| Username |
Post |
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 09:07 AM
By Dominic Casciani
BBC News Online community affairs reporter
Market research suggests there is a potentially huge market for Islamic mortgages in the UK - but how do they benefit Muslims trying to buy a home?
Waseem and Saima Taj want to buy their own home but it is proving difficult: They can't get a mortgage which complies with their faith.
The young couple married in March this year and are embarking on their careers. They live in west London with Mr Taj's parents.
The monthly payments will be more but that's not the issue ... We will have the satisfaction of knowing the mortgage is halal Waseem Taj
Their hopes of getting their own place are being delayed by the high price of London property and, more importantly, the lack of mortgages in the UK which comply with Islamic law. "We're living with my parents at the moment because we're trying to save enough money for a house," says Mr Taj. "Ideally we want a two-bedroom house near to where we live. We have thought about moving out of London but don't really want to because all our family are here." Mr Taj, who works in the IT industry, began looking into buying a home during his studies."When I learned how mortgages work and that you have to pay interest, I spoke to Islamic scholars for advice. "I decided mortgages based on interest would not be acceptable to me because they would compromise Muslim principles." Mortgages from British financial institutions are interest-based, something which does not comply with Islamic Sharia law. Islam has no objection to wealth creation, but says it must be based on partnerships and fairness where risks and rewards are shared. In the eyes of Islamic scholars, interest is an excess payment from one party to another which is unrelated to the value of the goods traded. Mortgage interest is therefore unacceptable because one party gains at the other's expense without any regard to the price paid for the home. This means many Muslims in Britain find themselves in a difficult situation, trying to balance the core principles of Islamic equality with the realities of the British mortgage market. In many cases Muslims conclude they have no choice but to reluctantly take out an interest mortgage - something Mr Taj's own parents did. But Mr and Mrs Taj are among a growing number of young couples who want to turn to the two lenders in the UK offering Sharia compliant mortgages - the United Bank of Kuwait and the West Bromwich Building Society.
An example of how they compare
Once the Tajs find a house, the lender buys on their behalf and owns it outright.
It would make a real difference if there were more products on the market ... then there would be more choice for Muslims
Just as with an interest mortgage, the couple move in and begin paying instalments to the lender to slowly buy the home over many years.
But the difference is they also pay a rent to the lender who has effectively become their landlord. The lender owns the property and receives a rent until the Tajs pay the final instalment. In Islamic terms, the rent is not another name for interest: It is seen as a fair payment for use of the property rather than a charge for borrowing money.
There are a number of factors which make this more expensive than an interest mortgage. Firstly, the couple need a large deposit of 20% of the value of the home.
Secondly, because the process means the home legally changes hands twice, the Tajs will end up paying stamp duty twice, rather than once.
The couple have an added worry of trying to save enough to keep up with the rising London property market.
Prepared to pay more "I don't mind paying a lot more for our home through an Islamic mortgage," says Mr Taj."The monthly payments will be more but that's not the issue. The issue is we will have the satisfaction of knowing the mortgage is halal [permitted]. We're prepared to accept the costs." So is there a demand for this type of mortgage?
"There's enormous interest in this subject among young Muslims. A lot of our friends are in the same situation," says Mr Taj. "Some have managed to raise the money to take out an Islamic mortgage. "A few of them have taken out interest mortgages because they feel it is the only choice they have, given the costs. "I think they feel guilty about it but believed they had no alternative. "It would make a real difference if there were more products on the market. Then there would be more choice for Muslims."
|
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 09:08 AM
Drug dog's intimate sniff not assault
Fri Nov 29, 2:18 AM ET
CANBERRA (Reuters) - Rocky the police dog was just being friendly when he nuzzled the crotch of a drug suspect and did not breach the man's rights, an Australian court has ruled.
The 22-year-old suspect was found to be carrying amphetamines and cannabis but the man's lawyers had argued that Rocky's crotch nuzzle amounted to assault.
"If your honour were to do as this dog did and nuzzle the defendant's genitals, it would be an indecent assault," lawyer Clive Steirn was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper on Friday.
But Supreme Court Justice Barry O'Keefe said the crotch nuzzle by Rocky outside a Sydney nightclub in February 2001 did not constitute a search and the act of sniffing involved no trespass.
"When a 'crotch nuzzle'...is performed by a dog in relation to a human being, it may be no more than a conventional, friendly, social gesture with no hostile intent, and unlikely to constitute an assault," O'Keefe said.
O'Keefe's ruling on Thursday overturned an earlier decision to dismiss drug charges against the man, the newspaper reported.
|
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 09:10 AM
November 29, 2002 - Wireless Flash
Corey Feldman Talks `Hef'
LOS ANGELES (Wireless Flash) -- The first issue of "Playboy" came out 49 years ago on Sunday (Dec. 1), and one of the folks celebrating is Hugh Hefner's pal, former child actor Corey Feldman.
Feldman met Hef a few years back at one of the "Playboy" mogul's parties, but didn't get in good with him until just recently.
"Goonies" star Feldman says he recently started getting invited to "Sunday movie night" at the Playboy mansion, which he says is the only time you can really have a good heart-to-heart with Hef.
According to Feldman, Sunday nights at the mansion are like "going to the local bar," but Hef's infamous parties are a whole different story.
Feldman says although it's hard to wrangle Hef for a conversation at his parties, he "throws better parties than anybody in the world." So good, in fact, that Feldman says he wants to rent out the place and throw one of his own.
Sadly, Feldman says that renting out the mansion is "hugely expensive" so he hasn't been able to do it yet.
|
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 09:15 AM
Men/Women Bashing
Q: How many honest, intelligent, caring men in the
world does it take to do the dishes?
A: Both of them.
__________________
Q: How does a man show that he is planning for the
future?
A: He buys two cases of beer.
__________________
Q: Why are blonde jokes so short?
A: So men can remember them.
__________________
Q: How many men does it take to change a roll of
toilet paper?
A: We don't know; it has never happened.
_________________
Q: Why is it difficult to find men who are sensitive,
caring and good looking?
A: They all already have boyfriends.
__________________
Q: What do you call a woman who knows where her
husband is every night?
A: A widow.
__________________
Q: When do you care for a man's company?
A: When he owns it.
__________________
Q: How do you get a man to do sit-ups?
A: Put the remote control between his toes.
___________________
Q: What did God say after creating Adam?
A: "I MUST be able to do better than that!"
___________________
Q: What did God say after creating Eve?
A: "No need to mess with Perfection."
___________________
Man says to God: "God, why did you make woman so beautiful?"
God says: "So you would love her."
"But God," the man says, "why did you make her so dumb?"
God says: "So she would love you."!
|
| Tropical |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 10:25 AM
Q: What did God say after creating Adam?
A: "I MUST be able to do better than that!"
___________________
Q: What did God say after creating Eve?
A: "I MUST be able to do better than that!"
Q: What did God say after creating the Hijara?
A: ""No need to mess with Perfection." !"
|
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 12:30 PM
LONDON (Wireless Flash) -- The world will have to face it: Surgeons say full face transplants are now possible. Doctors at London's Royal Free Hospital say it's possible to give patients new skin, bones, noses, chins, lips and ears from deceased donors. Still, the physicians are debating whether it's ethical to do so.
PUTNEY, Ky. -- A former sex toy shop in Putney, Kentucky, has become a born-again Christian. The store's owner converted the kinky boutique into a Christian merchandise shop after he himself converted. The owner says God persuaded him to burn $10,000 worth of sex toys and start selling bibles instead.
NEW YORK -- Don't think your office-mates want to spend any more time with you than they have to. According to a survey by outplacement firm, Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., most workers would rather get a free lunch and the rest of the day off with pay than attend an office holiday party.
SARONNO, Italy -- A thief was caught "red-groined" at a supermarket in Saronno, Italy, after stuffing a frozen chicken drumstick into his pants. A cashier saw the man hopping around in discomfort and called security. The guy then admitted to lifting the frozen poultry.
LONDON -- Want some spiders with those grapes? A British supermarket chain has just admitted to using deadly Black Widow spiders to kill off pests on produce. London's "Sun" tabloid reports the disclosure comes after three different customers found Black Widows in fruit they bought at different branches of the Tesco chain.
|
| Koko |
Posted
on 29-Nov-02 12:38 PM
Prince Charles Opens Pub
POUNDBURY, England (AP) - Prince Charles has opened a pub called the Poet Laureate in honor of his friend, the late Ted Hughes.
The pub is part of Poundbury, a village on the edge of Dorchester in southwest England that has been constructed in keeping with Prince Charles' vision of a community with industry, offices, shops, houses and leisure facilities.
The prince was joined by local residents and Carol Hughes, widow of the former poet laureate, at the opening of the pub Wednesday.
"It's a great honor. One can never answer for someone who is not there for themselves, but he certainly supported the prince's vision and ideas for Poundbury as much as he knew of them," Carol Hughes said.
Ted Hughes, who became poet laureate in 1984, died of cancer in 1998. His books included "Birthday Letters," a collection of passionate and mournful poems about his marriage to the celebrated American poet Sylvia Plath, published only months before his death. Plath committed suicide in 1963.
Mark Hefer, proprietor of the Poet Laureate, showed the prince around.
"The pub is at the heart of Poundbury and the style will certainly reflect Prince Charles' vision for the village," he said.
|
