Latest news with #SimonTaylor
ABC News
17-07-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Locals say buying a house in WA's resource-rich Pilbara harder than research suggests
After recent research identified buying a property as a cheaper option than renting in Western Australia's resources-rich Pilbara, those looking to purchase locally say it is easier said than done. While the mining and energy industries have brought plentiful jobs and high wages to the north-west, they have also driven up the cost of living for the remote region's residents. When lenders are asking for deposits of up to 40 per cent and insurance costs are astronomical, families like Harriette Smith's — even with work-based subsidies — are being left behind. While Ms Smith and her family rented through her employer, they were looking for a home to call their own. "We want hooks for them to hang school bags, you know? Maybe one day get a pet and just be able to do things," she said. "One of my kids wants a pink bedroom and a rainbow." But Ms Smith and her husband could not afford a home in the current market, even with subsidies provided by their workplaces. "[We've been saving] on and off for the past five years," Ms Smith said. "I feel like we're getting close to having a deposit, and then a trip to Perth comes up or something comes unexpectedly … and we're not able to afford it. "It's not even just the house price — it's the stamp duty on top of it, and all those extra hidden things that you're not aware of when you get into housing." Pilbara Development Commission chief executive Simon Taylor said saving for a deposit in the region was more complex than in the city. Mr Taylor said the region's homebuyers faced additional challenges. "Incomes are generally much higher in the Pilbara than, say, Perth, but costs of living are higher and that impacts on people's ability to save a deposit," he said. "It's very difficult for people to secure finance, even if they would really like to move into home ownership. "These factors result in very high deposits being required by lenders — often around 30 to 40 per cent of the cost." Building a new home is even more challenging, with the valuation systems employed by banks a limiting factor. "The cost of construction and the land generally exceeds the market value of the property," Mr Taylor said. "That can be by $100,000–$200,000 quite commonly, and banks make an assessment on what they'll lend based on the value, not on the cost." Prospective buyers also face huge insurance premiums in the state's cyclone-prone north. Insurance Council of Australia chief executive Andrew Hall said premiums had increased due to more frequent and severe weather events, while some providers had withdrawn from the region altogether. "We've seen that on top of inflation, which has flown through the building sector and the motor industry," Mr Hall said. "We're also seeing global capital, through reinsurance costs and the like, go up. "Some insurers provide a lot of coverage in northern Australia, while others don't have the network or the infrastructure to support claims in that region." Karratha residents have told the ABC of quotes for home and contents insurance of up to $8,000 for a two-bedroom house. Those employed by the resources industry were often eligible for subsidies, but this was something Mr Taylor said lenders did not always account for. "You need a high deposit and you're stretched for saving, and then part of your effective income is a housing subsidy — but then it can't be taken into account," he said. "If you're trying to save for a house and you're paying high costs and the bank doesn't take account of the housing subsidy in the serviceability, you're in a pretty challenging situation."
Scoop
23-06-2025
- Scoop
Man Arrested Following Takanini Assault
A 33-year-old man has been arrested following an assault near a Sikh Temple in Takanini late yesterday afternoon. The incident occurred at a sports complex on the grounds at around 5pm. Detective Senior Sergeant Simon Taylor, of Counties Manukau CIB, says the man presented on site and was taken into custody this afternoon. 'We have charged the man with two counts of assault with a weapon and one count of threats to kill,' he says. 'He will remain in custody overnight and will appear in the Papakura District Court tomorrow.' Police will be opposing this man's bail. Police thank the community for their support in enquiries to-date. 'We reiterate that this incident is not being treated as a hate-motivated crime, and involves two parties known to each other,' Detective Senior Sergeant Taylor says. Police are continuing to carry out reassurance patrols around the temple.
Scoop
22-06-2025
- Scoop
Investigations Continuing In Takanini Assault
Police are following positive lines of enquiry into an assault at a Sikh Temple in Takanini on Sunday evening. Two people were treated for minor injuries following the incident which occurred at around 5pm at the Takanini School Road site. 'An offender entered the temple and approached a man known to him, who was at the rear of the temple,' Detective Senior Sergeant Simon Taylor of Counties Manukau CIB says. 'He has begun to assault the man, before bystanders have intervened to stop the offending.' During this intervention, a second victim has suffered minor injuries. Security removed the man and he was seen getting into a vehicle before Police arrived on scene. Detective Senior Sergeant Taylor says Police have since spoken with the driver of the vehicle, after it was stopped in the Manurewa area later in the evening. Police are following positive lines of enquiry in relation to the offender. Detective Senior Sergeant Taylor says the incident is not being treated as a hate-motivated crime. 'We acknowledge that this incident was confronting for those who were present at the temple at the time,' Detective Senior Sergeant Taylor says. 'However, we have established that this incident occurred as a result of a dispute between two parties known to each other. 'Both victims have since received treatment at a local medical centre and fortunately no one was seriously injured as a result.' Police are carrying out reassurance patrols around the temple as a result of the incident. Anyone with information that can assist enquiries can update Police online now or call 105, using the reference number 250622/3501.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Wonderfully elegant' Victorian family house on market for close to £2m
A "wonderfully elegant" Victorian family home is on the market for a guide price close to £2 million. Laurel House in Oxford Street, Lee Common, near Great Missenden, offers 2,527 square feet of living space over two floors. Approached via a sweeping driveway, the detached five-bedroom property is listed for sale by Savills with a guide price of £1.95 million. Inside the Victorian house on the market for nearly £2 million (Image: Savills) Arranged around a traditional Victorian entrance hall with an original staircase, the ground floor features a triple aspect bay-fronted living room with an open fireplace and French doors which lead to a rear garden. Other rooms on the ground include a bay-fronted family room with wood-burning stove and a formal dining room. Positioned at the rear of the house with views over the garden is a triple aspect kitchen/breakfast room. Inside the Victorian house on the market for nearly £2 million (Image: Savills) This features a hand-built Simon Taylor country-style kitchen with a tiered central island and an Aga oven. Two sets of doors open to a rear patio and gardens. On the first floor, a split-level landing provides access to four double bedrooms and a further fifth bedroom, which could also be used as a study. Inside the Victorian house on the market for nearly £2 million (Image: Savills) The principal bedroom has a bay window overlooking the gardens and an ensuite bathroom. The remaining bedrooms are served by a family bath and shower room. The gardens are laid to lawn and bordered by mature hedging. The Victorian house on the market for nearly £2 million (Image: Savills) A patio to the rear of the house provides space for outside entertaining and there is also a landscaped area with raised vegetable beds. A large block-paved parking area is situated to the side of the house in front of a detached double garage. Property agent Mike Lillitou, head of office at Savills in Amersham, said: "There are few houses on the market that compare to Laurel House – so wonderfully elegant and in just the most delightful position. Inside the Victorian house on the market for nearly £2 million (Image: Savills) "Nestled well within a generous half acre plot in a highly regarded village location, the property has been enlarged and greatly improved to provide light and spacious accommodation over two well-planned floors. "A classic and sophisticated feel highlights many of its original features, while the lovingly maintained rear gardens are an absolute joy. "Benefitting from a high degree of privacy and seclusion, the property also has the benefit of being within the catchment area of some popular grammar schools, plenty of local amenities and excellent connectivity to London via nearby Amersham or Chesham." Lee Common is a thriving community village in the heart of the Chilterns, offering facilities including a village shop and Church of England nursery and infant school for children aged four to seven.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
HYCU Delivers Industry-First Backup for Microsoft 365 and Cloud Services With 100% Data Control and Storage Efficiency
Improve Control and Cut Storage Costs for SaaS and Cloud Backups through Native Integration with Dell PowerProtect Data Domain Virtual Edition Las Vegas, Nevada, May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HYCU, Inc., a leader for modern data protection for on-prem, cloud, and SaaS and one of the fastest growing companies in the industry, announced enhanced support for Dell PowerProtect Data Domain Virtual Edition to protect SaaS and Cloud workloads. Enhanced support empowers customers to safeguard their cloud data with comprehensive solutions, including backup, disaster recovery, data retention, and offline recovery. These measures are designed to protect against internal, external, and supply chain risks, leveraging the exceptional power, cost-efficiency, and reliability of Dell PowerProtect Data Domain. With the rapid growth of SaaS applications in modern enterprises, platforms like Microsoft 365, GitHub, and Box are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals, while cloud-native applications face escalating cloud exploits. According to The State of SaaS Data Resilience Report in 2024, 70% of organizations reported experiencing data loss in SaaS applications over the past year. While enterprises rely on immutable, tested, and enterprise-class backups for on-premises data, equivalent solutions for SaaS applications are often lacking. Even when protection is available, customers must frequently delegate the responsibility of backups to third-party managed storage providers, rather than utilizing secure and efficient storage resources. This gap in support introduces significant data governance challenges, creating inefficiencies, escalating costs, and exposing organizations to heightened risks in safeguarding SaaS application data. 'Customers have worked hard to protect and ensure recovery of their virtual infrastructure and workloads on-premises. However, as organizations adopt cloud-based business applications and as-a-service offerings, they're encountering unexpected risk,' said Simon Taylor, Founder and CEO, HYCU, Inc. 'The average midsize enterprise uses more than 200 SaaS applications, whether to host critical IP, document management or private communications. Malicious actors have pivoted to exploit these workloads. We're thrilled to collaborate with Dell to make sure customers are completely protected and keeping control of their data with the security, efficiency and cost savings of Dell PowerProtect Data Domain Virtual Edition. This milestone underscores our commitment to helping Dell customers protect and manage their entire data landscape with ease.' HYCU + Dell Technologies: Unified, Secure Data Protection and Retention for More Than 80 Workloads on Dell PowerProtect Data Domain appliances. HYCU, a member of Dell's Extended Technology Complete program, delivers enterprise-grade backup and recovery solutions that span an extensive range of infrastructures, databases, platforms, and SaaS environments. The addition of support for HYCU R-Cloud SaaS complements existing support for Dell PowerProtect Data Domain with R-Cloud Hybrid Cloud edition. Through the award-winning HYCU R-Cloud™ platform, Dell customers benefit from backup and recovery capabilities across on-premises and cloud tailored to individual applications and workloads, blending simplicity with exceptional performance. HYCU R-Cloud enhances data protection with key features, including: Customer-Owned Immutable Backups: Automatically creates policy-driven backups stored securely on customer-managed Dell PowerProtect Data Domain Virtual Edition systems across any cloud environment. Flexible, Granular Recovery: Provides the ability to restore entire SaaS applications after an incident or recover specific objects affected by human error. This ensures uninterrupted access to data during extended outages or supply chain attacks. Long-Term Data Retention: Supports compliance with regulatory mandates such as HIPAA and DORA by providing reliable solutions for offsite data retention and archiving. 'Our long-standing partnership with HYCU and Dell Technologies has been instrumental in how we protect and manage enterprise workloads,' said Ben Sharp, Senior Executive – Infrastructure, Cybersecurity & Managed Services, Intuit Technologies. 'HYCU, paired with Dell Data Domain, gives us robust coverage across our multi-data centre environment. Their Office 365 protection also extends that assurance to our customers' critical Microsoft data.' HYCU will be showcasing its breadth of support at Dell Technologies World in Las Vegas from May 19-22 at Booth #600. For more information, visit HYCU for Dell. For more information on HYCU R-Cloud and its built in Cyber Resiliency framework, visit HYCU R-Shield. Follow HYCU on X (formerly Twitter), connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. This newest support for Dell PowerProtect Data Domain Virtual Edition is available globally through Dell's trusted network of sellers. ### About HYCU HYCU is the fastest-growing leader in the multi-cloud and SaaS data protection as a service industry. By bringing true SaaS-based data backup and recovery to on-premises, cloud-native, and SaaS IT environments, the company provides unrivaled data protection, migration, disaster recovery, and ransomware protection to thousands of companies worldwide. The company's award-winning R-Cloud platform eliminates complexity, risk, and the high cost of legacy-based solutions, providing data protection simplicity to make it the#1 SaaS Data Protection platform. With an industry leading NPS score of 91, HYCU has raised $140M in VC funding to date and is based in Boston, Mass. Learn more at CONTACT: Don Jennings HYCU, Inc. 617-791-1710 in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
