Ellen MacArthur: 'I saved up my dinner money for my first boat'

By Sarah Ewing 

Ellen MacArthur, 35, made international headlines in 2005 when she broke the world record for the fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe in a yacht. 

How did your family influence your work ethic and attitude towards money?

I come from a very hard-working Derbyshire family, going back to my grandfather, who was a coal miner. It was instilled in me and my two brothers that if we wanted something we'd have to graft hard.

At home, we did most of our own building work, fixed the cars and grew our own food. There was no instant gratification. It's that self-sufficient environment that I love, and growing up in the countryside really allowed me to flourish. My parents were amazing in that they didn't encourage or discourage us regarding our passions – they let us find our own way. They taught us that education is important, but that it comes in many shapes.

I grew up loving sailing, having been introduced to it by my aunt at the age of four, but never thought I could make a career of it until I was 18 and watched the Whitbread race on television. It was then I realised that with sponsorship and canny budgeting, I could make my dream a reality. From then I did everything possible to cram in as much knowledge about sailing – working at a sailing school during the day, gaining practical skills, and then swotting up at night on the theory.
Tell me about how you saved up for your first boat

I can still vividly see that first trip I took with my aunt and the overwhelming sense of freedom I felt, knowing I could explore the world from the "tiny" island we lived on. I didn't get any pocket money when I was younger, but I saved any birthday and Christmas money from the age of eight.

However, it wasn't until I reached secondary school that I had the chance to save properly. I was given dinner money every day, but I'd live off the cheapest meal possible – beans and mashed potatoes, piled with gravy – and siphon off the remainder. Every time I had a £1 pile of coins, I'd mark off a box on a big wall chart, until I reached 100, and then take it to my building society. I did that every day until I left school at 17. With those savings I was able to buy a little eight-foot dinghy I christened Threp'ny Bit, followed by a 21-foot Corribee on which I single-handedly sailed around Britain when I was 18.
Despite being a big scrimper, did you ever worry about how you were going to make ends meet?
Absolutely. When I was working at the sailing school in the North East, I knew I'd need to move to the south coast if I was really going to make it as a professional sailor. So I relocated to Hamble in Hampshire and lived on my Corribee for two and a half years, during which time I tried to gain as much experience as possible. I'd barter my talents to be able to afford every bit of kit I needed. For instance, I'm a good artist and I secured a commission to do a painting of a sailor's boat. That allowed me to earn the airfare to Quebec to do the transatlantic race to St Malo.
Now that you've retired from professional sailing, have you relaxed the reins on your spending?
No, I don't spend money on anything I don't really need. I hardly ever go shopping because I don't really get any pleasure from it. I do like a good bargain though – I use something called Wightbay, which is like eBay for the Isle of Wight.
We never trailed around the shops as kids; within reason we made what we needed. I used to make whatever I could for my boat – my first pair of sailing trousers were made from a cheap pair of oilskins, onto which I sewed a hood and some handwarmers. Sadly, a lot of people don't value things like that.
I still have my Corribee that I spent all those years putting my pennies away for. I don't think I could ever sell her because she's a part of me. When you graft so hard for something, you respect it more.
Any prized possessions?
Many of the things I love are priceless to me, but to others they would have no value. For instance, the rug in my lounge at home came from the barn at my parents' house – it's old and scruffy because it was given to my mum by her mum and she in turn received it as a wedding gift in the Thirties.
What's the most difficult lesson you've learnt about money?
When you have a dream and you're just starting out, very few people are prepared to help you; yet the minute you've done something, everyone wants to help you. Maybe that's how it should be because it makes you really fight for things and put your heart and soul into your dream. You make your own luck.
When I was awarded the Young Sailor of the Year award when I was 18, Keith Musto, the founder of the Musto outdoor clothing company, was in the audience. He was one of the few visionaries who really recognised my potential and has sponsored me since 1995. They've been truly instrumental in my career success.
What's been your best business decision?
My nan was an incredible inspiration to me, returning to school after her father had made her leave early, and getting a degree when she was 83, dying three months later.
Unbeknown to me, she'd set aside £5,000 for me to get when I turned 21. The year after her death and two months before my first huge race, the owners of the boat I was supposed to be sailing sold it very suddenly. It was also the exact time when I had to pay the non-refundable entrance fee, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to race. There I was with no boat, no partner and no money for the fee. When mum heard how dejected I sounded on the phone, she fessed up and gave me the money early. Without hesitation, I handed it over because I was determined to make the other elements fall into place – they did, and it was the making of my career.
do you Regret any major business decisions?
No. Sometimes you go down one route because you think you have to take every opportunity and things don't work out as well as you'd planned, but you learn from each experience. In 2003, 14 of us crewed a boat to break the cruise round-the-world record, and we were comfortably within reach of breaking it, but then our mast broke and we limped into Freemantle, Australia, two weeks later, our hopes dashed. You can't foresee every possibility in this line of work, but I try my hardest to make sure I'm as prepared as possible. I'm not someone who regrets things in my life – everything happens for a reason.
Is there anything you hate about dealing with money?
Money's a great enabler and is a means to an end, but I hate chasing it.
What sort of tipper are you?
If they're pleasant and do a good job, then I'm a fair tipper. However, when I'm out doing work for my sustainable living foundation, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, I find it much harder because it's essentially someone else's money.
Do you bank online?
Yes, because needs must, given my schedule, but I think it's nice to be able to pick up the phone and speak to someone or visit a branch in person. It's very sad that there's less and less personal contact. It's all about continuity and building a relationship.
Do you invest in stocks and shares?
I'm not really into that. I prefer investing in tangible things like tools or skills. I'm investing in my future and doing something I can control, whereas investing in something outside your control doesn't change your future, it's just parking things where you hope they don't get smaller. That's a conversation I often have with the financial adviser for my foundation and my cancer charity, the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust. While past economic trends can guide you, I tend to use my gut feeling to make decisions.
What's your financial priority for the next five years?
I'm not earning anything at the moment apart from the book I wrote, Full Circle, because all the work I do for my foundation and cancer trust I do for free. So my priorities are professional ones – how the funding is going to be spent, securing more of it and spreading the message of the foundation about how important living and working sustainably is.

 If you could play God, Is there anything about the business world you would change?

Yes, I think one of the most important things to do is think long term, and very few chief executives and strategists do. They're more homed in on quarterly and annual reports, rather than how will this business run in 10 years' time. Visionaries are a rare breed.
Musto has supported Ellen's projects since 1995. For more info on Ellen and Musto visit musto.com

Strategies to help get a home sold

By Liz Weston Money Talk
Removing some of the contents can make a home seem larger. Other relatively inexpensive fixes can include minor repairs and refreshing the landscaping. But don't embark on major projects.
Dear Liz: My elderly mother lives in another state and her health is deteriorating. We want her to come live with us, but her home has been on the market for more than a year and hasn't sold, even after several price cuts. She's depressed and we're getting frantic. What can we do?
Answer: If her goal is to sell the house, she probably needs to cut the price even more. In most real estate markets today, what gets a home sold is a truly competitive price.
You also might consult an experienced real estate agent about what low-cost improvements could speed the sale. If the home is cluttered or stuffed with furniture, for example, removing one-third to one-half of the household contents can make the space seem dramatically larger. Your mom will be packing and discarding all this stuff anyway, and starting the process now can help sell the home. If she's not able to manage this alone, consider taking a week or so off to help her or hiring a professional organizer to assist with the process.
Other relatively inexpensive fixes can include minor repairs, refreshing the landscaping, washing the windows and deep cleaning the house. Your mom shouldn't embark on any major projects because she's unlikely to recoup the expense. But the money she spends getting her home ready for sale can be deducted when she determines whether she has any taxable profit on the sale. (Typically $250,000 of home sale profit is tax-free. The limit is $500,000 for married couples.)
Another alternative is to simply move her in with you and rent out the home, but trying to manage a rental long distance can be a hassle. If that turns out to be your best option, consult the real estate agent for referrals to good property management firms.
Troubled financial past haunts job seeker
Dear Liz: How do you recover from bankruptcy? My daughter lost a very good job and got upside down with her house, so she had to file for bankruptcy. She is working now in a very low-paying job but cannot find a good job in her field of finance. Everything goes well in the interviews, but then they check her records for bankruptcy. Once they learn that she was bankrupt, they will not hire her. How can she dig out of this predicament?
Answer: Federal law prohibits employers from using a bankruptcy filing as a reason not to hire (or to fire or decline to promote) someone. However, most states allow employers to check credit reports, and employers are allowed to use the negative marks they find there as a reason to not hire someone. Since most people who file for bankruptcy have plenty of late payments and charge-offs leading up to the filing, that gives employers the legal cover they need to refuse to hire someone with a checkered financial past.
Interestingly, there's no research or other evidence that indicates bad credit leads to problems on the job, such as theft or even poor performance. Yet employers continue to use credit checks to screen out job applicants for a wide variety of jobs.
Only six states — California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Oregon and Washington — restrict employers' ability to check credit reports, and often there are exceptions for jobs in finance or those that involve access to large amounts of cash.
Unfortunately, that means your daughter's troubled financial past may continue to haunt her for years to come unless she finds an employer willing to overlook it. Most negative marks stay on credit reports for seven years, while bankruptcies can stay on for up to 10 years.
Getting a better deal on credit cards
Dear Liz: I would like to get my interest rate reduced on a couple of my credit cards. I've never been late on a payment and have decent credit scores. But the last time I called to ask for a reduction, the credit card company raised my rate and lowered my limit. I'm hesitant to call and try again. Any suggestions?
Answer: Unless your credit scores are excellent (typically FICO credit scores of 740 or above), these days you probably shouldn't waste your time trying to negotiate a lower rate with your current issuers.
People with great credit have some leverage, because they can easily transfer their balances to competitors offering low rates. People with only "decent" credit usually can't qualify for those offers.
You may be able to get a better deal by transferring your balance to a three-year, fixed-rate personal loan. Check with your local credit union first, as these member-owned organizations often have better rates and terms.
Liz Weston is the author of "The 10 Commandments of Money: Survive and Thrive in the New Economy." Questions for possible inclusion in her column may be sent to 3940 Laurel Canyon, No. 238, Studio City, CA 91604 or via http://www.asklizweston.com. Distributed by No More Red Inc.

Council home sub-lets may be made criminal offence

Plans to make it a criminal offence for council tenants to sub-let their homes are to be unveiled by the government.

 

A consultation will also detail plans to force thousands of tenants earning £100,000 or more to pay market rates.
An estimated 160,000 tenants sub-let their homes, which is not currently an offence.
Ministers call it a "scandal", and the BBC's Robin Brant says they have "long talked of tougher rules". Labour said more affordable homes had to be built.
Housing Minister Grant Shapps said: "For too long this country has turned a blind eye on the multi-billion pound problem of housing tenancy fraud and abuse.
"This year the coalition is determined to end that scandal. Why should someone on a six-figure income enjoy a fantastically subsidised council rent, whilst those in real need languish on the waiting list?
"And why is it so easy to get away with sub-letting your council house at market rent and simply pocketing up to £1,000 a week at taxpayers' expense?"
He told the BBC a new criminal offence was needed because "if the sanctions themselves are so weak, the worst that happens is you get that council home taken away from you if you're found out... we need to change that."
Waiting lists Mr Shapps said he believed the money raised from a clampdown could be worth tens of millions, of which "every penny" would be spent on building houses "for people who are actually in need of that housing".

The coalition is due to launch new consultations ahead of legislation, with any savings pledged to go towards building new social housing.

Ashland couple shun consumerism, make things by hand

By Brian Anderson
banderson@annistonstar.com

ASHLAND – Being invited into Paul Burrell’s house is like being invited to a different era of living.
Shepherds Hill Homestead, the five-acre farm in rural Clay County that Burrell and his wife Angie call home, is filled with the fruits of his and his family’s labor. From the clothes they wear to the food they eat, almost everything they own is created by their hands.
“Anything you think that would have been happening on a farm 100 years ago, we do,” Angie said.
Blacksmithing, knitting, crocheting, basket weaving, soap- and candle-making, and beekeeping are but a few of the trades the Burrell family ply to sustain themselves. On their farm they keep livestock, which provides the materials for the clothes they make and wear, while they grow most of their own food from their garden.
“It really grieves the heart when you can’t produce something that you can hold or look at,” Angie said. “We think that’s missing from the modern world.”
More than 10 years ago the Burrells decided they needed to make a change to a simpler, more spiritual way of living.
“We were discouraged with what was going on, with families falling apart,” Paul said. “We wanted to find the stability in our own family. We really started looking to God.”
“Church was becoming so compromised,” Angie recalled. “There’s got to be something that separates God’s people.”
Together, they looked at the different ways of life of many religious groups and took inspiration from the Amish.
The Burrells’ lifestyle is a contrast to Paul’s profession as an IT client service analyst with Alabama Power, at the company’s office on Quintard Avenue. But the Burrells don’t share all of the ideology of the Amish. For one, they don’t shun technology. They use vehicles to get around, have electricity and Internet service in their home. They have a television which they use to watch movies, but not cable TV.
“We don’t consider ourselves Amish, or even Mennonite,” Paul said. “We’re just Christian.”
Most importantly, Angie said, they accept everyone.
“We don’t shun people who disagree with us,” she said.
And the Burrells don’t live their lives just for themselves. Through their website, they share their skills and tips, present family photos and invite the world to share in their prayer and worship. The website, at http:// http://shepherdshillhomestead.com, has received visits from more than 100 countries, all 50 states and receives 10,000 page hits a month, according to Paul.
And even right in their community, they’re able to get their message out.
“We understand people are going to ask questions,” Paul said about the reaction he and his family sometimes receive when acquaintances or even strangers find out about their lifestyle.
“We want them to ask us,” Angie said. “It’s an opportunity we get to share our faith.”
The Burrells hold weekly worship services, as well as Bible studies and fellowship events, usually including a meal, right in their home an approach they call “home churching.”
“We just have church in our living room,” Paul said.
They’re joined regularly by about 15 other people who come to worship with the family, Paul said.
Faith is the most important part of their lives, Paul and Angie said, but one doesn’t have to believe in order to make changes in their lives to a simpler way of living. Paul said he encourages everyone to try growing their own foods or learning a simple skill that can save money or be a rewarding experience. For him and his family, there’s no better way to live.
“Anybody can do this,” he said. “It just makes sense for us.”
Star staff writer Brian Anderson: 256-235-3546

2012's homebuyers likely seeking to meet needs, not make profit

By Eric Pryne

Buyers aren't purchasing homes as short-term investment vehicles anymore, says principal Jeff Bell of Cobalt Mortgage in Kirkland, and that's a huge shift.

Despite declining prices — or is it because of them? — last year is shaping up as the Seattle area's best year for home sales since the real-estate market tanked in 2007.

Through November, closed sales of houses and condos in King and Snohomish counties were running 10 percent ahead of 2010's pace, according to Northwest Multiple Listing Service statistics (December's numbers are expected Wednesday).
That's still barely half the peak pre-bust volume. But market-watchers say the improvement is encouraging, especially considering 2011 was the first year in the past three with no federal-stimulus tax credits to entice buyers.
So who bought last year? And who's likely to be buying in 2012?
Renters who've decided low prices and interest rates now make buying more attractive than renting, brokers and other industry insiders say.
Investors who sense opportunity in deeply discounted distressed properties. Folks whose changing life circumstances — a new job, a growing family — dictate a move.
And, perhaps most important, people willing to live with the possibility that their home's value may go down still farther before it goes up — because they don't plan to sell anytime soon.
Buyers aren't purchasing homes as short-term investment vehicles anymore, says principal Jeff Bell of Cobalt Mortgage in Kirkland, and that's a huge shift.
"The whole system is different now," he says. "We're going back to the way real estate was 20 or 30 years ago."
Seattle economist Matthew Gardner, who analyzes the market for Windermere Real Estate, concurs.
Before the bust, he says, "it wasn't, 'This is my home.' It was, 'This is going to make me money.' "
Among buyers today, Gardner says, that expectation is all but gone.
No big change
For the most part, industry observers don't expect any dramatic changes in the local real-estate scene in 2012. "The market's probably going to be struggling for a while overall," says Glenn Crellin, director of the Washington Center for Real Estate Research.
"We'll be bouncing along the bottom," OB Jacobi, Windermere's president, told a recent industry gathering.
Prices may slip a little more, experts say, or at best hold steady. Interest rates should stay at or near their record lows.
Inventory probably will remain depressed — in part because so many homeowners are underwater on their mortgages, says Tim Ellis, who writes the Seattlebubble.com real-estate blog: "People who might otherwise be selling can't afford to."
Tougher lending requirements probably will continue to short-circuit a significant number of sales, brokers say — financing obstacles are depressing sales by 10 to 15 percent, says John L. Scott Real Estate Chairman and CEO Lennox Scott.
Finally, observers say, foreclosures — which helped drive sales up and prices down in 2011 — will continue to play an influential role.
Sales of bank-repossessed homes were up substantially last year. They accounted for 17 percent of all King County sales in October, up from less than 10 percent in October 2010, according to Seattle-based real-estate marketplace Zillow.com.
Those homes sold not only for significantly less, but also at steeper discounts than other properties compared to a year earlier. The median price of repossessed houses sold in King County in November was down 18 percent from the same month in 2010, according to an analysis by Washington Property Solutions, a short-sale negotiating firm.
For nondistressed houses, the year-over-year drop was less than 3 percent.
The foreclosure pipeline probably won't dry up anytime soon, most analysts say, despite a recent slowdown in auctions and repossessions they consider merely a pause.
The percentage of Washington homeowners at least 30 days delinquent on their mortgages has nudged up from 7.1 to 7.5 percent over the year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
And, according to Zillow's latest data, 29 percent of King County single-family homes with mortgages have "negative equity" — their owners owe lenders more than the homes are worth.
That's likely to keep foreclosures elevated, says Stan Humphries, Zillow's chief economist.
But their impact on prices doesn't reach across the board, he adds: Higher-priced houses, which face less competition from foreclosures and short sales, have declined much less in value over the past year than lower-priced stock.
That's among the signs of stability in the Seattle market that Humphries says he finds encouraging heading into 2012.
"It's not a terrible time to buy," says Ellis, the blogger. "It depends on your situation."
He bought his first house last year, a short sale in Everett, after looking on-and-off for five years.
Ellis' situation: A growing family that needed more room. Rising rents — he says what he needed would have cost him at least $1,500 a month. Declining home prices. Historically low interest rates.
The monthly payments on his new house — principal, interest, taxes and insurance — total about $1,250, Ellis says.
His home's value could drop over the next few years, he acknowledges, but so what? He plans to stay there at least 10 years.
"You can't count on a house being a good investment," Ellis says. "If you can't hold it for at least seven years, renting may be the better idea."
That's what Crellin, the real-estate researcher, concluded. He moved recently from Pullman to Seattle when his center switched affiliations from Washington State University to the University of Washington.
He's 61, headed toward retirement. When he considered what the real-estate market might do between now and then, Crellin says, he wasn't certain he'd recoup his investment if he bought.
Considerations like that drove buying decisions in 2011 and will continue to drive them in 2012, experts say.
"It's not 'Buy because you're going to get 10 percent appreciation over the next couple years,' " says Bell, the mortgage broker. "It's not what it used to be at all."
He plans to buy a new house this year — and stay there 15 or 20 years. "I'm not looking for the house to appreciate," he says. "I'm moving for my lifestyle."
Another likely 2012 buyer: Zillow's Humphries. He's not looking to make money, he says. He just wants a bigger back yard.
"With three kids, that's important," the economist says.
Eric Pryne: 206-464-2231 or epryne@seattletimes.com

Support for at-home seniors appreciated

By Pauline Buck, Vancouver Sun
Re: Keeping seniors at home saves system money, experts say, Dec. 29
I applaud the article by Tara Carman and must add my kudos to the Fraser Health programs that support at-home seniors and their caregivers.
In addition to saving the system money, at-home care provides families with peace of mind and a sense of continuity that prevents or delays the emotional wrench that must occur while packing up a family member for the move into long-term care.
I am my husband's caregiver. For the past 18 months I (and he) have experienced the tremendous care and support Fraser Health home support and long-term care provides families.
My husband is 80 and suffers from dementia, a condition that was diagnosed over two years ago. His decline has been rapid and reached the point where I could no longer leave him alone at home while I went to work.
Thanks to my company's agreement to a flexible working arrangement, and Fraser Health's seniors' programs, we have been able to maintain some semblance of our normal life. Last January, I started working two days a week from home and driving two days a week into the office. With the help of a case manager we enrolled Bill in the adult day program at Maplewood Seniors Centre in Abbotsford. He attends twice a week and loves it. Those have been the days I went into the office.
Two other days a week, community health workers came to care for Bill while I work from home. Most of the time we were assisted by the same person, which enabled Bill to establish an easygoing relationship and left me completely free to do my work.
When I met someone new at the door, I was always delighted with the ease with which they settled in for their shift and helped care for Bill.
I have just retired from my job, and don't need the in-the-home care at the moment. But Bill will continue to attend the adult day program. He would miss his friends there, and, as his caregiver, I will need those two days to myself.
Thank you Fraser Health for helping me and our family make the transition from a healthy husband, dad and grandpa to one who now has special needs.
Pauline Buck Abbotsford

Is It Time To Switch Home Insurance To Save Money?

By Julian Stone
As we look forward to the new year, many are worried about their personal finances and yet fail to switch any of the most common financial products to save money, including home insurance, car insurance, energy provider, credit card or mortgage lender. Is it time to switch?

According to Gocompare.com, whilst 65% of consumers are concerned about their financial position for 2012, over 12 million of them haven’t switched any of the 20 most common financial products in the last year.
Switching energy provider for example may save money and it is likely to be easier than you might initially think. In fact, customers who switch their gas and electricity provider with Gocompare.com could save up to £557.33¹.
Just 26% of consumers have switched their home insurance provider in the last year which means around 19 million² households could also be paying too much to protect their home and belongings.
Gocompare.com customers save, on average, £125.33 by switching their buildings and contents insurance after comparing policies from over 80 different insurers and brokers.
John Miles, business development director at Gocompare.com, said: “Nearly two thirds of Brits are expecting 2012 to be a very difficult year for their finances, but our research shows that millions of consumers could be missing out on hundreds of pounds worth of savings by not reviewing their finances and switching to better deals on some of the most common financial products. Insurers, banks, energy providers and lenders do not customarily reward loyal customers with the best premiums, interest rates or tariffs, so it’s up to the consumer to spend a little time seeking out the best deals.
“If one of your New Year’s resolutions was to sort out your finances, spending a few minutes on a comparison site could go a long way to easing your 2012 money worries.”
MoneyHighStreet.com comments: “It seems that ‘save money’ is going to be top of the agenda for many as we head into 2012. That means taking every opportunity to do just that, including assessing whether it’s time to switch provider for your financial products.
“Comparing deals on comparison sites such as Gocompare.com or moneysupermarket.com is very useful and makes the whole process of getting such as the best car insurance or home insurance a lot easier.
“That said opting for the cheapest price should not be the only criteria you use to purchase products. Make sure what you buy really does suit your needs.
“If you have for example an unusual set of contents to insure you are unlikely to best suited with buying a standard home insurance product. Perhaps you have some high value antiques or have inherited some art or jewellery from family or friends.
“If you are in doubt or need advice then it may well pay you to seek help from a professional, an insurance broker or mortgage broker for example.”
1 – Based on customers who switched energy supplier for both gas and electricity (dual fuel) using the Energylinx powered Gocompare platforms during the 1st July – 30th September 2011. 10% of customers who switched gas and electricity with Gocompare.com saved up to £557.33.
2 – According to the Office for National Statistics there are 26.1 million households in the UK. 73% of people have not switched home insurer in the last 12 months. 73% of 26.1 million is 19,053,000 and 89% of people who have not switched their energy provider equates to 23,229,000.
7 – Based on customers who switched energy supplier for both gas and electricity (dual fuel) using the Energylinx powered Gocompare platforms during the 1st July – 30th September 2011. 10% of customers who switched gas and electricity with Gocompare.com saved up to £557.33.