Regulation offers compensation to homeowners who have been unfairly evicted, says Jill Insley

Homeowners who fall victim to rogue "sale and rent back" companies may be able to claim compensation from next month, following an announcement that such companies will be partially regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

The FSA will implement interim regulations from 1 July to tackle immediate problems for sale and rent back customers. This means that people who unfairly suffer loss of money or of their homes through these controversial schemes will be able to take their cases to the Financial Ombudsman, should they not receive acceptable redress from the companies themselves.

Sale and rent back companies, which usually advertise in the back of tabloid newspapers and on websites, target homeowners who are struggling financially by offering to buy their homes and allow them to stay on as tenants, usually on an assured shorthold tenancy lasting six to 12 months. The homeowners pay for a valuation - typically £500 - only to find that the prices offered by these companies fall far short of the market value.

Pauline Whitwell and her husband approached the sale and rent back company National Homebuyers after his work as an engineer dried up. The Lincolnshire couple had fallen behind with mortgage payments and, although their home was for sale at a newly reduced price of £225,000, she was suffering from depression and needed their financial problems to be sorted out quickly.

The Whitwells say that, after detailed questioning about their finances, they were asked to pay £500 for a valuation and conveyancing costs. They borrowed the money and, a week later, were told that, while National Homebuyers had valued their home (without visiting it) at £219,995, it would pay only £136,000 - a 38% "discount" and less than the £150,000 they needed to repay their mortgage.

Whitwell says: "How were we meant to give them the keys for £136,000? They must have known we and our lender would never agree to it." Despite the Whitwells' complaint about the low offer, National Homebuyers kept the £500 fee.

Julian King, managing director of National Homebuyers, says: "The company offers below market value in return for a quick and hassle-free sale. National Homebuyers' offer was based on a quick-sale valuation of £195,000. Several calls were made to the customer, without success, in order to discuss the price."

Sale and rent back companies have been completely unregulated, and some homeowners that have gone ahead with the deals have found themselves facing eviction, either because the company wanted to sell the property on or failed to keep up the mortgage payments.

Ed Harley, the FSA's head of mortgage policy, said: "Some consumers enter into sale and rent back arrangements without understanding the costs and risks involved. This can be a source of distress for people in already difficult circumstances. Firms entering our regime will need to run their business in a way that means customers are treated fairly. This includes making clear to customers important details, such as the length of time they can stay in the property, before they enter into the arrangement."

The FSA will be able to stop, ban or fine firms that break its new rules. Full regulation of sale and rent back firms will be implemented on 30 June 2010.

Case study: 'I wouldn't want anyone to go through this'

Jean Turner and her husband sold their Norwich home to a sale and rent back company after falling into arrears on their mortgage. They owed only £1,500, but had been taken to court by their lender and faced repossession.

Turner, now 53 and on disability benefits, approached the local council for advice and was given the number of a firm called Home Assured. Its representative visited the Turners and agreed to buy their home; the firm paid off the outstanding mortgage and arrears, but kept additional money due to the Turners "in case they needed work doing on their home". The rent was £500 a month - the same as their mortgage - but they had no tenancy agreement or rent book.

After the intervention of the housing charity Shelter, the couple managed to get the outstanding money. But later, Turner, now separated from her partner and fending for herself, discovered that Home Assured had sold her home on to another owner. She has received court summonses because the new owner has failed to keep up mortgage payments. When he tried to hike the rent up to £650, saying all she had to do was ask the council for more money, Jean refused, went to Shelter for help again and now lives in local authority housing.

"It was a horrible experience," she says. "It's about time someone did something about these schemes. I wouldn't want anyone to go through what I have over the past few years."

Thousands could lose their homes this summer

The Observer has been highlighting the plight of people who have fallen victim to sale and rent back schemes for several years. Unfortunately, the rule changes will not allow those who have already suffered from rogue traders to claim compensation retrospectively.

The regulation of sale and rent back companies comes just as research by the homelessness charity Shelter indicates that thousands of homeowners with high-risk sub-prime mortgages could lose their homes before the end of the summer.

Its poll shows that more than 22% of respondents, equivalent to about 160,000 households, admit to struggling or falling behind with their monthly mortgage payments. Many say they have been forced to take drastic measures such as borrowing from friends and family, using credit cards and taking out loans.

And 36% of Shelter's respondents - equivalent to about 260,000 households - say they would be unable to meet their mortgage payments in full if their income dropped significantly.

Sam Younger, chief executive of Shelter, said: "With 75,000 homes predicted to be repossessed this year, more and more struggling homeowners will be tempted by sale and rent back schemes in the hope they can offer a lifeline. However many schemes are exploitative, leaving people financially worse off and vulnerable to homelessness.

"It is vital that the FSA enforces the regulations fully and gets the whole industry signed up immediately."

Petro-dollars are not enough for Qatar: as the west struggles, the reserved and complex emirate is turning to finance. By Ruth Sunderland in Doha

It's reality TV, but not as we know it. While we have been gripped by the rise and fall of Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent, viewers in Qatar are tuning in to Stars of Science, a new reality show beamed across the Arab world, where brainy youngsters compete to produce the best invention.

Among the hopefuls is Hashem al-Sada, a 22-year-old Qatari who is not a star on YouTube, but has devised a tent fitted with solar panels for electricity generation. The show has deliberately eschewed the cruelty of booting out losing candidates: instead, they are invited to team up with successful competitors.

Stars of Science encapsulates the huge faith Qatar puts in research and innovation; the contrast between it and our version of reality TV also says something about the arrogance of assuming western cultural values are automatically superior, though that's another story.

It is not just the TV that is different in Doha. Flying from a downbeat London into the vast, pristine international air terminal is like arriving in another world. The commercial property market in the UK is on its knees, but in the West Bay business district gleaming towers are springing up in the blistering 50C heat. They bear witness to the determination to reduce Qatar's dependence on oil and gas by building a sort of Canary Wharf in the desert - only without the excessive bonuses and the ruinous risk-taking.

While Gordon Brown's grip on government has been weakened by the crunch and the MPs' expenses scandal, the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al-Thani, does not have to deal with the inconvenience of an electorate and has been able to press quietly ahead with plans to diversify the economy.

Dr Tidu Maini is executive chairman of the Qatar Science and Technology Park, set up to commercialise research in energy, the environment, healthcare and IT; he recently established an experimental facility with Qatari company GreenGulf to study solar-to-electricity conversion methods. "Instead of putting our money into a solar company in the UK or Germany, we are investing in our own country," he says. "There is nobody doing what we are doing in a comprehensive and strategic way."

With a dry smile, he adds: "But it's easy for us because we are a small country and don't have a corrupt parliament."

As Britain remains in recession, Qatar's per capita income has crossed the $70,000 (£43,000) a head mark, making it one of the wealthiest nations in the world. The Qatar Central Bank estimates growth of 7-9% for this year; the IMF predicts growth of 15-18%. Whatever: these are figures Alistair Darling would give his second home for.

Dubai, which has little in the way of oil and gas, may have gone through a highly leveraged boom and bust (see below), but Qatar is in a very different position.

It is currently running a small budget deficit - the first for nearly a decade - because oil prices have been low, although if they show a sustained improvement, that will be eradicated by the end of the fiscal year. But it has a good credit rating, and, most important, it has about 90 years' worth of oil reserves and more than 200 years of gas production. Not that there is any schadenfreude at Dubai's downfall; the feeling is that the whole region will have to support Dubai for the sake of collective credibility.

Neither have the Qataris got too overwrought about the recent rise in the oil price to a six-month high above $67 a barrel, which has led some commentators to speculate about a resurgence of the petro-powers. Opec, the oil producers' cartel, wants to see the price stabilise at around $75 a barrel, which it reckons is the level needed to ensure investment in new supplies. Whether or not that pans out, the Qataris are interested in moving beyond petro-power and rebasing their economy so they are not hostage to a volatile oil price.

Ahmad Anani, a partner in the Al-Tamimi law firm in Doha, says: "I don't think Qatar perceives itself as a petro-power in the conventional sense ... There is no interest in flexing their muscles like Vladimir Putin, or in blowing money in Mayfair casinos. They are using the money to develop the country."

Qatar has been cushioned from the global downturn by its position as the world's leading exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) - gas that has been turned into liquid form, making it easier to ship around the world. The UK is a big customer: the Queen and the Emir opened a new LNG terminal in Milford Haven last month. But despite the fact that LNG is a superb resource, the Qataris see no reason to rest on their laurels.

Phillip Thorpe, chairman and chief executive of the Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) Regulatory Authority, says: "Whether oil is at a sustainable level is anyone's guess. The real point is that there has been a maturity around the way the government is approaching oil and gas revenue. It is a wonderful bounty today, but what about tomorrow? There are decades of gas reserves and you would think it's a good reason to go to the beach - but that is not future-proofing the economy."

Thorpe is a key player in one form of future-proofing: the push to turn Doha into a regional financial centre - a Switzerland in the sand, with insurance and wealth management as major elements.

The QFC's headquarters, where Thorpe has his offices, are in a building that is only a few years old - though that makes it practically an ancient monument by the standards of West Bay. It started in 2005; now it has 113 staff and licensed its 100th institution at the end of last year, a Qatari full-service Islamic bank. Next month it will launch Qatar Insurance Services, a system for processing and trading between insurers and reinsurers, with 17 firms as strategic partners.

Another major initiative is the setting up of the Qatar Finance and Business Academy, to try to ensure there are enough well-trained local staff to run a 21st-century financial centre.

Jon Morton, QFC's director for financial development and a former deputy principal of Henley Management College, says: "We need to concentrate on middle-management talent - things like the English language, and a focus on the customer, not an internal focus."

The structure and the skills of the population are a serious challenge. Of the 1.5 million residents, only around 250,000 or so are native Qataris; the rest are expats. It means very few people will be supporting what could be a very large and turbocharged economic engine. Mohamad Moabi, assistant general manager with Qatar National Bank, says: "The challenge is to develop citizens for a post-oil economy. A knowledge-based economy is very important."

To that end, education is free from kindergarten to university level. The seriousness of the commitment to learning is manifest in Education City, a 14 sq km development on the outskirts of Doha that houses not only schools but outposts of leading US universities such as Cornell, Georgetown and Carnegie Mellon. As one British expat sighs: "If my kids were Qatari citizens, all my worries about education would be over."

Dr Mohamed Fathy Saoud, president of the Qatar Foundation, which backs Education City, says: "Human resources are more important than oil and gas resources. We are bringing one of the brightest facets of western civilisation to the region: the top universities. If you talk to people on the street they will be opposed to what the US and the UK did in Iraq, but this project is saying 'look beyond that to what these countries have contributed to education and research'."

The sheer pace of economic development is throwing up social and cultural issues. One is the situation of women. The Emir's consort, Sheikha Mozah, plays a highly visible role in a region where royal wives until recently were rarely seen and certainly never heard.

While it is a deeply conservative society, Qatari women can vote, drive and play a full part in the workplace: headscarves are a frequent sight, but the dress code for women is not as strict as in Saudi. Dr Sheikha Abdulla al-Misnad, president of Qatar University, says about half her staff and 70% of her students are women. "We are very proud of how well our young women are doing, but there is an issue about our young men. Girls work hard and get better grades in high school, while young men drop out." Girls have been high achievers partly because of cultural expectations, she adds.

"Society expects women to work in a safe and professional environment, in a high status job, not to be in low-skill jobs and this is part of the reason why they are they are so determined to succeed academically. It is creating social problems because women are finding their marriage suitors are less qualified.

"The number of single women is increasing. It is difficult for lots of young professional women to find a husband. People don't have taboos about women in education because when education started in Qatar it started for both men and women from the outset, unlike many universities in the West which had been were exclusively for men for decades before women were granted access to higher education."

None the less, the divide may be creating social tensions simply because the women are finding many eligible bachelors less qualified than they are. While the Qataris are keen to show visitors their sunlit uplands, one does have a sense of a reserved, multi-layered, complex society where difficult topics are not discussed, particularly with western journalists.

Qatar has been keen to establish itself as the focal point of the new Arab media: its flagship broadcaster is Al-Jazeera, founded in 1996 and regulated by the UK's Ofcom in the hope of fending off accusations of bias, and the Doha Centre for Media Freedom was set up last year.

Participants don't pull punches in the Doha Debates, a forum for free speech tackling the region's thorniest issues. In the most recent, the vote was in favour of letting Muslim women marry men of their choice. However, the media has a deferential air and the line is that the press should be free, but "respectful".

Thorpe, who was pushed out of his job as head of the Dubai financial regulator after objecting to interference from above, says he is able to operate in Qatar without fear or favour: "The message being sent out by the Emir and the government is that everyone has to abide by the rules."

But it's important to remember who makes the rules. The Emir, who deposed his father in a bloodless coup in 1995, may be an enlightened monarch who has moved towards democracy, but there is no doubt who is in charge.

The credit crunch has led to greater questioning of the western economic and social model. As Moabi says: "Excessive risk-taking and innovation in financial products really hurt the financial system ... Who would have thought that GM would be filing for bankruptcy? We don't have MPs abusing expenses, or Madoffs. Our image of western people is not tarnished, but our image of the system is."

Like the UK, Qatar is a small nation punching above its weight. Like the UK, it wants to become a knowledge-based economy. Like Tony Blair, it has a leader who believes in education, education, education. Perhaps - unlike the UK, which failed to husband its oil wealth - it will make wise use of its windfall.

Dubai's downturn

Dubai has been through a painful learning experience over the past six months. The boomtown of the Gulf, bling capital of the Middle East and the most globalised of the region's economies, it has born the brunt of the world's financial hurricane.

Casualties range from the property speculators who lost millions in the 65% collapse of real estate prices to the sun-seeking expatriates who have quit their tax-free beachside lifestyles, down to the lowly-paid construction workers who have been "relocated" to other projects in the Gulf or back to their homes in Kerala or Guangdong.

But perhaps the real long-term victim has been Dubai's self-esteem. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Dubai's ruler, has had to pull back from the vision that saw the emirate as "an Arab city of global significance, to rival Cordoba and Baghdad".

Instead, he has turned to Abu Dhabi, the rich but not much liked "big brother" of the UAE federation, for a handout. And "Dubai Inc" has had to trim its plans to be biggest, tallest and most expensive in everything from man-made islands to luxury hotels.

The crisis hit Dubai so hard because it is not an archetypal oil-rich Gulf state. Its oil began to run out in the 1990s and now comprises around 3% of GDP. To their credit, the al-Maktoum dynasty saw this coming and set in train the process of economic diversification that sparked Dubai's emergence as a hub for tourism, air-travel, regional commerce and financial services. Dubai swapped oil dependence for real-estate dependence, with perhaps 40% of all economic activity related to property.

When times were good and credit cheap, this strategy served the emirate well. Dubai Inc performed like a giant operating company, funding growth through borrowing and cash-generation. But the credit crunch hit the emirate at just the wrong phase of the cycle, when borrowings had hit $80bn.

For a while, the reaction was denial, and warning signs were downplayed in the muzzled press. But when the ruling elite pulled their heads out of the sand, a series of crisis measures were enacted - an Abu Dhabi-backed $20bn bond issue, injections of liquidity into the financial system, and the establishment of a committee of the emirates' leading businessmen to oversee a recovery strategy.

The first signs of recovery are perceptible. House prices rose by 5% last month, banks are lending again and the cranes are moving once more over the bigger construction projects. Green shoots are visible - just.

But all eyes now are on the forecast emigration of expats as the fierce summer takes hold. Just how many decide to return to their "Dubai dream" will determine how quickly the emirate pulls of out of its nosedive.

• Frank Kane is a columnist with The National of Abu Dhabi. These are his own views.

From patio furniture to paddling pools, Huma Qureshi rounds up the cheapest deals on the web

You might have been hit by the rain this weekend, but with temperatures predicted to warm up again soon, we're holding out for a barbecue summer.

Here are our favourite finds and best buys online for a summer of outdoor entertaining (fingers crossed):

• Additionsdirect.co.uk

Bargains galore here to pave the way for dining al fresco: special offers include big reductions on garden furniture (a six-piece outdoor dining table set for £79, £30 off a wooden four-piece set). The 70% clearance ends today, so get in quick.

• Marksandspencer.com

So you're all ready to go on a picnic, and then you can't remember if you've got any plastic cups. Well, stock up on the basics here to avoid a last-minute panic - there are some handy special offers when you order online, with three for two on durable acrylic picnicware (prices start at £1). There's also a good range of fun garden games from around £5 - including giant snakes and ladders and noughts and crosses.

• BiomeLifestyle.com

Enjoy an eco-friendly picnic with this green online store. You'll find everything from cheap but durable picnic bags for £6, plate sets from £2 and a picnic bag complete with cutlery, plates and beakers for four people for £25.

• Direct.Tesco.com

If you're on a budget and only have a small amount of outdoor space for a little two-chair balcony or patio set, definitely take a look here. The chic Provence table-and-two-chairs set in slatted metal clocks in at £70 while the mosaic Morocco set costs £80 - the cheapest mosaic table and chair set that we've seen. Other cheap deals include charcoal barbecues from £15, cool boxes for £15 and a reduced picnic blanket for just £7. Use your Clubcard points to cut your bill further - and there's free delivery if you place an order worth more than £50 today.

• Homebase.co.uk

There's more to Homebase than plants and paint pots. Online, you'll find half price on selected garden furniture sets and up to 25% off barbecues. The store is also offering special prices on its best buys range until 15 June. You can earn points on your Nectar card shopping here since the store ditched its own points scheme for this one.

• Gardengames.co.uk

There's no point splashing out unnecessarily on a kids' paddling pool which they might have grown out of next year. This website has a fun range of pools from £9.99.

• Everydaysale.co.uk

If you are throwing a party in the garden or are having a barbecue, don't forget to check for discount codes on your online grocery orders. At Everydaysale, you'll find good discounts for Tesco (£10 off wine orders over £50; £5 off grocery orders over £50 and free delivery on orders over £15); and free delivery at Waitrose Entertaining and Asda on orders over £75 (expires 10 June).

Careful planning and some old-fashioned tricks of the trade can earn profits, writes Marc Lockley

If your house is full of unwanted trinkets, toys and general tat and you could use some extra cash, a car boot sale could be the answer to your problems. In a few hours you could have decluttered your house, perhaps paid for a weekend away and learned a little bit about being a retailer - a handy skill for any negotiator. There are some things you can do to maximise your profits and make sure you earn enough to cover the entry fee.

Do a recce Find a suitable location at carbootjunction.com or yourbooty.co.uk. Visit first as an observer to get a feel for the market and for who's buying. Check where the busiest stalls are pitched; often they will be close to the entrance or to food stalls.

Pack the night before Box up your items so you can quickly load your car in the morning. Put a collapsible table in and put groundsheets in last so that you'll have something to put your items on when you unload.

I wouldn't put prices on items - first, it saves time and, second, people may offer more than you expect. But make sure you are aware of the going rate for your gear and know how much you are prepared to accept for each item - visit sites such as eBay to get an idea. Last year a René Lalique vase bought for £1 by a woman at a car boot sale in Dumfries fetched £32,450 at auction at Christie's, so visit antiques shops beforehand if you think you have a valuable item on your hands.

Get there early Arrive at the site before the official sellers' opening time so that you can be one of the first in the queue. If it is raining, look for a dry pitch to sell your goods. Go with a friend - it helps to have an extra pair of eyes as, unfortunately, there can be thieves about, but it also makes it more fun. If you have time, check other sellers' prices to make sure you are competitive.

Pitch like a pro Set out your stall like a retailer would: put seasonal items at the front with products in logical groupings. For example, on a summer's day, make barbecue and camping equipment and parasols prominent; and put popular all-year-round items such as baby buggies on a "children's goods" rug. If you are selling clothes, use a clothes rail to present them.

If the rules of the sale allow it, offering customers a glass of squash if it is a hot day may help to drum up trade.

When your stall is set out, take a look at it from the front as a customer sees it - would the store appeal to you if you were passing by? Ask yourself what might put people off and have your answers ready. "Does the CD work?" - bring a CD player so that people can try out discs before they buy them. "Does this electronic game work?" - bring batteries. "How does this work?" - bring the manuals and packaging. Now put on your money belt (with plenty of loose change) and prepare to haggle!

Create point-of-sale material People love a bargain, so make signs using sales lines to attract customers - for example, "bogof" (buy one, get one free) or more creative ones like "collectors' gems" for older items such as niche magazines or vinyl records.

Use your negotiating skills Be prepared to bargain and do it with a smile and some charm. If someone is interested in the buggy, why not ask them the child's age and sex - they may be interested in a tricycle or Thomas the Tank Engine toys. If you think someone's offer is too low, politely say no and tell them why you feel it is worth the price you are asking - expert hagglers aren't fearful of early rejection and often bounce back later with a higher proposal.

Move things around If some items aren't selling, move them to a different position on the stall as customers may have missed them when walking past.

Remember why you came If the idea was to declutter, create an "everything must go" sign at the end of the sale. If you think some items might sell better elsewhere, put them to one side. Let customers know about great tactical combinations - the sun hat and shades were £6; now they're £3 for the pair.

• Marc Lockley is the author of How to Pay Less for More (How To Books Ltd).

Are monthly house price indices useful?

No says David Hollingworth, head of communications, London & Country

An Englishman's home is his castle - it's an old phrase and probably one that needs to be updated, as the obsession with property is very definitely a British one. One moment we are delighted at how "rich" we have become as a result of the shuttle-like rise in our property price, the next we are fretting about the onset of a crash and the spectre of negative equity.

Clearly, with our largest financial commitment likely to be a mortgage, it is important for us to have an understanding of the financials behind our home ownership, and house price indices can help with that. However there is a tendency for us to become more concerned with how much money we are "making" or "losing" from one month to the next.

House price indices are certainly important for the industry in measuring patterns in the market. The value they bring to individual homeowners is more questionable. In a market so sensitive to sentiment, they can fuel consumer confidence in the good times, leading to further price rises, and underline broken confidence on the way down, potentially holding the market back from stabilising.

There is now a plethora of house price indices, all tracking different measures. Some, such as Nationwide and Halifax, are based on their lending figures. The figures do provide an up-to-date reflection of what is going on in the market but are not a market-wide sample, and not all the transactions will go ahead.

The Land Registry index covers all transactions that have gone through, so it is based on what people have actually paid for properties. But transactions completing now will have been agreed several months previously, so the figures lag the marketplace.

Indices also "seasonally adjust" their numbers rather than report the baseline numbers. In some cases the index can show a drop after being seasonally adjusted, even though the average house price is higher, as Nationwide's index did in April.

So whilst the figures are all perfectly "correct" it is important to understand what they are telling us. Even the index compilers will generally point to the importance of looking at the longer-term trends rather than reading too much into any one month.

The bottom line is that too much weight is placed on the national house price percentage movement reported so widely each month. Someone looking to buy a property would do much better to research available property in the local market. This will soon give you a picture of what looks like good value, and is more relevant, as regional and local markets will have different dynamics to the national picture.

The primary reason for buying a pile of bricks and mortar is as a home and not as an investment. Better to pay a fair price for a property that suits you than bag a "bargain" price on something that will not be fit for purpose in the longer term. An index cannot make that decision.

Yes, says Martin Gahbauer, chief economist at Nationwide Building Society

The UK has no shortage of house price indices, and there is probably no other country in the world that produces such a wealth of information on the housing market. Yet while the UK may look oversupplied compared with others, I suspect that, if asked, policymakers, academics, business economists and everyday citizens of other countries would say they envy the depth of information available here.

In the UK, private sector housing stock represents 45% of the gross financial assets held by households. For most people, the purchase or sale of a house represents the most important financial decision they will ever make, so reliable and regularly updated information on the trend in house prices is of great benefit.

However, it is not just existing and aspiring homeowners who benefit from a credible source of price information. Most economists agree that house prices affect consumer spending patterns and are an important indicator of the stability of the financial system.

As a result, policymakers need the ability to monitor price trends in order to manage the economy effectively.

While the benefits of being able to track house prices are pretty clear, the practice of measuring them is more complicated. Houses can differ dramatically in terms of their location, floor area, number of bedrooms or bathrooms, to name just a few factors. This means that the average price of properties sold in a particular month can vary solely on changes in the mix of properties being sold. Imagine, for example, that in one month all of the properties changing hands were studio flats, while in the next month all were four-bed detached houses: the average price would show a huge rise even without any change in underlying market conditions.

Luckily, this does not mean that prices cannot be measured accurately. At Nationwide we collect a wide range of information on property characteristics for the mortgages we approve, allowing us to use rigorous and well-established statistical procedures to adjust for potential biases thrown up by the mix of our lending. And the decades-long history of the index allows a more accurate calculation of seasonal influences than some of the "younger" indices available.

Finally, as one of the largest mortgage lenders in the UK - active in all regions - we have a robust sample size that is representative of property transactions taking place across the market. While other soundly produced mix-adjusted indices do not always show the same picture on a month by month basis, over longer periods different indices have tended to show the same pattern in house prices.

So, while they may not be as straightforward to track as other asset prices, with rigour and the right information it is certainly possible to produce accurate and representative measurements.

Given the importance of house prices to the economy, it is certainly worth the effort.

When I was made redundant in January (and found a new, similar job in the pharmaceutical industry in March) it didn't even cross my mind to go to a jobcentre (They can't see the benefit in signing on, Cash, 31 May). I had gone there a couple of times to find holiday work when I was a student and the set-up seems geared to finding jobs in fast-food outlets, on building sites, in call centres and supermarkets. I don't think they'd know much about pharmaceutical or scientific job markets.

The problem with our benefits system, and the way it is funded, is that the vast majority of people who contribute never (and are not eligible to) draw out of it, and the vast majority of those who draw out of it never really contribute.
gfewster on guardian.co.uk/money

This certainly chimes with my experience of jobcentres. Every time I've dealt with them they've been distrustful, patronising and unhelpful, offering only unsuitable roles (a 30-mile commute to stack shelves part-time? I'm not a snob, but I don't consider that a viable option) and threatening to cut off benefits if I didn't take them.

I'd have to be desperate to consider going to their grubby little office again.
mackenga on guardian.co.uk/money

The only time I claimed Jobseeker's Allowance, I saw it as a bit of extra cash that I used for miscellaneous costs of applications and interviews.

The jobcentre was no help in finding me work but they knew that would be the case and let me get on with using agencies etc, no pressure to prove what I was doing or doing things that were not appropriate/relevant for me. In some ways it was helpful - it reminded me I was not the only one. Plenty of people, of all sorts, are in the same boat.
ooomph on guardian.co.uk/money

This is always difficult to resolve when it comes to children (Question of the Week: Would more generous parental leave actually be worse for employees?, Cash, last week). Nick Clegg's proposals have a lot of merit but aren't going to resolve the problem to everyone's satisfaction.

Under the proposals, 18 months is provided so parents can share it or use it together. I feel what would happen is that women would take the first nine months, then go back to work, men would take the next nine months, then the woman would be pregnant again, working on the basis most women would like more than one child, but on average about two years apart.

I'm sure a lot of women reading this will now jump on here and slaughter me for the above. However, there is one unalterable fact. Men can't have children so, unfortunately, women have to make that stark choice - kids or career.

In saying that, there is probably also the view that it doesn't matter how much maternity/paternity leave is put into place and how it is split. There are men out there who think their only contribution to having children is to provide the sperm!
rockinjohncron on guardian.co.uk/money

Bought a flat in Benaulim, Goa (The overseas property dream that continues to end in nightmares, Cash, 31 May). Contractor failed to put in the swimming pool, did not complete to agreed landscaping/garden standard and the front of the building is not walled, despite promises it would be.

The property is occupied by locals and a few Brits and looks a state with rats running about because of the rubbish that is strewn around. It is difficult to put pressure on the contractor, on the verge of bankruptcy, but he is still trading and taking deposits from unwary Brits.

All the Brits say their property has risen in price. This brings in buyers for the builder but nobody is making serious money and most will be lucky to get back what they have laid out. It's a con.
TC, by email

A new law is intended to stop restaurant bosses pocketing staff tips. But as Jamie Elliott reports, there may be no change

A change to the law intended to stop restaurants using tips to make up staff's pay to the minimum wage will do nothing to stop employers pocketing all of the tips diners leave.

Last month the government announced the change to minimum wage regulations, which will come into force in October. It said the measures would close a loophole in the law that allows restaurants to make up staff pay to the minimum wage of £5.73 per hour through tips, and would "give thousands of workers fair wages ... and boost consumer confidence in the use of tips".

Responding to the news, consumer group Consumer Focus said that from October, "customers can be confident their tips will always go to waiting staff."

But, under the new rules, employers will still be allowed to keep all of the service charge and will not be obliged to display their policy on tips. Companies will also continue to be free to use income from tips to pay for wages and other business costs.

Since the planned changes were first mooted, Britain's biggest restaurant chains show no sign of heeding calls for a change in practices - and some clamp-down hard on staff who reveal tipping policies to customers.

"The new rules mean a restaurant will still be able to keep a proportion, or all, of the service charge from October," says Miles Quest of the British Hospitality Association. "But instead of saying staff receive an hourly rate below the minimum wage, topped up to the legal minimum by gratuities, staff contracts will have to state that employees are paid an hourly rate at least equal to the minimum wage."

Topping up pay

Waiters working for high-street chain Carluccio's, for instance, receive £3.75 per hour, plus three-quarters of tips left by customers on debit or credit cards to top their pay up to the minimum wage. Waiters Cash spoke to said that when this combination of basic pay plus tips leaves staff with less than the minimum wage, Carluccio's adds an extra top-up.

Under the new rules, Carluccio's waiters will continue to be entitled to the minimum wage, but this will have to be paid regardless of tips. However, the company will then be under no obligation to pass on any gratuities.

Carluccio's declined to say how it would alter its policy after October, but a spokesperson said: "All cash tips go direct to the waiter. Credit card tips are split with 75% going directly to the waiter and the remaining 25% shared between back-of-house staff but not management. Waiters and waitresses receive varying hourly rates plus their credit card tips, through the payroll. This totals an average of £8 per hour. In the unlikely event anyone falls below minimum wage the company simply tops up."

No change

Last month Tragus, which owns 270 restaurants including the Cafe Rouge, Bella Italia and Strada chains, sent a memo to managers telling them to print weekly reports to check the amounts of service charge individuals were collecting to ensure they were not pocketing any of it.

"If you find certain employees have low service charge, you must organise a meeting with the employee to discuss the reports. This may indicate they are fraudulently having the service removed when it was actually paid for by the customer," the memo said.

The manager who passed the memo to Cash told us: "When staff join we tell them not to say to customers that they don't get the service charge, but to say, instead, that it is distributed amongst staff. If a waiter consistently tells customers what happens to the service charge they will be disciplined and eventually sacked."

He added that the service charge heavily subsidises staff wages - of the £6.50 per hour staff in his restaurant receive, only £2.50 comes from the company, with the rest paid for by gratuities left on debit and credit card. Cash tips go directly to staff. "A medium-size Strada restaurant would take around £2,000 a week in service charges - all our business models are based on collecting this income," he said.

If his restaurant has an exceptionally busy week, staff may receive an extra 50p per hour on top of their basic pay for those seven days - £3.50 for a seven hour shift - but this has happened only three times in the past three months.

"It's very hard to motivate staff to work hard and provide good service when this often makes no difference to their weekly pay," the manager told us.

A spokeswoman for Tragus said: "At all of our restaurants we are happy for our customers to pay with either cash or a credit card as best suits them.

Concerning the recent communication to our restaurants about service charge, this relates to the tightening of controls around cash processing to ensure that the company protects itself against potential frauds.

"Tragus fully complies with the current law concerning national minimum wage and tips, and will ensure it complies with the amended legislation when it comes into effect in October."

Small restaurants

When Cash visited four Bangladeshi restaurants in Brick Lane, east London, waiters told us that all tips - those left on cards and in cash - were kept by the management and that the practice was widespread amongst Brick Lane restaurants. "I feel bad about it, but the owners make the rules," one waiter told us.

In London's Chinatown, however, waiters in six of nine restaurants Cash visited said they did receive all tips on top of their basic pay - in two restaurants staff told us 50% of gratuities went to them, while in only one did they report that no tips were passed on.

Waiters in four restaurants in the Shoreditch area of London also said they received 100% of tips.

The government plans to introduce a voluntary "code of practice on transparency" later this year which it hopes will encourage restaurants to display their tipping policies. However, Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite, the trade union campaigning for change in this area, doubts the code will work.

"There remains an urgent need for a fully transparent tipping system where 100% of tips go to staff," he says. "Unite is unconvinced that the voluntary code of practice will give consumers the clarity they need to be confident that any money they leave will go to the hospitality employees who deserve it. Our experience of the industry does not inspire confidence in its ability to self-regulate on tips and services charges."

Liberal Democrat business spokesman John Thurso agrees. "This legislation has been all fanfare and no detail and will not have the effect it was intended to have," he says. "The law should be changed to make sure waiters receive the minimum wage plus any service charge left by customers."

What can you do?

Approximately a fifth of the UK's 30,000 restaurants do not pass on tips to waiters, according to the British Hospitality Association, despite a YouGov survey of 2,187 adults in January which showed that 94% of customers wanted gratuities to go to staff. 79% thought tipping policies should be clearly displayed.

To give waiters and waitresses the best deal you should:

• Pay all tips (including any service charge added to your bill) in cash

• Ask if all tips are paid to staff on top of the minimum wage

• If you are unhappy, do not pay the service charge - it is usually optional

• Avoid restaurants that do not pass on tips to staff

• Go to fairtips.org to see which restaurants have signed up to the Unite union's fair tips charter

Word on the street: 'I had no idea ... from now on, I'll put the money directly in their hand'

Cash quizzed a number of people outside restaurants in Brighton and London after telling them about our findings.

Reactions ranged from surprise to outrage ...

Carluccio's, Jubilee Street, Brighton:

"The bill was £18.40 and I raised it to £25 because the waiter was working really hard and was so pleasant - I'm disgusted he's not going to get all of my tip and I'm surprised that a company as big as Carluccio's would pull a trick like this. I'll think twice about coming back here."
Frank Holland, musician

"I had no idea the staff didn't get the tip on top of their wages - from now on I'll put it directly into their hand."
Lesley Aggar, photographer

Strada, North Street, Brighton:

"If the tip I leave for staff is in fact going to the business, that feels like theft."
Neil Anderson, wine marketing executive

"Restaurants should make it clear to customers where any service charge goes, so you can make an informed choice about the money you leave."
Melanie Anderson, project manager

Brick Lane, London:

"The law should be changed so restaurants have to give tips to staff on top of their normal pay."
John Atkins

"I worked as a waitress and can tell you staff deserve their tips - it's hard and stressful work. In Canada it would be unthinkable for tips to go to the company - no one would work in a restaurant that did that."
Nicole Brunel, student, Calgary, Canada

"In Germany tips are distributed between the waiters, kitchen and the bar staff, but not the company.

"I leave a tip because I know the staff are not well paid."
Floran Ochsner, lawyer, Munich, Germany

London Bridge:

"It's wrong for someone to be sacked or disciplined simply for taking the tip that was left for them.

"I was a waiter in a hotel where we always got the tips and I certainly wouldn't work somewhere where the company took the tips for itself."
Alan Jackson, accountant

• Do you work for a restaurant that uses tips to pay the minimum wage? Or are you a diner with views on whether or not tips should be paid? If you think they should be paid, how should they be distributed? Get in touch with us by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or write to Cash, The Observer, King's Place, 90 York Way, N1 9GU.