res images of the latest movie releases.

Sample column >> Filed every Thursday afternoon

Fun of the fair

By Helen Carey

What a breath of fresh air Adventureland is. While the tactic du jour for most “indie” romcoms seems to be a self-conscious quest for quirkiness, Greg Mottola’s amiable comedy sidesteps all the usual pitfalls and concentrates on sketching a heartwarming coming of age yarn that revives tried and tested formulae.

The backdrop for a meandering summer of slacker angst is an amusement park where Jesse Eisenberg takes a job after things don’t quite go to plan upon leaving college. Soon he’s introduced to a shady underworld that is lit up only by Kristen Stewart – the woman of his dreams.

Ryan Reynolds (Definitely, Maybe) completes a charming central trio as Eisenberg’s love rival – a bad boy rocker turned handyman.

Rating ****

As director of the Notebook, Nick Cassavetes is responsible for more female tears than Tiger Woods. In My Sister’s Keeper, he is keen to liberate the ducts once more. Based on Jodi Picoult’s emotive novel, there is no shortage of tear-jerking ingredients; a sick child, a sibling needing a donor and a tug of love between parents and children.

Unfortunately, Cassavetes lathers so much schmaltz on what is, in its own right, a quite-intriguing story, you’re eventually unsure whether to cry or vomit.

Cameron Diaz and Jason Patric are watchable as the manipulative but shattered parents, while Alec Baldwin lights up the screen as the lawyer set to enter an ethical minefield.

The central moral dilemma retains the interest to the end but the overall feel is more TV movie than big screen.

Rating **

There’s been plenty of sci-fi action in recent weeks but Surrogates doesn’t live up to the high standards. Bruce Willis stars as a FBI agent in a world where people rely on robotic surrogates – more attractive versions of their human selves – to do all their social communication for them. This allows people to live vicariously through their more presentable substitutes without ever leaving the comfort and safety of their own homes. Sounds like a day on Facebook.

All very fascinating, at least until you put the concept away and the movie starts. Director Jonathan Mostow does an excellent job of fashioning a futuristic world that is soon resolutely wasted. Once Bruce assigns his surrogate to investigate the murder of a genius scientist, the imaginative premise gives way to standard action fare.

Rating **

Sample column >> Filed every Friday morning

Boosting your eBay income

I have recently started a business on eBay and I am up against a fairly established competitor, which has a lot of traffic and a very slick layout. Our sales are good but there is potential for them to be about 20 times higher. How do we make that extra push to take the business to the next level?

Malcolm

A couple of our eBay experts have come up with a top ten of eBay tips.

1. A picture is worth a thousand words when selling an item on eBay. Spend time taking high-quality pictures to give all your products that professional look.

2. Tweak the layout of your auction page. Make sure shipping information and payment options are easy to find. Use plenty of white space and highlight key information.

3. Customer service is king on eBay. Be prompt and courteous in dealing with queries. Put a standard contact file in place for dealing with potential customers who have common queries about shipping etc. When a buyer wins an auction, contact them promptly and help them complete the transaction. When a sale has been completed, leave the buyer feedback.

4. Do some research. Find out what is selling using the competed auctions search (Advanced Search options). Here you can see how saleable items have been presented and find out at what price they have been listed. Scrutinise the most successful sales and see how the sellers have described and promoted their products.

5. Check out the eBay Turbo Lister feature to reduce your manual input and help automate listing and relisting products.

6. Keep an eye on your Detailed Seller Listing (DSR). By keeping each of your scores over 4.6, you improve your listing rankings. If you let this score slide to below 4.4, your items will be demoted by eBay.

7. Use an auction management service like Vendio.com which provides you with an auction template into which you can place your content.

8. Use shorter auctions – eBay places auctions ending soonest higher in the search results. By running shorter auctions, you will show up in the Time Ending Soonest and Best Match search results more often. Keep an eye on your increased listing fees to make sure your plan is paying off.

9. Promote – use and optimise Google Adwords to drive traffic to your auctions.

10. Start and end your auctions at peak traffic times. Try ending auctions on Monday or Tuesday evenings between 5 and 7 PM or Monday lunchtime is also a good bet.

STAYING SAFE

I run a small office and have been told I need a Safety Statement. Is this true?

Liam

Yes. SMEs need to know that they are far more likely to be inspected by the Health & Safety Authority now than at any time in the last five years. Because of the downturn in construction activity, HSA Inspectors are now turning their time and attention to SMEs, particularly dentist surgeries, offices, dry cleaners, small shops etc.

An inspector will want to see your Safety Statement and will want to know how you are managing health and safety.

If you don’t have a Safety Statement, you will probably be served with an Improvement Notice ordering you to have one prepared within three weeks. An inspector will return to inspect the document and your premises again.

Check out health and safety consultants such as www.darlington.ie or www.olivesafety.ie for more information or a risk assessment.

RISKY BUSINESS

Unfortunately, I’ve had to call a creditors’ meeting as my business has become insolvent. I owe quite a bit to creditors and some have accused me of trading recklessly. Could they have some grounds to bring a case against me?

James

Insolvency brings difficult times for everyone so you have our sympathies. Regarding reckless trading, it’s impossible to tell whether you might have any case to answer without access to more information about your company’s business activities in recent times.

Basically, if your company continued to trade beyond a point where there was any reasonable hope of improving its financial position, you could be accused of reckless trading.

There are a few common ways a director can run into problems around an insolvency:

• Accumulation of tax liabilities

• Failing to inform other directors, shareholders or markets of the company’s position

• Running up debt if there was no reasonable hope of payment

• Negligent management that damaged the company’s financial position.

• Negligent management that damaged creditors’ positions

• Failing to file the correct insolvency documents