Wheels of fortune

COVER STORY

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Autumn recipes Using fresh seasonal produce to create some simply stunning dishes

PROPERTY

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Preparing for Autumn Getting your garden and home prepared for the colder months ahead

Turning the heating back on Now’s the time to make sure everything’s running smoothly with your heating system

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Take a look at a selection of our latest properties on the market we welcome the stunning colours moving but haven’t started the This month’s issue boasts some great tips about how to make the most of this time of year and take some stunning insta-ready

LIFESTYLE

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Wheels of fortune The Stamp Duty holiday has given home-buyers more spending power

Photography hints and tips Helpful tips to take Insta-ready photos with the best of them

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Conker season is here It’s a centuries-old game but some people still go bonkers for conkers

Settling children back at school With most having a longer time away from nursery and school, it’s a worry for some parents

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Top TV this Autumn A selection of must-watch shows that are returning to our screens

SPORT

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Return of the Premier League It may have only just finished, but this month the 2020/21

WELCOME TO THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE!

Summer is on the wane! The photos as well as savouring the nights are drawing in and the freshest, seasonal ingredients to temperature is starting to create some mouth-watering drop. With the arrival of September, Autumnal recipes. and flavours of Autumn. Plus, we take a look at some of the

With the property market thriving, your savings on stamp duty and a and the Stamp Duty Holiday in preview for the new Premier place, if you’re thinking about League season. process, we have put safety Children returning to school, or guidelines in place to ensure your starting for the first time? We have safety. And with our expert local a great article with some advice to knowledge, we have all the tools you help them settle and tips on need to get you moving – including getting your heating in prime a FREE personalised website for you working order ready to watch this to share on social media. season’s top new TV!

season starts best car deals to take advantage of Till next time…

Jonathan Wheatley Editor W hen the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced a Stamp Duty holiday to enable the homes property market to breathe life into the post-lockdown economy, thousands of prospective house buyers must have raised their eyebrows and applauded wildly. It meant an estimated nine out of 10 people buying their main home would not pay the tax, removing a not-inconsiderable burden until March 31 next year.

And you could almost hear the sound of belts being slightly loosened as new kitchens, bathrooms and planned improvements were scratched off the wishlist and confidently transferred to the ‘to do’ schedule.

But while a raft of home improvement catologues were being thumbed through, a tentative motor industry would have been hoping: ‘Don’t forget about us’.

Because, although upgrading your wheels may not be high on the list of priorities when it comes to spending some of the equity, now may be the best time to buy that car you’d always promised yourself, one day, if you had the money …

A combination of factors, including the new September registration plate and an industry also suffering post-lockdown blues, means there could be a lot of bargains and good deals out there.

WHEELS OF FORTUNE

The Government’s easing of Stamp Duty has given home-buyers more spending power

For example, with a new Nissan Juke and hand it back at the end of the available, dealers want their old stock of this contract – and if you have a few extra very popular SUV off the forecourt which pounds you hadn’t bargained for, now means there are some cracking offers on could be the time to go big. as-new pre-registered models. In theory, you could drive off in a new bug-eyed compact Take the Audi A3 E-Tron… and with some crossover for less than £12,000. of these deals you’d be hard-pressed not Similarly, the Fiat Tipo, a new A3 waiting in the with its 440litre boot, is A combination of wings, the older models one of the roomiest factors means there are very reasonably priced. small cars in its class and could be a lot of A plug-in hybrid from a although it might not bargains and good premium manufacturer be one to make your deals out there for around £250 a month? new neighbours sit up What’s not to like? and take notice, there are huge discounts to And if your new home be found, bringing it down to around the comes with a car charging point, think £11,000 mark. about the Renault Zoe GT Line 100kw. And if you want a larger saloon, consider expensive two years ago, they now the Ford Mondeo 2.0 Zetec Hybrid. compare favourably with petrol models Although the Mondeo’s days as market and the Zoe, with its conventional leader are long gone, this one can make a long journey pass comfortably. And it’s a rarity – a hybrid for around the £20,000 mark.

However, the old saying ‘Cash is King’ might not always be the case nowadays where there are more ways to make your money go further.

If you like to change cars regularly, leasing is a sensible choice, albeit with a mileage allowance. Put down your initial payment to. Largely because there’s Although electric cars were unfeasibly supermini looks and automatic style gearbox, can go 250 miles on a full charge, for £227 a month.

If you like the idea of a new car for an affordably monthly amount with the option of handing it back or buying at the end of the contract, then personal contract payment is for you, although you will need to do your homework to find the right deal.

When you do, you can bag a great car for far less than you might expect, such as the Volkswagen Tiguan Match 2.0 TDi a jack-of-all-trades that, despite the name, is difficult to match. With a £10,000 deposit, it could cost you just £255 a month – a staggering amount for a brand with huge badge appeal.

As always, the rush for the new registration means an influx of used cars to the market and while some may sneer at anything around five years old that’s got a few miles on the clock, those more astute shoppers will already be perusing websites and forecourts.

So, anyone for a pre-2015 Range Rover Evoque 2.2 SD4 PureTech from £17,500? How about a BMW 118i M Sport from under £9,000? Or a Nissan Qashgai 1.2 DiG-T Acenta from £7,500?