Designed by Sir Alec Issigonis, the Mini is probably the most recognised car on the planet. Since it first rolled off BMC’s (British Motor Corporation) production line in 1959, the Mini is still going as strong now as it has over the past five decades. In fact, in 1999, the little car was voted the second most influential car of the 20^th century, behind the Ford Model T.

The Mk I Morris Minor-Mini 1959

1959-morris-mk-i-11

Under BMC, the mini was produced under two brands until 1967. The Morris version – well known for producing the Morris Minor – was known as the Mini, or the Mini-Minor. Austin sold their identical version as the Austin SE7EN, a reminder of their popular 7 sold during the 1920s and 1930s.

From 1967 to 1970, the overall look of the car virtually remained the same regarding aesthetics and design. On the Mark II, the front grille was redesigned, and a larger rear window fitted, plus various small cosmetic upgrades.

The Mk II Morris Mini Cooper

The Mk II Morris Mini Cooper

It was during this period the Mark II became a movie star and household name when it appeared in the film The Italian Job 1969. Famous for its long car chase, the movie saw three Minis driving down staircases, through storm drains, and into the back of a moving coach. Such a success, the film was remade in 2003 using the new Mini Cooper.

There were variants of the Mini, such as the Mini Van, the Mini Moke (a utility vehicle intended for the British Army), the Clubman (a squared boxy shape), and the Mini Countryman (an estate version with wooden inserts in the rear body), but it was the famous Cooper S that was the desirable model. My father’s best friend during his youth was lucky enough to own one, although not so lucky as he crashed it going too fast!

In 1961, John Cooper, the designer of Rally and F1 cars became involved with Mini when he saw potential in the little lightweight car. His design increased the engine size, which boosted the hp from 34bhp to 55bhp. Its race-tuned engine featured twin-carbs, a closer-ratio gearbox, and disc brakes on the front wheels.

1963 saw the birth of a more powerful Cooper, the S. This version had a slightly bigger engine and improved brakes. In 1964, the S was taken a step further in engine size (1275cc) and entered into the Monte Carlo Rally. The Mighty Cooper S claimed victories in 64, 65, and 67.

1965 Monte Carlo Winner, 1964 Cooper S

1965 Monte Carlo Winner, 1964 Cooper S

The Mini was so popular among celebrities it became a symbol of the ‘Swinging London’ scene during the 1960s. Even the Queen was seen driving one, making it a ‘classless’ car. During this period and the 70s, the mini also became a fashion statement, famous coachbuilders hired by such celebs as John Lennon, Britt Ekland and Elton John were chosen to upholster their Minis. Marc Bolan famously died as a passenger in a Mini 1275GT when it hit a tree.

Rebirth

In 2001, a new generation of Mini went on sale and was an immediate success. With the original design kept in mind, the new breed offered a more modern look.  The models available were the ONE, a standard 1.4L model, a Cooper, and a Cooper S 1.6L. These new generation Minis were powered by BMW technology, but the diesel versions used a Toyota-built engine.

Mini One 2002

Mini One 2002

In 2005 BMW invested £100M in the Mini Oxford plant, enabling a 20% rise in production. Keeping up with demand, in 2011 BMW invested a further £500M in the UK, extending their ranges.

Mini Cooper S Special Edition 2012

2012-MINI-Cooper-Rauno-Aaltonen-Edition-01

The original Cooper S JCW GP boasted just 215 horsepower, but shed an impressive amount of weight to stay quick. This new model is expected to bring around 220 hp to the track with significant weight reductions of its own.

This little car has more than lasted the test of time, and although it continues to thrive, you can still JUST about see the similarities between the first photograph and the last. Very impressive since over half a century has passed since Sir Alec Issigonis sat at his drawing board with an idea in his head and a pencil in his hand.

Water Damaged! Best To Be Insuarced

Your home is probably one of the most expensive and valuable investments that you will ever make in your life, and you have quite possibly acquired a very large debt because of the purchase of your home. Your home is not only a major financial issue in your life, but it is also an important safe place for yourself and your family. Your family has probably grown accustomed to their home, and they would probably be devastated if anything happened to their home. You are taking a major risk if you own a home but do not have home insurance.

Home Insurance Quotes

Property Investment With Loans

Over the past decade, thanks to a property market that has been performing consistently well until recently,  home equity financing has become a viable option. This in turn has made the credit or loan option for home equity financing for consumers worth considering. People realise the value of owning one’s own home to raise capital and refinance debt, home equity as a solid foundation is a powerful financial base to build on.
The year was a rollercoaster ride for the stock market, and for the property market. Though the prices of homes did not correct as much as expected, it proved to be a happy trend as it proved that people still saw a home as a smart investment. This is good news for you as house owners — it signifies that despite the economic outlook, the value of your home continues to hold value. This perhaps should give you the impetus to consider taking a financing option such as a home equity loan or line of credit.

Why consider home equity: Take for instance the rising worth of your own home and the boom in the property market — some solid reasons for you to  consider taking home equity financing. For one, home equity financing comes with a lot of tax advantages for you. You might also be able to reduce your taxes by claiming the interest you pay on your home equity credit as a deduction. Speak to your tax consultant about this. If you want to borrow money or secure your debt, you’ll find home equity products a smart choice since they carry a lower interest rate than other loans and may, therefore lower your monthly payments.

Property Investment

Over the last decade the number of Brits investing in ‘buy to let’ property has skyrocketed. More and more people have turned to property investment as an alternative to traditional investments or pensions, benefiting from both rental income and capital growth.

However, buying investment property for example from property auctions can be tough. Unless you have large reserves of cash, adding properties to your investment portfolio is a slow process. Buy to let mortgages are available to around 70-80 per cent of purchase price, but that means you have to find a 20-30 per cent deposit for each property that you buy.

One way of raising the cash you need to help you build your investment property portfolio is through a home equity line of credit.

How to leverage your home equity financing: If you want to get the best out of your home equity financing, you could choose to do it as most people do: use it to refinance your debt and pay back higher-interest loans. But if you are fortunate enough not to have loan balances to repay, you can further raise the value of your house by improving it.  Perhaps you want to give a facelift to your kitchen or garage? Perhaps you need to add a second storey? These projects can easily be financed by home equity credit.

Your kind of home equity plan: You can choose from either a home equity loan or a home equity credit line—something that largely depends on your needs. But to set yourself into estimating how much financing you require, you should consider a home equity loan. If you do, you will need to borrow only as much as you need for your home improvement project. But if you can’t estimate your needs, your best bet is a home equity line of credit might be a better choice. This is also helpful if you have more than one need such as reducing your credit card out standings and debt, besides also paying for a big purchase—both of which will demand ready access to huge sums of cash.

If your need is for stability or flexibility, yet again, home equity loans give you a steady payment plan. This means that your interest rate and monthly payments remain fixed over time. On the other hand, a home equity line of credit is as flexible an option as a credit card with your payments being judged against how much you borrow and the interest rates varying proportionately with a change in Prime Rates. And, if you need financing all together or once in a way, think again because a home equity loan can give you all the money you need all at once too! Besides, with this, you can borrow as much as you like when you want it, just so long as you remain within your prescribed credit limit.

Financing your home is a big decision for you. True, there are very many home equity loan products available today, but you need to think well about the home equity line of credit that suits your financial goals.

Save Money

The internet has revolutionised the way we shop.  More and more people now buy goods and services online and the web makes it easy to buy at a time convenient to you.

The net is also a great place to save money.  Here are three top tips to help you save cash by heading online.

Get better value financial services

Whether you have a mortgage, credit card debt or personal loan or you’re simply looking for a better deal on your car insurance, broadband or your home gas and electricity you can save money by shopping online.

There are dozens of good quality financial comparison sites which let you easily research the prices and benefits of a range of financial products.  Transferring your credit card balance, switching telephone provider and getting better value home insurance can all help you save a small fortune.

Sell your house online

It’s not unusual to pay an estate agent between 1 and 2% of the sale price of your home for looking after the transaction for you.  On an average £150,000 property that amounts to £1,500 to £3,000.

It’s now possible to sell your home yourself online.  Sites such as littlehousecompany.co.uk let you market your home to millions of potential buyers at a fraction of the cost of paying a local estate agent.

Shop around for services

Just as you wouldn’t buy a new car or a new television without shopping around, you also shouldn’t buy services without comparing different providers.

There are plenty of ways that you can research services online and to check out the value you will receive.  Now, sites such as fivequidexpert.com are offering a range of professional and skilled services at extremely great value. Perhaps you can get your job done without having to pay through the nose?

Crazy Upside Down House

The Upside-Down House is a unique tourist attraction whose style represents an intellectual declaration in regards to the Communist era. This eccentric home designed by Daniel Czapiewski on July 31, 2007 in Szymbark, northern Poland took approximately 114 days to construct due to the challenges builders faced because of the odd angles of the walls

Toilet-Shaped House

Toilet Shaped House...Whatever next...

This bizarre Toilet-Shaped Home was assembled by the founding member of the World Toilet Association and spotlights 4 deluxe toilets that include elegant fittings to the most current in water conservation gadgetry. This unique house is committed to supplying immaculate sanitation to more than 2 billion of the populace that live without toilets. It also carries the Korean name Haewoojae which means a refuge where one can come to resolve their troubles.

The Glass House by Philip Johnson

Glass House - Unique Styling

This symmetrical home sitting firmly on the ground is touted as one of the world’s most dazzling yet useless homes around. Phillip Johnson, the owner of the home, says that when people first enter, they are mesmerized. The Glass House is open for tours to the public where visitors can see quarter-inch thick glass walls, low walnut cabinets, brick cylinder bathroom and brick floors polished a purple tint. This interesting home is so popular that tours have been scheduled months ahead of time.

The House on the Stick

Live your life up a pole!

This tiny home is only 290 square feet and whose architecture was inspired by highway billboards. The structure was not meant for a family dwelling, but primarily constructed as an object best suited for mountains, grassy fields, bodies of water and woods.

Hundertwasser’s House

Fantastic Architecture

Hundertwasser, the expert at eccentric construction, built this compound of 50 apartments in 1982-1985 and is thought to be one of the city’s most well-known attractions amongst tourists. This interesting home is a stand out, as it doesn’t conform to the usual standards and norms of typical academic architecture. It’s bizarre construction consists of non-existent straight lines or surfaces, 100% asymmetrical, harrowing corridors, rounded-off corners, plant and trees.

You can apply for an online mortgage loan through one loan company by using their website.  Almost all loan companies these days have websites where they will let you apply for the loan using an online form.  If any additional information is needed, a representative from the loan company may call you.  Filling out the loan forms is much easier online, because you simply click on the appropriate forms and fill them out using your keyboard and your mouse.  If you accidentally leave a line blank or don’t fill it out correctly, the program will let you know.

One of the most popular ways to get on online mortgage loan these days is to use on online loan broker website.  With this type of website, you can put in the pertinent information about what type of online mortgage loan you are looking for, such as a first or second mortgage or a home equity loan, and the program will give you a list of loan companies that will be able to help you.  You will be able to find out right away which loan companies will charge the least amount in fees, which ones are willing to work with those who have less than perfect credit, and which ones will give you the fastest service.
 

Virtually everyone is in debt nowadays.  Few people can escape the trials of being in debt today.  Some people manage to get by with less debt than others, but the bottom line is that everyone is in debt of some sort or another; everything from college loans to car payments, mortgages and credit card debt.  For some families, debt extends out to collection agencies that are missing payments for vital expenses like electricity and heat.  Where is the answer?

Consolidation Loans for Debt Relief

Getting a debt consolidation loan is one of the best ways to reduce debt over the long haul.  The reason for this is that it does not work only on paying off the principal that you borrowed; it almost always has a lower interest rate. This is the whole reason that people go to the trouble of getting a consolidation loan for debt relief.  Loans that have high interest rates often can not be helped.  People don’t always get to choose between two different interest rates, in fact, they seldom get to choose.  The end result of this is that most people are paying much higher interest rates than they should be paying.

Understanding Reconsolidation

If more people knew about debt consolidation loans, there would probably be fewer people in so much debt.  As it is, many people profit from debt reconsolidation, but a lot of people don’t know exactly what it is.  It is literally a consolidation of existing loans that you have.  College loans are one of the best examples; students often get the opportunity to reconsolidate after they graduate, and those that do, end up spending much less in interest over the years of repayment.

You can find out if it’s worth it or not is done by doing a few fairly simple calculations.  What you have to do is take the interest rate on the debt consolidation loan that you are thinking of and compare it to the interest rates you are currently paying.  While some of your interest rates might be quite low, and near to the consolidated rate, a few of your loans might be very high.  These few high ones are the ones for which you will see the greatest amount of difference over the years if you go ahead and reconsolidate.

If you have a loan that will be paid off in a year, but has a high interest rate, consolidation might not be for you; it’s the loans that go on and on, year after year, that it’s worth consolidating.  Your wallet will thank you in the end.

The Internet has brought the advantage of being able research, analyse and access almost anything from the comfort of our homes. Banking and especially getting a loan was a major time consuming hassle that we had to face before the Internet. Today however, you have the possibility of applying for a loan when you have the time from your own home.

Here are few tips and suggestions that will help you get an online secured loan that meets your requirements.

Check The Lender Before Applying For The Loan

Internet is convenient but not fraud proof and that is the reason why you should check the bank or lender thoroughly before providing them your personal information. Look for the secure sign on the web page of the online secured loan and if you don’t see the lock sign do not input your personal data as it can be ‘phising’ page, which are as professional at times as a web page designed by a professional bank.

Many frauds trick you into providing your personal information this way and then use it for a real loan, which they direct into their account but leave you to pay it off.

Check For The Best Rates

When shopping for an online secured loan you need to ensure that you also get the best rate available and therefore you must research and compare before you decide. Sometimes people are so happy that they found what seems the best online secure loan for them that they don’t bother to look any further and in the process loose considerable amounts of money in a high interest rate.

While the interest rates on your online secured loan may vary depending on your credit score, you need to ensure that your interest rate is fixed for the duration of the loan in order not to face any increases in the interest rate.

Helpful Tips

You can get an online secured loan in minutes but by hurrying up the process and not checking on essential factors you may end up paying more or being tricked of a huge sum of money. Therefore, take your time and check as many online secured loans offers as possible before you make your final decision.

Ask as many questions as possible before you decide on the loan for once you have agreed to the terms and conditions it may be too late to repair any mistakes you may have made. Use the Internet for what it does best, finding all there is to know about the loan and the lender and you will get the best possible online secured loan for your requirements.

There Is A Difference Between Secured Loans And Personal Loans.

The biggest difference between secured loans and personal loans is the chance a lender is willing to take in giving a person a loan. When you apply for a loan the lender will look at your credit report to determine what the odds are that you will repay the loan as promised. This will determine your eligibility for secured loans and personal loans.

If you have a good history of paying off loans you have a good chance of receiving a loan without having to supply collateral. Those with a poor history of repayment may be able to receive secured loans and personal loans are reserved for those with the better credit history.

Many lending companies usually only work with one type of loan, either secured or personal. There are very few who offer both secured loans and personal loans leaving that option to lending institutions. While a person may increase their assets through the use of a credit card, most cards are considered unsecured. There are a few companies offering a secured credit card, which is backed by the balance maintained in an account at their institution. Some believe these are nothing more than debit cards as the amount in your account dictates the credit limit on your card.

Build Credit With Secure Bank Card

People who have had a history of repayment trouble and unable to obtain a credit card have been advised to use a secured credit card to have the benefit of a credit card, such as being able to make online purchases and rent a vehicle. Some issuing companies may offer secured loans and personal loans and will also report regular month deposits, or payments to credit reporting agencies to help that person rebuild their credit rating.

For persons without a good credit history, obtaining secured loans and personal loans being out of the question, can also be tough if their asset ownership has no where near the value of the loan they are attempting to obtain. They may then have the only option of obtain a smaller loan secured by their signature on a post-dated check to a payday loan company.

Although no assets are promised as collateral for this short-term loan, writing a bad check in most cases is against the law and the company has legal recourse if the loan is not paid back as agreed.

Here are few tips and suggestions that will help you get an online secured loan that meets your requirements.

Check The Lender Before Applying For The Loan

Internet is convenient but not fraud proof and that is the reason why you should check the bank or lender thoroughly before providing them your personal information. Look for the secure sign on the web page of the online secured loan and if you don’t see the lock sign do not input your personal data as it can be ‘phising’ page, which are as professional at times as a web page designed by a professional bank.

Many frauds trick you into providing your personal information this way and then use it for a real loan, which they direct into their account but leave you to pay it off.

Check For The Best Rates

When shopping for an online secured loan you need to ensure that you also get the best rate available and therefore you must research and compare before you decide. Sometimes people are so happy that they found what seems the best online secure loan for them that they don’t bother to look any further and in the process loose considerable amounts of money in a high interest rate.

While the interest rates on your online secured loan may vary depending on your credit score, you need to ensure that your interest rate is fixed for the duration of the loan in order not to face any increases in the interest rate.

Helpful Tips

You can get an online secured loan in minutes but by hurrying up the process and not checking on essential factors you may end up paying more or being tricked of a huge sum of money. Therefore, take your time and check as many online secured loans offers as possible before you make your final decision.

Ask as many questions as possible before you decide on the loan for once you have agreed to the terms and conditions it may be too late to repair any mistakes you may have made. Use the Internet for what it does best, finding all there is to know about the loan and the lender and you will get the best possible online secured loan for your requirements.