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Mon, 27 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT

What's it like using cork flooring on a residential project?

Fri, 24 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT

In our previous blog, you might remember we tested and researched a whole raft of eco paints for a particular client we have – we also had to look at eco flooring, as this particular family’s sick child has breathing difficulties, so we needed to find non fibrous materials. For our eco paint blog see HERE.

We needed to find a floor for the kitchen/breakfast room where this family spends 80% of its time and also the bedrooms and upstairs hallway in this Victorian detached house.

HUNTING FOR THE PERFECT HEALTHY FLOOR...

For the kitchen our hunt began with ceramic, perhaps not so eco or green you might think, but actually it is. Hygienic, well made and locally sourced too if you look hard enough. This was discounted by the family, they walk around bare feet all the time, so ceramic is cold to the touch and also the floor would not transfer sound, textures and feeling to the autistic child they have. We looked at vinyl flooring, bamboo, wood of course and even rubber!

Vinyl has some great designs now but the gluing process would have given us vapours that were unacceptable to the family and the sick child. Bamboo is super and comes in a range of finishes, colours and thicknesses too, but as we were laying down on top of very bad Victorian flooring we really need this material and the clients didn’t like the look – too Asian in style in old English house. Personally I liked it and thought it would do really well – but then we design for clients not for my tastes!

Wood as great of course, engineered board can be sanded a few times too, laminates were too slippery and the client’s did not like the look of them. Rubber was really cool but not so hygienic in a kitchen? Although suppliers say you can use specific ones in a kitchen. I’m yet to be convinced and the smell is strong when you first lay it. They talked of cork on and off in the first few weeks and my initial reaction was “oh my god it’s going to look like a 1950’s drab house with spotty floors”. We sent off for samples....and we were blown away!

CORK – YES YOU HEARD CORRECTLY....

Some samples looked like the typical cork you would expect from the old tiles you were able to buy years ago. Last time I looked at cork flooring, 4 years ago, the choice was limited to...cork looking? But this time, we received cork that looked like burr walnut, beech, quartz looking and there was a tremendous variety of colour, of course it can be tinted or coloured, but it was rather amazing. We need something mid-brown and we chose the burr-walnut effect for the hallway and bedrooms.

Here we see the little boy’s room ready to be furnished again, with the mid-brown burr-walnut look.

For the kitchen (see here and main picture) we chose a very pale even textured and slightly mottled cork to go with the light oak and light blue units.

In situ they look fabulous, but it was with trepidation that we laid them down, the builders were definitely not convinced- and still aren’t! The connotations with old fashioned horrible yesteryear flooring is too strong!

The flooring is different to other engineered boards, in that it comes as very wide, nearly 300mm and only about 1m long, 10.5mm thick, there is some colour variation and we had to choose what was going to be put down, but the system is a click and lock system, so very easy to lay down. We did put it on an underlay and it has a rather spongy feel to it and the little girl loves it as she can feel the sounds and movements through her feet. p>

It comes pre-varnished with no organic solvents, UV treated and it can be sanded and re-coated. It stands up really well to scratches actually, even with our crew still doing work all over the house. I’ve washed it myself with hot water and Ecover floor cleaner, I have hoovered it and it’s a dream floor.

The kitchen being a light coloured floor does show up stains and marks easily, but the client wanted a very light room as their daughter need lots of natural and reflective light, so they are happy to hoover and wash as and when it needs it.

You do have to watch out when you move furniture, and I wonder what it is going to do when we put back the huge cast iron radiator I have had sand blasted and re-painted (it took 8 men to lift out).

In bare feet it feels fantastically warm, and soft, it’s a very organic experience. But it does look really swish, very designer and that is great.

As for pricing, well just like the Eco paint manufacturers and suppliers, they are not geared up to wholesale trading really; the discounts are 10%, again no competition on normal trade pricing. Prices start around £20.99 per m2 to £31.79 but prices do vary. For us it was a huge outlay as we had to order over 300m2 of flooring. They come in packs and not in linear metres. They charge huge amounts for shipping and although they say they can delivery overnight, this is not correct as most companies have to order from the manufacturer.

Again however, their customer service was exemplary, particularly www.corkfloor.co.uk. We were short of a few packs as we had not accounted for extra wastage on account of the wide boards, and this fab lady in the office sent us a few packs on an overnight delivery although it was 3pm on Thursday. We were then able to finish the kitchen before the owners came back that Sunday.

So would I use it again? Definitely – in the right setting. It is not everyone’s cup of tea but in this instance the family came back to a healthy house and the little girl is thriving in her new environment.

We chose the following suppliers:

Kitchen: www.corkfloor.co.uk

Hallway and bedrooms: www.ukflooring.co.uk

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Home Sweet Home Move

Mon, 20 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT

There aren’t many things that will make your home move “sweet” I’m afraid, but these tips for a well prepared moving day should soften the blow:

Be organised - Know what you need to do, when you need to do it and who will be in charge of each task. The more time you give yourself to prepare, the less time you will spend rushing around in the final days leading up to your move.

Plan your place - Take some time to think about exactly what will go where in your new place. It may be that you will move things around when you are firmly ensconced in your new pad, but having a general idea will save time umming and ahhing on moving day.

Removal companies – Contact at least 3 removal companies for quotes. Online quotations will give you a rough estimate of what you should expect to pay but always ask estimators to come to your property so they can see for themselves whether there will be potential problems with access or manoeuvring furniture. There should never be a charge for this. If you don’t know where to start contact the British Association of Removers www.bar.co.uk for registered companies, or ask friends for recommendations.

Box up belongings - Packing services save you a lot of stress, time and hassle because everything is packed up in a matter of hours. If you want to do the job yourself start well in advance and tackle a room at a time to make it less overwhelming. You can buy materials from most removal and storage companies or online. Double walled boxes are stronger and try to avoid packing with newspaper, the print will come off on whatever it’s wrapped around.

Clear the clutter - Moving is a good time to sell, donate or dump of all the “stuff” you have accumulated but don’t really need. EBay, Gumtree, and good old fashioned car boot sales are good ways of selling unwanted belongings to raise a bit of extra cash to fund the move. Or if you’re feeling a bit more charitable Freecycle and local charity shops are good resources. For items that are destined for the dump, junk collectors and some local councils will collect to save you the journey.

Little movers - If you have children try and involve them in the move as much as possible. Introduce the idea to them slowly and give them tasks such as packing their important belongings in a special box, making tea for the movers, checking cupboards are empty or keeping an eye on pets.

Attack the admin – Updating relevant parties of your address change is one of the most time consuming admin jobs of the move. Websites like www.iammoving.com can help make the task quicker and can also look at best options for utilities at your new home. For anything that you forget, the post office offers a post redirection service.

Essentials – There’s always a danger that items you’ll need to hand will get lost in the mountains of boxes. Put everything you think you will need for your first night, including bedding valuables, breakfast materials and your work clothes, together and either take in your own car or label clearly.

Relax! Make your bed as soon as it’s assembled. You’ll appreciate it at the end of a long hard day when you can settle down with a take away and champagne to christen your first night in your new home without worrying about one last task.

With huge thanks to Claire Hose, MoveMinder move management www.moveminder.co.uk

Follow Claire on Twitter @moveminder

A quick thank you to YourRightMove

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been quite a first year for Tepilo and we have been delighted by the support and encouragement from users, experts, pundits and general browsers and passers by.

Among these has been Yourrightmove.co.uk and we have been very lucky to have received a very positive running commentary and regular progress updates from the site.

Here’s some comments from Zane, the man behind the site – but if you have time, check out the great articles and reviews a plenty.

“YourRightMove.co.uk was setup in July 2006 just after I moved house for the 3rd time

Strictly speaking it’s a hobby site that has expanded.

It's grown into a site where I independently look at the current market as the "man on the street" and review latest trends and how the marketchanges from a home owner’s perspective. As you can imagine the last 4 years have been an adventurous ride.

I'm very interested to see how the Tepilo site works out and I'm convinced that sooner than later the way we sell houses will change somewhat.

Innovations like your site will hit a "tipping point" where the latest generation of buyers are so computer savvy that they will expect to sell directly through Social media contact and other direct ways. At that point I think it will never be the same again in the UK's housing market.

Meanwhile I hasten to add that there will always be room for estate agents, I just think their market share will change dramatically in the coming years

Originally YourRightMove.co.uk was just a few articles that described the experiences and difficulties (and frustrations) that you go through when moving house. From speaking to friends I knew it was an experience common in the UK

From this I added an article or two and saw a little growth of interest.

In the last few years the site was redesigned and currently gets several updates a month along with thousands of UK visitors. Recent articles on the latest property Apps for the iPhone and iPad have been a popular addition.” Follow Zane on twitter @yourrightmove or online at www.yourrightmove.co.uk

Tepilo makes Startups 100

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 00:00:00 GMT

We were delighted that Tepilo has made it into this year’s Startups 100, which identifies UK’s most innovative, inspiring and ground-breaking new companies.

Startups 100, organised by the startups.co.uk, the UK’s most popular website for small businesses, celebrates the 100 most exciting, promising, disruptive new businesses and entrepreneurs shaping the start-up market right now.

“We’re incredibly proud to have Tepilo on our list of the UK’s most innovative and dynamic new businesses and look forward to watching its continued success.” Sara Rizk, editor, Startups.co.uk

In choosing the Startups 100, the team were looking for businesses and entrepreneurs that demonstrated:

Innovation, in concept or delivery
Ability to disrupt existing market places
Growth potential
Strong management, bright thinkers
Evidence of existing or future revenues

For more information or to see the full Startups 100 list please visit: www.startups.co.uk (Tepilo at number 19)

There's eco paint, green paint, organic paint ...... confused?

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 00:00:00 GMT

A few months ago a client commissioned us to project manage a house refurbishment and an extension for a period house. A late Victorian 3 storey house. The clients wanted an ‘Eco’ refurbishment not so much by choice but by necessity. They have 3 children and one of them is a child with special needs and who suffers from severe respiratory difficulties as well as having several other health related illnesses. This is a alive project and after much research into paint these are our findings.

The important thing in this project, the client highlighted, was not so much about where things came from and if they were fair trade but more about being as ‘neutral’ as possible. The critical things to concentrate on are that the dust and rubble is hoovered from under all floorboards, walls, windows etc, that the paint be totally VOC free, that the floorboards and carpets upstairs be replaced with cork, lino, or ceramic.

The men on site were under strict instruction and as they had met the family and the sick child, they took it to heart to be as thorough as possible with dust collecting duties! We began our research into paints.

I had never used eco paint before, although I have tried to discuss this with clients, the price was prohibitive- it is still high by the way, having tried a few, the coverage was not good, the pigmentation was uphazard and the colour range was rather limited. Having tested a few 2 years ago, I hoped that things had changed.

The first thing is that many paint companies have ‘Eco’ paints, ‘Green’ paints, ‘Natural’ paints, ‘Organic’ paints, the terms are endless but they can be misleading. Some paint companies are merely adhering to European legislation for the volume of solvents allowed in paint (January 2010).

Next is the amount of VOC (volatile organic compounds). VOC free, low VOC, minimal or limited VOC....again the terms are endless. We needed a VOC free paint and it took us 2 days of active research between my intern and me to actually make sense of it all.

So we found a few companies. Aglaia, Nutshell Natural Paints, Auro, Biofa, Pots of Paint, etc. The market is not exactly lacking in Eco paints.

All well and good finding the paint, choice is not restricted. But we needed to find out what the coverage was like, the price and we needed emulsion – the client still wanted their home to look nice (and so did I!). It took us another week to get samples, test and evaluate.

EVALUATION

We found some were grainy, textured, some were too thick and when you need to dilute to apply onto bare wall (for the mist coat) many say it should not be diluted and that primer should be applied. Some were too thin, did not cover up and needed too many coats which is not cost effective of course. We have now actually started a chart in the company marking all eco credentials, texture feel, coverage, price, order lead time, colour matching properties of all these eco paints and we will publish this later in the year.

THE EXPENSIVE BITS

We spoke to the manufacturers and representatives to get more info on how much we could dilute, colour charts, application etc...many are not set up to service the trade and we found it expensive on shipping (small batches by courier and not packed effectively), colour matching (£20.—upwards), and quantities (smaller pots of 1 litre are great but perhaps for mist coats they might want to do 10 litres?) as well as lead times. It seems they do smaller batches for the home owner who might do one room but perhaps not a whole house. Trade discounts were pretty much non-existent- and I think that perhaps they are going to miss out on a market that might grow substantially. Certainly my builder was keen to use this but not in every job – as the client was paying extra this was fine.

WE CHOSE ECOS

We finally made our decision and we decided to go with ECOS Paints based in Lancashire. VOC free, organic and the texture was good, customer service second to none, colour matching available – they fulfilled all our criterias. Not next door to us as we are always keen to source locally, but they are English. The Manager Ian and his Assistant Pat were incredibly patient with us: we had so many questions. We asked that the colours we chose for the interiors walls were matched to the Dulux range and was informed that in his spare time, Ian had collated the whole list last summer and was able to match any colour we wanted! We did choose a few ECOS proprietary colours too.

I was worried about our decorators using the paint. And true to form I received a call from the head chap to say the tin said don’t dilute....we needed to put a mist coat on the bare plaster. But Ian at ECOS said that we could go to 15-20% dilution on this. Not obviously as much as normal paint which you can dilute 50/50 so we needed more paint than normal.

THE RESULT?

The paint was applied and the head decorator on the project was really impressed, he said he was amazed at the coverage, the texture is good and very smooth, just as an emulsion should. The paint is thicker than normal and so we have had to order several batches – I am sure Pat at ECOS thinks we are eating the stuff! Case in point the builder actually tasted it - apparently it tastes like yoghurt!

There is absolutely no smell to the paint, and everyone is really pleased with it. ECOS do 1 litre and 5 litre pots, 2.5 litres pots would be handy and we will probably end up with some excess. But we can recycle this and use it somewhere else. The price is not cheap, but none of the eco paints are. You can expect to pay 10-15% extra for masonry paint, and up to 30% for gloss. Colour matching was the most expensive at £35.-/colour plus shipping for ECOS paints.

How it performs over time is hard to say as obviously this is a recent application but so far so good. We will publish our findings in using eco paints near the end of the year when we have had time to review more and issue an info sheet.

So if ordering ‘Eco’ paint, look at the make-up of the paint, the application, what type, ask for samples to test as the paint can contain silica which gives a rough texture, ask about shipping costs and colour matching, don’t assume because it says ‘Green’ it is green!

Meanwhile you can check out these companies, the ones we liked and where we found their eco credentials to be honest and performant.

http://www.ecosorganicpaints.com/ - the company we chose for this particular project

http://www.auro.co.uk/ - parent company is German

http://www.aglaiapaint.co.uk – plant based

http://www.nutshellpaints.co.uk – used by Kirstie Allsopp for her cottage in Devon

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Hampton Court Flower Show - pictures to share

Fri, 06 Aug 2010 00:00:00 GMT

I visited Hampton Court Flower Show in July and I really enjoyed myself. Helga our Brazilian intern joined me – although she is predominantly interested in interiors, it was good to show her that inspiration can come from anywhere. As a Textile Designer Helga is primarily interested in the micro-details, looking at how textiles can be woven and what subtle patterns or not so subtle can emerge. She’s now learning that the big picture is also important- and we’re working with her on her textile collection to see how she can apply her textile to the real work- but more of that at another time!

So time to share some pix with you and hopefully give you some inspiration for the garden, whether yours is contemporary or a period garden. Not much commentary as I am sure many of you have read all the blogs about Chelsea and Hampton Court, this is a pictorial drink a coffee-type blog . It is the holidays after all !

The neatness of Japanese gardens...

Liked this one, integrated greenery and complementary colours- notice the interesting floor detailing.

King of the Jungle but posh? J Not to my taste

This always appeals- a bit ramshackle, not too tidy with old salvaged garden tools- bucolic.

The red was amazing on this parasol- the lush green grass really highlighted this garden.

Catalpa tree (Indian Bean tree) – lime green- fabulous trees.

Like the detail of the path- definitely something to integrate into my next design

A cool restrained suburban garden – a touch more colour would have been perfect.

The fun stuff! Scarecrows based on Shakespeare’s work all done by local children’s schools.

Green roofs of course! Very important wildlife corridors in cities.

This is how I had always imagined English summers to be like –idyllic. And this summer has shown us what a beautiful country we live in.

Posh houses for posh birds? Looks like a face to me, bit scary actually!

Can’t resist a bit of colour !

Think they might have had a comb over?

Even the cabbages are gorgeous.

Really liked this – ‘froufrou’ greenery contained in geometry.

Totally made from recycled materials – amazing shapes and great planting to complement.

One of the conceptual gardens – if it is explained makes complete sense.

This was inspired – my favourite conceptual garden. The words were backwards and they reflected in the water so you could read them.

Another conceptual garden which I found to be extremely beautiful – very high calibre work this year.

Again another conceptual garden- everyone wanted to know how the tap is held up (steel rod through water).

Liked the idea, not the plates, but this is the kind of thing that can inspire a designer- so I’m already working on a water feature with recycled elements.

Another cool urban garden with an inset green wall. Very chic and very contemporary.

Nicely planted, but not keen on the cork seats....

And last garden to show you – the whole garden was rather magical- felt like it swayed into the wind (although no wind that day!).

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

How do I go about checking out a potential tenant?

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 00:00:00 GMT

It’s stating the obvious to say that you shouldn’t take potential tenants on face value, but the same can be said for references. That’s why you need to check out what measures your reference provider takes to ensure that the information provided really is meaningful.

Obtaining proper references is the first step in ensuring a successful letting. Not only is this a sensible step, it is something that your insurance provider will require if you plan to take out cover for legal expenses and rent guarantee, as is equally sensible. Most agents outsource this service to specialist reference providers, but these can vary in the depth of service they offer – take the time to find out just what you will be getting.

There are risks involved in letting property including habitual fraudsters, identity theft, unreliable tenants and other potential issues. Growth in fraud means that any information a potential tenant provides should never be taken at face value and should always be investigated by experts in referencing.

Collecting employer references for income validation and previous landlord references is only the first stage in the process of securing a successful tenancy. The next is verification by means of an expert and impartial third party assessment of the suitability of a person to rent property. To be effective, this is undertaken using the latest technology and analytical techniques to obtain and match data from the widest possible sources of records available. These include county court and bankruptcy information, identification checks and validation of bank sort codes - all of which can be carried out on-line.

Referencing is not a regulated activity; so anyone can set up an agency with a line to a credit bureau and supply references that are no more than a quick credit check. Any reputable referencing provider must carry out not only the basic credit checks, but also full identity and fraud checks. It is important to make sure your provider offers the following:

Authentication: tenant screening should include details to make sure that the tenant is who they say they are and that they haven’t either stolen an identity or developed one.

Linked addresses: any search for issues such as CCJs should not just be restricted to checking current addresses. Data searches should look for detrimental information at undisclosed and linked addresses, particularly as failure to disclose an address could well signify that the tenant has something they wish to hide.

Employer’s references: it is necessary to establish whether the tenant is employed with sufficient income to meet rental obligations – but it is equally important to be sure of the source of that information. Employers using personal email addresses, such as Hotmail, or mobile telephone numbers should only be accepted if they have been verified and authenticated with a full audit trail to support. In fact, any employer’s reference should be checked out to make sure that it is authentic.

Tenant history: previous landlord references should include the total history of the tenancy. Even if the tenancy ended with the rent paid up, had there been arrears or any other relevant problems, such as damage to property or complaints from neighbours? A standard three year address history should be obtained and a reference taken from the most recent landlord to ensure that tenants who have, for example, been living with parents for the last year have nothing to hide.

Guarantors: ensure that the verification extends to any guarantor involved. In fact, a guarantor should be as carefully referenced as the tenant themselves – after all, they will be the party that needs to be pursued if the tenant defaults. For this reason, guarantors based overseas should be avoided. If problems arise they will be harder to trace and the laws of the country in which they reside may make it hard or impossible to pursue them or to obtain a recovery.

While you may be anxious to minimise the time between lettings, it is essential that you don’t compromise quality for speed. Your referencing provider must be able to respond quickly to requests, but you need to understand what is required for a comprehensive reference which will help you make an informed decision.

With thanks to Nigel Atkinson, National Business Development Manager: www.propertyrisks.com

Fully insured or under insured?

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Under insurance is when your insurance cover doesn’t do what it says on the tin, the contents don’t match the label, it’s like buying baked beans in a rich tomato sauce, except that on opening the tin you find split peas, something is missing.

We all expect that if an accident should occur, our insurance will be there to cover the costs of the damage. The reality, frighteningly, is that if you are under insured the company will not pay out the full amount.

For example your house catches fire, it’s bad, £100,000 worth of damage, but you believe there will not be a problem because you have £100,000 worth of cover. But you are actually under insured because today the total replacement cost is £200.000. When you filled out your proposal form for your house insurance, it may have been with your bank or on the internet, you considered £100,000 to be sufficient to replace or repair any damage. This is where things have gone wrong.

The insurance assessor, who comes out to assess your damage, says you should have been insured for £200,000 but because you are only insured for £100,000 you are 50% under insured. If you had lost the entire property in the fire, it would have cost £200,000 not your estimate of £100,000.

That is why they would only pay you 50% of your £100,000 cost to rebuild your house, in this instance £50,000, although you have sufficient cover for the whole repair bill.

The sad part of this situation is that you did the right thing, you insured your home, but had you taken professional advice they would have explained why it is so important to have an accurate and current valuation.

Being wise after the event is no help, but I hope this article can prevent you from being a victim of the frightening example above by illustrating the value of seeking professional advice.

Being under insured is not being insured.

For more help or advice talk to the people who know. Contact Jeremy Evans at www.greenlands.co.uk or follow him on Twitter here.

Update the Look - Redecorate with 10 Easy Tips - Part 2

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

6. SCALE

Don’t be fooled by buying small pictures and objects for smaller room. One or two items that are bold and large create impact – it can be the focus for a room with potentially too many details. It creates a sense of luxury and does away with the twee look. In larger rooms, you can go for much larger furniture for example, but still keep a balance and mix smaller and larger items. Too many oversized things and it can look like a Disneyland set!

See above the windows really are THE larger than life feature in this room, so to highlight it the red cushions are placed on neutral sofas and the windows are mirrored in the art work on the wall – it feels very big but very light.

7. MAKING A GRAND ENTRANCE

This is the first area you enter, the hallway. The first thing visitors will see, appreciate or loathe – it sets the scene for the rest of your house. So make a statement. The perfect place to start any re-decoration - think of it this as if you were setting a stage. Highlight period features, go for bolder colours, choose key furniture pieces that make a statement – but keep it simple, uncluttered. We all pass through very quickly, so the impact has to be that much more striking. A good impression is most important when selling the house, so the first few minutes are key. This re-cycled mid-century table sets are painted and shown off with an Anglepoise lamp, perfect for a small hallway for example with a shabby chic look.

8. KEY PIECES

I like highlighting one thing in a room and we spoke of what kind of lighting to look for last week. But I LOVE lights – and they do make fantastic statements if they are very sculptural and project gorgeous beams of light onto surfaces.

This light from Flos, the white CS Tau, sold by Design Conscious http://design-conscious.co.uk , is fabulous. Sculptural, light on its feet, functional too but still absolutely gorgeous. I can even see this in a period property highlighting features such as cornicing or a highly textured wall.

Or for something with texture and interest at close range, this other Flos light is perfect above a wooden kitchen table for example, mixing the screamingly modern with more rustic pieces is a great way to create a more eclectic look. Just remember though, don’t do texture, colour and size all in one item – make complementary associations. This is again sold by http://design-conscious.co.uk. They have special offers on at the moment so check them out.

9. MULTI-USE AREAS

So you need a small office space, a living room that looks the part and even perhaps a storage area to hide all the paperwork, DVDs and normal junk we all accumulate over the years. Why not use an old decorative cupboard, place shelves in it and one that is at desk height. If it’s not too valuable drill holes at the back of it to put your PC cables through and hey presto! A small office, that you can hide away when you have guests – albeit smallish, all your files can go on the higher shelves and if you have slimmer lower shelves under the desk, you can stash CD and DVDs too. A modern chair like this one from Ace Office www.ace-office.co.uk would look stunning against an old wardrobe and then be placed within your living room as a statement piece when the “office” is shut for the day.

10. COLOUR

This usually means wall colour.....well not always. Don’t forget to accessorise perhaps more neutral interiors with vases, scatter cushions, throws, rugs, feature walls....all of these can add colour.

Don’t go mad though, just a few highlights here and there, a bright orange vase on a white gloss table, even a green plant in a striking planter can really lift a scheme.

Have fun!

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

Website of the Year Awards - Enter now!

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

The Good Web Guide is now taking entries for its second Website of the Year Award, aimed at small businesses and organisations. The awards provide an excellent way for online enterprises to gain recognition.

I’m delighted to have been asked to be one of the judges for the competition this year – having had Tepilo shortlisted for the award last year.

Winner will receive the following prizes – along with the most important kudos of winning the award itself:

£1000 cash to spend on the business and £500 of advertising on thegoodwebguide.co.uk to be taken before August 2011.
A one-day photo shoot with Tim James from The Gray Gallery (£1,500).
A full SEO audit and follow up consultation with SEOptimise (£750).
Two hours free singing for 8 people at any Lucky Voice venue (£180).
A press release prepared by Kenyon Communications on the subject of their choosing, with full media distribution, worth £500.

Winners Reception: A reception will be held atThe Royal Institution in London on Tuesday, 16 November 2010, where Doug Richard, former BBC Dragon and founder of School For Startups, will announce the winner.

How To Enter

Entrants have from 1 June until 19 September to nominate a site (which can be their own). A shortlist will be released on 4 October and the winning site will be announced at the 2010 Awards Reception in London during Global Entrepreneurship Week (15-19th November 2010).

Sites will be judged on the following criteria:

Design
Originality
Content
Interactivity
Ease of Use
Social Media Strategy (this isn’t a prerequisite for entry)

Click here to find out more or to enter and best of luck: http://www.thegoodwebguide.co.uk/website-of-the-year

Update the Look - Redecorate with 10 Easy Tips - Part 1

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Whether you are selling or just want to freshen the look, here are some easy tips for contemporary and period homes to help you redecorate. Part 2 next week.

BEFORE YOU START...

Think about the time you have available to decorate a specific room or the whole house and be realistic. There is nothing worse than finding you need to get back to work when you’re only half way through the job!

Are you selling the house or just want to freshen the look to give it a boost and update? If you’re selling think very carefully about your budget and what you should spend it on. There are some things on which you just won’t get your money back. Spend on critical items like the kitchen, the bathrooms and the garden. If you are not selling then you may start with one room and move on to another when time permits. If staying put, think about which room you spend the most time in – why not refresh the look with a new wall colour or even some new upholstery and curtains?

People usually decorate every 4-5 years – make sure this renovation will stand the test of time.

1. GET INSPIRED

For sources of inspiration look at magazines, other people’s homes or even furniture shops as they often have room sets. Is it a look you like? Or do you want to just tweak a wall colour or update the lighting? Maybe changing a central piece of furniture is the key.

Think about this for a while and don’t rush into anything – it’s important to choose something that sits comfortably with you, something that you like. If you are selling the house the old adage of less is more stands. Don’t go for strong colours but gently integrate what you have and get some inspiration from magazines where developers are selling homes.

I usually put images I have cut up together. I do this for clients, but on a smaller scale do this for yourself. I promise you it is well worth the effort. It aims to order your thoughts, focus on what you want and don’t want. Like a crib sheet – you can go back to it, to re-calibrate the look, remind you what lamps or fabric you want. It gives you direction and reminds you of the look you are aiming to achieve.

2. STORAGE

This is a critical area, whether you have a minimalist interior or a cluttered one - we all need space. If you are selling it is important to put away all personal items, tidy up and make it clutter free - it shows off the space better to potential buyers.

Of course, the usual bedroom storage is paramount - cupboards and chest of drawers - but don’t discount under the bed. Places like Ikea have some great plastic containers with lids to hide under the bed, perfect for linen and spare duvets as these tend to take up lots of space.

Don’t forget the critical storage that is required for the main areas of the house – where to stash the vacuum cleaner, where to hide winter shoes when it’s summer and vice-versa. So use storage baskets that complement your interior. Wicker baskets can sit atop furniture and look elegant. I have often used old suitcases to hide CDs. Stacked on top of a wardrobe they look good, and the older rigid framed ones make great coffee tables.

Restored staircase with understairs storage

3. FABRICS

Don’t go for the latest must-have trendy fabrics out there unless you adore them! Remember they need to last at least 4-5 years in this decor so you want something you can live with, look at and feel OK with. Fabrics are a huge field – whether for upholstery, curtains or other soft furnishings. For upholstery make sure you bring home a larger sample than the usual 10cms x 10cms piece as you need to drape it over the sofa or chair. You also need to pick something that is treated with fire-retardant.

If you like the bold and large prints only use it once. Perhaps use it for a set of curtains and then pick-up on the colour or texture with your accessories. Keep the rest of the scheme neutral and quiet. You don’t want things to fight for attention.

Neutral colours –perfect to sell your house but you may want brighter touches if you want to freshen it up.

4. LIGHTING

A room should not be lit up like Heathrow airport with downlighters lined up like a runway! Each should have a specific reason for being there – lighting a picture, providing light over a piece of furniture etc. Also, aim to have a mix of downlighters on dimmers for a multitude of activities, table lamps for atmosphere and mood, uplighters for bright sparks in specific areas.

These days there is no excuse for just having a central pendant light – the choice of luminaires is vast, so go explore!

Plan your lighting before you decorate, then you can hide trailing cords, and place sockets where you want them – you could even place floor sockets under occasional furniture like side tables.

5. NEUTRAL CANVAS

If you have a period home with lots of architectural features, such as high ceilings, interesting fireplaces or ornate cornicing, a neutral decor is best as it will really set off these features.

Edwardian cornicing with strong wall colours

Beautiful wood carvings at Listed Home Owners Property Show 2010

It’s most important to bring the room together in a cohesive manner. If, for example, you want a calm and serene feel try painting all woodwork and walls in the same colour. Strong fabrics will make the room cosier and bring some intimacy to a large area.

Next week we’ll give you five more tips on scale, entrance halls, key pieces, multi-function rooms and colour.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

What Furniture Packs Can Do for your Buy To Let Business?

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Furniture packs have been popular options both for Private Landlords and Investors. This is because there is something in the package that makes these types of furniture offerings worth investing on. The Main business that benefits from furniture packs is the buy to let market.

If you are new to the idea of purchasing a furniture pack, there are certain questions you have in mind. The first thing you may ask is: What can these furniture packages do to your business. Well, there are a number of benefits you may derive from these investments.

First - Furniture packs can beautify your place

If you are a landlord or Investor renting out property to consumers, you know very well that there are those who will look for furnished apartments. If you are having trouble looking for the one that will suit your place, then you can ask advice from your furniture pack supplier. They will come up with great ideas that will suit your place.

These furniture packs are offered to suit your needs and your budget, ensuring that you have your own exceptional style and quality, allowing your apartment to stand out from the crowd.

Their own team will go into your property and even give you a free consultation as to what furniture will best suit your property

They can also take care of all your furnishings needs adding Bedroom packs, Kitchen Essentials and many more. With in most cases blinds/Carpets and flooring being offered as an additional service.

These are the reasons behind why it will be simpler for you to beautify your place. Say you are renting out three apartment units which you want to look similar to each other. With these offerings in the market, it is easy achieving that desire.

Second- Furniture packs can also add value to your property

How is that possible? Well, if you want a new set of furniture from Inspire Furniture Packages, they can always offer you with a wide array of choices. Choose from traditional and contemporary furniture and you will be offered more options including special bespoke packages. The good thing is no matter what type of design you opt for, your property value will certainly increase. Meaning to say, with these furnishings, you can charge a higher rate from your renters.

Third – When looking for a Furniture Pack Supplier look for the following things:

Experience – Companies who have been in the business for some time who have the knowhow of customers needs and wants.

Speed – Sometimes an Investor will have a tenant ready to move into the property straight away so look for companies who do ’24 Hour Fit out Turnarounds’. This is imperative otherwise it means ‘lost rent’ waiting for an installation of a furniture pack.

Quality – Look for furniture suppliers who import their own furniture from varied European suppliers. This not only ensures that they are getting good quality furniture but have stock available on the floor to do quick fast turnarounds (as above). Cheap furniture is not always the best solution for a rental property, quality and durability is an important part of your installation. Buy to let furniture packages will sometimes be exposed to more usage than the average household, So understand this and bear it in mind when selecting your package

Aftercare - Furniture package installations do not just end once the furniture pack supplier has installed your furniture. Find companies who have a dedicated aftercare procedure so they can deal with any issues you may have once you installation has been completed. This could be immediately after installation or six months later because a tenant has damaged a furniture item. Only a few companies keep in stock replacement parts for most of their furniture products so make sure the company has replacements should some damage occur which should only be extremely rare but still cover yourself!.

Fourth - Furniture packs help you market your business.

A lot of renters nowadays will look for a place cosy enough where they can stay in. This is because they want to feel like they are still in their own homes even if the truth is they are several miles away from their loved ones. Take advantage of these people's desire to market your buy to let business.

This will then enable you to show case you’re fully kitted out apartment to potential tenants to get that quicker let and higher rental value!

Inspirefurniturepackages.co.uk is the first design lead furniture pack specialists in Europe. Inspire Furniture Supplies Co-ordinated , Contempary Furniture Packages with Furniture imported from our own factories in Europe and The Far East to Letting Agents, Private Landlords, Investors and Property Developers

With thanks to Max Cohen, Inspire Furniture Packages www.inspirefurniturepackages.co.uk

Fruit growing in suburbia? Absolutely!

Fri, 02 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Fruit can be grown in pots, containers, balconies, terraces, basically anywhere.

It’s not difficult, it’s easy to prune them once you learn how, you can have espaliered and other fruit forms in any small suburban garden, you can have different trees and have a good yield for a family who loves fruit.

Today, even the smallest of gardens can accommodate a pear and apple tree enough to supply a whole family with a season’s worth of fruit. The trick is to select the right varieties and to engineer the way they grow. We all dream of having a large garden but today’s frenetic and active lifestyles mean that we simply don’t have the time. In reality most people have smaller plots so one has to approach fruit growing slightly differently.

Even if your outside area is tiny you can still grow fruit trees in containers. There are dwarf fruit trees on the market which are perfect.

Fruit trees can be trained to be space saving whilst still being highly productive, and there is a huge variety of shapes to chose from: cordons, multiple cordons, step-overs, fans, bush, goblets, espaliers, pyramids….all are possible as long as they are grown on the correct rootstock. This will determine their final size.

Espaliered apple tree against a fence

A few things to remember before you visit your local garden centre or fruit nursery – I prefer nurseries as they are usually growing local varieties and also they really know their stuff!

1) Check the space you have available – containers might be the option for you, or consider planting along a fence where the fruit trees can be trained in their restricted forms along wires and canes.

2) Think about the type of fruit you want to grow – apples, pears, apricots, cherries, etc.

3) Consider the site – you will need a warm, sunny and sheltered site, south to south-west is the best.

4) The soil needs to be well drained soil is best, at least 60cms deep with a pH of neutral or slightly acidic 6.5 is good. Extremely alkaline soil will stress your trees. You can get a test kit from most garden centres and nurseries.

Goblet shape

For unrestricted forms, meaning larger trees in larger gardens, pruning is done in winter, whilst for restricted forms pruning takes place in the summer. Oddly enough, restricted forms usually crop earlier than normal fruit trees and they are also more productive. This suits a smaller garden well, saving space whilst giving maximum yields.

Apples and pears are the easiest fruit trees to grow and perfectly suited to our climate. It is always best to ask a local specialist nursery – see the list below but ask around or search them out.

As well as apples and pears, it is also worth considering apricot, cherry and other more exotic fruit trees. These days the RHS has tested many and have awarded the AGM’s (award of garden merit) so check on the RHS website for the best varieties with disease resistance and good yields.

King of the Pippins apple variety – probably from France 1770

The most important thing to remember is to buy a variety on a rootstock that is appropriate to your requirements. For example, with apples:

For apple trees in pots try M26. This is a good rootstock for containerised fruit. M27 rootstock will reach a height of 1.5m and is the smallest of all rootstocks. Great to grow as a step-over or as a bush. M9 rootstock is the second smallest at 1.8 to 2m or so. Again, perfect for step-overs, cordons or as a small bush tree. M26 is a good rootstock as it caters for all restricted forms such as espaliers, cordons, spindle bush (straight up), goblets, fans, etc… If you have a larger garden it is wise to ask an expert in fruit growing because it can get a tad complicated. The local fruit nursery will be invaluable in helping you plan the sizes required, which varieties to use and how far apart to plant them. If you want to have a restricted form for added ornamental value, go for a MM106 which will accommodate larger espaliered shapes, as well as spindles, fans etc…

Cordons against a wall but you can also do this with a fence

You could even try to grow grapes – check the RHS website on the best varieties for England – they have been trialing a few over the last few years and have a good selection to choose from. They are also very ornamental as you can see below and if you have a very large garden you can plant the tender ones inside a greenhouse or a Vyne House (West Dean Gardens)!

For pears, rootstocks are grafted on to quince roots and there are two you need to be aware of:

Quince A to be used for espaliered and bush trees. Quince C is suitable for cordons as it is less vigorous than the above, but I have used it for espaliers, cordons and bush trees too. You could create a pear arch like the one below, on a smaller scale, at the start of a path for example.

Cherry, Plum, Greengage, Apricot and Nectarines all have different rootstocks. Just ask the specialist nursery which is best for your garden taking into consideration your requirements and the site.

Unusual tree form at RHS Wisley – diamond pattern

Planting space is important. When planting along a fence, for example, keep oblique cordons at least 60cms apart, espaliers at 4 metres, or the equivalent of two fence panels, same with a fan. Oblique cordons are the best form to go for in a very small garden as they save space but they also produce large amounts of fruit.

Partially trained trees are available from specialist nurseries with 1-2 tiers of branches for espaliers, fans and pyramids.

Suggested varieties to get you started:

Apple: James Grieve as an oblique cordon - great tasting, green flushed with red, juicy and fresh to taste. Worcester Pearmain as an espalier - crisp, juicy, sweet taste.

Pear : Doyenne du Comice or Williams as espaliered - both buttery fresh and crisp taste.

For pots try these varieties:

Apple: Discovery or Falstaff are great for containers.

Pears: Concorde or Red Comice are easy to grow in pots.

For pruning and more information on fruit trees, have a look at the very easy guides produced by the RHS and their online advice pages here: http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/

For specialist nurseries:

Ken Muir: http://www.kenmuir.co.uk/ - good range of partially trained fruit trees available. from late November until March.

Keeper’s Nursery: http://www.keepers-nursery.co.uk/ - a good range of tree forms.

Chris Bowers & Sons: http://www.chrisbowers.co.uk/ - ready trained fruit trees.

Photographs: Françoise Murat

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design. For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Cancer Research UK and Sarah Beeny launch new ‘Charity begins at home’ campaign

Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT

A NEW survey released today by Cancer Research UK has found that smoke stained walls are the number one turn off for potential house buyers.

The charity carried out the survey to mark the launch of its ‘Charity begins at home’ campaign on 1 July. The campaign, which is being fronted by property expert Sarah Beeny, is urging people to make the most of their homes, starting with decluttering and donating any good quality, unwanted items to the charity’s shops.

Sixty seven per cent of respondents said they would be put off by smoked stained walls. This was followed by pet hair and smells (65 per cent), a neglected front door and exterior (62 per cent) and stained carpets (57 per cent).

Cluttered rooms were cited by over a third (34 per cent) of respondents, with lots of trinkets or ornaments (71 per cent), kids’ toys scattered about (67 per cent), too much or too big furniture (62 per cent) and piles of books or DVDs (60 per cent) the top contributors to what respondents thought can make a house look cluttered.

On the flip side, things that would make a good impression on potential house buyers included good natural light or lighting fixtures (74 per cent), a well maintained garden (72 per cent) and well maintained front door and exterior (72 per cent).

When asked what was the worst thing they have ever seen in a house they were viewing, respondents’ answers included:

A car engine being stripped in the living room
Cat excrement on the bed
A dead bird in the toilet
A shrine to Elvis Presley
A tree growing in the corner of a room
A man having a bath
A blow up doll
False teeth in a jar on the kitchen table
A naked portrait of the owners
A coffin laid out in a room with the deceased in it

Property guru and founder of www.tepilo.com Sarah Beeny said: “As a property expert I’ve seen all sorts and in particular just how much difference easily fixable problems like clutter can make to a house’s appeal to potential buyers. Decluttering your house is a great thing to do not only if you are thinking of selling but at any time – not only will it free up space and make your home look better, it can also help raise vital funds for Cancer Research UK’s work to beat cancer.”

Simon Ledsham, Cancer Research UK’s trading director, said: “This is a light-hearted story to highlight the very serious message that Cancer Research UK’s shops are in desperate need of stock donations.

“Cancer survival rates have doubled in the past 30 years and Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of that progress. Our work is entirely funded by the public, yet without items to sell, our shops can’t raise any money. So please – declutter your home and donate to your local Cancer Research UK shop.”

If you’re selling your house online and it’s not on video, think again.

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Now broadband speeds are fast enough and video marketing is now affordable for everyone, it is here to help you generate more viewings which can get you that all important sale.

Having being a house-hunter, and in broadcast television for over 13 years I’ve seen the market, marketing, and the technology change quite radically. Unfortunately with the latter, technology, estate agents here in the UK have being very slow to move with the times. Criticised by the OFT and instead waiting to follow the lead from innovators such as Tepilo, and the small number of independent videographers offering to put your house on video.

Only a small handful of forward thinking estate agents are now offering this service, which has being used around the world with great success for a number of years now. One of the leading UK internet based agencies look set to start their video home showcase service in the next couple of months, call it ‘the final icing on the cake’. Video actually offers so much more than just ‘the icing’ on the proverbial cake, it is the filling full of flavour, the icing, the fancy message and decorations that adorn the top, right down to the presentation box your ‘cake’ is delivered in.

So what are the benefits? How much does it cost? Is it for me?

Well aside from the main benefits of a lot of viewers being able to walk through your door 24/7, and the convenience of time saved by wasted viewings, the video’s main duty is to tell a story, in your case, welcome to my house, it is for sale, and it is worth viewing.

Video is such an effective and powerful medium. Just watch how much information even a short 0’20 second commercial can deliver, it is usually very clear, and no matter what the running time of a video, it usually has a beginning, middle and an ending.

The call to action is what motivates the viewer at the end to follow up, so the email here for more details, phone for price or similar is the big important message you want to get across. Used for house selling I’m hoping you’re starting to see the whole picture how the story telling process can engage a viewer and keep them watching to the end.

If you take a look at our promotional video, or sometimes called a ‘tease’ in the business, it has a total running time of 1’26 seconds. The first 0’25 seconds is the setup, with a 0’13 second call to action at the end, that leaves only 0’45 seconds of actual home video which across the 18 shots of the home teased is 0’2.5 seconds a shot. Surprised? Possibly, it doesn’t seem that long compared to a house still picture slideshow seen many times no doubt across all the leading property websites. The difference is movement. Camera movement opens space and creates perspective, this is virtually impossible with a static 2 dimensional image. If you can open up space and show depth and perspective, along with a music soundtrack it is easy to evoke an emotional response in the viewer. As a seller that’s exactly what you’re hoping for, and with video this moment of emotional attachment can happen way before they even step through your door for the first ‘real’ look around.

That’s where we get to the second most important aspect of a video production, music and/or natural sound. If you heard the video without sound, un-mute the sound on your computer, and take a listen. This music was composed and arranged in house to fit the style of property and to compliment some of the shot changes, I can’t say we can write original music scores for each house we do, but as story tellers sound is one of our key tools to help keep viewers engaged in the unique appeal of your property.

That is the main benefit that you can offer viewers of your house online. By showing them more you are keeping them from moving on and watching another slideshow. Perhaps the biggest benefit to those of you selling at the moment is that video home showcasing is in its infancy here in the UK. In a market place as big as the property market you need all the help you can to jump off that well stocked property website and say ‘HERE, LOOK AT ME!’ Well you will certainly have that opportunity at the moment by introducing video to your selling tools now, and if you manage to sell your house without the agents intervention, you could also be saving between 3-5% of the value of your property, which well and truly covers any marketing costs.

Which nicely links to the big question, What does it cost? Well if you watched the video you already have a starting price, so in comparison to a 6 day local print advert there is no comparison. How many people are lucky enough to sell after one 6 day local advertising run? Average selling times at the moment are between 7 and 14 months, if not longer. That’s a lot of 6 day adverts if you want your property to remain in the spotlight. An actual video home showcase will run anywhere from around 1’30 seconds to 3’30 seconds, this is a well researched time in response to viewers threshold for boredom. When you’re house hunting how many properties are you going to end up looking through before narrowing it down to the chosen few you actually want to arrange an appointment for?

With the likes of not just Tepilo, but a whole host of property search sites, your video home showcase stays online until you’ve signed contracts. It can be uploaded to a host of video friendly sites including Facebook and YouTube, you can then link to your friends and colleagues and have them send links to their friends and colleagues, that is the start to your ‘viral’ campaign.

With Google investing billions into YouTube and video recently you can be sure it is the future, and it will be found. By the time estate agents use video online as part of their normal service, which they will eventually, you could look forward to High Definition Blu Ray Viewings, Property Channels on Television showcasing videos, Mobile Phone Video Marketing, the list is potentially endless.

So finally, is it for me? In almost all cases I would answer quite simply yes. But I must warn you. Most mobile phones have video facilities, and I’m sure a lot of you have camcorders, some of you may even be offered video by estate agents who will shoot it themselves as they do the still pictures. This can seriously work against you. How engaging is a random collection of amateur stills slowly dissolving into each other with no music or sound. Now I’m professional so to me I switch off pretty quickly. Some of your viewers may last a little longer out of desperation but you will be doing yourself no favours with a bad video. An amateur video is so much worse than a bad still picture.

My key advice to you is always call a professional, you’re selling the biggest asset you own, estate agents are not videographers or even photographers, and if you do fancy giving it a go yourself, follow some of the basic camera setup advice found in a great blog on these pages then give it a go. Tripod and lighting are your main allies. And please, before you upload your video for the world to see, watch it back a few times and watch it from a viewers perspective not just your own. And if all else fails drop us an email for a no obligation quote.

With huge thanks to: Steve Walker - VHS Productions www.vhsproductions.com

Emergency Budget at a glance

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

George Osborne has delivered his first Budget, but what's in it that affects you?

To a backdrop of cheering and jeering MPs, the coalition Chancellor outlined his plans to use a 20/80 rule of thumb - namely to achieve 80% of this through cuts in public sector spending and 20% through higher taxes.

Here's what the Emergency Budget has in store for you.

VAT hiked to 20%

Let's start with what will be the worst news for most people - the VAT hike. From January 4, 2011, the main rate of VAT will rise from 17.5% to 20%. Osborne said that this measure alone will raise £13billion a year in extra revenue by the end of the Parliament.

However, he did reassure the country that "everyday essentials" such as food and children's clothing will remain VAT exempt over the course of the next Parliament. With many people questioning whether VAT would be applied to food, this will be some relief.

Bank tax

In a recent moneysupermarket.com poll, over three in ten voters said they would begin by taxing the banks more heavily, if they were Chancellor.

Osborne has not disappointed, claiming the "failure of the banks imposed a huge cost on the rest of society".

So, he outlined plans to introduce a bank levy on balance sheets of UK banks and building societies, as well as on the UK arms of foreign banks. Although there will be some exemptions, for example, on smaller banks, the government expects this levy will generate more than £2billion a year.

Public sector pay

Those employed by the public sector knew this Budget was going to be particularly tough on them. Some commentators suggested that the private sector has had its recession and now it's time for the public sector to go through its own downturn.

So it won't have come as too much of a surprise that the Chancellor announced a two-year pay freeze for public sector workers earning more than £21,000 a year. When you factor in inflation, that's a real-terms cut to the salaries of many public servants.

However, the 1.7million earning £21,000 or less will receive a flat pay increase of £250 a year - meaning those on the very lowest salaries receive a proportionally higher rise than those closer to the £21,000 mark.

Pensions, of course, are the other big cost to the public purse. By 2015/16, the OBR forecasts the country will be spending more than £10billion a year meeting the gap between pensions contributions and payments.

John Hutton, former work and pensions secretary in the Labour government, has been asked to carry out a review and present an interim report in September.

State pensions

Lots of changes for state pensioners. The government plans to accelerate the increase in the state pension age to 66 and will be consulting on whether or not it should phase out the default retirement age.

Osborne also promised "lasting help" for pensioners. He pledged to re-link the basic state pension to earnings, which had been removed 30 years ago by the thenConservative government, from April next year.

There will also be a guarantee that each and every year, there will be a rise in basic state pension in line with earnings, prices or a 2.5% increase - whichever is greater.

Tax allowances

Raising the threshold at which workers begin to pay income tax was a key pledge of the Liberal Democrats and Osborne went to some way to doing so in his Emergency Budget.

Currently, everyone under the age of 65 has a tax-free allowance of £6,475 but this is going to rise by £1,000 in April next year, lifting 880,000 on low incomes out of having to pay any tax at all. Meanwhile 23million basic rate taxpayers will be up to £170 a year better off.

Higher rate taxpayers won't benefit from this change and there will be no change to the tax thresholds for greater incomes.

Welfare

The Chancellor was adamant that the country needs to reduce its benefits bill, warning that welfare spending has increased from £132billion 10 years ago to £192billion today - a rise of 45%.

He outlined a number of measures to combat the annual bill. From next year, all benefits (excluding state pension and pension credit), as well as tax credits and public service pensions will rise in line with consumer prices instead of retail prices, saving around £6billion a year by the end of the Parliament.

Capital Gains Tax (CGT)

There had been protests about planned hikes in CGT as soon as it was hinted that it might rise in this Emergency Budget, but the general consensus seems to be that it could have been worse.

It was expected that Osborne might raise CGT in line with higher and 50% tax rates, but instead he has kept it at 18% for those paying basic rate tax. From midnight, taxpayers on the two higher rates will pay 28% tax on their capital gains.

The annual exemption amount will remain at £10,100 this year and rise with inflation in the future.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA)

From 2013, the coalition government is to introduce a medical assessment for DLA, which both new and existing claimants will have to undertake.

Housing benefit

Osborne described the current housing benefit bill as "completely out of control", having risen from £14billion 10 years ago to £21billion today.

He pledged to reform the system in order to reduce the costs of housing benefit by £1.8billion a year by the end of Parliament.

These reforms will include restricting local housing allowances, limiting social tenants' entitlement to appropriately sized homes, readjusting Support for Mortgage Interest payments and placing maximum limits on housing benefit - namely £280 a week for one-bedroomed properties and £400 a week for four-bedroomed or larger homes.

National Insurance (NI) contributions

During the election campaign, the Conservatives had been scathing about the Labour government's plans to increase employers' NI contributions, calling it a tax on jobs.

Osborne outlined plans to make it cheaper for firms to hire people and revealed that from April next year, the threshold at which employers begin paying NI will rise by £21 a week, making it cheaper to hire people earning less than £20,000.

Corporation tax

The country's current rate of corporation tax is making the UK uncompetitive, the Chancellor argued, and so it will be cut by 1% a year for the next four years, bringing it down to 24%.

Landline duty

There's been a lot of debate about the previous government's planned landline tax of 50p a month but today Osborne confirmed thecoalition government is to scrap it before it even begins. Instead, he said the government will support private broadband investment, partly using funding from the Digital Switchover underspend.

Tax credits

It was widely anticipated that the Chancellor was going to announce plans to reform the tax credit systems, especially to remove benefit from higher-income families and Osborne certainly delivered that.

He revealed that there are more than 150,000 families earning more than £50,000 a year and receiving tax credits, which he said the country cannot afford.

To tackle this, the coalition government is to reduce payments to families earning more than £40,000 and increase the taper rate at which awards are reduced.

Osborne plans to end an extra baby element in the tax credit system that gives families with a child under one extra help. This will be stopped in April next year.

In addition, the government will abolish the Health in Pregnancy Grant (a one-off, tax-free payment of £190) from April next year.

Lone parents will be required to seek work as soon as their youngest child starts school.

Council tax

Osborne said he intends to help councils freeze council tax for one year from April, saving the average family £35 a year.

Child benefit

Osborne acknowledged that there are some tough decisions to take regarding child benefit and that he had considered and rejected a number of different options, including means testing it and taxing it.

Instead, he had decided to freeze child benefit for the next three years.

Booze, fags and fuel

Smokers, drinkers and drivers may have been braced for pain, but there is a (brief) reprieve. There will be no increases in duties on these areas until the autumn, on top of which the government will repeal plans to increase cider duty.

However, drivers are still going to be hurt by an increase. You pay standard rate VAT on fuel, which is now rising from 5% to 6% when the VAT hike comes into force in January.

The Civil List

And finally, if you're wincing as a result of the Budget, spare a thought for the Queen. Her Majesty hasn't had a raise in her Civil List income in 20 years and the Chancellor has now revealed this will remain frozen at £7.9million for a further year.

However, he promised a new means of support for the Crown at a later date and revealed that the Royal household's expenditure will be scrutinised by the National Audit Office and Public Accounts Committee in the future, like any other area of public spending.

The cuts and where they're coming

Most of the savings outlined by the Chancellor will result from cuts to the budgets of government departments and, while that might not hit us in the pocket immediately, the results will inevitably be seen soon.

Osborne reiterated the coalition's commitment to providing the NHS with real increases throughout the Parliament, and also to honour the country's commitments to international aid.

That means other departments face cuts of around 25% over four years, although not all areas will receive the same settlement. He spoke of the importance of education and defence budgets, implying these could be treated more favourably.

However, we won't know precisely how each department will be hit until the spending review later this year, which Osborne today revealed would be given 20 October, 2010.

With thanks to: Felicity King-Evans, deputy editor at moneysupermarket.com

How to beat the budget cuts

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

With the swingeing cuts outlined by the Chancellor George Osborne this week, there has simply never been a better time to make efficiencies to your own household budget.

Most households will be hit by the measures announced in the emergency budget, but for many of us there are things we can do to minimise the impact.

Here are five simple steps to save well over £1,500 a year.

Bring down your energy bills now

Millions of UK homes waste hundreds of pounds a year by sitting on uncompetitive energy tariffs. Yet by switching to the cheapest online energy deal through our gas and electricity comparison tool, you could save an average of £174 a year.

In fact, if you're on an uncompetitive standard tariff, you could save an impressive £348 a year by swapping to the cheapest deal.

It's easy - all you need to do is use moneysupermarket.com's energy comparison tool to find the best deal for you (this will depend on where you live and the amount of gas and electricity to use). You can apply online and your new provider will arrange the switch for you. What could be simpler?

Minimise your motor insurance

When it comes to insurance, it's not about simply finding the cheapest cover, it's about finding the right cover at the best price possible. But as car insurance costs rocket, it can be hard to find that best price.

The average driver using our car insurance comparison tool to find the best deal saves an impressive £205. Given that the average quoted premiums for comprehensive motor insurance policy rose by 13.4% over the last 12 months, according to the AA, that's a decent saving.

Hammer your home insurance

Again, you don't want to cut the amount of buildings and contents cover you have, but you could still make savings on the amount you pay for this essential insurance.

The average saving made using our home insurance comparison tool is £132 a year.

Consider your credit cards

Many of us pay much, much more than we need to for our credit card debt. In fact, in our most recent money makeover, we saved a young couple almost £6,000 on their credit card debt alone.

If you're paying for an outstanding balance on a credit card, then switching to a 0% balance transfer deal could save you hundreds of pounds a year.

For example, the UK Cards Association says that the average credit card balance is £1,989, excluding all those people who repay their card in full each year. The average credit card interest rate is 18.52%. Yet there are a number of cards offering long interest-free periods on balance transfers. Among the leading deals is the Barclaycard Platinum, which gives 15 months interest free on balance transfers for a 2.9% fee and has a typical APRof 16.9%.

That means that, by switching to this deal, the average credit cardholder could save £262 just on their transferred balance.

Don't ignore incentives

How do you use your current account? There is such a broad range of deals available that most people could save money on their overdrafts or earn more on their balances.

But there are also some easy wins, with great incentives to switch. For example, the Halifax Reward Current Account pays customers a £5 'thank you' every month they pay in at least £1,000. Plus, if you apply through moneysupermarket.com, youalso earn £50 cashback, meaning you could earn £110 in just one year.

Alternatively, the Alliance & Leicester Premier Current Account pays a £100 switching incentive, plus gives accountholders 12 months 0% overdraft and free annual European travel insurance.

Meanwhile, the First Direct 1st Account also pays a £100 switching incentive, but to qualify for that account you have to pay in at least £1,500 a month.

Cut costs with codes and vouchers

Treats and trips and family meals out can be some of the first things to get chopped from the household budget when spending gets tight, but it can be hard to give these pleasures up entirely.

But by using vouchers and discount codes, you can dramatically cut what you spend on family fun. In fact, the average voucher user and bargain hunter saves £57 a month (that's £684 a year!) by using vouchers. For example, on the moneysupermarket.com vouchers channel just now, we have 50% off orders over £20 at Pizza Hut, two-for-one entry to Alton Towers and 1/3 off Odeon Cinema tickets.

Secure your savings

So, total potential savings of £1,557. Once you've made these great savings, what do you plan on doing with them? Maybe your finances are being squeezed and this will simply help you stretch your budget further, or maybe you're anxious to put more money into a savings account for a rainy day fund.

If you're freeing up cash to make savings with, make sure you're earning the best returns possible. For example, if you want an easy access account, the market-leading rate is 2.81% from Alliance & Leicester's Online Saver Issue 7 account, which has a minimum investment of £1,000 and can only be managed online.

Next best at 2.80% are the AA Internet Extra Issue 3 and Egg Internet Savings Account Issue 2, both of which have a minimum investment of just £1 and, again, can only be managed online.

Please note: Any rates or deals mentioned in this article were available at the time of writing

With thanks to Felicity King-Evans, deputy editor at moneysupermarket.com

Photography to sell houses - The perfect photos

Tue, 15 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

When you put your house on the market with an estate agent they will normally arrange for photographs of your property to be taken with the aim of showing your home in the best possible condition, maximising the asking price and final sale price with the images appearing on the web and in the brochures handed to house seekers.

If you have decided to sell your house yourself or want images that are better in quality than the images taken by estate agents you will need some basic equipment and know how.

There is a good chance that you will already own a digital camera, probably a small compact one, and will snap each room in turn from a variety of angles. While you will have captured how your house looks you will probably be left wondering why they are not be of the same quality as those taken by the professionals.

There are 3 key elements to achieving great images of property, 1)A well styled and presented home, 2) a camera capable of taking wide angled images and 3) good lighting and photographic technique.

A well styled and presented home.
You need to show your home off, making it look as good as possible. A house is probably the single largest purchase you will make, we all aspire to move to a larger property or a property that is better than our current one, and you want to present your house so that when potential buyers see the images of your house they will want to have a look at it in person. If you understand the value a well presented house can add to the asking price then I would recommend getting an expert such as Helen Silver from The Property Styling Company to give your home the once over.

A camera capable of taking wide angled images.
Assuming for the moment that you are using a compact or bridge camera (where the lens is not removable) you will have a fixed 'zoom' range. The zoom range of a lens is traditionally described in relation to a 35mm (the 35mm here refers to the size of the film/sensor capturing the image) SLR camera and the ideal zoom range for taking photographs for property sales is between 12mm and 24mm. The two images below show the difference 12mm makes to an image, the first image is shot at 24mm and the second image has been taken at 12mm.

24mm lens

12mm lens

You are probably now thinking how does that relate ot my compact camera. When you look at the front of a compact camera you will probably see something as shown below. The key to working out the zoom range is the text, 5.8 - 17.4mm, however unless we know the sensor size it is impossible to convert this figure into one that relates to a 35mm camera. The solution is to have a look on the manufactures website or a camera review site where you should be able to find the zoom range expressed as an equivalent to 35mm, for my compact camera the equivalent zoom range is 35mm - 105mm and because of this it is not suited to shooting property photographs.

If you own a SLR, digital or film, then you will be able to buy or rent a suitable lens that is wide enough to photograph the rooms in your property. All the camera manufactures sell their own lenses but you can buy lenses from Sigma, Tonika or similar 3rd party manufactures that will be equally suitable. One point worth remembering is that only a few high end digital cameras have a 35mm (full frame) sensor and so these cameras with a smaller sensor give the appearance of 'magnifying' the image. The conversion factor is about 1.5 for Nikon cameras or 1.6 for Canon cameras and means that a 12mm lens on a Nikon D90 would be equivalent to 18mm on a 35mm camera.

You will probably be wondering how many Mega Pixels (MP) your camera requires in order to capture a usable image, while camera manufactures will tell you that only the latest 20MP camera will do the truth is for web based images and images that are going to be printed no larger than 6"x4" a 3MP camera will do the job however I recommend any camera between 5MP and 10MP.

Good lighting and photographic technique.
Nobody likes dark and dingy houses and so the photographs you take need to be well lit and free from harsh shadows. Depending on the type of camera you are intending to use you may be limited in how you can achieve the desired result. If you are using a compact camera the chances are that you will have limit manual control and will only be able to use the built in flash. The problem with this limited control is that either the images are blurry because of the length of time the shutter is needed to be open or that it s obvious that the room has been lit by flash. To get the best possible results try shooting the house with an overcast, but not dark. sky as when the sun shines directly through the window it can create harsh shadows in the room, unwanted lens flare (this is where the sun is reflected with the lens itself) or windows that are 'burned out' loosing the detail of the window frames.

When photographing the room you need to be aware of converging angles, this is where the walls appear to meet at a singe point, for good results ensure that walls remain vertical and do not lean to the left or right of the image. Ideally you need to place the camera onto a tripod that has spirit level incorporated into the head as this will allow you to set the camera so that it is aligns 90 degrees to both the horizontal and vertical axis. In other words you need to ensure that the camera does not point up or down and is not rotated around the lens.

Once you are happy with the position of the camera you can get the lighting correct. For compact camera users the range of camera controls is limited so to get the best possible results you should turn the flash off and have the largest window in the room behind you and should try and focus the camera on an object a 3rd of the way away from you. Where it is not possible to have the window behind you make sure you focus the camera on the darkest part of the room, this may lead to the windows being over bright but the interior will be correctly exposed. If you were to focus on the brightest part of the room (or too near the windows) you may find that the room is too dark but you get a clear image of the gardens outside.

If you have a camera that allows you to use an off camera flash then you can improve the appearance of the images by balancing the light outside with the amount of light in the room. To do this you need to set the shutter to stay open long enough to correctly expose the light outside the window and set the flash to add enough light to the inside of the room so that the resulting image is correctly exposed. The result should look natural and without harsh shadows from the flash, this may require a bit of experimenting with the location of the flash as well as how long you leave the shutter open for.

The above image is an example of how your images should look, the lighting is balanced and even with no harsh shadows. The colour balance is correct and the subtle shades of the wall can be made out. Obviously I use a professional camera and this image was taken using my Nikon D3 with a 12mm-24mm Sigma lens, supported by a Manfrotto Tripod, and with a Nikon SB800 flash. The shutter was set to 1/60th of a second and a focal length of f5 was used. If you are using a digital camera then experiment with different settings and keep taking pictures until you get the desired image.

With huge thanks to Bruce Boulton of Lantern Photography: www.lanternphotography.co.uk (follow Bruce on Twitter @lanternphoto)

The Chelsea Flower Show - Special Report

Fri, 28 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

I visited the show on Wednesday 26th May – I left home very early as I wanted to ensure I got to take some good pictures with as few people around as possible. It was busy but the RHS deciding to put a limit on the number of tickets sold has helped - especially with circulation in Main Avenue and Eastern Avenue.

Last year I only managed an hour at the show – so I was determined to see everything...! And I did!

Let’s start with the Show gardens of course, a few gold medals this year- meaning a high standard of work. People think medals are awarded on how nice it looks, but they are awarded on how the designer has adhered to the brief that has been accepted, any divergence from it, and you get penalised. They also award points for quality of plants, plantsmanship and hard landscaping construction. Does the design flow, meld together well, does it do what it says on the tin? The tin being the brief – if it’s all good you get that coveted shiny gold medal. If you want to see the criteria for show gardens, check out the RHS website for more info HERE.

Well I liked a few, shuddered at a few and I loved a few! That’s good – there is something for everyone and my tastes are obviously different to the next person. As a designer I am looking at these in a more ‘design’ manner- I look at planting, construction, materials used, flow, balance, etc.... Anyway onto the show gardens in no specific order and also I have not covered every single garden! I will post a Flickr gallery and a more extensive blog over the weekend on my own website.

CHELSEA SHOW GARDENS

The Kebony Norwegian Garden – designed Darren Saines. This garden used traditional materials and is kind to the environment. I looked at this from the path down towards the cabin and I was at first taken aback by the lugubrious look, the 40 year old stunted pine feature did not help- a case of because it’s old it does not mean it’s nice looking. But then as I moved around I liked it more and more. I think because it was under larger trees (the ones normally there) it did make it dark and the coolish weather and grey skies doing not help. But the planting was wistful with touches of blue and purple to lift the very green grass and blonder ornamental grasses. I am not sure about blue on the pavilion – the shiny glass tiles jar with me, too clinical and blue. Silver Gilt.

The Victorian Avery Garden - I really struggled with this garden, it was designed head on with symmetrical parterres on either side of a mosaic-type path. First the colour, was really strong with gold embellishments, and that blue was dull, almost teal. The materials were numerous: stone, mosaic, wood, natural stone raised walls topped with slabs. Too many, too fussy. Beautiful aviary but so tall it towered over the garden which was short at the front. Not just a focal point – it swamped the garden completely. The beds were mixed flowers with the ubiquitous pyramid tree in the middle. So too much everywhere for my taste. Designed by Jonathan Denby and Philippa Pearson. This traditional structure needs a huge garden to show the artful design! Silver.

The Laurent-Perrier Garden - from Stuart-Smith is my very favourite designer – he inspires me. A talented plantsman, a focused and detailed eye for structure, symmetry, counter-pointed with restrained bouts of elegance..... but this time I was left.... ‘so where’s the rest?’ The planting was skilful but not inspired, on mostly one level for shrubs, in the green palette and box balls on the other side of the rectangular pool. Restrained? Yes, Cool and fresh? Yes. Do I remember it; did it hit me between the eyes? No. It was elegant and romantic but a tad bland. The bronze pavilion overlooked a spring woodland planting and the strong structure did contrast very well with the naturalistic planting scheme. Lots of textures but when it’s all in the same palette, it is difficult to appreciate. I liked the Birch grove. Gold medal.

The Daily Telegraph Garden –designed by Andy Sturgeon. I liked this one very much. I was a tad confused but the numerous “walls” or separations. These separations are often used by designers as a tool to define space and control views and vistas. Looking at the plan now, I can see what he was trying to do. A measured walk to the courtyard at the back. The link between the gravel and the planted areas is inspired, going from sparse planting in gravel to smooth light natural stone paths to an afro-latino-english planting scheme. Sounds weird but it worked – the exotic plants were few, the heat loving plants with greyish foliage were highlighted with English colour here and there. A hot garden tempered by cool and whitish looking stone and planted bowls. The Corten steel structures a definite contrast. I really liked it. Gold and voted Best in Show. I’m pleased for him as he has had a tough year – father to 3 boys and his wife died suddenly in her sleep – it takes a lot of courage to deal with that and get on with it.

The Cancer Research UK Garden – waow! This was huge! Not bigger than Andy’s above but the use of colour and light between the structure and the circular pool paved with light stone is a master class in the juxtaposition of formal and informal. The path leading to the terrace is fantastic, the rough granite planks are superb- it gives the path relief and the panting looks like it’s lifting from the ground in places. It creates subtle shadows – again a play on light and dark. Designed by Robert Myers, this is elegant, calm, going from informal monochrome planting with white Birches to a formal area with more exuberant planting. The water is reflective and turns this into a light, floating but very grounded garden. I loved it. Gold.

The Tourism Malaysia Garden - waow waow and waow! My pictures do not do this garden justice. I was expecting the usual pastiche of exotic flowers, vibrant colours, strong lines and no softness. Wrong. I was so wrong. It was green, lime green soft green, dark green, every kind of green. The different leaves were long and smooth, short and spiky, the trunk of the larger trees were black contrasted with yellow-green fronds. Amazing. Designed by James Wong of ‘Grow your own drugs’ fame and his design partner David Cubero, a thoroughly modern garden surfaces through floating white limestone paths and slabs cutting through a very exotic flora and reflected in water. But this is not the usual exotic garden – simple, varied and showing an amazing array of plants, this garden was breathtaking.

The Green & Black Forest Garden – a garden with a message. True to their ethical and fair trade beliefs, G&B wanted to raise awareness for the challenges that Cameroon and its inhabitants face. This garden is about change and how the indigenous people have had to adapt and start growing food which they can sell commercially. The Mogulu is a leaf house typical of the Baka and Begyeli tribes. Akin to a forest garden, the people cultivate bananas on the edge of the rainforest. The planting was composed of crops such as Cassava, Maize along with the Monstera deliciosa- Cheeseplant to you and me, and different types of Phylodendrons. I liked this- it was like peering through a dense undergrowth to look at a tribe without them knowing. People around me loved it, the ooohs and aaaahs were plentiful- who would have thought that a simple sheme would appeal to a public usually hungry for lots of different plants? Gold.

Eden Project – Places of Change – not so much a garden but more of an exhibit. Again another message garden created with socially excluded people within our communities- apparently over 450 of them participated in creating this garden. With different areas showing fruit and vegetables, medicinal plants and many others, I loved this- it was messy but full of amazing ideas on recycled materials. The everyday detritus was used up to become sculptures within the garden, recycled plastic bags to adorn tree branches, wine corks used as mulch to keep the soil moist, weeds became plants to decorate old trellis fencing, pieces of wood were painted and planted within the garden to create height and also give it flow. I loved the doors! Framed doors, painted and decorated with graffiti were sculptural, colourful and made me smile. Definitely not most people’s idea of a garden or perhaps most people’s idea of what a re-use, re-cycle garden would look like – but this is not what it’s about, being a perfect lawn or flower. It’s about the communal work that went into making something rather beautiful and almost ethereal – with rubbish and stuff that most people discard within our communities. Silver.

Ace of Diamonds Garden – the one everyone was talking about! Well I was rather...speechless. There always seems to be a garden that is shiny, shiny and more shiny! This one is no exception. Straight off I hated it – there I’ve said it – seriously huge plastic diamonds and coloured stones were scattered throughout the space. The gold glittery edging shone and the huge Amethyst in the corner along with semi-precious stone panels on the walls were....shiny.... I could not see anyone actually enjoying sitting in it with so much fighting for one’s attention! The crowds were...quiet but they did gather, I guess any publicity is good publicity? Bronze.

MORE GARDENS?

We can’t feature them all here but you can go and check more out HERE. The RHS website has all of the gardens with pictures and 3D video screen. The planting plans are all attached to each garden. A lengthier blog will be available on my website on the blog page with lots more pictures and a link to a Flickr gallery as I took over 900 pictures!

SOME INTERESTING EXHIBITS

I loved this head- letters jumbled up all over it, representing what it feels like have dyslexia. Sculptures from Michael Speller’s stand were amazing. An artist based in Southwark, he has been commissioned to create works for the upcoming Olympics. Michael has very recently installed a 12 ft sculpture on short term loan in the Royal Lounges of Terminal 5 Heathrow. The prestigious nature of the venue and the number of people transiting the area will he hopes promote interest in a larger project that would become a positive legacy of the 2012 games. http://www.spellersculptures.com/

Another artist Tom Stogdon and superb 3d stone sculptures, I particularly liked this one, from his Metropolis series. I liked the stacked form. His work is 3D and wall art; check out his work here http://www.tomstogdon.com/index.php. Some clients of mine have actually bought one of his sculptures for the new garden I designed for them and which will be built over the coming winter.

Lastly I liked these benches, made by Moore Designs in Sussex. Contemporary metalwork that would work well in any garden style. Light on its feet but solid, I particularly liked the tree seat and the green bench. Simple, sculptural, architectural and hard wearing. http://www.mooredesigns.co.uk/seating/low-back-bench.aspx

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

Thinking of building an summer house - Size matters!

Wed, 26 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Can’t afford to move and thinking of converting your garage or putting up a summerhouse or garden office over the bank holiday weekend? Read this short guide to avoid breaching Building Regulations

Building a new garage attached to an existing home would normally need building regulations approval.However building a new attached carport (open on at least two sides) would not normally require building regulations approval if it is less than 30 square metres in floor area.

Building a detached summer house, shed or garage less than 30 square metres floor area would not normally need building regulations approval if:

the floor area is less than 15 square metres. or
the floor area is between 15 square metres and 30 square metres, provided the building is at least one metre from any boundary, or it is constructed from substantially non-combustible materials, and contains no sleeping accommodation.

If youare thinking ofconverting an integral or attached garage into habitable use, building regulations will normally apply. If the Regulations do apply then you must make an application to either an Approved Inspector or to your Local Council and it must be built to reasonable standards or you might have to demolish or rebuild it. For more information on the standards you need to build to click on the links below to visit the planning portal.

With many thanks to Geoff Wilkinson

www.thebuildinginspector.org

A guide to home staging

Wed, 26 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

When it comes to selling a home, a very basic rule needs to be kept in mind. A potential buyer is not interested in “your home” as much as they are interested in how a particular property for sale can become “their home”. Through home staging the process of change enables the buyer to envision the property for sale as their own. The home seller, therefore, has to think of their property as the new buyer’s home and that they are just living in it until it sells. A staged house has to be neutral enough to appeal to a wide variety of potential buyers. This process has been proved to be very effective in successfully selling homes. Remember, it's a buyer's market – Home Staging provides the competitive edge that will make your property stand out from all the others.

Try the 3D effect

Detach, De-clutter, Depersonalize.

By making the decision to sell, you need to detach yourself from your home.

Staging is the process of preparing your home to appeal to a potential buyer for a quick sale. You need to put on a show that will WOW potential buyers. It could be as simple as cleaning and rearranging furniture and decluttering. It can also involve spending money - you may have to do some painting, improving the landscaping, adding furniture/plants to show off the potential of your house.

Selling your home also involves depersonalising....taking away the family photographs, the religious artwork, the kids drawings pinned to the fridge etc.

Key points to Home Staging:

Curb appeal.

Lawns should be freshly mowed, leaves raked, flower beds weeded. Consider a hanging basket for the entrance. Sweep the porch and pathways. Rubbish and recycling should be tucked away from the front of the house.

If you can’t afford to paint then scrub your front door, porch, outside railings and steps. Once the outside entrance is clean, decide if the paint needs a touch up.

Get rid of clutter!

Pick one area at a time so the task isn't too daunting. Look at each item with a critical eye and ask yourself why you're keeping it.

Remember - how you live in your home and how you sell your house are two entirely different things. You're going for a "show home" look.

Forget about hanging onto items which might one day come in handy. Pick your favorite charity and donate it.

If rooms and cupboards still look cramped, rent storage space.

Essential repairs.

Walk along hallways and into every room and check where your eye is drawn (or ask a critical friend/family member). If the eye is drawn to chipped paint on the door frame, sort it and fill it in. If it's nail holes in the wall, hang a picture over them. Glue peeling wallpaper, clean carpets etc. Ensure cupboards open and shut and that no taps are dripping. Look in all rooms for things you never got around to fixing and decide which ones might be distracting to potential buyers.

Home Stagers will have a list of Professionals from decorators, joiners, odd job men etc he/she can recommend.

Clean thoroughly

This can be a very stressful aspect to keep on top of — but it's worth the effort to sell your home for top money. Hire a professional service to deep clean everything; then take 20-30 minutes each day to maintain it.

Don't neglect hallways. They lead potential buyers through your home and should be bright and clutter free. Hang a mirror to reflect light and remember you're trying to maximize the feeling of space in your home! Appliances should sparkle. Counter tops, taps, sinks and bathtubs should shine. Dust shelves and vacuum the floors. All beds should be made. If these things are not done, potential buyers will only wonder what other things have been neglected.

If all this attention to detail seems over the top, remember that a very clean home leaves the impression that the house is well cared for.

Aromas

It’s very important that there are no lingering smells about the house. Open all windows to let in fresh air. Have air fresheners at the ready and have fresh flower arrangements throughout the house in key places such as the entrance hall, kitchen and lounge. These not only smell nice, they look good too!

Lighting

It might be mood lighting to you, but if you're trying to sell your home, keep it bright! Dimly lit rooms tend to look small and dingy. If you have a particularly dark room, consider a floor lamp that will bounce light off the ceiling. If your walls are so dark that they're sucking up all the light, consider repainting (see before and after photos below).

Clean windows let in more light. Hire a service if you have to— it's worth the investment.

Accessories and Artwork

Cushions, throws, rugs, glassware - a few select pieces will liven up a room. Look

for pieces that can work in multiple areas of the home and have fun with items such as candles, trinkets and pottery items.

Carefully chosen pieces of artwork can transform a room from drab to fab. Use artwork to tie in with your colour scheme. Don't be afraid to use oversized artwork.

In the right place, a big piece will make an even bigger impression.

To be successful when selling your house you need a competitive edge. This means that it is necessary to do whatever possible to ensure that your home sells quickly and for as close to the asking price as possible. Through home staging, buyers will see the property for sale in the best possible light. This makes the home as appealing as it can be to that buyer, which provides a competitive edge over the myriad of other sellers who are not engaging in this type of preparation.

Collette Dillon writing for www.JustDoProperty.com

JustDoProperty.com is like having your very own virtual assistant collating all the relevant and current information already on the internet and filtering it into an easy to use format. Membership is free and additional services are being developed all the time to ensure that you Just Do ... Property as opposed to spending endless hours surfing, browsing and researching online.

Collette Dillon, Cheshire

http://www.stage-it-sell-it.co.uk

Being Eco-conscious in Interior Design - easy start

Fri, 21 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Clients often ask me how they can be more Eco, more Green and do their bit for the planet without compromising aesthetic ideals or values. They think it’s hard and that their house is going to look like a hippie’s den! A few years ago this might have been true, but as über-swish design companies are being forced to design and manufacture greener products they are actually driving a market which is answering client’s needs and requirements.

So how can a design for your home be Green yet still be stylish and beautiful?

It’s all about re-use, re-new and re-cycle. Remember that whatever you discard will end up in a landfill – so a little imagination can go a long way to mitigating your refurbishments. Here are my top tips:

WHAT’S ALREADY THERE

Look at what you already have; decorating a room is often about refreshing what is already there. Re-use.

Re-use the carpet if it is still in good condition and looks good – add some new rugs to jazz up and create layers, these can often be found in second-hand shops or car boot sales
Find a new use for a tired piece of furniture : perhaps that old dining room sideboard might be just the thing to strip, repaint and re-use as a TV/audio/entertainment centre
Old fabric can be re-used for a different purpose, as a new cushion, for example. It can be renewed by jazzing it up with buttons, appliqué art sewed on or used as a message cushion
If re-painting try to use solvent-free paints and varnishes. Known as VOC free paints, there are numerous companies out there providing these - also important if you have a highly allergic child or family (see below for suppliers)
Need new curtains? Again, why not re-use those you have and add decorative touches to them with banding on the edges. If worn or a bit grubby at the bottom, add a horizontal band to create interest - it always looks elegant and never fussy. For those decorative touches only a few metres of fabric are needed, so remnants are great

RE-UPHOLSTERING

Renew old furniture. Update and bring them into the 21st century with a few simple touches (re-upholstered chair 100% Design 2010):

Revitalise old furniture by re-upholstering with new material or fabric. Have a rummage in a charity shop or remnants bin. Classical patterns in a screamingly modern interior can look stunning and add an architectural feel to the design of the room

A retro pattern can jazz up the look too as long as it is in either the same colour palette or in a very subdued but interesting texture

A new trim around a piece of furniture, or interesting nails, can often completely change the look of an old and tired chair for example

If you don’t have anything at home that can be re-invented then hit the flea markets, antique centres or boot sales to find interesting pieces that are looking for a new home. It’s fun, it’s cheap and it’s Eco!

I often go to regional auctions for furniture that can be renewed. Old and tatty pieces can be re-invented with new fabrics very cheaply indeed. As long as the frame is in good shape then you can totally transform a 19th century chair and re-interpret for a modern contemporary look using the latest fabrics

If you are getting a piece of furniture re-upholstered professionally, something I would recommend for larger pieces, ensure you have someone who is properly trained and belongs to a trade association like the Association of Master Upholsterers & Soft Furnishers. It’s important to employ local crafts people with experience. They are often cheaper than you think and will really listen to your likes and dislikes. Services range from simply stripping of the fabric and replacing with another to stripping the furniture to its bare frame and starting from scratch, replacing springs, padding etc.

When repadding with foam, ensure it is not treated with brominated fire retardant as this is a harmful chemical. Try substituting with hemp, cotton, wool or nettle fabric that has inherent fire retardant qualities

Sometimes foam is the only way to go but ...to get round the fire retardant requirements of today your upholsterer can use natural latex made from the rubber trees as opposed to polyurethane foam made from petroleum. Ensure the upholsterer uses FSC certified wood batting for the frame. For the cushion the upholsterer can use feather or down or sheep wool as a filing (remember allergies so use accordingly)

If you need new fabric then this is the time to invest in Green fabric manufacturers. Fabric these days can be made from hemp, organic natural cotton and nettle fibres for example. Companies such as those listed below have some beautiful fabrics in a range of styles and designs to suit all tastes.

Ask your upholsterer what type of glue he uses, if any. Water-based adhesive are best if you want to be green and they are also biodegradable

Perhaps a tad far fetched but this Cactus chair below at 100% Design London this year was inventive!

BUY SMART

A well-planned strategy is also part of being Green. When I am sourcing for clients, whether it’s for paints, construction materials, fabrics, furniture and even bedding, I arm myself with my room layout and dimensions. Each room has its list of requirements attached to it. A more focused strategy means achieving as much as possible in one outing and not driving around needlessly, wasting time and petrol.
Manufacturers now have datasheets that shows someone like me the nitty gritty details of how, where and with what it was produced. If I have all that information to hand I can make an informed choice- fulfil my client’s brief but also keep to my green credentials and ideals. If they don’t have the information or datasheets I won’t buy from them – there are many others I can go to
Always, always. Always ask a supplier about their Green credentials. If they get asked many times, eventually you will influence their marketing strategy. The client is king (or queen!), isn’t that so?
If the supplier does not have what you need then tell them why you will not be buying from them – if they don’t know they cannot report back to management. Again I always tell them why I won’t buy from them

The world has evolved. Consumers now demand a Green alternative and the manufacturers and retailers have had to comply, and even innovate. Green is trendy, Green sells. There is an incentive to be ahead of the competition, and this can only mean a wider, better and nicer choice for the consumer.

LOCAL COMMUNITY SUPPORT

First and foremost, buy in your own area. It makes economic sense, it supports dying crafts and considerably reduces the impact on travel CO2
When we work in a new area we always try to source locally. Familiarise yourself with the new community and see what’s available, where and from whom. It’s usually cheaper, boosts the local economy and keeps people in jobs
There is nothing more organic than hand crafted wood pieces from local artisans, art work from local artists, wood sourced locally and even local contractors.Locally promoted artisans are, in general, easily approachable and can often create a custom piece that is not only in keeping with sustainable practices but also bespoke. Scan organic shops, grocery stores or small artisan/craft open markets and look at bulletin boards for new sources
Buy old furniture form local Emmaus centres, they offer homeless people a home, work and a chance to rebuild their lives. They sell quality furniture and household goods which have been re-furbished in their workshop – good bargains to be had. This one below is based in Winchester, Hampshire, and see below for more information.

Finally, re-cycle – why not get rid of unwanted interior items to the local Freecycle? It’s an internet based giving & exchange network. All you have to do is post your unwanted item(s) online, or if you want something, post a wanted notice. Easy, fast, free and it stops more stuff clogging up the landfills. http://www.uk.freecycle.org/

More information:

Nettle fabric: http://www.camirafabrics.com/content/pages/index.asp

Hemp, linen fabrics: http://www.ecotextiles.com/

The Association of Master Upholsterers & Soft Furnishers, http://www.upholsterers.co.uk/

Natural paint and varnishes, http://www.earthbornpaints.co.uk/index.php

Natural and organic paint and varnishes, http://www.ecosorganicpaints.com/

Emmaus, http://www.emmaus.org.uk/shops

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design. For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

A British Approach to Decoration: Wallpapers

Fri, 14 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

When I was growing up and we visited family in France I was always fascinated with the fact that they had some of the bedrooms completely covered in wallpaper, ceiling, walls and even window surrounds! Usually in tiny flower motifs or in lighter but still very busy Toile de Jouy. I found it hideous, even at a young age!

In Switzerland, wallpaper is seldom used in interiors, usually painted walls or a variety of textured materials are used. When I came to England many years ago, I discovered that wallpaper was not the abomination I had thought it to be! Part of a long and colourful decorating tradition, wallpapers here were used sparingly, when required in a historic context or as an architectural feature in a room. I became hooked – to the point where I often collect wallpaper and frame it.

A BIT OF BACKGROUND

Wallpaper can be traced back to China at around 200 B.C. when the Chinese glued rice paper onto their walls for decoration and insulation. From China to Arabia, in the 8th Century, wallpaper was developing but it really came into its own in the 18th Century and onwards.

Below is an example of ‘Royal Crescent’ - c. 1775, a Robert Adam design, found behind an inserted Victorian staircase in the Royal Crescent, Bath. Courtesy of Robert Weston, Hamilton Weston Wallpapers Ltd.

In Victorian times wallpaper was extremely popular- factory-printed papers provided a simple way of covering up plain walls with floral designs, geometric patterns, oriental themes, scenic landscapes or even animals. Printed borders were plentiful and copied from architectural mouldings such as Greek motifs or egg and dart designs.

Below is an example of ‘Archway House’, c. 1790-1800, found inside a low cupboard in Clapham old town, London. Used in Mr. Collin’s house in the film Pride & Prejudice with the actress Keira Knightley. Courtesy of Robert Weston, Hamilton Weston Wallpapers Ltd.

The development of department stores throughout the UK at that time helped in disseminating home decoration and mail order firms were plentiful. All one had to do was pick the designs from heavy and thick catalogues and order.

HIDDEN GEMS

Early wallpapers are often discovered under later alterations like skirting boards, picture rails, door & window architraving or even inserted walls. Robert Weston of Hamilton Weston Wallpapers Ltd has found a number of pieces behind gas or electric meters, inside shutter boxes, or painted over inside cupboards.He says “Quite often they can be found undetectedin Georgian buildings in multiple layers (often over 20+) with the top layers paintedlooking muchlike hardboard. When panelling went out of fashion (end 18th C.), they people wouldremove projecting dado rails etc. then naillinenover panelled walls or partitions to create aflushfoundation to add layer on layer of paper- never stripping back before redecorating until the 20th-21st centuries!”.

Below ‘Richmond Trellis’, c. 1840. Found in a skip in Richmond, Surrey with a London Times newspaper as lining paper. Courtesy of Robert Weston, Hamilton Weston Wallpapers Ltd.

Today wallpapers come in myriad of designs, colours, patterns, machine-made or the more expensive block or hand printed variety. Borders and friezes in differing scales can also be ordered. Great at covering up all manner of uneven, flawed and pitted walls, wallpapers are the greatest cover-up a wall can wear!

CALCULATING HOW MANY ROLLS YOU NEED....

The first question any client always asks me is: how much do I need to buy? How do I calculate what I need for such and such room? The answer? Adrian Rayfield of www.propertydecorating.co.uk has devised a fantastically easy tool – see what he says here:-

‘I created the calculator’s on www.propertydecorating.co.uk as a resource for people to use. I have used online wallpaper calculators before and found them very long-winded or complicated to use, this is why I decided to create my own. The calculator is an online tool aimed at anyone wanting to work out how many rolls of wallpaper needed to paper any given area, DIY’ers and tradesmen alike, including myself! The wallpaper calculator is quick, simple and hassle free to use, simply enter the height of the room or feature wall, then the circumference of a room (including windows and doors) or the width of a feature wall hit calculate and the calculator works it all out for you simple! The calculator also includes a feet to metre converter as I know many people still use feet and inches.

Once the calculation is worked out – the result shows you how many rolls (UK standard size) are needed. As a decorator I often find that people don’t have any idea on how to calculate the number of rolls of wallpaper required, and even less so when it comes to the wallpaper symbols that are found on the rolls or the wallpaper sample books. This is why I have included a page on the site with all of the symbols and their meanings.’

DON’T FORGET...

So if your walls are really uneven, what to do? Lining paper is always a good choice, it smoothes the flaws out and if using a heavier grade, it will cover up the biggest problems. Hung horizontally and precisely this is a must do for bad walls.

Vinyl wallpapers are waterproof and tough. They can be scrubbed with medium pressure and washed. Good for bathrooms, kitchens and kid’s rooms but also useful for high usage areas like hallways. Remember though, these must be applied with fungicidal adhesive, or mould can develop underneath.

Below ‘The Summer Garden’ by Camilla Meijer. New collection 2010.

Textured papers are usually embossed or en relief and these can be painted too. But these days we have gone much further than the old Anaglypta and Lincrusta or even flock wallpaper! These days, wallpapers can be made using, hessian, or other natural fibres, silk, linen, foils and even metals. They do need a paper backing and can be hung like normal wallpaper – so no need to batten the room or upholster the panels.

Before you get to the shops and choose your wallpaper – a few things to think about.

- What effect do you want for your room?

- Does it work with your window treatment?

- Does it complement your existing soft furnishings or does it clash?

- Look at the repeat in the design (on the rolls) so that you don’t end up with cut off patterns.

Finally do get a sample, a long one or at least the biggest one with the repeat pattern showing. Hang it on the wall and live with it for a few days, this can be an expensive decorative feature, so you want to make sure you have the right look, feel and design.

Below ‘Victoria’ by Camilla Meijer. New collection 2010.

More information:

‘Japantastic’ at MODA Middlesex – Museum of Domestic Design & Architecture celebrates 150 years of friendship with Japan showing Arthur Silver’s stunning collection of textiles and wallpapers adapting Japanese motifs for the home market. www.moda.mdx.ac.uk until August 1, 2010.

‘Very Sanderson – 150 years of English Decoration’ at the Fashion and Textile Museum, London, www.ftmlondon.org, until June 13th, 2010.

http://wallpaperhistorysociety.org.uk/ promotes awareness and understanding of historic wallpapers as well as contemporary wall coverings.

http://hamiltonweston.com/ Robert Weston, an architectural historian specialises in historic wallpapers. From Georgian to Victorian and Edwardian interiors, the wallpapers in Robert Weston’s collection span 25 years of collecting fragments of original wallpapers. These traditional designs are recreated form original period wallpapers.

http://www.paperboywallpaper.co.uk/ clean and contemporary wallpapers for boys of any age! Showing at the top of the article.

http://www.camillameijer.com/ contemporary wallpaper designed by Camilla Meijer. Inspired from nature the designs are dynamic and vibrant.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design. For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Being Ruthless in your Garden

Wed, 05 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

One of the principle things which prevents most people’s gardens from being a real pleasure to the eye is the tendency to treat plants like pets. People who would be quite happy to rip out old MDF wardrobes, or rid their houses of dust ridden bric a brac, do the reverse outside the house.

All plants are potentially disposable, and every plant in your garden should pull its weight. Think of them more as cut flowers rather than elderly and much loved, if now rather smelly dogs. It’s easy to buy plants as we buy cut flowers, responding to the freshness and beauty. Then we (hopefully) plant them, get used to them and stop noticing them – but unlike our faded cut flowers, we never throw them out. If you inherit someone else’s tired plants, shrubs or trees this is an even worse situation.

Be brave and go round your garden checking out every plant for its worth to you. Could you live without it? Would you even secretly be pleased to see the back of it? Does it give a long season of value or a quick flurry of interest followed by a rather painful decline? If you would be better off without it, dig it up and give it away. Or offer it to anyone you know who is opening their garden to the public and who sells plants on those occasions. Or even (heresy!) feed the compost heap with it.

If it’s a tree or shrub in a small garden that is not earning its keep there is a special reason to give them a severe grilling about their contribution to the gaiety of gardens. They will be taking up much space and light and they really must earn that, unless they have a tree preservation order giving them a free ride. They may be offering some privacy and thereby pulling their weight – but perhaps something else could play that role more elegantly?

If you can bring yourself to it there is nothing more exciting than an empty site. Do you dare have a mass clear out? It can be done – though you’d better move fast before there’s a law against it. Sometimes it takes that empty site for you to see the real possibilities for your garden – it is so easy to get caught in seeing what is as what has to be.

Afraid you wouldn’t know where to start with an empty plot? Well, that is what garden designers are for. But if you’d like to have a really active part in the creation of your new garden then ask a designer if they will consult with you for an afternoon to give you a starting off point.

There’s no reason that your garden shouldn’t give you a lift of pleasure every time you look at it. It just may take a little courage, ruthlessness and (sorry) cash to get you there.

Huge thanks to Anne Wareham, Editor of Thinkingardens.co.uk and Creator of the fabulous Veddw.co.uk

Live Webchat - Reducing the Cost of Your Overseas Property

Wed, 05 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Herbs for your garden

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

A Herb Garden is one of the easiest and most satisfying features you can build into your garden. Good for wildlife and if planted near your kitchen door, they can provide an amazing and bountiful supply of fresh herbs for the kitchen.

Herbs can either be planted in pots or in the ground. Easy to maintain and in general free from pests, they are the perfect ornamental and edible plant!

The herbs we know come from the Mediterranean region. They prefer a sunny position with a well-drained soil so choose the sunniest place you can. If the herb garden is in an enclosed area, choose a south-facing site.

A HERB SPIRAL

This is so easy to build and can be done in a few hours unless you’re building a Tudor mound...which I don’t recommend!

Follow these simple instructions:

Choose a sunny site
Best to put cardboard down before you build - this stops weeds
It might be easier to go for a clockwise pattern so you don't get confused with levels
You can build rock or brick walls or just have a ground level spiral
Remember though not to build too high- soil is heavy and without proper wall construction it will fall down and might injure someone
Place the rocks or bricks in a spiral formation from large to small in the area you have chosen
Put the soil between the spirals and plant the herbs - if building in levels, fill as if it were a pot
Plant herbs such as rosemary, thyme and tarragonin the inner part of the spiral. They require less water and therefore need less attention
Plant the other more tender herbs on the outer rims of your spiral.
Chives, parsley, chamomile, mint, corianderand fennel will do very well here These herbs need more water and as you water in the middle the water will trickle down to the plants which need it more

HERBS TO PLANT FOR SCENT AND THE KITCHEN

Below are some herbs you might like to plant. All have interesting textures and foliage, therefore great at enhancing any garden design. Not all can be eaten and obviously always consult a professional before planting or eating any unusual herbs. People often assume that because herbs are ‘natural’ that they are safe – this is not so. Be extra careful round children.

Culinary herbs

Parsley
Thyme
Sage
Marjoram
Chives
Lemon Balm
Mint
Coriander
Sorrel
Bay Leaf
Tarragon
Feverfew
Chervil
Chamomile
Oregano
Rosemary
Fennel

‘Bouquet garni’ ….is parsley, thyme, marjoram and bay leaf

Tie loosely in a muslin square Leave to savour your broths, soups and casseroles

Aromatic Herbs

Lavender
Rue
Basil
Thyme
Marjoram
Chamomile
Mint
Santolina
Evening Primrose
Rosemary
Anise
Hyssop
Sweet Woodruff

HINTS AND TIPS FOR EASY HERB GROWING

Generally, a light open soil/compost mix is best. An ordinary potting compost, with perhaps a little grit or garden soil mixed is fine
No need to feed the soil and pots on a regular basis, most herbs are used to growing on weak soils anyway
I always add a little 'long term' fertiliser, such as good compost or worm cast for potted herbs. This will feed the herbs in their pots and keep them growing well for a whole season
Another good idea, would be to incorporate a little water retentive gel to the compost before you plant up your containers, which will vastly increase the water holding capacity of the compost
Do not plant too many herbs per container - use more pots! Herbs do tend to spread rapidly and increase in size
If planting the herb spiral, do not plant too close together
If the soil is heavy such as clay soils – they can become too waterlogged or too dry - add compost and grit to help drainage
Do not add more peat for three reasons:

It makes the soil acidic. Most herbs don't like acid soil
the John Innes compost probably already has some, so don't add to it
the world's peat bogs are being used up, so do your bit to save the planet

WHICH COMPOST?

The best compost for growing herbs is John Innes No. 3 because it is soil based and contains longer-lasting nutrients. This means less feeding. It also holds moisture well. If it does dry out, it absorbs water quickly. However, take care not to over-water! John Innes No. 2 will also do. The higher the number, the more added nutrients are present in the compost.

There are a variety of composts out there which do not use peat. Three were awarded Best Buy by Which? Magazine in February 2010:

Vital Earth Tub and Basket Compost
New Horizon Multi-Purpose Compost
Vital Earth Multi-Purpose Compost

HERBS IN POTS

Almost any container is suitable to be used as a pot provided it has: drainage holes, a wide base to prevent it falling over and it is big enough and suitable for the plant
Wash any pots that have been used before
Check the drainage holes are unobstructed
Place gravel or broken pots in the bottom
This prevents the holes from filling with soil and aids drainage

PLANTING UP

Fill the container three-quarters full with compost
Or if planting in the ground, ensure the hole is ¾ of the pot deep
Remove the herb very carefully from its pot and plant up
Gently firm the soil around the plant, adding more compost, leaving a 2-3cm rim.
Water the plant well

So there you are – a fragrant, edible and beautiful herb garden in a few hours and for very little money!

Photographs copyright F. Murat

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Relocation Tips

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Relocating can be challenging and expensive. When looking for property in any area you need to have good local knowledge, and also understand the local market, which is time consuming, if you already have a job to do 9-5.

Planning is key and there a few simple steps to make relocating pain free.

1. Criteria

Understand your wants, needs and desires - how are you going to travel, what schools are nearby?, public transport, road links, what clubs you have etc... But be realistic. Create or Buy a local area report to give you an overview of the areas and study it. Understanding your criteria will save you time and money.

2. Research

Buy the local paper, speak to locals and understand the market conditions. Drive around; go into local shops etc...View properties within your budget to see what is out there and what you get for your money but also look at property prices over a period of time, watch properties of interest to you and see how quickly they sell or let. Knowing about the market will give you an advantage.

3. Action

Go and find properties that suit your requirements. The best properties can be the hardest to find so do the leg work and leave no stone unturned. Look at properties that are above your budget too. Get serious about moving as sometimes the grass is not greener. Approach Relocation agents, private landlords, developers, property managers etc... Anyone with the inside track could give you the edge over other buyers and tenants to enable you to get the best possible property at the best possible price.

Ideally you should start researching your area 3 months before you need to move, using relocation agencies can also be helpful, especially when you are in a different area. Viewing properties that are ‘just not right’ can become expensive so choose carefully and ask lots of questions before you arrange to view – remember Agents generate revenue from Letting or Selling property so some agencies want as many people to view as possible, they are not always thinking of your specific requirements.

Good luck with your search.

With thanks to Wesley Heraty, MD of Location Cheshire

www.locationcheshire.org.uk

www.relocatecheshire.co.uk

Show Time

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Supposing all your hard work has paid off and after you’ve tidied up a bit, taken some good photos and advertised your property, you suddenly get asked if a potential buyer can come and view your home.

If you’re not going down the conventional Estate Agent route, selling your property and achieving the best price, is now all down to you!

Unless confident that you’re fully prepared and left the place looking spotless before rushing out to work, avoid the temptation to agree viewings on the spur of the moment.

Before you show anyone around, spend a little time deciding which rooms to start with. Think about the last time you viewed a property and plan a route that gives buyers the very best impression of your home. Just because the downstairs loo is right by the front door, doesn’t mean it should be the room you take buyers into first! Equally, if you have more than 2 floors, is it really a good idea to take them to a room on the top floor last?

For some, the ‘show round’ can be a nerve racking nightmare; Where do I start? Will they like it? What do I say? What if they offer? Much is common sense but the emotional attachment you have with your home is often hard to put aside

To conduct a ‘perfect’ viewing, I find that many of my clients need advice on individual aspects of their property. However, the following guidelines can apply to every viewing and might just help you clinch that sale!

1. Its all in the planning;

Plan your route. Practise on family or friends if necessary; avoid having to ‘double back’ all the time.

2. Welcome your guests;

Don’t make the buyer feel like an intruder, let them view your property in a relaxed and unhurried manner.

3. Turn up the heat;

Check the temperature. Don’t worry about the utility bills now, if you need to wear a jumper - its too cold!

4. Not seen not heard;

Get rid of the kids, pets, lodgers and any other family members, your property will seem more spacious and you can give the buyers undivided attention.

5. Light and bright;

Turn on side lamps for warmth and atmosphere, take down the nets, pull up the blinds (unless there’s an unsightly view!) and let the light flood in.

6. Let them linger;

Offer tea or coffee, relax with a chat, the longer they linger the more ‘at home’ they will feel.

And finally, Engage with the buyer by all means but steer clear of the hard sell!

By Helen Silver from The Property Styling Company www.propertystylingcompany.co.uk

Follow Helen on Twitter: @propertystyling

‘Rent Now, Buy Later’ How to get onto the property ladder today!

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

The problem

Ask most people who want to own their own home what the number one obstacle is and they will say the deposit.

Saving up this money before you can get the keys, whilst shelling out on rent, seems to be an experience most of us go through at some point in our lives from which it can be difficult to see a way forward and to make the jump from renter to owner.

Latest figures from the Bank of England indicate that first-time buyers need to stump up an average deposit of around £30,000 with the average age being 39!

Renting is even worse is when you consider that all you are actually doing is paying off the landlord’s mortgage so that they can make the profit at the end of the day from your rent money! This is their profit that you are paying for but will never see a penny of! Therefore the expression of ‘rent money being dead money’ is no coincidence!

The modern solution

This is where ‘Rent Now, Buy Later’ steps in. A totally new way of owning and controlling your new home today by saving up your purchase deposit whilst you live in the property rather than before you move in. This approach has proved to be very popular in Australia and other parts of Europe, USA and is now to taking off in a big way here in the UK.

The good news

The important point with these schemes is that the purchase price you’ll be buying the property for is agreed on day one and any increase in that value of your property is yours to keep. A new kitchen could cost you £2,000 yet add £7,000 to the value – again all yours to keep. Even a quick run round with the paintbrush could add thousands to the value of your home and that’s just a few days work!

Typically you’ll pay a much smaller amount to move in (usually from 3% of the purchase price) and some firms will even allow you to spread this over a number of months. Also, part of your rent money will go towards the purchase of the property, and after a period that could be anything from 1 year to 5 years, you’ll purchase your property at the price agreed on day one with a new mortgage, with the deposit being paid for by the contributions that you’ve saved for while you lived there!

In many ways this is like ‘Try before you buy’ because if something were to change, your employer wanted you to relocate for example, you can walk away with just 2 months notice and no black marks on your credit file. You will no longer be hamstrung by a property you no longer want or need.

Solicitors are always involved to ensure that your interests are protected and many companies will even pay your legal costs to make the whole process as painless as possible.

It’s important to understand that unlike the government schemes, this allows you to own 100% of your home from day one rather than shared ownership – yours to improve or sell as you see fit – after all, it’s your home, it’s your castle.

Whilst this might not be your ‘forever home’, what it does provide is that essential jump onto the property ladder; the opportunity to own your own home and no longer be paying dead rent money to landlords, while enjoying the benefits of home ownership today.

Thanks to David Croissant

www.rentladder.com

Tepilo is delighted to be working with Buyers Edge – The national home buyers agent service.

Tue, 20 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

With Buyers Edge every UK homebuyer can have the expertise of a professional Buying Agent at their fingertips.

Your local Buyers Edge agent will help locate your dream home, negotiate a great deal on the purchase and then manage surveys, mortgages and conveyancing to ensure a stress free move.

And now with local offices throughout the UK everyone can save time, money and stress with Buyers Edge.

For more information please visit: http://buyersedgeuk.com/

Attracting wildlife to your garden

Fri, 16 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Attracting wildlife to any garden, even a balcony garden is great for the environment. It’s cheap, easy and everyone can contribute.

Insects, birds and other wildlife are critical in the pollination of fruit and vegetables and it is estimated that one third of our food supply depends on these pollinators. Pesticides, loss of habitat due to development and competition from non-native species have all contributed to the decline of this fragile and essential ecosystem.

Photograph Nick Parkin of http://www.pimlico-flats.co.uk/

However you do need to provide a varied plant environment to attract and encourage wildlife to settle there. It’s like setting up a department store – you need all kinds of departments to attract all kinds of people to shop, play and spend!

Diverse range of flora by Françoise Murat

A BRIDGE BETWEEN BUILT-UP AREAS AND OPEN SPACES

Gardens in particular can often provide habitats that are missing from public areas such as ponds, quiet nesting sites, shelter for hibernating mammals and nooks and crannies for good bugs to live in.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?

A simple pile of logs will provide food and shelter for a huge number of insects, small mammals and invertebrates. The best place for this is in a quiet, shady spot so they don’t overheat. Also remember to have some leaf litter next to it or nearby so that hedgehogs and toads can make it their home. If you live in a flat this is probably something best avoided! Try this...

A bird feeder – very, very important during the winter months but please don’t feed the birds during the summer months - foraging is good for them. Hang them high so cats don’t grab the birds.

Photograph Nick Parkin of http://www.pimlico-flats.co.uk/

Hedges. Very important! As a general rule don’t cut your hedges in May as many birds are using them either at ground level or higher up to breed. Hold off until after breeding season at the end of June.

Build a pond! Well, if you have been following the blogs here then you will know that we did a two part blog here on designing and building a wildlife pond and in part two here. In my humble opinion a pond is the single most important thing you can do to attract a huge variety of wildlife. From dragonflies to frogs, birds and newts, they all love drinking, living and swimming in them.

Photograph from Carla Boulton at http://carlaboulton.posterous.com/

Don’t mow the lawn. Yes, I know. Heresy in British people’s hearts. But....if you seed some wildflowers and leave it to itself, this patch will attract butterflies like bees to honey. Talking of bees, they will love the pollen and many invertebrates and small mammals will appreciate the longer grass where they can hide from predators. Leave a few nettles too – butterflies adore them.

Photograph from Adrian Rayfield at http://www.propertydecorating.co.uk/

Insect boxes - fabulous, simple to make and a great project for bored children. Cut up bamboo canes, tie them together and hang them under the trees and around the garden.

Layered bug hotel Françoise Murat

Or try a bug hotel – a bit more sophisticated and you do need a bit more space. See the picture here. It’s like a cake, layers of wood, bamboos, bricks, logs, newspapers, drilled logs, etc. Each layer will attract different insects. A hive of bug life!

Bug hotel Françoise Murat

For more information on how to increase wildlife in your garden or on your balcony!

Visit http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/, they have regional centres all over the UK.

Top image: Azure Damselfly by Brian Shorter, the Hampshire Wildlife Trust

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

New Contemporary Interiors and Architectural Gardens from Old - Recycling Makes Sense

Fri, 09 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

As an Interior design and Landscape Designer I am often confronted with the fact that clients want to realise their dreams from scratch using new furnishings for their home or new landscaping materials to make their perfect garden.

Being green does not mean joining the lentil and flower brigade. Nothing wrong with lentils. I adore them, and I of course I love flowers! Just as design need not be either exclusively about either function or form, being ecologically-led need not be drab, old fashioned or inelegant. It makes sense financially, it is important for our environment and and is easily done.

The Code for Sustainable Homes kicks in this year; new housing will need to meet certain sustainability, carbon emitting and other more general environmentally friendly criteria. But we still have no guidelines for interiors or indeed gardens and landscapes. So why wait for someone else to do something? Professionals advising clients should all go out of their way to educate, share and advise them on more sustainable materials and methods. The key is to be prepared to invest time and adopt a more forward-thinking process when sourcing materials. Ask suppliers to show and demonstrate their green credentials or manufacturing process – not always easy and not always available. We now ask for these credentials as part of our assessment when we look for new suppliers but crucially we also annually review our suppliers and see how they have improved if at all. It is about an open dialogue between manufacturers and specifiers and the public, after all we all have to make an effort.

Keeping it green is not just about recycling of course, it’s about looking at the whole supply chain, how it is made, where was it made, who by and even though you may be recycling by buying used, second-hand items, do ask how they have been recycled. Sometimes the recycling process is more labour intensive and energy intensive then making from new – duplicate manufacturing as I call it. Two times energy requirements, two times energy output and two times potential waste output.

For my clients who are keen to help themselves and try their hand at re-using and recycling I point them towards this website, Design Sponge, a design website, showcases the before and after of kitchens, bedrooms, tables as well as re-interpreted accessories such as old suitcases & picture frames. It’s contemporary, modern and right on the button in keeping it green. They show you how to do it on a budget without compromising on designer looks. An American website but so far the only I have found who really looks and shows people how and what to do to breathe new life into furniture.

For lighting, we have an English company we lke very much, Skinflint Design, dealers in reclaimed lighting from the 20th Century. They have an extensive range of fabulous industrial fixtures from the 1900’s to the 1960s such as these wall lights. The company is a specialist in lighting design and sourcing industrial lighting – fully compliant with today’s standards, these lights easily fit into any interiors where a mix of old and new is appreciated.

I’m a big fan of reclamation material as offered by MASCo Architectural Salvage near Stroud and now also present in Bath. They sell reclaimed landscaping materials such as bricks, flagstones, granite setts and Cotswold stones for example. These are perfect for matching up with existing materials in a new garden commission but they are also perfect for starting anew! From bird baths to statuary, to chimney pots as planted features, an architectural salvage yard can be a source of inspiration and a treasure trove of unusual items.

Materials with patina set into a new crisp modern design can showcase the perfect juxtaposition of old and new, sitting comfortably together. I love this door again from MASCo, I can see it even a very crisp modern interior – flanked by glass walls for example. The door becomes work of art.

A few more things to remember to “keep it green”:

- Don’t be tempted to throw out a period staircase even if it is in a poor state - it is incredibly difficult to replace. Nowadays an off-the -shelf staircase is unlikely to fit and a bespoke hand-made replacement will be very expensive. If in doubt ask professionals like MASCo

- Don’t throw out those old radiators, have them tested for any leaks, cleaned and re-sprayed, again they can look absolutely stunning in any interior, whether contemporary or period

- Georgian floorboards are much wider than those we use today so unless they are riddled with woodworm and beyond repair, try to source from salvage yards as you will not find new wooden boards that are wide enough. Remember that Georgian wooden floors were often painted and this can often hide a multitude of sins. Sanding the boards and re-painting them is often a wise move but be prepared to unearth some problems!

- When re-painting plasterwork in a period property it is good to use soft distemper as modern paints are so thick they clog up the plasterwork and smooth over the detail. With distemper, mistakes are easily rectified with hot water and a soft cloth. It is easy to apply and also greener.

- Don’t replace that Georgian fireplace or any period fireplace because it looks a bit shabby or damaged. Have it refurbished. The patina can never be replicated with modern copies and some wear and tear adds to the overall effect.

Lastly, do not live in the past! If you live in a period property don’t try to re-create the style and era of the time by filling your house with period furniture, fabrics, soft furnishings and anything else you can find of the era! Try to retain as much as possible of the architecture detailing such as wood work, plasterwork, fireplaces, windows and floorboards, but still live in the 21st century. Modern furniture can look stunning in a period setting. It is all about striking a balance between historical accuracy and the contemporary requirements of modern-day living!

Architectural Salvage photographs kindly provided by MASCo and taken by Andy Marshall (fotofacade.com)

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

"Renewables as a sound financial investment? Surely not!?"

Thu, 01 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

The words "Renewable energy" and "investment", have not traditionally been linked together, positively?! But this is set to change:

I'm sure many people will have heard of the "Feed in tariff" (FIT)?

Started on 1st April 2010 (no not an April Fools joke!), but who's heard of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)? Due to start April 2011?

These 2 schemes are set to take renewables from being a “niche” market for very green, or wealthy people, to something that most people can do.

Let's start with the FIT:

Under the government’s feed-in tariff project, households with a solar PV (for electricity) system could benefit from an annual reduction in electricity bills of £140 as well as an additional £900 in payments from the financial incentives scheme, the Department of Energy and Climate Change revealed.

For more details click here

Now for the RHI:

Whilst it's still in it's "consultancy" stage, it looks to be even better!

Solar thermal, for hot water could save the consumer up to £500 per annum!

Whilst heat pumps (especially air source) should negate heating bills, and even provide a profit! For a well insulated property. Incidentally, there are still grants available, but be quick!

For more details click here

But, be aware! Installations of any of these technologies must be carried out by MCS accredited installers, otherwise you will not be entitled to these "payments"- More here

So, My view, is that renewable energy is a sound financial investment!

Get planting - Wildlife Pond Part 2

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Planting a pond is not difficult – the plants are very easy and will take off (as in grow) as soon as you plunge them in, so you don’t have to be precious about it. Floating plants like ivy-leaf duckweed, hornwort and water solider can be thrown, literally!

Marginal plants (the ones that edge the pond in the shallower water), such as water forget me not, spearwort and water plantain should be anchored down with a rock so that they can get a grip into the soil you have put in. Once they get a foothold they will be fine and you can just leave the rocks in there.

For bigger plants such as brooklime, spearwort and water plantain, just use a rock or stone to hold the roots in contact with the subsoil. So the bigger plants that go in the middle or the water lilies will usually come in a basket. Fill the basket with more stones, make sure you don’t crush the roots and place them in the deeper parts of the pond.

Once you have done all the planting, the water will be green – usually a time when clients call me in a panic. They often don’t believe me that the water will be clear in a few days, but then they call back delighted and relieved that everything has turned out as promised.

Wildlife should be happily colonising the pond and your pond should thrive.

KEEPING IT BEAUTIFUL

A pond will need looking after. To keep it in check you will need to be brutal once in a while. When half the pond is covered with plants you need to haul some of them out and give them to friends or compost them. But remember, this is a wildlife pond, so place the plants on the edges of the pond for a day so that all the amphibians and insects have a chance to leave their hide out.

This also applies to the plants that are completely underwater. Fish them out and leave them overnight to allow all the animal life to leave – tease out the tangles in the plants to ensure that they get the best chance to crawl out. The more courageous of you can even help them out by hand and throw them back in.

This clearing-out process will allow as many different species as possible to thrive and not let the bullies take over the school yard! Cutting back the plants also reduces the production of nitrogen that algae feeds on, keeping algae such as blanket weed to a minimum.

Whenever we design and build a pond for a client we supply them with barley bricks. These are thrown in the pond and usually last 1-2 years before they need replacing. These clean and clear the pond of algae.

Birds will tend to bathe and splash around and can scratch or dislodge the liner. The best thing to do is to line the edge with large stones and gravel. This will also look more natural than a sharp edge.

The water level will rise and fall. During a hot summer evaporation of the water can be rather dramatic, so you will need to keep an eye on the pond during hot spells.

If you have a rainwater harvesting butt why not connect it to the pond with an overflow refill pipe? When the water butt is full up the excess can be transferred to the pond.

Even if you are tight for space, have small children and prefer not to install a pond until they are older, any form of water feature - even a bird bath - will really make a difference to the number and types of wildlife visitors that visit your garden. I have tried to show the basics of pond design here, but depending on how adventurous you are feeling, I can suggest having a look at The Wildlife Trust’s The Wildlife Pond Handbook by Louise Bardsley

Photographs of wildlife kindly provided by Hampshire Wildlife Trust http://www.hwt.org.uk/

Photograph of ponds and plants. © F. Murat

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Build a wildlife pond in a weekend - part 1

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT

A SURE FIRE WAY TO ATTRACT WILDLIFE IN THE GARDEN!

If there’s one feature in the garden guaranteed to attract wildlife with lightning speed, it’s a pond. At a time when watering holes have all but disappeared from the surrounding countryside, ponds have become an important wildlife feature and will encourage all the good bugs to visit your patch.

Ponds develop fast because the animals and plants that colonise them are mobile and multiply quickly. Within just a few days amphibians, birds, insects and mammals will start to colonise this new found watering hole.

Parents who commission us for a new garden design often want to incorporate a pond but are worried about the children. This is something that needs careful consideration and we advocate the use of a fence around the pond and a reinforced plastic grid fitted above or below the water surface of the pond. Not pretty, but until they are older, very effective.

STEP BY STEP –CHOOSING THE BEST SITE

You can build a pond at any time of year, but late winter is best. With the approach of spring it will establish and be colonised much faster. March and April are the perfect time to build your pond and you can plant it up in May.

Sunny sites are best: dragonflies adore heat and tadpoles thrive in warm shallow water. Most water plants thrive in bright sunshine too but the ideal pond is 1/3 in dappled shade and the rest in heat. This offers the best of both worlds for all amphibians, insects and mammals and means that you will see more activity too.

Definitely avoid putting a pond under trees – you will have to spend all of your time clearing it of fallen leaves!

THE BIG DIG

First create the outline of your pond with a hose pipe – an easy way to see what it will look like before you start digging. The size of your pond will depend on the size of your garden, so make sure it balances well with the rest of the garden. Too small and it will look silly, too large and it will tend to dominate the garden. As a general rule, once completed and filled, the pond will appear about a third smaller ‘in the flesh’ than your outline on the grass.

Ensure one end has a shallow slope and that approximately two thirds of your pond is deeper water to allow for denser planting. A deeper central area at least 600-900mm (3-4 ft) is ideal for the hibernating guests. Think of creating a corridor for the critters to go from deep colder water to the shallow end and out into the grass, planted areas and more sheltered areas. A gently sloping shoreline will help the amphibians to crawl out to dry soil

Do not try to create every detail of your design as you dig down. This is hard to do and you will never achieve a good level and you will see the liner. Dig the deepest part first and then create the basic levels – shallow slope, middle step of 300mm and the deep area of 6-900mm. Once you have your basic levels you can get creative with the details. Try to keep the edges all around the pond as a gentle slope to act as a shelf for the shallow marginal plants and for the wildlife to have an easy way in and out of the pond.

Keep the top soil (first 200mm) to one side on a liner as you will use this to fill your pond.

UNDERLAY and LINER

Before you put a liner you must put down an underlay. This is easily cut with large scissors and is laid all around the hole to protect the liner against sharp stones (sharp stones = holes = leak!). Alternatively you can line the entire pond using stone-free sand as an underlay.

Butyl liners were for many years the liner of choice but these days we use PVC liners. Strong and resistant to UV light (which breaks down the plastic over time), they are the most advanced liners on the market for residential ponds. When ordering, you will need to know the maximum length and depth of your pond. The supplier will calculate how much you need. Or you could find out what sizes liners are available and design your pond accordingly to minimise wastage and cost. Don’t forget to order your underlay at the same time.

Drape the liner over the pond and make sure there is excess liner over the edges. Sieve the topsoil you set aside earlier and cover the various levels including the bottom of the pond (2-3cm). Increase soil depth towards the sloped edges of the pond.

Add water. As it slowly fills up, pull (gently!) on the sides and fold the liner as required. Keep the folds as few and as simple as possible so that you don’t get any bunching.

I would wait ½ hr before cutting off the edges. This allows for the soil to settle under the weight of the water. Cut off the excess liner leaving at least an extra 300mm (12 inches) all the way around (when it’s lying horizontally). Do this job slowly using a sharp Stanley knife. Bury the edges of the liner by lifting the turf edges and tucking it under.

So that’s the only tricky bit really! Now the fun begins.

By now your pond should look like an absolute black mess – trust me it will clear over the next few days, especially when the plants are in.

PLANTING UP – YOU WILL NEED TO WAIT 1 WEEK

So the pond is done but you will need to wait a few days for the sediment to settle. You can plant the weekend after. The best time to get your plants is in May when most nurseries will have the best varieties available and when prices are cheaper.

Photographs of wildlife kindly provided by Hampshire Wildlife Trust http://www.hwt.org.uk/

Photograph of ponds and plants © F. Murat

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Window Dressings with a Difference

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT

So, we've finally made it through the winter, and, after months of battened-down hatches and bodies braced against the biting cold, almost without warning Spring really seems to have arrived. Perhaps, like us, you're considering a bit of spring- cleaning... clearing the winter grime away from your windows, so that you can actually see what's out there!

You may also currently be preparing your house for sale, doing the usual paint jobs, tidy-ups and clear-outs, but be keen, even so, to add a special something to give your home a bit of a 'wow' factor when it comes to viewings... or perhaps you're lucky enough to have the house move under your belt, and now wish to put your own unique stamp on your new home ... or maybe you just fancy doing something a bit different to celebrate the passage of a tough old winter, and the fact that you can now see out of your windows! Whatever your situation, now seems a pretty good time to have a good and inspirational ‘think’ about your window dressings.

Roller Blinds which are as individual as you are

So, this is where Creatively Different Blinds can help with our digitally-printed, made-to-measure roller blinds, which enable you to take a bland and boring window, and turn it into something very special and as individual as you are. You can, quite simply, transform the whole feel and character of a room by creating a fabulous focal point at your window. Interestingly, our blinds also look really good when the window is framed by curtains, so it's definitely worth experimenting. We can print using one of the images from our extensive gallery, or using your own photograph or company logo. In addition, once your order is placed, you will receive at least one proof, showing how your image will look when scaled to the proportions of your window.

Seeing is believing

Our Image Gallery of over 4,000 exclusively-licensed images is a perfect place to start. So, whether you like a bold and colourful look, or prefer something calmer and more tranquil, have a look at www.CreativelyDifferentBlinds.com for some really great ideas. Fabulous landscapes and seascapes, together with stunningly-beautiful flowers, licensed to us by some truly great photographers, compete with fabulous food-and-drink images, including some brilliantly-shot 'foodscapes' from photographer, Carl Warner. Our superb V&A collection offers a wide range of beautiful and unusual artwork for your blind... or you may prefer some of the Art Deco or really funky modern art images in our Art and Culture section. For children's bedrooms, we have Beatrix Potter's timeless Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-duck, the irrepressible Dennis the Menace, Bang on the Door's fun characters, Juicy Lucy Designs, fairies, dinosaurs, and more... this doesn't really scratch the surface, so do go and have a browse, and see for yourself.

Become an Art Collector with our Limited Edition Blinds

We currently have a very special 'Flowers Quartet' Limited Edition range of roller blinds printed with superb and vibrant artwork in six different colour-ways, created exclusively for us by world-renowned pop artist, Deborah Azzopardi. Each colour-way will be produced only 55 times, numbered and signed by the artist, and come with its own Certificate of Authentication. What's more, for every Limited Edition roller blind sold, Creatively Different will donate £50 to Tommy's. You can find out more at http://www.creativelydifferentblinds.com/LimitedEdition.aspx

Design and Image-Search Service

We take pride in providing great customer service across the board, so that you and your order will be taken care of from the moment you place it online or by telephone, to the moment the blind is delivered to you. We also offer a Design and Image-search service, so, if you can't find exactly what you're looking for, let us know, and we will do our best to help... whether it's working closely with you to produce a particular crop or special effect that you would like, or searching our sources for an image that you're keen to have.

Especially for you

Whatever situation you're in - whether you're moving out, moving in, or simply revamping your home, we know how expensive it is, so would like to help by offering you 15% off the price of both our Designer and Photo Blinds. Just enter this special promotional code at the basket stage before 31 May 2010: 2K0-KK2

With thanks to Creatively Different Blinds.

Image copyright:Assaf Frank

A home-seller’s guide to steam cleaning your carpets for extra saleability…

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT

When it comes to selling your property as we all know first impressions are vital. But as soon as you step into a home on a viewing and you like what you see you should quickly switch to serious mode and actually start analysing what you are buying.

You are not buying the giant flat screen TV over the fireplace or that ultra-chic glass dining table, but the chances are you are buying the carpets as part of the fixtures and fittings of the house.

As a seller then you need to present this asset in the best possible light – tired, grubby looking carpets (even worse are carpets that smell of dogs) can put potential buyers off your whole house – I know its illogical but it happens!

When asked people say they are going to change the carpets as soon as they move in but in fact they know in the back of their minds they will probably still be living with the same floor coverings six months or a year later – and in many case much longer than that. When you’ve just moved in and got all the furniture arranged to your heart’s desire it’s a tough call to suddenly uproot everything again so you can refit the carpets.

In the great old US of A, people who have carpets and ‘area’ rugs get them steam cleaned by truck-mounted units just like the ones we operate in the UK on an annual basis. They also get their furniture and tiled floors cleaned at the same time as well. In the UK there seems to be a reluctance to treat fitted carpets in the same way as we do our other household fabrics. The truth is that carpets collect a lot of residue from everyday life including large concentrations of dead skin, dust mites, pet dander and of course walked in soil, much of which cannot simply be vacuumed away.

For the best results in a domestic situation your best bet is to engage the services of a local companywho usea powerful truck-mounted steam system which is driven by a large petrol or diesel powered engine. This system is known as HWE or Hot Water Extraction and is the system recommended by most carpet manufacturers themselves.

In brief the trained operator will first vacuum your carpets with an industrial twin-motor machine and then pre-spray with a soapy substance that will help to emulsify the stubborn soilattached to the pile of the carpet – after the pre-spray is agitated and left to ‘dwell’ on the carpet the truck mounted system is then employed to spray at relatively high pressure a detergent in a very hot mixture onto the face fibre of the carpet and then extract the mixture (along with the soil and other nasties) using the super-strength vacuum almost as soon as it is forced into the carpet – real steam – and NOT water vapour –will be seen jetting from the end of the metal wand floor tool used by the operator.

The fresh water for the steam mixture and the soiled waste that is recovered is serviced by large tanks on board the truck-mounted unit. This vehicle will want to pull up fairly adjacent to your side or front door so that they can trail their large bore vacuum recovery hose and high pressure steam hose into the house. Don’t be put off if you have poor access to your property as the systems used can operate at some distance away from your home. These machines are extremely efficient and effective and once they are set up they can clean very large areas of carpet very quickly.

All this of course comes at a cost but it will not be excessive if you have a reasonable number of rooms to clean. The old adage about ‘buy cheap – buy twice’ certainly applies to carpet cleaning and it is definitely worth asking if the operator uses a ‘truck-mounted system’. There are numerous other operators about who are known in the trade as 'splash and dash' merchants who use using glorified hire machines which are under-powered electric sytems that are woefully short on either true heated cleaning ability or drying (vacuum) power and leave you carpets no better than when they started.

Reputable operators are fully insured for unlikely events such as treatment risk and will give you their full company address details – it may be tempting but please do not get your carpets cleaned bythe company who just pushed a card through your door with a mobile number and an offer of 'whole house' carpet cleans for very low prices.

When you engage the services of a professional carpet cleaner you should try to establish during the (free) survey or quotation if all the marks and stains in your carpets will be removed – sadly if you have very long-standing stains caused by (say) ink, blood or shoe polish they may be permanent and no system or stain remover can remove permanent stains in wool mix carpets - sunlight and your own remedies or shop-bought treatments that have not been properly rinsed outmay have made the problem worse. You may also have wear marks in high traffic areas and these parts may not clean as well as other less worn areas because of abrasion to the fibres.

If you just have rugs on hard floors then the best remedy for a quick freshen up is to lift and air and beat those rugs and vacuum them (on the back/reverse) outside you house and then vacuum them again on the back and finally the front again when you get them back in the house. Alternatively of course you could get a professional in to do that for you and to steam clean the rugs as well.

If you are serious about getting your carpets into tip-top condition and making that house sale, then do have them deep steam cleaned - they will be dry in 2-3 hours – and remember if you want something doing properly then call in a professional who uses a truck-mounted steam system.

We run a truck-mount steam carpet cleaning company in Hampshire and Dorset and rarely travel outside these counties but I am happy to put you in touch with a reputable operator in your area if you cannot find a suitable local company. Contact me at BuckClean@aol.com or if you live in Hampshire or Dorset see our website at: www.SteamCleanCarpetService.co.uk

The Perfect Children’s Room – part 2

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT

In the second part of the perfect children’s bedroom, we bake a cake – not literally you understand! It’s really a matter of putting certain ingredients together to give you a good foundation to build on. The trimmings are all the things that you can change over the years and won’t cost too much to do. Get the basics right and a child’s room will grow up with them.

See our Perfect Children’s Room – part 1 here if you missed it.

FLOORING

Spend some time thinking about this; it’s important to think of texture and colour. Children spend an awful lot of time playing on the floor, so it needs to be practical and hard wearing. Hardwood floors are great, but will need some softening effect, with a rug or something similar. A carpet is also a good idea, unless your child suffers from allergies, if so, stick to wooden flooring. A hardwearing carpet is great, it softens the room, keeps the area warm to naked feet and is non-slip – keep to the lighter colours of the spectrum as opposed to very dark ones when fluff and dirt will show, but don’t make it beige or white! That might be too hard to keep clean!

BAKING A CAKE FOR DIFFERENT OCCASIONS!

Colour scheme – harmonious and complementary always works well. Use 2 colours, one for the walls and another for the skirting, door and window surround. Make sure they complement each other, and if you want to use a striking colour, confine it to one wall - an accent is a great way to introduce a bit of fun into a scheme.

A different way of introducing a bit of variety into a child’s bedroom is wallpapering one wall with a suitable design. After all, what small boy doesn’t like dinosaurs?!

We found a host of great graphics at www.paperboywallpaper.co.uk, a UK based company started by Victoria Cramsie a few years ago. The designs are bang-up-to-date, contemporary but with a nod towards classical themes. We particularly love this one (on right), ‘Dya-think-e-saurus’, available in purple and silver, blue and brown as well as green and red, because it’s infused with a sense of danger and adventure; exactly what small boys love! The paper comes from accredited sustainable forests (FSC) and they are made in Norfolk.

Light décor = easy to adapt and change. So, choosing neutral shades for the walls, the floors and the furniture means that, as the child grows up, you can personalise the room with different, quirky & colourful items. Adding colourful accessories such as bedding, toys, books, posters and canvasses will inject some fun and personality, without breaking the bank. Like creating a cake – it is the same cake, but with different toppings - as and when the mood takes you! (Or in this case, as and when the children grow up!!)

For an instant injection of colour and fun try these smaller chairs that are toy-like from http://design-conscious.co.uk. The Julian chairs, as they are known, are part of the Magis collection designed by Spanish designer Javier Mariscal. Available in a choice of colours, they are light-weight and can be used outdoors. It is always good to have things that can be easily and safely dragged outside when the weather gets better!

Another fun addition are these Sway stools. Filled with sand as ballast, they come in Red, Orange and Green (plus Pink as special order!). Available from http://www.gardenbeet.com, an eco garden accessories & gifts shop, the stools can also be used outdoors.

These stools will be shown at the V&A‘s Museum of Childhood exhibition (6th Feb-13 June 2010) called ‘Sit down: seating for children’.

FURNITURE

Children’s rooms are their private space, a place to take refuge from grown-ups and the world. The need a space that makes them feel safe and happy. So decorate their rooms with thought and care.

Don’t buy child-sized furniture for the whole room - it will date and the children grow so quickly that normal sized furniture is a much better longer term investment – in any case, children always want to grow up faster don’t they? Having adult furniture will make them feel special. Obviously a cot and changing table is required where the room is for a baby, but the rest of the room furniture, if chosen well, can last until adulthood. You can always buy the odd smaller items like the Julian chairs (see above), to brighten up the room, but we wouldn’t suggest the whole room is furnished in this way.

Children love bunk-beds, so it might be a good idea to invest in these, even if there is only one child, it makes it so easy when their friends come and stay. They offer such versatility and space saving, they are invaluable. If the space is really small, you might still consider a bunk bed without a bed underneath, but replaced with a desk and storage space. The variety of bunk-beds available at www.steens.dk, see picture, range from the traditional to the more contemporary.

Think long-term investment, so buy adaptable furniture that in time can be painted if need be, and re-used for other purposes. A baby changing table could be re-used as a chest of drawers, a toy box can become a blanket chest or used for linen storage – painted and even upholstered still means a minimal outlay for a totally new look.

These are easy to follow tips and ideas and they will ensure that your children’s bedroom will stand the test of time….and not break the bank!

Main photograph kindly provided by www.steens.dk

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

The Buy to Let Market in 2010

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

There have been numerous articles written recently pronouncing the death of the buy to let market – but things seem to be changing and we’re seeing a sharp upturn it seems. This is likely down to increased demand for rentals with the shortage of affordable homes for first time buyers, and the lack of available finance, despite recent government efforts. But beware - ideally, the rental income that your investment properties produce each month should be more than enough to cover the cost of financing, the cost of managing and maintaining them, and a little bit extra for you. In the real world, that often isn’t going to happen.The rental market will eventually be created because of the affordability barrier – but there will be a lag.

Here are my top ten tips for buying to let in 2010

1) Carry out thorough research. Check local rental conditions, analyse rental demand and determine the types of renting in your area. Look for obvious clues such as a large company relocation, the opening of trendy bars and shops, or the existence of good schools nearby and choose a property with features that will appeal to your market.

2) An appealing property rental is one that is close to transport links and/or has off street parking.

3) If you plan to rent your property to professionals, all of the bedrooms should ideally be doubles.

4) Think low maintenance. You want a property that will run itself as smoothly as possible

5) If you are managing the property yourself, be prepared to do some hard work. A buy to let property is far from being a hassle free income.

6) Choose a property close to home, which will enable you to pop over and sort out any problems easily. If you are not able to do this it can cost you more than a weeks rent to get someone in.

7) Bear in mind that family rental homes require plenty of space and storage

8) If you are the sole freeholder of the property, you will need to ensure that the common parts and the exterior of the property are well maintained. You may wish to spend a couple of hours a week vacuuming and polishing or employ a professional cleaning company to keep these areas up to scratch. If your buy to let is leasehold, however, the responsibility for the maintenance of the exterior and interior communal areas will rest with the freeholder unless your lease specifically states otherwise.

9) Steer clear of large gardens, especially in a town property, unless you intend adding the cost of a gardener to the weekly rental and you are aiming to market your property as a family home. As any keen gardener knows it doesn't take long for a little neglect to show.

10) Consider whether you want to let furnished or unfurnished. Sometimes there is little difference between the rents commanded by unfurnished compared with part or fully furnished properties to let. It all depends on your market and the demand in your area. Before you go looking for furniture, do your research and find the best option for you.

Best of luck everyone!

My reaction to the OFT homebuying and selling report

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

There seemed to have been a lot of speculation before the OFT Home Buying and Selling market study was released last week – we were even alerted to the fact that a report was due to be released several days beforehand by the OFT themselves . The findings have fuelled some hot debates and sparked some biting comments but there were several points to come out of the report as far as I was concerned:

1) There’s an increase in the number of people who are satisfied with their estate agent – which is great to hear – long may that continue. There are some great agents out there and hopefully this means more people are finding the good ones over the bad.

2) The OFT found that “More innovation is needed in the home buying and selling market” - we’re not still in the 80’s and things had and have to change sometime – the industry hasn’t changed dramatically in recent years, so I guess this isn’t unexpected. What this creates is an opportunity for increased competition and more challengers to the traditional model – those who adapt their models will surely lead the way. Competition has to be healthy here.

3) They also found that – “updating legislation to allow new entrants into the market, could lead to a better deal for house buyers and sellers”. This is great as it shows that unlike many other ‘bodies’ the OFT actually has the consumer, customer or end user at heart. One of the great things the internet has done is force business to put their customers first and makes it a very risky playing field for any of the old fashioned businesses that don’t.

4) “More than a quarter of sellers (27 per cent) who used a traditional estate agent have considered using an alternative selling method” – this is one of the highest figures I have seen to date, but it’s interesting to see this number on the increase. It’s obviously great news for Tepilo and new entrants.

5) “The OFT believes that innovation in this sector, in particular through online services, could have a dramatic impact on the cost of buying and selling a home.” – The model has to change, and costs are in need of a drastic rethink – they need to be proportional to the amount of work involved in selling and marketing a property – I don’t believe a percentage of property value is the best way to go here.

6) “Current legislation, dating from 1979, may be hindering the development of new business models and needs reform so that new entrants, for example those that only introduce private sellers to each other, are not burdened with inappropriate regulation.” It will be interesting to see what reforms this involves – I think there are a number of areas of confusion here, and some which could be easily clarified.

7) “64 per cent of sellers in the OFT’s survey in England and Wales did not negotiate a lower fee” – This is an interesting stat and speaks for itself. I am not convinced that it should be down to the homeowner to be having to barter in an estate agents to get lower fees – I think they need to have differently priced choices in the first place.

8) “Encouraging new business models, online estate agents and private seller platforms could put useful competitive pressure on traditional models and lead to better value for buyers and sellers.” – This seems to be a theme throughout the report – that the OFT supports reduced costs and use of online platforms – which is probably why the focus of traditional agents has reportedly been turned to their own online strategies.

9) “We also encourage home sellers to negotiate hard on commission fees and consider using alternatives to traditional estate agents.” – This was highly unexpected, but very welcome from a Tepilo point of view.

I think the report touched on some interesting points, some of which need to be addressed further, and it will be interesting to see what impact the findings have over the next few years. Reducing costs, improving online presence and exploring new ideas seems to be generally supported but above all keeping the customer at the front of all future plans which is great for all homeowners/tenants out there.

More Innovation Needed In Home Buying and Selling Market, OFT Finds

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

A shake-up in how homes are sold, including updating legislation to allow new entrants into the market, could lead to a better deal for house buyers and sellers, the OFT said today.

The OFT’s study into home buying and selling, published today, found that the housing market remains dominated by traditional estate agents with weak competition between them on price. As property prices rise during housing booms, so too do estate agents’ fees.

Overall satisfaction with estate agents, however, has improved in recent years, according to research conducted as part of the study. Where there are problems with transactions, consumers generally do not think the estate agent was at fault.

The OFT believes that innovation in this sector, in particular through online services, could have a dramatic impact on the cost of buying and selling a home.

More than a quarter of sellers (27 per cent) who used a traditional estate agent have considered using an alternative selling method, and experience from the US suggests that alternative brokerage models have the potential to put competitive pressure on traditional ways of buying and selling a home.

However, the way current legislation, dating from 1979, is framed may be hindering the development of new business models and needs reform so that new entrants, for example those that only introduce private sellers to each other, are not burdened with inappropriate regulation.

Beyond this, the OFT has found existing legislation as it applies to traditional estate agents is comprehensive and wide ranging, and that further regulation is unnecessary. Instead, the report says the focus should be on improving the enforcement of current rules to guard against serious breaches.

The only area where the OFT recommends the Government should consider additional rules is around fees received by estate agents for referring buyers to providers of ancillary services such as mortgage advice, surveys, and conveyancing. The OFT believes this could cause an estate agent to favour one buyer over another, to the seller’s disadvantage.

The OFT is also encouraging more consumers to negotiate on commissions paid to estate agents. Whilst almost a third (32 per cent) of those who had used a traditional estate agent believed that the fees they had paid to their estate agent represented slightly or very poor value for money, 64 per cent of sellers in the OFT’s survey in England and Wales did not negotiate a lower fee. Failing to shop around and negotiate on estate agents’ fees could be costing these house sellers up to £570 million a year, according to OFT analysis. The OFT’s advice service, Consumer Direct has created key tips for consumers which can be found at http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/hometips

John Fingleton, OFT Chief Executive, said: ’In the present economic climate it is more important than ever that people get a good deal when buying or selling a home.

‘Encouraging new business models, online estate agents and private seller platforms could put useful competitive pressure on traditional models and lead to better value for buyers and sellers. The Government can help this process by updating legislation and making sure regulation only applies where it is essential to protect consumers.

‘We also encourage home sellers to negotiate hard on commission fees and consider using alternatives to traditional estate agents.’

The market study and accompanying research reports can be found at http://www.oft.gov.uk/homes

Tepilo.com recognised as one of the UK’s smartest small businesses

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Tepilo has been chosen by a judging panel including Deborah Meaden and other leading entrepreneurs such as Bebo Founder Michael Birch as a winner of Smarta.com’s inaugural ‘Smarta 100’.

The Smarta 100 is the ultimate business accolade, recognizing the UK’s smartest small businesses. Smarta.com has uncovered remarkable companies who have gone the extra mile to differentiate themselves from the market or found clever ways to compete, from their marketing plan to their ethical stance. The result is a fascinating insight into the unique business ideas that are thriving in the current economic climate.

The finalists proved to the judges that they have what it takes to run a successful venture, from spotting a new opportunity to making it a reality. And the high-profile panel were delighted to see that ambitious people are saving hard and raising finances to turn their ideas into flourishing businesses.

Deborah Meaden commented:

“Discovering great new businesses is a passion of mine as is encouraging businesses to think and work better. The Smarta 100 does both of these things – and celebrates the best of British business at the same time. I was delighted to see ambitious people saving hard and raising finances to turn their ideas into flourishing businesses ”

Smarta.com founder Sháá Wasmund said:

“Socially conscious, disruptive businesses that are not afraid to challenge the status quo are being set up in the four corners of the country. I founded Smarta to make sure these enterprises are supported at any stage of development. The results speak for themselves – the Smarta 100 list is a collection of remarkable success stories.”

The full results and details of the winning companies can be found at www.smarta.com/smarta100.

The Perfect Children’s Room – part 1

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

This is a room that will need to change a lot over the years, so keep this in mind when you are getting ready for that brand new bundle of joy, or if you are updating a child’s room.

Simple layouts and a colour scheme that can be taken through to the next decorating scheme will definitely help in the budget department. Generally, there are 3 stages that a child’s bedroom will go through – baby to small child, pre-teen, and teenager. For the ones that come back home after University? Well, the boomerang kids will definitely need an adult space – but more of that in weeks to come.

As with any decorating you will need to consider a few vital elements, so that your planning can be on time, on budget and create the room you want for your children.

PLANNING

Structure, storage, lighting, flooring and colour scheme are all vital elements to consider before you start decorating any room. So, once you have the essential elements of room decorating done, the perfect child’s bedroom is really simple: think three things – a planned layout, practical and sturdy furniture and simple colours. You cannot go wrong and it ensures you get some mileage in the scheme as the child grows.

LET’S START WITH .... STRUCTURE

Structure is the most important element: get this right and everything else pretty much falls into place. Are you extending? Does that mean news walls which means plastering. Check that no windows or walls need to be moved, radical yes, but it is sometimes required to open up a room which has an odd shape or many angles.

KEEP IT TIDY

Next is storage – inevitable and so important. Keep storage to one part of the room so that it does not encroach on the living space too much, this will also keep the scheme calm and less crowded.

Storage is paramount: so think fitted shelves. They are great and if you have the space use a whole wall as a pigeon hole shelving unit. Children like to see and keep their possessions close at hand, and as they grow older they love squirreling away lots of bits and bobs. You can screen some of the pigeon holes with fitted boxes that pull out for more private items. Remember that under the bed there is lots of unused space, you can have a joiner make a sliding drawer which you can pull out. These shelves are great fun from Ladrillos and sold in the UK by www.design-conscious.co.uk – see above. You can buy these online – easy!

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Lighting and natural light is vital – think before you do any final decorating as wires will need to be hidden, so it is best to do that at the structural stage of any new changes. Ensure you have made provisions for lots of sockets and switches – as the child grows the likes of TVs, radios, CD players and game stations as well as computers will take over from fluffy toys, and all these things require lots of power.

Just like any other room, remember task lighting i.e. to change the baby or when the children need to do homework at a desk. Mood lighting is important when the baby is small and where harsh light is bad for its eyes, and for the older children, it gives them a feeling of privacy and seclusion. Overhead lighting should not be discounted either- although it is not that fashionable in the living areas of the house, in a children’s room it is most important as their play area needs to be well lit.

Natural light is very important – windows facing the sun might need some type of screening so that it is not too bright for a small child or when older children are doing homework, but bedrooms facing north will need to work hard to provide light. If a room is really dark, the use of darker shades on the wall will create a warm feel and look – and not indulge the colder northern light. You can also use mirrors to bounce light off the walls: used judiciously they are very effective at creating an illusion of space and light. But be careful with darker wall colours for young children, it can be a bit over-bearing, and younger ones might benefit from a lighter scheme with dark and warm accents and lots of textured textiles, such as fluffy blankets, cushions and soft toys.

Next week in part 2 we discuss flooring, colour schemes and furniture – it’s like baking a cake!

Photograph courtesy of www.steens.dk, furniture available through a variety of outlets in the UK such as B&Q, Tesco, Argos.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Elevated Photography a “Marketing Edge on the Website”

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Photography, like it or not, is a key ingredient in selling and therefore buying a house. Paying attention to detail can make or break getting a prospective buyer to view your property, so let’s look at why this might be.

The purchase process is made up from lots of small decisions and one big emotional one when someone finally agrees to make an offer. Right at the beginning of the process buyers will decide on “location”, this is probably the No.1 consideraton. This can be which Town or City then which neighbourhood. When that’s been decided it’s time to “search”. Most websites deliver a single thumbnail photograph of the property, and what do you see?.

Well check it out for yourself, but it is not clearly understood how important this one thumbnail image can be. In a survey we found really great houses hiding behind cars, hedges, distant aerial pictures of rooftops, even an interior picture of a kitchen and some vendors offer no photography whatsoever.

On a Website this one photograph is the front door to your property. It’s the headline that must leap out and the grab browsers attention, so chose it wisely. You may have great features to market your property behind this single entry point but “no click = no prospect” your potential buyer has moved on.

Basic digital photography is simple, but what we need is as much content as possible in a single image, photographic “kerb appeal”. All the features you want to describe in words or pictures captured in a single picture.

Stand in front of your property. Take a picture square on to the front, you will have a two dimensional photograph, stand to the left or right and some additional perspective is added. But ground based photography will hide the depth of field so the four car parking area in front of your house looks more like a footpath. Because the house is taller than you are, the background will be a blue sky (preferably), but it will tell you nothing about that all important “location” and so far we only have images of the front of your house.

Elevated photography makes a big difference to the view, it is quick, simple and cost effective. Unlike aerial photography from a moving aircraft, it uses a stationary telescopic mast to raise the camera to an optimum height, usually close to roof apex level but up to 60ft is possible. The camera perspective is now looking down on the property and garden. The previously featureless driveway now has depth and perspective. Beyond the house is the rear garden now visible from elevation and beyond that the open fields and the view to the horizon previously unseen. Suddenly as if by magic the location is delivered clearly to the browser for a decision.

Obtaining an elevated image is a clear marketing advantage, not just for grand properties, but also for estate housing and for a relatively small cost you can obtain many additional images to promote your sale. Apartment’s with attractive landscaping are also worthy of consideration. Interiors of apartments can be changed easily but the location and surroundings are far more important to prospects.

Elevated photography not only raises the camera but also your sales opportunity.

With thanks to Mike Pearson
Aerosport Elevated Digital Photography

www.aerosportphotography.com

A wall is a wall is a wall...isn't it?

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Well...not quite! For so many years we have been told to ensure our walls are painted in as neutral a colour as possible if we want our houses to sell. Keeping to a colour palette that does not criss-cross the rainbow will give you the best chance of appealing to as wide a buyer’s market as possible. But there is more to life than beige, and injecting interest can help sell your house.

It’s all about texture! Yes, wall paper can give us this wonderful mix of texture and colour but there are other ways to infuse your interior with a more architectural design and contemporary look.

FEATURE WALLS

We’ve all heard of feature walls – but what are they? A feature wall is a statement wall, a visual highlight in a particular room. It can be painted a different colour to the rest of the room, or wallpapered. It can be a bold contrast to a neutral palette or a subtle highlight to bring out the best of the room’s furnishings and features. In older properties it can form a fantastic backdrop to a focal point such as a fireplace and surround, but don’t ignore the potential to show off any feature you may have in a more contemporary room such as a smart gas fire.

STONE PANELS/CLADDING

More about fires later but first let’s look at the wall itself. Dreamwall.co.uk, a company based in N.E. England near Grimsby, has come up with some exciting stone panels that are a light as can be, don’t break the bank or look like an unfortunate seventies throwback! They look like stone but are not stone; the panels are made of high density polyurethane, polyester resin and real marble stone powder which make them both extremely lightweight and durable. There are currently over 60 styles, colours and textures available to allow you to drastically change the feel of a room. Delivered with mastic and paint to patch up the joints, it’s as easy as making up a puzzle! Each panel only weighs around 5-6kgs and come in 1m² panels, so much lighter than stone walls and a definite plus if you live in an apartment, have stud walls or want a feature wall on the second floor.

I like these walls because to update your living room, bedroom or special room it’s a quick and relatively simple DIY job for anyone. Although Hannah Coleman started the company in 2003 to target the residential market, the panels have been used by big names like Selfridges and River Island, amongst others, to create dynamic feature walls within their stores. From screamingly modern designs to a more rustic look, the panels are a fabulous way of inserting a little chic into any interior.

HIGHLIGHTING A FIRE

Not all cladding panels are created equal, and if you are thinking about using them around a fireplace ensure they have an M1 fire certification. Some of the more modern walls such as the White Cubic Panel from Dreamwalls (above) would look great with a contemporary fire. Modern fires have come a long way and designs are available to suit any property, from flueless gas fires, super “holes in the wall” designs and fire ribbon burners for example. Companies like www.cvo.co.uk produce contemporary, stylish designs and they are made in the UK.

Highlighting a stunning fireplace with a feature wall would make a real statement in anyone’s home.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

Planning the perfect kitchen – part 2

Thu, 11 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

So you have followed the advice in our previous post and you are inspired and ready to make some decisions. One more thing to do before you head off down the high street or specialist show-rooms and start spending on that dream kitchen...

MEASURING UP

Almost all kitchens have an awkward corner or services which are on show, at least older homes. Even if a kitchen company will come to your house to measure up at a later date, you do need a good idea of the size of the kitchen and where the services are when you visit their show-room. If you are buying a kitchen and installing it yourself, measuring up is even more critical.

Take an A4 piece of squared paper if possible and draw up the measurements – this is so easy to do. Take exact measurements to the centimetre if not the millimetre of the length, width and height of your kitchen. Ensure you have marked where the oven, sink and electric sockets are positioned – this will ensure you can replace pretty much like for like when your kitchen arrives. If you can do this to scale, it’s even better and will allow the kitchen show-room specialist to really design something or at least suggest a kitchen layout that will fit in with yours.

THE EXCITING BIT- SHOPPING FOR THAT DREAM KITCHEN!

As we said before living in London means that all the major brands have show-rooms and are show-casing the latest trends and must haves. But living outside of London need not mean penury of choice.

Kitchens are the fastest moving areas in term of design, so it’s not just about technology and the latest gadget, but also about the latest new material and perhaps greener alternatives which are kinder to the planet. So “Kitchen Alley” aka Wigmore Street is the place for up to the minute contemporary design; from Italian elegance to German engineering and precision to the more traditional cabinetmakers, huge array of style and budgets are on offer.

So where to shop in Wigmore Street? We like Bulthaup, www.bulthaup.com, cutting edge kitchen design, and the System b3 starts off at £20,000. We also love Schiffini, around since the 1950’s, this Italian company has a small studio on Wigmore Street but the best place to see their latest kitchens is at www.DesignSpaceLondon.com where you will see the MESA kitchen, a kitchen island for preparing food and dining at. This fab kitchen is a mixture of wood, stainless steel and brick-like textures; not for everyone but definitely unusual whilst mixing functionality with cool Italian aesthetics.

Of course in the counties, there is a multitude of kitchen show-rooms, from tiny budgets to larger ones and let’s not forget the Ikea and B&Q ranges, which are competitively priced and good looking too. If you are leaning towards more traditional ranges, the choice is vast. We particularly like www.davonport.com. They used solid woods and they are great example of specialist handcrafted furniture makers, made in a traditional way with traditional designs but they are also extremely good at more architectural and contemporary looks. German engineering again with www.uberkitchens.eu in Romsey Hampshire. The Rondo kitchen has slick high gloss lacquer cabinets in white mixed with veneered teak and lacquered glass – we like these guys because you can mix and match at will and the prices are very competitive, see picture above.

Next blog we investigate feature walls – a wall is a wall is a wall...right?! Well...find out next time why a feature wall doesn’t just have to be a different paint colour or a wallpapered wall!

Photograph kindly provided by www.uberkitchens.eu

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

Planning the perfect kitchen (Part 1)

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

The heart of the home in most families, the once-humble kitchen has been elevated to a ‘gourmet space’. With new materials, space saving ideas, design and decoration to die for, the kitchen is in a renaissance.

Together with the bathroom, the kitchen is the most important room in the house when it’s time to sell. To get the best price for your home it is worth spending time and money to replace a tired kitchen, or if budget is tight consider replacing certain items to update it and re-fresh the look. If you’re staying put, decide on how long you are going to live there and go into a greater depth on the use, functionality and the aesthetics of the room.

Here’s an easy plan to follow to ensure you have all your bases covered:

BEFORE YOU START...

Staying put? It’s important to plan, plan and plan again (!) to ensure you spend your money wisely. So think about the storage requirements – what do you want seen and what do you want hidden away, i.e. glasses, mugs, crockery, food stuffs? Colours and lighting are most important - it influences both how you feel and how the room presents itself – does it feel cramped, busy or airy? Think about the textures and colours that appeal to you, as well as the type and position of the lighting.

Is your kitchen the hub of your entertaining space? Is open plan living an option? Or do you want to have a separate cooking area to the eating area? Do you need lots of preparation area for your palate-enticing cooking extravaganzas? Do you really have enough space for that island?

Remember appliances - dishwasher, a washing machine, the fridge and freezer as well as other counter top appliances such as microwaves and toasters. Make a list of what appliances you use a lot and need to have on show for easy access and others that can be put way for tidiness.

Take a few minutes to list the issues with your current kitchen such as a sink which is too small, not enough cooking space, a lack of storage for dry goods for example. This will stand you in good stead when you go shopping – you will have a list of must-haves.

GET INSPIRED

Visit lots of kitchen showrooms, look at the finishes, the layout, the lighting and the ideas that kitchen designers have come up with in the last few years. Look at different styles: minimalist, country style, shaker style, French... the list goes on. This will allow you to pin point exactly the look you want - something that will enhance your home and fit in with your lifestyle. These days kitchens are multi-purpose rooms so you need to fit in a lot of wishes, wants and needs in a relatively small space.

If you live in London, it’s easy to visit Wigmore Street, chock full of store after store of suppliers all vying for your attention! From small suppliers of über slick German and Italian imports to big name show-rooms or even smaller independent cabinet makers, Wigmore Street has it all. North London and other areas of London also have many kitchen showrooms for you to visit. Outside the capital the choice is vast and pricing can sometimes be more cost effective, especially if you commission a cabinet maker locally- just show them what you’re looking for and as long as they have experience in kitchen design and making, you’re on your way.

BUDGETING

Most people who sell property for a living, just like Sarah Beeny, recommend that you allow an outlay of at least 5% (some say 10%) of the total value of your home towards a new kitchen. Spend any less and it is unlikely to significantly increase the value of your home. If your kitchen is perfect – stop reading!

For a brand new kitchen, I suggest the following four things when looking at where to allocate the budget: 35% of the budget on cabinetry, 30% of the budget on surfaces (floors and counters), 25% on appliances and 10% on lighting. When selling, the type of kitchen you chose should depend on the style of the property and the price bracket. It is pointless to spend a huge amount of money on a top end kitchen for a small two bed Victorian house which sells in the low to mid price bracket. If in doubt visit other houses for sale in the same road/area and see what looks stylish and what doesn’t look so nice. Don’t be afraid to contrast a period property with an ultra modern kitchen.

If the budget doesn’t stretch to a complete revamp you can do lots of things to enhance your existing kitchen. Changing cabinet doors, even door handles, is easy and simple and can be done in a day. A new counter-top is always a good idea – choose something that matches the new kitchen doors, along with new taps and maybe a new oven or dishwasher. Beware - cheap fittings look and feel cheap and buyers do notice. A smart German oven and dishwasher will impress more than handmade Italian floor tiles so spend your money on the important things and you can’t go wrong.

It takes time to plan a successful kitchen so take the time and prioritise the ‘must haves’ and ‘nice to haves’ for your new or updated kitchen before you go any further.

Next time we look at measuring up a new kitchen and how to finalise your project with some expert advice from kitchen specialists you can visit.

Photograph kindly provided by www.uberkitchens.eu

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

3D Visualisation - The art of selling a property that does not yet exist

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

When it comes to selling your property you only have a few precious seconds to grab the attention of your prospective buyers and create a great first impression. Your sales information needs to be as attractive and accessible as possible. If not, then your advertisement shall become over shadowed by the competition and an opportunity will be missed..

When selling an existing property attracting a prospective buyer can be done through the use of a great set of photographs.

If taken well, photographs provide the most effective selling tool. They instantly convey the mood and the potential lifestyle on offer, drawing you in... until finally you book a viewing of the property on offer.

BUT WHAT IF YOUR PROPERTY IS YET TO BE BUILT...?

Helped by the popularity of television programs such as Property Ladder and Grand Design more and more people are deciding to extensively develop their properties. Perhaps with a straight forward extension or even a complete rebuild of the site to maximise the financial return of the development.

This requires a significant amount of design and development and let’s not forget, money.

The problem with a proposed development is that it is more difficult to sell immediately. It is yet to exist meaning that photographs are not an option yet for marketing, so what is the best way forward?

DO I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE PROPERTY IS BUILT TO MARKET IT FOR SALE...?

If your main aim is to sell your finished development then waiting for the build to complete before marketing the property makes little financial sense, due to prolonged mortgage payments etc, the list goes on and on.

An outdated method to sell a property under going development is to display the architectural plans and elevation drawings, along with perhaps an artists impression of the proposed development.

IS THAT IDEAL..?

In a word, no. For most people architects drawings are complicated and difficult to read. Put next to a photograph of a similar (existing) development, it is unlikely that the extra time needed to see the potential of your proposed development will be invested and your sale will be lost.

WHAT ABOUT THE ARTIST IMPRESSION THOUGH...?

An artists impression (typically a water colour painting) will of course help but it is unable to show the finished article in an a photo-realistic context, leaving an element of doubt in a potential buyers mind.

You are also opening yourself to human error within the image, hence the name artist impression i.e. the finished product will look similar but not exactly as shown.

IS THERE ANOTHER WAY..?

Yes. In these modern times a new way to market an un-built property is to use a new service, 3d visualisation. 3d visualisation is the process of using skilled computer graphics to produce a highly accurate 3d model of your proposed development. This 3d model can then be super imposed on to photographs of the existing site, lighting is then matched and a photo-realistic image is produced.

This image is known as a photo-montage and is completely verifiable for accuracy. It can also be used to help obtain planning permission.

By using a photo-montage the guess work is taken out of the equation, allowing your potential buyer (or planning authority) to see exactly what shall be available for purchase . This method can help you to obtain planning permission and generate a sale of the development even before any work takes place on the site.

SOUNDS GREAT BUT ISNT THAT EXPENSIVE...?

I would be lying if I said that it was cheap but it is all in context with the development.

The cost of each image will depend on many factors including how complicated the design is to create in 3d. For example, a small extension will not take as much time to model as a complete building, so the costs will be bespoke to you, reflecting the amount of time needed.

As a guideline a good studio will charge upwards of £250 per day. You are paying for expertise and the knowledge that the image will be accurate and great to look at. If you choose to cut costs in this area you will compromise accuracy and image quality defeating the point of using 3d visualisation.

This initial investment will be worth it though allowing you to market for a sale as soon as possible, avoiding the mounting costs incurred whilst hanging onto a finished development.

Havendale Design Visualisation Ltd specialise in 3d visualisation for architecture. For more inspiration and examples of our work, please visit us at www.havendaledesign.co.uk

Ashlar block render.. still looking good?

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Following on from my previous post where i talked about how render can transform a dull frontage - here's a short homage to the forgotten art of 'ashlar' block marking... Ashlar what? Well, way back in the late 1700's builders started using rendered finishes on almost everything - bricks were expensive! But, instead of leaving a plain surface, many buildings had lines drawn onto the part-dried render to imitate more expensive stone blockwork (ashlar blockwork meaning dressed cuboid stone with close fitting joints, a classical style originating in Ancient Greece) - and the practice remained common until the late 1800's.

We've tried block marking a few times and i personally like the effect when recreating a period feel on older buildings. Basically so long as you're consistent with something like a 9 inch x 15 inch minimum block size, and keep your verticals and horizontals on the level you're in business. Looks particularly good painted (use a satin finish external covering) although the extra detailing means that quite often this isnt neccesary. On the example photos here (berkeley rd south, earlsdon, coventry), we used a honey coloured local sand in the mortar mix with a small amount of hydrated lime - and left this unpainted, whilst the ashlar joint work is carved out with the tip of a 6 inch nail. Built c. 1860 the house will have been brick faced, however, previous owners had applied several coats of pebble dashed render to hide structural problems. The covering was removed prior to renovation but sadly brickwork was in too bad a state to be saved, hence the re-rendering. Anyhow, 150 years on i reckon ashlar marking's still looking good if youre thinking about extending an older style (pre-1900) property, or updating a tired frontage where restoration of existing brickwork isnt desirable - or practical.

With thanks to Alan Denyer, MD of EBC Design and Restoration - Who develops and restores 'older' property in the Coventry and Warwickshire area:http://ebcdesignandrestoration.blogspot.com/

What a transformation!

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Welcome to my first blog! Thought i'd start with a lovely example of how a not-so- pretty frontage can be transformed by render and nicely proportioned windows... this is a low rise block of early 70's flats in kenilworth not far from crackley woods. Perhaps not the obvious victorian wreck rescued after years of neglect (which is normally my thing), but certainly inspirational as an example of what can be achieved with relatively few £££'s. Not sure who was responsible (sadly not us!) but by the looks of it i'd say the refurb was undertaken maybe 5 years ago or so by a builder with a good eye for detail. Windows are well sized and good quality stained softwood by the look of it. Simple flat render finish painted white gives the frontage an entirely different look - and by my estimation adds at least 25% to the value vs. the 'unrefurbed' one in the middle. Maybe oak grained upvc would give the same look and cost alot less, but overall, i reckon it's good for an excellent 9.5/10.

With thanks to Alan Denyer, MD of EBC Design and Restoration - Who develops and restores 'older' property in the Coventry and Warwickshire area: http://ebcdesignandrestoration.blogspot.com/

Home buying advice: Live webcast (28 Jan 2010 13:00 UK time)

Wed, 13 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Create the ultimate spa-like experience without leaving your bathroom

Wed, 06 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT

No longer the preserve of swish hotels and spas, nowadays wet rooms and walk-in showers are a realistic proposition and can transform bathing into an invigorating, pampering and relaxing experience.

WET ROOMS

A wet room should be built by a professional. It is important to understand that this type of room needs to be completely waterproof. A stable base is a must. If the floor is prone to moving the waterproof lining will crack and leak. A concrete base is perfect but if the bathroom is upstairs as in most houses then a sub-floor needs to be added to provide the slope for drainage, or alternatively a shallow preformed shell can be sunk into the floorboards. As always, never cut into the joists! A fall of 1:100 is usual and your plumber will need to calculate the shower flow rate for adequate drainage to prevent your swish new wet room becoming a paddling pool! An impermeable membrane is then used to waterproof the floor - this is called tanking. The waterproofing membrane can be heavy so again you may require the services of a structural surveyor to determine if your upper floor needs reinforcing. Raising the floor may require the bathroom door to be adjusted and your ceiling will be just that extra bit lower.

Ventilation and heating in a wet room is very important as mildew can quickly establish itself if they are not up to scratch. Under floor heating is a good way of ensuring water dries off quickly. Ensure you have adequate ventilation too with a good powerful extractor fan or vents.

Ideally a wet room needs to be at least 3m x 3m otherwise splashes are going to go everywhere and will require constant cleaning. You can of course use a glass shower screen to reduce splashes without creating darkness or breaking up the illusion of space. A frameless screen is best to give a seamless look to the room.

I often ask clients about the hardness of their water supply – at first they are surprised by the question but quickly understand that for surface to remain shiny and stain free you need to be prepared to do a lot more cleaning! Spraying vinegar to get rid of the limescale is a good alternative to harsh chemical products.

It may seem obvious but ensure the floor surface is non slip. Highly polished stone, marble or highly glazed ceramic tiles may look fabulous but they can be extremely dangerous when wet and are best avoided. Bathroom and tile showrooms can show you both floor and wall tiles. And yes, there is a difference. Floor tiles are generally thicker and heavier so make sure you choose wisely. Also think about all the type of storage you need in a wet room to keep all toiletries and towels dry.

Wet rooms are not really suitable for a main family bathroom being more suited to a quieter usage. Children and wet rooms can often become a waterpark-type experience- fun for the kids, not fun for the parents! Visions of drowning rat-type hair and clothes and complete mayhem come to mind.

WALK IN SHOWERS

If mayhem comes to mind with children using a wet room then you may be better off considering the alternative to a wet room which uses an enclosed, discreet shower tray. The room will still look and feel like a spa but is much more practical as the wet area is screened off. This is known as a walk-in shower or semi-wet room. The tanking or shell is only required for the wet zone and not for the whole room and if cost is a factor this is a much cheaper alternative. This design maximises both the space and the family’s requirements without compromising on aesthetics and luxury. The latest shower trays are really slim and as long as you can inset them into the floorboards then you will have no visible distinction from the rest of the room. Still very much contemporary but better suited to family life.

MATERIALS

And so to floors and walls. While practicality, particularly in a wet room environment, is of the utmost importance you need not forgo stylish design! Just remember that there is more to life than plain old white ceramic tiles…

If you are using ceramic tiles, try to avoid the clinical look by using pattern on the wall, something simple but striking. You might want to paint one wall a different colour, today’s bathroom paints are washable and wipeable (best perhaps to use on a wall that does not get wet though!). Metallic tiles are a little old-hat now, unless used sparingly, perhaps as a single line going across the room to make it look bigger or vertically to make the ceiling look higher than it is. And remember it’s not because a room is small you need to use small tiles - large scale is more elegant and looks polished and effortless. Less work too with less grout! Larger tiles often make a room look bigger especially if light in colour. Mosaic can look very Italian chic but keep it to one wall or just the shower area as a feature. Otherwise it can appear very busy to the eye and not relaxing at all.

Rubber flooring and walls are also very ‘design’ - warm to the touch, very durable and right now very cost effective. www.dalsouple.com/ or the www.therubberflooringcompany.co.uk/ are the best suppliers in the UK.

If you want to use marble or limestone remember that this is heavy, so first and foremost check that both the floor and the walls can take the added weight. Think slate, marble & limestone to clad your entire room or just make a striking wall feature. Slate looks ‘?ber’ elegant especially when only used on one wall. The slate becomes almost sculptural due to its highly riven, three dimensional appearance. Slate and stone in all their forms must be sealed. Check with the contractor or the supplier on specific products to seal your stone walls. This will need to be done regularly – at least once a year. Products such as Lithofin Stain Stop are excellent. Beware – limestone or marble and hard water are a bad combination. Descaling products and even vinegar cannot be used on any surface as they react with the stone and destroy the surface finish. We have one client who stepped barefoot into their sunken bath and used Viakal to descale the (plastic) bath. They stepped out to rinse the bath off and left a line of footprints etched into the limestone floor!

FIXTURES AND FITTINGS

To complete the spa experience chose a shower system which offers a variety of features and water pressures. Remember, it’s not just about getting clean! New innovations in showering include the waterfall which ’injects’ the water droplets with air which gives a soft showering sensation and is apparently akin to dancing naked in the rain! www.dornbracht.com/en/ produces a range of rain showers including an elemental spa shower. The Acquazzurra shower column includes a hand shower, body jets and a fixed overhead shower with integral LED lighting. Consider oversize shower heads if your water pressure is up to it as well as rain bars, massage and body jets.

SAVE WATER

Showers can be greedy consumers of water. However by installing an eco-friendly shower the rate of water flow is lowered without reducing the pressure. Matki (http://matki.co.uk/ ) produce a flow restrictor that reduces the amount of water used from 40 litres a minute to 12. Look for the RVEDM symbol for eco friendly products developed by the British Manufacturer’s Association.

More information

British Manufacturer’s Association http://www.bathroom-association.org/

Check out water efficiency here http://www.water-efficiencylabel.org.uk/

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

Bathrooms - Creating the ultimate ‘wow’ factor

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Bathrooms can be dream spaces or ultimate nightmares. They are usually amongst the smallest rooms in the house but used more than any other. So much needs to be squeezed into these small spaces and they must all work perfectly day in and day out. There is nothing more off-putting to buyers or guests than a grotty bathroom. Here are a few things to think about before starting a bathroom project, so you can be on your way to stunning buyers with the bathroom of their dreams.

The great thing about contemporary bathroom design is that you can mix and match your favourite pieces from a variety of suppliers’ ranges. People now see bathrooms as an extension of their home instead of a totally separate environment. From exotic woods to marbles and metals, the choice of materials is endless.

Things to think about before you start….

Mood and budget - It’s important that you browse through as many magazines and catalogues as you can find. Visit showrooms to see what style you like and how they look ‘in the flesh’. Decide on the mood you want to create – cool and contemporary, warm and cosy, slick and masculine, opulent, retro Victorian or 20’s Art Deco? - and the budget you want to allocate to this re-design.

Who will use the bathroom? Will the whole family use this space or is it a chill out room for mum and dad? If it is an en suite bathroom, perhaps you may want to coordinate with the adjoining bedroom. For the family a degree of practicality will be required in the design – storage, durability, safety and ease of cleaning are all things to consider.

Layout - When visiting your bathroom showroom you must have all dimensions with you, size of room, position of doors and windows, radiators, toilet and sink and shower/bath. This is important for the designer because to move soil pipes is an expensive business so it is better and cheaper to work with the layout you have.

Lighting - Lighting is all important and needs to play a dual role. For a relaxed atmosphere use dimmers for general lighting. Task lighting is more direct, brighter and placed where activities take place – i.e. shaving or putting on make-up. Plan what goes where and chose your fixtures accordingly. UK requirements stipulate that light fittings within 600mm of a bath or shower must have an IP rating of 65 whilst other lights at more than 600mm away must have an IP rating of 45. Lights must be operated by a pull cord or an outside switch.

Storage - Storage is essential in a bathroom to maintain that all-important uncluttered look. A bathroom is a very private area and there are some things that are best stored away. A cupboard behind the main mirror takes little room and is extremely useful. Clever storage could consist of mobile units that double-up as seating and can be tucked under the basin when not in use. Built-in cupboards above concealed cisterns are a good way of maximising space without hitting your head! You might even consider allowing for bath panels to open up or have pull out drawers made for extra storage.

Heating and ventilation - A cold bathroom is a real turn-off. Is the heating up to scratch, do you need additional warmth? A heated towel rail is cost effective to run and can help to top up the heat. Consider installing under floor heating in small spaces. You can make a design statement with contemporary radiators - they give you that wow factor as well as being useful. If you are going to use a large mirror you may want to consider installing heated pads on the reverse. These are wired in with the light switch and prevent the mirror misting up after a shower. Remember that it is a local authority regulation to have external ventilation such as from a window or extractor.

Fixtures and fittings - When you are planning a bathroom it is unlikely that you will be choosing fixtures and fittings all from the same manufacturer. There are no fast and hard rules about this, but do keep to the same style to keep the overall look elegant and coherent.

Always buy the best fixtures you can afford, regardless of whether for you or for resale. Cheap taps for example are a false economy; they don’t work and drip continuously and feel nasty. Good quality fixtures and fittings always add that “wow” factor, they also feel good to the touch. So a simple white suite can set you back as little as £500 from B&Q and can be dressed up with good quality fixtures.

Bath or shower? A bath is great for relaxing in the evening, but a shower is invigorating inthe morning. Bath for resale, shower for you. Or have a shower above the bath. Think about the design of your shower: do you want exposed i.e. surface mounted or concealed mixer valves in your shower?Concealed mixer valves lend themselvesto slick and contemporary rooms, whilst exposed bathroom furniture can become part of the "look" especially if it is either screamingly modern or if you want to enhance the period feel of the bathroom to be in keeping with architectural detailing for example.

Fixed shower heads or wall mounted? You can have both with a diverter valve - this allows you to switch the water between the two. Washing small children or washing your hair is easier with hand held shower heads. Fixed shower heads can also be enhanced with luxurious body jets if you have good water pressure!

So before you buy anything check your water pressure – a plumber can do this for you. Pressure is measured in bars and most homes will have a water pressure of 1-1.5 bars whilst hotels are nearer 3-4 bars. You may want to fit a pump as some of the new fixtures and fittings may only work with a higher pressure. Many come from mainland Europe where water pressure is higher so you need to check that it can be adapted to the UK standards and pipe sizes. Huge shower heads look fun but require an immense flow of water to operate properly, so bear this in mind before committing.

The epitome of luxury? Indulgence but at small prices. The more restrained the design of the taps, showers heads etc. the more you need to emphasise texture in the surfaces you are using, otherwise it can look very dull. So for a natural and contemporary feel why not mix simple but good quality taps with a sink countersunk into a wooden countertop? Wood can, however, be high maintenance if used in a wet environment. If you chose to use wood as a countertop it must be either sealed against water or maintained with linseed oil or similar. Softwoods are best avoided. Go for hardwoods with a high oil content such as Teak or Iroko.

Next time we will talk more about wall and floor finishes, wet rooms and walk-in showers and how to create that spa-like experience without breaking the bank.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design information visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Our new Christmas competition - with the Telegraph and B&Q

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

It's December and Tepilo is trying to capture the festive spirit - so in conjunction with the Telegraph and B&Q, we're on the hunt for Britain's best and boldest decorations display.

Everyone knows that adding a bit of glamour and originality to your house makes it more desirable to potential buyers or tenants, but how far have you gone to make your house unique this winter? We're on the hunt for people who have gone that extra mile with their festive decorations. We would love you to upload a photo of your home's (or anyone else's) decorations to our gallery, Sarah will then choose the house that she thinks shows the most creative spirit.

The winner will receive £200 of B&Q vouchers!

You can view all of the entries in our gallery, take a look and support your local community or be the first to enter from your area. The decorations are all marked on our special Google map and you can leave your ratings and comments on the entries to help Sarah make her decision - your entry may even feature on the Telegraph website: www.telegraph.co.uk.

Get entering and Good Luck!

Enter here: http://www.tepilo.com/christmas/

Around 1.3m over-50s are planning to downsize their property to help fund their retirement

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

AROUND 1.3m over-50s are planning to downsize their property to help fund their retirement, even though most believe an average of £27,250 has been wiped off the value of their homes in the last two years.

However, the research from LV= shows that recent house price gains of 0.4 per cent in October – the sixth month in a row prices have risen – has improved the hope for retirement plans.

Over 50s home owners estimate that they have lost around £80 billion in property values thanks to the recent falls. But despite this, just 2 per cent of the over-50s surveyed said they had been put off using their home for a pension.

Vanessa Owen, LV= Head of Equity Release, said:"In the decade leading up to the credit crunch, more and more homeowners saw their property as a potential cash cow to aid retirement. But in a matter of months millions of pre-retirees have seen both their property and pension fund values battered. Despite this, their confidence in the long-term value of bricks and mortar remains. House prices still have some way to go before full recovery but with increases for six consecutive months now, they are feeling more confident that their home can still play a big part in helping to finance their retirement."

The love affair us Brits have with property has prompted one in eight over-50s to consciously save less into traditional pensions, but a similar number have said they were not able to buy their own home and save into a pension, as property prices were so high they could not afford to do both.

Ms Owen said:"The recession has had a big impact on the personal wealth and pension pots of the over-50s, but for many their home is still a big part of their retirement income plans. Trading down to a smaller house, or using a suitable equity release product to get funds out of your existing home, can therefore play a big part in helping to make people's retirement years more comfortable."

Alison Steed is editor and co-founder of www.MyMoneyDiva.com

RENT levels are expected to rise in the New Year

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

RENT levels are expected to rise in the New Year, as rental properties coming onto the market has fallen for the first time since January 2008, according to the latest Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) survey.

Improvements in the housing market have led to a fall in the number of rental properties coming to the market , and a fifth more surveyors expect rents to rise rather than fall in the next three months.

Demand for houses to rent is particularly strong, although generally rental activity has picked up, with 16 per cent more surveyors seeing a rise in interest in rental property.

Jeremy Leaf of the RICS, said: “It seems the current upward trend in the housing market is having a more significant effect on the lettings market, with many of the accidental landlords returning to the sales market to take advantage of the recent price increases. As a result the recent oversupply is reversing, with new instructions at the lowest levels we have seen. This of course is impacting on prices and tenants no longer have as strong a bargaining power as they did."

Alison Steed is editor and co-founder of www.MyMoneyDiva.com

Stamp duty - pressure on the Government

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

BACKBENCH Labour MPs are putting pressure on the Government to continue with the current exemption of Stamp Duty for properties under £175,000.

In an Early Day Motion, tabled by Lindsay Hoyle, and signed by another seven MPs, the backbenchers are calling for the extension of the Stamp Duty holiday, which is due to expire on December 31.

The move is being supported by both the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), and the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

Peter Bolton-King, chief executive of the NAEA and ARLA, said: "The current Stamp Duty ‘holiday’ for properties lower than £175,000 is due to expire at the start of 2010. The housing market is on the road to recovery; in particular, we're seeing the return of first time buyers. If the Stamp Duty exemption is not extended at this fragile point of recovery, we fear that months of work will instantly unravel causing a great deal of damage to the market.

"The industry is crying out for the Chancellor to take action in his Pre Budget Report next week - in a recent survey by the NAEA, 91 per cent of estate agents called for the threshold to remain at £175,000 for the foreseeable future."

Both the NAEA and ARLA have set up the “1808 Coalition” – named after the date that Stamp Duty was first extended to property sales in Great Britain – and it has already received the backing of the Association of Mortgage Intermediaries (AMI), Building Societies Association (BSA), Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), Home Builders Federation (HBF), and the National Landlords Association (NLA).

Alison Steed is editor and co-founder of www.MyMoneyDiva.com

Neighbours from hell

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

AROUND 95,000 homeowners moved home to get away from ‘neighbours from hell’ in the last two years, according to figures from Abbey Mortgages.

Nici Audhlam-Gardiner, Director of Abbey Mortgages, said:"The saying "love thy neighbour" seems long forgotten as so many of us plan to move each year just to get away from those next door.”

However, the most common reason to move was to climb the property ladder, with nearly 218,000 people citing this as their reason for upping sticks and heading to pastures new.

Another 102,000 people were downsizing their property, and 108,000 people had the delightful reason that they had found their dream home.

Less appealing reasons resulted in 6,800 people moving home, as difficulties in their financial position, including redundancy, had forced a rethink on their property. A further 40,800 parents were moving home to get into the catchment area of their preferred school for their children, according to the research.

Ms Audhlam-Gardiner, said: “People are still moving for positive reasons such as the desire to move up the property ladder or as a result of their dream home coming on to the market. We have seen a fifty per cent increase in the number of people applying for mortgages to buy a new home in recent months compared to the average monthly applications for purchase mortgages for the first half of the year.”

Alison Steed is editor and co-founder of www.MyMoneyDiva.com

Fed up with that dull patch of grass or derelict backyard?

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re ever thought about redesigning your garden now is the perfect time. Here’s some tips and advice to turn it into a simple, beautiful extension of your living space.

With space at a premium we now demand our outdoor spaces to fulfil a whole range of functions: year-round outside entertaining space, vegetable patch, space for the kids to play in, compost heaps, rubbish bin area, space for trees and wildlife friendly planting, the list goes on. But all this needs to look stylish and inviting as well as being practical and not literally cost the Earth.

Can you really have it all?

Well…yes you can, if you plan ahead and consider the function and appearance of your garden, all is possible. What will it be used for? Make a list. Entertaining or relaxing? Kids football training? What are your ‘must haves’? A vegetable planting area? Do you have pets? What style do you like? - a contemporary garden design or perhaps a more traditional layout to enhance your older property? Think about the hard landscaping features you need and want such as paths, patios, buildings and the style of planting you like – informal, formal, cottage, wildlife. When will it be used and where is the sun at those times?

Hiring a garden designer can help turn your ideas and wish list into achievable and workable reality within your budget. They can also give you ideas about layout and even introduce you to things you may not have previously considered, such as a water feature, covered walkways or even sculpture. Working out a plan on paper before starting out is always a good time and money saving exercise. This is the garden designer’s first stage as they go through all the design permutations that may appeal to you. They will also cost it out as well as help with finding a suitable contractor to do the work.

As well as measuring up accurately, if you are doing the design yourself remember to consider soil pH and which way your garden faces to ensure you select the right plants for your garden. Improving your garden is within everyone’s reach whether you pay someone to help you or you do it yourself - it just need as little planning.

One more thing. There is no such thing as a maintenance-free garden! Many clients ask me for this but there is no point in kidding yourself or them - this does not exist. Careful choice of plants and good planting design will go a long way to minimising maintenance, but other than covering the whole area in Tarmac (not much of a garden! Banish the thought…) you will have to do some weeding and tidying up at some point.

More often than not gardens in built up areas need to be flexible and multi-functional as well as being sustainable. A flexible space will add value to your property. Make the space work really hard for you. One feature might also fulfil another requirement. For example, a deck might conceal a sand pit for children or even a pool! Good storage space allows children’s toys to be put away easily when the adults need an entertaining area without clutter. Shade sails are great for sunny days to keep the children protected from the sun’s rays as well as doubling up as a shady eating area. In winter you just take it down, fold it and store it away until next summer.

If you do a lot of entertaining try making your furniture as flexible as well, with extending tables and chairs that fold and stack away. Consider weatherproof furniture so you don’t need to store it in a shed throughout winter. Making the most of the limited space you may have is what it is all about. Keep kids play areas away from entertaining areas if possible. Just like a house, have separate “rooms” but ensure you can still keep an eye on them. After all, you don’t really want footballs flying around whilst trying to enjoy a nice glass of wine with friends! If you are installing a BBQ make sure you are near the kitchen door to make the movement of food from kitchen to table easy. Keep the BBQ near the eating area so the cook does not get left out of the conversation.

SOME ‘MUST HAVE’ FEATURES - JUST THINK OF IT AS PUTTING FURNITURE IN A HOUSE:

A level patio outside the back of the house near the kitchen, big enough to place a table and chairs and even a BBQ on!
A green area for the kids to play in if you have smaller children, not so important for teenagers – they might want a special area for them and their friends
Enough area for some clever planting that will add interest and furnish your outside room for most of the year
A path to connect all the functional areas of the garden, such as from the patio to the herbaceous borders to the shed. This will link your whole garden together but also make it easier to navigate wheel barrows or indeed wheelchairs from one end to the other.

SOME FOR THE WISH-LIST?

A vegetable and fruit garden. No space? Use containers!
An area for pets to roam in
An area where you can hang your washing?
An outdoor kitchen! Why not? If you have the space and the budget and love cooking, this is a real addition to any larger garden.

LONG AND NARROW GARDENS - CREATE INTEREST AND AVOID MAKING IT LOOK LIKE A TUNNEL!

A meandering path is always a good way of making the eye wander around the garden rather than just along its length. Features like an arbour or an arch act as vertical counterpoints and will create interest, as will low walls. Structures such as these combined with a mix of low, mid-level and higher planting will give the garden a sense of mystery and encourage visitors to go and investigate.

SLOPING GARDEN?

The key here is to ensure it is usable and depending on the steepness of the slope you may have to terrace it, cutting and filling as you go along. This saves money on taking away soil. If you terrace you must link the different spaces, otherwise it can easily look disjointed. Using the same hard landscaping materials such as paving slabs for both hard standing areas and paths will help to unify the garden. Use a limited plant palette and don’t plant too many varieties or colours. Use a mix of texture, soft leaves with spikier ones, and taller plants with low mounds.

The steps to the different levels need to feel comfortable and a good contractor can ensure that they are built solidly. Of course if the slope is not too steep you can build a ramp, but this only works for the gentlest of slopes.

TINY GARDEN?

If your garden is only a few square metres you can still enjoy the outdoors and is one of the few instances where 100% paving or shingle is best, but ensure the paving stones are permeable so that water can seep through and not cause flooding. Containers and pots are the way to go here. You can move them around where you want and when you want. The style is up to you but it is best to minimise the different types of plant used and add colour and texture with your pots. A mixture of tall and short plants will give a sense of depth to the courtyard and make it appear larger than it really is.

SHADY GARDEN?

This is often a problem in urban areas. The closeness of other buildings often shades the garden. But this need not mean that you cannot enjoy a lush garden full of exciting plants – you just need to choose wisely. Choose plants that thrive in shady conditions, there is a wide variety available for you to chose from and there are also some grasses that do well in shade. If in doubt speak to your local garden centre or the garden designer you have hired; the right mix can make all the difference.

CHILD FRIENDLY GARDENS

If you have small children, ponds are probably not a good idea until they are older. A sandpit is always fun, but these will need a cover and will need to be kept clean.

Smaller children do need some kind of green grass to play in but this need not be real, you can use fake turf. These days they are made the finest artificial fibres,

http://www.artificiallawn.co.uk/ makes different types for all kinds of uses.

Ensure that if you are building a BBQ and eating area it is away from the children’s play area. As for the plants, there are some that are poisonous so check with your supplier; if you have hired a garden designer they will ensure that all plants are safe.

PRIVACY AN ISSUE?

If you have low fencing between you and your neighbours, why not extend the panels with trellising of some kind, plant climbing plants to screen further from prying eyes.

Why not plant some trees and pleach them? You can trim them to the height and shape you want. Hornbeam is good for town gardens as it lends itself to all kinds of forms and can look both traditional and contemporary. Perfect!

Permanent structures will require planning permissions so make sure you check with the local planning office first.

A mix of fencing and planting judiciously placed can provide an excellent screen from others and can greatly increase your enjoyment of your garden.

POOR SOIL - BUILDER’S RUBBLE?

If there is builders’ rubble because you moved in to a new house, you need to clear that completely or as much as is physically feasible. You can always use it as hard core if you are building a patio or need to put in a concrete slab for the shed or garden room.

Plants will struggle on bad soil and rubble, the cost of clearing and replacing with good top soil will be repaid many times over by not having to buy plants every year because they fail! Try to avoid changing the soil from acid to alkaline or vice-versa – you should garden with what you have. It’s too costly and is both time and labour intensive.

ATTRACTIVE ALL YEAR ROUND?

Definitely possible although his does require some expertise in gardening. For winter greenery use box, privet or laurel. These are evergreens (some privet is not) and will give your garden structure. If you have space of course you can plant some trees, make sure they are not too near the house and well away from the foundations. Plant flowering shrubs which give interest in leaf colour and texture. Plant flowers for the spring and summer, and sometimes they may even flower in the autumn. Finally fill in with annuals, so that you can change the scheme as the mood takes you each year. If you are not a gardener the staff at most garden centres will have lots of advice on what to plant.

Most of all though, remember - less is more and keep it simple!

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design. For more garden and interior design ideas visit us at www.francoisemurat.com

GARDEN SHEDS – The alternative extension?

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Today the humble garden shed has loftier ambitions. It has come up in the world and these days can be quite a grand affair: It has graduated to become an office, private gym, chill out room - the alternative to an extension, adding much needed floor space to the family home.

Seen as an extra room it is a definite ‘plus’ when you come to sell your house, so using your shed as a dumping ground for junk may not be the best use of its potential. If you are considering upgrading think carefully about what you want and plan accordingly. Whether you have an existing structure or not, follow these simple guidelines to create the desired effect.

Here are a few things to think about before you get started.

DO I NEED PLANNING PERMISSION?

A shed or outdoor room is generally seen as a temporary structure by the planning authorities, but this does not mean you can build anything you want. Many garden rooms do not require planning as long as the structure is not higher than 4 metres, is more than 5 metres from existing structures and nearer the house than the public highway. However, it is ALWAYS best to check with your local planning department especially if you are going to install a multitude of services such as toilets, etc. Remember that to run an office from home technically you will require planning permission.

Check if you house is listed as the grounds may be part of that listing. Conservation areas also require planning approval. Again check with planning and likewise remember that some trees have TPOs (Tree preservation orders) and you may not fell them without prior approval if at all).

Substantial brick structures are best in larger gardens, as these can be considered “small houses”. These will most likely require planning permission and are the costliest of the three options. The granting of planning permission will always depend on intended use and a quick call to your local office may save you much time and money.

All garden rooms must comply with Building regulations – you will need to ensure that your outdoor room complies with structural strength requirements such as fire safety, insulation, ventilation, water and energy efficiency to name but a few.

FUNCTION

What will it be used for? Do you need a quiet area away from the kids and hustle and bustle of a busy home? Is the room to be used as a studio or craft making area? A home office? Gym? Once you have decided there are decisions to be made…

‘Ecospace architecture, naturally.’ By Andy Spain

SIZE

The building should not overwhelm the garden. As a rough guide the structure should take up no more than 25% of the available garden area. Even small gardens can benefit from an outdoor room but remember to keep it in scale.

LOCATION

Size is not everything and location is just as important. Tucked away in a corner of the garden and lightly screened from the main house is perfect for a restful retreat. One of our current garden design projects incorporates our client’s L shaped room with large glazed walls allowing views over the garden as well as maximum light for their office and gym.

Placing the outdoor room at the bottom of the garden will create symmetry and allow a good interaction with the rest of the garden. Placing the room to the side of the garden creates more interest and is not so obtrusive.

APPEARANCE

The look of the building is very important. If it clashes with the house then it will stick out like a sore thumb when it comes time to sell. There are many materials to choose from – wood and glass being the most common. Wood need not look like Grandpa’s shed! Traditional wooden structures can be painted or if you like the natural look, make sure you use a good quality wood preserver. Wood can also look extremely modern when mixed with glass walls and steel supports. Ensure the wood comes from sustainable sources, the FSC certification and seal should be “de rigueur”.

Bold colours and simple shapes work best in general but keep the nautical look for seaside properties and the Swiss chalet-type look …for Switzerland! Out of context structures can put people off when it comes to buying your property and although you may feel it makes a bold statement, others may see it as a deal-breaker.

Remember that an all-glass structure is very visible to all, so ensure you have allowed for adequate storage in an office room otherwise the mess will be there for all to see.

Folding or concertina doors are great for multi-function rooms; you can open up or divide the space with minimal fuss and disruption.

HEATING

An outdoor room might need insulation if you intend to use it in all types of weather. A cold office is not conducive to work and likewise if it is for children to play in you need to ensure it is comfortable and safe. Wooden sheds are far better at minimising moisture and condensation than concrete buildings, but either way, dampness and mould will ruin your furnishings and contents faster than anything else. You may want to consider at the very least running a dehumidifier overnight on a low setting. For general heating an electric heater for a small room is often sufficient, or you can push the boat out and install electric under floor heating. Conversely too much glass or poor ventilation can make the room unbearably hot in summer, so think blinds for glass windows and doors. Portable air conditioning systems are relatively cheap and a godsend for both days of summer…

LIGHTING

Path and wall lighting in the garden is an important element that can add the finishing touch to your project. Not only does it allow you to see where you are going but it can also make your new building feel part of the garden. Used to good effect, well chosen garden lighting will allow the garden and your outside room to be enjoyed long after the sun has fallen, maximizing the return on your investment. Outdoor room by The Qube right.

SECURITY

OK, so you’ve created your ideal gym, office, chill out room - and stuffed it full of all those expensive electronic gadgets so essential to modern life. Don’t forget to install locks on all windows and doors and movement detectors connected to lights either inside or outside the building. In general sheds are an easier target than most homes and, being at the end of the garden, thieves are less likely to be disturbed and have an easier getaway.

ACCESS

You don’t want to be walking across slippery, muddy, wet grass to get to your new room. A nice new path is highly recommended, or the existence of an existing pathway is also a major ‘plus’ when deciding where to put your new building.

A paved area is perfect for sitting out and enjoying the views but also serves an important function by ensuring you don’t bring the garden detritus inside the room! If you intend to have visitors for your business you may want to consider a separate, direct access from the road.

SERVICES

Lastly you need to think about services to the outside room – do you need electricity, plumbing, telephone services and even a toilet? Dashing back to the loo is not always great when you are working in your garden office.

BESPOKE OR OFF THE PEG?

You can have your dream garden room designed by an architect according to your taste, requirements and budget. It should be designed to integrate seamlessly with the style of your house and link visually with the main structure. Bespoke structure left by

Off the peg is a cheaper option and there are many companies out there who manufacture a wide variety of designs for all budgets. Some companies offer a turn-key service, from providing the structure, to applying for planning and getting the services installed for you. Whoever you chose make sure you ask for references of previous installations, and even check them with the local trading standards office before parting with your cash.

FOUNDATIONS

The smallest wooden structures will not require traditional dug foundations, but will need a concrete base or bearers of bricks and blocks. Larger structures will require foundations. The company you are buying from will advise what type of foundation or base is required.

Most structures come as prefabricated panels and so smaller room can be up and decorated within a week or so. If you need them insulated, plastered and plumbed with services (electricity and phone) it can take upwards of 3 weeks depending on size. Running power cables for electricity and internet and phone lines should be included in the quote. Plumbing for toilet and sink usually is not but can be negotiated with the supplier and need not be complicated. Macerator toilets such as the Saniflo system (saniflo.co.uk) are great and use narrow gauge pipes which means even less hassle to install. Running plumbing and electricity into the outdoor office will increase your options and is definitely something you need to think about with care – think long term use and re-sale.

COST

Concrete bases can cost anything from £800 upwards, dependent on size. Make sure you leave enough time for the concrete slab to dry, a mistake many people make. Ask your builder who is installing this for advice.

Usually structures will include such items as guttering, windows (can be double glazed), door(s), locks, window furniture, roof finish (tiles, asphalt etc.). Flooring such as carpets or nice wooden flooring is not usually included. As a general rule of thumb expect to pay anything from £1000 per square metre (including delivery and installation) upwards, depending on spec., location and type of construction.

Of course the usual shed from any DIY store can cost much less than that, but remember that you will need to install a base, erect it and insulate, decorate and lay all services yourself.

A GOOD DEAL?

According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), a garden room is a good investment. Apparently even small sheds can add up to 5% to a property’s value. In this current market a quick and easy way to add value is definitely food for thought.

Working smart means working effectively. Next time we look at how to convert a room into a home office.

Suppliers you may consider and contact

Ecospace: (020 7703 4004); ecospacestudios.com, London

The Qube: (01604 785 786); theqube.co.uk, Northampton

Rooms Outdoor: (020 8605 2211); roomsoutdoor.co.uk, London

Green Retreats: (0800 999 8 777); greenretreats.co.uk, Buckinghamshire

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design. For more garden and interior design ideas visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Main photo courtesy of The Qube.

The Evictions Expert’s Top 5 Tips for Landlords

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Landlord Action founding Director – Paul Shamplina – gives free seminars all over the country advising landlords on How To Avoid Problem Tenants. Here are his Top 5 Tips for avoiding rent arrears:

ACT FAST

At Landlord Action, we are the market leaders in tenant evictions. In our ten years of trading, we have evicted over 15,000 bad tenants. When it comes to the ugly job of evicting bad tenants we have some invaluable advice: ACT FAST!

We find that, all too often, landlords do not act quickly enough when they begin to have tenant problems. Every day, we receive calls from distressed landlords whose tenants are in arrears by several months.

How long does a Landlord have to wait before he can start taking action against his tenant for rent arrears? The answer is two month’s rent arrears – this is the time to start taking action!

For example, if rent was due on 1st October, you can instruct us to serve your tenant with notices on 2nd November since rent is payable in advance (and at this point, technically, your tenant will be in two months rent arrears).

Recently, we took on a case where a tenant is in rent arrears of 12 months. The landlord has only just decided to instruct Landlord Action to serve eviction notices. But, why would the tenant pay after a year if they didn’t pay when they were in rent arrears of three or four months? The landlord has extremely little chance of collecting the unpaid rent.

TENANT REFERENCING

Further, the landlord did not make any tenant references before allowing the tenant to rent his property. He wasn’t even aware where the tenant was employed. This makes it even more difficult to recoup his outstanding debt. Landlord Action’s debt recovery services have tripled in 2009: however, the chances of recovering debt are made a lot harder when the landlord has not undergone any previous referencing of their tenant.

It reinforces our message that tenant referencing is vital. As a result, we have also seen a major growth in the number of landlord’s instructing us to thoroughly reference their tenants as to avoid any future problems.

CREDIT CONTROL

For all of your rented properties, on the day that the tenant is due to pay rent, landlords should check their bank accounts to ensure that the rent has been paid on time and in full. This sort of credit control is vital – especially if landlords take responsibility for managing their own properties.

COMMUNICATION WITH TENANT

Communication with your tenant is paramount. Landlords should always be aware of what your tenants situation is: perhaps your tenant has lost their job? Perhaps, the couple has split up?

If the tenant is in rent arrears, landlords should call the tenant to find out why they haven’t paid the rent. You should call a few times and send them a few letters before you instruct a company like Landlord Action to serve notices and start the eviction procedure. This is to demonstrate to the courts that you have given your tenant sufficient time to pay their outstanding arrears.

Whatever the specifics, it is only through clear communication with your tenant that you will be able to take action to either help them and give them extra time to pay their outstanding rent; or, to evict them. If you start checking up why they’re in rent arrears straight away, you can then serve notices quicker than if you waited. This then gives you a better chance of evicting the tenants quickly and preventing rent arrears from building up.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

It is only when you are fully aware of what your rights are as a landlord that you can start taking decisive action.

Landlord Action has set up a free advice line for landlords who are having trouble with their tenants. Call us today and find out how we can help you: 020 8906 3838

Paul Shamplina set up Landlord Action in 1999. He has been featured on BBC1’s War at The Door, and; Inside Out; ITV’s Tenants From Hell. He is a regular commentator on landlord related issues and is currently campaigning against Local Housing Allowances.

Spend a little - Save Thousands

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Spending just £500 on making sure your property looks the best it possibly can before you put it on the market will save you thousands on the asking price.

Too many sellers are under the impression that a quick clean is all that is needed before putting their home on the market.

They have become used to the stain on the ceiling that was the result of a past leak now mended and if the kitchen doors don't quite shut properly anymore- well the new owners will put be putting in a new kitchen so why waste money on it?

The fact is that all buyers are looking for more for their money - if they see the stain on the ceiling or the shabby kitchen it will ring alarm bells. They may fall in love with your property but because of the economic climate they may notbe ableto afford to buy the house, move in and begin expensive improvements. Because money is tight it may be that they wanta place they can be comfortable in fornowand be able to improveat a later date. So the state of the fabric of the house will be paramount to their ability to being able to 'live with it' - the stain and state of the kitchen may not seem much to you but togetherit will cost you £8-10,000 off your asking price.

Put yourself in the buyers shoes, look at your home with their eyes, try to imagine the different reasons they may have for buying your particular property.

Your first step to getting the most profit from your biggest asset in today's market is to check out Tepilo's Crucial Steps to Selling Your Home/Top things to do to your home before putting it on the market- use it as a check-list as you go about turning your home into a show home that will be streets ahead of the competition.

If in doubt use a professional Home Stager - they will be able to look at your property objectively and diagnose problems areas giving detailed advice about any necessary changes needed.That might mean laying new carpet and newwindow treatments or it may be simply cleaning and dressing the house for maximum impact on buyers. The thing to remember is that your home is your biggest financial asset and a properly repaired and staged home will save you money in the long run.

Remember a smart house has more appeal to buyers - the less they can find fault with in the property andthe less they have to do to put things right, the more they will be willing to pay the asking price and that's more money in your pocket.

With thanks to Rhonda Deal - Rhonda Deal Home Staging Services, Lowestoft, Suffolk

The UK property market effect on the UK economy

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

There is no doubt the people of this country place massive importance on their property. Of course, the problem is, the fortunes of the UK economy and the UK property market are closely linked.

So much national wealth is invested in property, indeed 77% of households are privately owned. This is far higher than most of Europe, with France for example at 50%.

It is commonly believed the economic recession of the early 1990`s was led by the property crash of that time. So it seems it is a cycle that is to be repeated, as the current 2008/09 recession coincides with another downturn in the housing sector.

Conversely, as property prices rise, we see an increase in wealth, an increase in confidence and an increase in consumer spending.

A key phrase is `aggregate demand`.

Increased consumer spending leads to rising aggregate demand in the economy and consequently economic growth.

Interest rates are therefore vital in the performance of our property market and economy. However, I believe the timing of interest rate increase has to be precise this time, as inflation can take hold rapidly with such low rates.

The availability of mortgage finance will be more restricted than in the early 90`s, so we should assume any increase in property prices will be more gradual, compounded by the high level of unemployment.

Recent history shows us that property prices fell by around 30% in the early 1990`s, starting recovering in 96. By 2001, they had generally returned to pre-collapse levels. This rise continued until their peak in August 2007.

The UK`s place in the world`s wealthiest nations and largest economies has fallen to seventh from fourth in recent years. Mainly because our wealth is tied up in property valuation.

So, 2010 can be expected to be a property driven upturn in ecomonic fortunes, hopefully the growth will be more gradual (and sustainable) over the coming years.

With thanks to: Adam Levell

www.thishome4u.co.uk

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (8)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

As well as being busy selling my house over these last few weeks I have also been trying to find myself a new job. I was standing on the platform at my local station yesterday in the afternoon sun thinking to myself that I actually quite missed the routine of getting up and going to work, and, dare I say it, even the journey to London by train. There is something quite comforting about seeing the same faces in the carriage each morning, the same 'leaves on the line', and the same array of daft excuses as to why we simply cannot run a railway service on time. The Swiss can run railways up thousands of feet of mountain, in sub zero temperatures through howling gales, and their trains will arrive within thirty seconds of when they were meant to. They do not have 'staff shortages', 'signal failures', 'frozen points', 'a shortage of rolling stock', or 'congestion in the London Bridge area'. But we love it all really don't we, it wouldn't be England without it!

Whilst waiting for my train to arrive Southeastern were doing some photography of one of their members of staff. She was of course the prettiest station assistant that you have ever seen, all smartly dressed and looking cheerful. Maybe she will appear in the next edition of their newsletter? No doubt the pages of the newsletter will announce some radical new iniative, unheard of in the days of British Rail. 'Starting 1st December Southeastern will be running some trains with wheels!' These will be trial services, whilst we assess our wheels and iron out any problems!' Wow, trains with wheels, I shall look forward to seeing those!

Anyway, after my job interview (nice chap, hope I get the job), I started my journey home. I was pleased to see my train was already at the platform at Charing Cross, as it was a bit chilly and I hadn't got out my winter interview clothes so was dressed more for a balmy day in August than a dark November night. I found a seat by the window, facing the right direction (never like to sit going the wrong way), and started to read my newspaper (Evening Standard – it's free now too!)

A few minutes later as I was busy reading about Elton John's plumbing problems I was jolted back to reality by a man sitting down next to me. Those of you who travel by train frequently will know the sort. He sat down like a tonne of potatoes, so heavy that I am sure I even jumped a little in the air as he did so. I mean why do people have to do that? Are they so lazy that they can't sit down more gently? So then he gets out his paper, jabbing me in the chest in the process. But he doesn't seem to read any of it. He just snatches at the pages to turn them over and then flicks them with his finger tips to push them down a little bit, making the most irritating noise you can imagine. Either he reads at five thousand words per second, or he doesn't read at all.

By now the train is quite full and getting rather warm. It becomes evident at this point that my travelling companion did not bother to put on any deodorant this morning, and a pungent smell from his armpits begins to invade the rest of the carriage. This combined with some early evening dog breath starts to make things really quite unpleasant.

I realise now what it was that I didn't like about commuting. You don't have any control over anything. You can't control when you leave or when you arrive. You can't adjust the temperature or the music or who is sitting next you or change your route if there is a problem ahead. You don't have information about anything and you are entirely dependent on other people to do what they are meant to do. You are powerless! Eventually I get back to my station, fight my way out to the car park and by the time I get to my car I am ready for a fight with Mike Tyson.

Thank heavens I am not doing that tomorrow I think to myself!

By Samantha May

Gardens : Kerb appeal is not just for the front garden.

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

It is often said that there are three things that sell a house – the kitchen, the bathroom and the garden.

It is essential to create a good impression of your property from the outside – often referred to as ‘kerb appeal’. If the buyer doesn’t like the property from the outside, they won’t even consider viewing the inside. Here are a few tips and ideas to ensure that your garden gets people through the front door and making an offer.

The front garden sets the scene. Obvious I know but de-clutter! All rubbish needs to be cleared away; it is not appealing and puts people off. No one wants to move in and clear the garden of rubbish! If possible park your car on the street for the viewing to allow the garden and entrance to be seen in its best light and not obscured by your pride and joy.

The front garden should be kept simple. If you have a path leading up to the front door make sure it is clean and not slippery for potential buyers. Edging with plants is always a good idea and at this time of year shrubs are readily available at nurseries and can be planted up until the end of November (depending on where you are in the country). Evergreens such as Box or Photinia are always a good bet should you have visitors throughout winter – they will look architectural and give texture. In the front garden it is very much a case of less is more. Use three to four different plant types only depending on the size of the front garden. Gravel is always an elegant and sustainable feature for paths and driveways. It is very cost effective and saves time on weeding. Make sure it is not too deep – 30 to 60mm is fine. When used as a border around the walls it can really make the house stand out. If you pave more than 5m2 of the drive and front garden by law you must install permeable paving to ensure adequate water run-off. Remember – the front garden is the first thing the buyer sees and also the last, so make sure it is a positive memory!

The back garden should be an oasis of peace and calm away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Tatty fences and decrepit sheds do not create this serene idyll! Fences and sheds should be repaired and re-painted with any proprietary weather-proof paint. Choose softer colours such as estate colours for an elegant modern feel or wood enhancers for a more natural look.

Paths and decking or paving should be clean and clear of weeds and moss. Borders must be weed-free. Here you can plant some inexpensive shrubs again keeping to three or four varieties and creating blocks of planting. Do not plant in straight lines but try gentle wave-like patterns to create a natural flow. A wide diversity of flowers and plants in a garden creates a busy, jumbled-look which is unsettling for buyers and also screams “maintenance heavy”. If you do decide to enhance the garden with new planting make sure that the plants are not all the same size. It will be all too obvious that it has been newly planted. Ideally you are looking to achieve an established look. Vary the height of plants too. Tall vertical elements in your design will break up the space, add volume and prevent the garden looking flat and devoid of interest.

Place some pots and containers near the kitchen door or patio doors. Different sizes are good but always use the same pot style as this has a unifying effect. Herbs are cheap and scented and always look and smell great near the kitchen. If your back garden or yard only allows for potted plants ensure they are grouped together in coordinated colours or styles. Simple is always best.

Lastly, put away the washing line, paddling pool and the children’s toys when showing potential buyers around.

If you do nothing else, ensure the grass is cut and the paths are free of weeds.

Next time we will be looking at creating a simple design for your garden as well as setting up a garden office.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design ideas visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

Interior Design: Setting the scene to sell the house

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Good interior layout and good interior design is key to ensuring that your house comes top of the list in a potential buyers mind.

We all know to keep to neutral colour schemes and to tidy up – but go too neutral and you risk making it bland and forgettable, too colourful and you risk alienating a whole section of potential buyers. Unworkable layouts are annoying, and cluttered spaces scream "too small”. Dirty, tatty kitchens and bathrooms are a big turn-off.

So what can you do to secure that all-important sale and how do you sell an “aspirational” lifestyle? Unfortunately everyone’s taste differs, but when it comes to selling your house put aside your personal preferences and follow these simple rules:

Sarah Beeny states this time and time again, but it is still worth repeating. One person’s treasured possessions are another person’s dust collectors. Minimise the number of decorative objects on display as clutter makes a room appear smaller and serves only to camouflage features of the room that you should be promoting.

Your furniture should be in proportion to the room size. An oversized sofa in a small cottage will dominate the room and make it feel cramped. If you cannot exchange it, covering it with a light coloured textured fabric will go a long way to reduce its impact. If you need to show more seating, small side chairs are preferable to another sofa and give the room a sense of space and practicality.

Lighting is an essential element of any room and is often overlooked. I cannot tell you the number of times I have walked into a pale blue room lit by a single bulb in the centre of the ceiling. It looks cold and uninviting, especially in these long and dark winter days. Table lamps strategically placed on side tables are a great way to create interest and warmth. Remember - fluorescent light bulbs (kitchens for example) give off a cold, uniform light and whilst fine in a workshop, should be replaced inside the house with a more suitable fitting. Do not use bulbs without shades and keep the wattage low; 150 watts is too much. If using energy saving bulbs that give off a cool light you may want to replace these with warmer bulbs for any viewing. Dimmers and cream lampshades are the cheapest and quickest way to create instant ambience in any room. If you have downlighters you may consider using a slightly darker wall colour as these types of lights tend to wash out pale colours. If redecorating paint an A4 size piece of white card with your colour and try it next to each light source you have in the room.

The colours of your walls are the single most important factor when presenting your home to potential buyers. In general the average house buyer is not good at visualising the potential of a room. Even a single wall painted a bizarre colour can be a stumbling block to the buyer and mean the difference between selling and not.

For most houses neutral colours are the safest bet, but this is not to say that you should shy away from creating some interest and style, but avoid drama! Try using wall paper with large bold prints but keep it to one wall and do not be tempted to paper the whole room. A complimentary paint colour will help to pull the room together.

It is also essential to consider natural daylight when re-painting walls. Start with which way the room faces – north facing will make colours look greener whilst southern facing rooms will make colours look more yellow. For rooms that run east to west the colour will change as the sun moves throughout the day. This change should be embraced as this makes rooms come alive. Paint a good size area on couple of walls – one in shadow and one in sunlight and live with the colour for a few days before committing to the colour.

White – if in doubt keep it simple!

From urban chic to rustic simplicity, white is infinitely versatile. Pure white – its simplest form - is blinding in bright sun but can also take on a variety of hues at different times of the day in less glaring exposures. Adding shades of other colours to the white canvas can subtlety change its personality. White’s capacity to reflect light is an important factor in making rooms appear larger. From off-white to apple-white to a multitude of shades, the paint pallet is vast and range of options infinite!

To make rooms appear larger paint skirting boards and all woodwork the same colour. Remember to use the appropriate paint for each surface. If you have the enviable luxury of large rooms, pulling them together with darker skirting and architraves and lighter walls will make them less cavernous and more homely.

Don’t be afraid that it’s all looking a bit white. Accents of colour can be easily added to your neutral look with paintings and soft furnishings. Scatter cushions and throws are a good way of harmonising a scheme. Your soft furnishings should all be in the same colour palette with different textures to add depth. You can also try adding pattern but sparingly and always in the same hues. If in doubt, leave it out…..

Next time we will be looking at kitchens and bathrooms. We will discuss design and layout as well as a few inexpensive ideas to show them off to their best advantage.

Françoise Murat & Associates specialise in interior, garden & landscape design.

For more garden and interior design ideas visit us at www.francoisemurat.com.

New Channel 4 Competition!

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Amid a highly competitive market, homeowners and property developers are looking for new ways to make the most of their investment, whether the need is to release your property's potential in a cooling market, or you are renovating in order to let out or sell-on your home.

Take Sarah up on this great opportunity, and enter to win a personal home visit and consultation from Sarah herself, in conjunction with Tepilo. Five runners up will also receive a signed copy of Sarah’s latest book - Design for Profit.

Sarah will visit the lucky winner and offer her valued advice on how you could increase the value of your property, make it more saleable, create more space or simply demonstrate the small changes that could really improve the look and feel of your property.

Sarah’s latest book, Design for Profit is perfect for anyone with an eye for design who is simply sprucing up or designing from scratch, taking you through the essential design dos and don'ts. Sarah has a wealth of tricks up her sleeve, from maximising awkward spaces to identifying key themes to apply to decor. She pulls out all the stops in DIY and design, to prove a little bit of creativity goes a long way - from colour schemes and furniture to storage solutions, aspect and furniture. Packed full of case studies from a wide range of real-life projects, it reveals success stories along with examples of bad design and development failures and everything you should and shouldn't do.

To find out more and to enter please visit: Channel 4 Homes

Sarah's Home visit 1

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

In case you missed it on our homepage – we’re running a competition where Sarah picks a property each month, which she will visit with the Tepilo team - we’ll see what we can do to help improve your chances of selling.

Here’s one of the first visits Sarah made – a property in West London – where we all turned up in our trusty campervan complete with film crew and without really knowing what to expect when we got there. As you can see, there were a few simple improvements – which could have a big impact.

Weeding the area at the front of the house, re-arranging furniture, making the bed and just adding a mention of a garden to the back of the property shouldn't take that long should it...enjoy!

If you think your property could do with a Beeny makeover - then get your home uploaded and who knows, you could be next.

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (7)

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

So the average Goldman Sachs banker is about to trouser almost five hundred thousand pounds as this year's bonus. Now don't get me wrong. I am sure they all work very hard for it. Lots of entertaining and late night trips to bars along with those essential visits to New York on executive jets. Apparently Bank of America, despite having received large sums of taxpayers' cash is advising its senior executives to continue using private jets in the interests of 'security and convenience.' I must say I am sure I would find sitting in a padded leather seat with some dashing steward serving me Martinis (shaken, not stirred) a lot safer and a great deal more convenient, but that's hardly the point is it?

I have heard all sorts of daft nonsense this week as to why it is 'quite right and proper' that banks should be allowed to pay huge sums this year to the chosen few, despite the mess that their industry has wreaked on the global economy. Everything from 'banks should not be afraid to reward their staff properly,' to we need to 'incentivise the wealth creators.' What hogwash. The facts are quite simple. Were it not for huge sums of taxpayers money being lent one way or another to support these banks none of them would exist right now, and that even includes the mighty Goldmans. If it hadn't been for the fallout that the rest of us would have suffered we should have let them all go to the wall last year. Let the repo men come and repossess their Ferraris. But of course we couldn't let that happen, so we had to bail them out and because we had to do it in such a hurry our governments couldn't nail down the terms of the loans in such a way that bonuses would definitely be off the table.

So we are where we are. But whilst the rest of us quietly choke on our Cornflakes as we read how much they are all getting, there may be a silver lining. Savills, the upmarket estate agent recently reported rising property prices in some parts of London, with demand for premier properties outstripping supply. And where the London property market leads the rest of the country eventually follows. So it may take a few months yet but it is just possible that the UK property market may be finally emerging from the deep freeze. Those bonuses to the obnoxious city bankers, whilst we hate them might just help things along a bit. Hopefully if they start spending money at the top of the market some of it will trickle down to the lower and middle parts of the London market. Then, if prices rise a little in the suburbs this will filter out to the home counties and then eventually across the UK as a whole.

So I shall be keeping my eye out in the coming weeks for viewers driving Ferraris, talking loudly on mobile phones and being generally obnoxious. But I will still take their cash. Maybe someone from Goldman Sachs would like to buy my house? Offers please!

By Samantha May

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (6)

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Today (15th October) the London Transport Museum has launched an exhibition about Suburbia. I think it is related to how the extending of some of London's tube lines during the twenties and thirties enabled London to grow outwards into the countryside. Some of the posters from that era announcing the completion of the lines and the associated house building are quite amusing (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_8305000/8305579.stm). For instance, fancy a three bedroom semi-detached house for £750! However, you may have missed the boat, as deposits were being taken eighty years ago! It seems amazing now but at the time people had to be persuaded to move outside of what we would now think of as central London with poster adverts such as 'Adventure to Edgware!' As if Edgware is the North Pole!

It was also an era when most working class and lower middle class people were tenants rather than owner occupiers. So the house-builders of the time had to convince an initially sceptical public that they could even afford their own home. Advertisers therefore produced advertisements such as the one for the Planet Building Society (whatever happened to them?) which would help to persuade house buyers that they would be able to afford the repayments on a mortgage rather than just pay rent.

You might be wondering what all this has got to do with how things are today. Well, it occurs to me that part of the reason that house prices in the UK and in the south-east in particular are so expensive (even after the recent falls) is that we have not had a major house building programme like the ones between the wars or during the sixties. The population has continued to grow, and the demand for houses has grown even faster as a result of households becoming smaller (more people living on their own). So the net result is more people chasing a slowly rising number of properties.

So what is the solution? Well, first of all we need to start building significantly more houses. And yes, that means building some on greenfield sites. Families with young children do not want to live on former rubbish tips or old gas works. We have to accept that to support the growing population we need to build some new family size homes in places that are currently open countryside but near to large towns. It is all very well having the greenbelt, and I am sure The Protection for Rural England would have something to say, but most of their members are retired vicars living in The Old Rectory in Miss Marple style villages whilst the real people are trying to bring up young children in flats that are not large enough for hamsters!

So a large house building scheme is needed. And not in the middle of Wales. We need more homes, particularly in the south-east. But where exactly I hear you say? Well, you can put them next to my house for a start. I am surrounded by fields. They are very pretty. Every now and again I see someone walking in them. But they would be perfect for some major house building. I don't care if the lesser-spotted chaffinch is evicted. And I don't care if it is in my backyard. We need more homes and we need them now.

Secondly, whilst we try to cope with the shortage of family size homes we need to do something to persuade older people, many of whom are now living on their own, to move out of large family size homes which they no longer need. I know this will not be popular. But it is essential. How do we do it? Scrap the council tax discount for single occupancy. This is madness. They should be paying more not less. Double the rate of council tax on bands F and G homes. Finally introduce a super tax on homes worth more than one million. Older people whilst they may be asset rich tend to be income poor, so this will force many to sell up. Ruthless I know, but it has to be done.

In the meantime, and until I become Prime Minister, we have to live with the situation as it is! Let me know your thoughts.

by Samantha May

The Latest Addition to the Family

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

It's been a very busy few months, but here is the latest news! My fourth son arrived this weekend!

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (5)

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

First the good news. I have some more viewers coming around today. Now the bad news. My garden is under attack. I awoke this morning, drew back the curtains and nearly had heart failure. Just on the day when I have three sets of viewers (yes three!) due to come round, Michael Mole has decided to dig the Channel Tunnel under my lawn! He is no ordinary mole I am telling you. I have never seen him, granted, I have only seen the lawn twitching every now and again as he passes underneath, but judging by the size of the mounds of earth he can create he must have diamond drilling attachments fitted to his claws. I only have to lay my head on my pillow and start to close my eyes and I am sure he is at it, macheteying his way through the earth under my garden. I think there are more tunnels under my lawn than on the London Underground! I wouldn't even be surprised to find the Cabinet War Rooms down there now to be honest.

He has already upset the drains. I thought I would manage to escape before the damage was too great to require fixing, but as Fickle correctly identified there was an awful smell coming from the bottom end of the garden the other week. I phoned the chap from Econorod (like Dinorod but cheaper), and he said there was nothing he could do as 'something has gone through your pipes.' So he recommended me this other chap who fixes drains. He came round, and after sending his camera down there announced he would have to relay the pipe. So he dug up the lawn, fixed the problem and put everything back together. He really wasn't a very cheery chap I have to say, but I guess if you spend your days dealing with sewers I can see you might not be that happy. But then today there is a Mount Vesuvius size pile of earth perilously close to the same spot. I mean what is Michael Mole doing down there? He must have a larger house than me. He's probably got eight bedrooms all with en-suites by now. Why can't he just leave it alone, at least until I have the sold the house anyway? Mmm, maybe he is extending to create extra room for his brothers and sisters. That could be a problem. Between his tunnels and Fickle using the garden as a race track at this rate there will only be a small patch of grass left.

But I really don't want to kill him you know. He has sort of become part of the house I think. The whole place is under permanent attack from nature anyway. There are spiders everywhere, mice in the loft, ladybirds living in the window sills and if you don't clear away the apples from the tree you may see the odd rat too. But it's really not that bad you know. I have come to the conclusion that we all share this house, so we all have to get along together. Most of them were probably here way before me anyway. Fickle tries to chase the mice but they are too quick for her and I'm not sure she would know what to do with one even if she did catch it. I don't think she has worked that bit out yet.

The spiders seem to live down the plug-holes but you can wash them away and a few hours later they pop back up again. They don't really worry me, but if Fickle finds one she will eat it and then just a leave a pile of legs on the carpet for me to hoover up. I guess the legs are not so tasty. Heaven knows what she would do if she came face to face with a rat! Mmm, I hope none of the viewers bump into any rats today. That might not be a major selling point! Still, it is the countryside you know!

by Samantha May

Update: Where am I on my journey?

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Well, I went to see my first repossession property possibility last week. My thoughts:

All electricity turned off and water drained so no chance to check boiler. taps etc work. Stickers all over any appliance/loo/sink etc saying “do not use”. Why do they do this? Surely it’s worth leaving them in working order if they do actually work? Can someone tell me?
Fire damage to one room, but only cosmetic (curtain was left over heater). I like this as it makes the room look and smell awful and might put other investors off!
Relatively new build (2003) and no signs of sny structural issues on this floor (1st floor)
Internal walkways overlook internal car park but the whole lot is draped in pigeon netting so any potential tenant would feel like they were in a prison the moment they walk in. No matter what I do to spruce up the internals of the property, this would be their first impression.
And….spoke to a tenant in the same block. She was lovely but nervous to stop and talk. However I did manage to get some useful information. Apparently she wants to get out of the block as soon as she can (she called it Alcatraz!), especially due to the druggies on the 2nd and 3rd floor and the parties that go on on the 4th (although the 4th does have nice views!).
Ok. Thats enough for me. I want to be confident in being able to let out my first property and this seals it. There will be no offer from me on this one.

What I learnt: Always speak to a neighbour to get the lowdown. Always.

With thanks to Pete from his Property Journey website, where he's sharing every success and failure on his ongoing journey from property amateur to buy-to-let entrepreneur. Follow him at http://propertyjourney.tumblr.com, Twitter: @propertyjourney and find him on Facebook"

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (4)

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I decided today that I’d better start looking at houses myself as at the moment I have nowhere to move to! So Fickle and I decided to go and see Holly Cottage.

Now, in the estate agents blurb it says ‘Holly Cottage is a charming 18th century detached cottage, situated in an area of outstanding natural beauty.’ Sounds good, doesn’t it? Plenty of room for Fickle to chase around outside, not near a busy road and with a bit of character thrown in too.

So off we went. Fickle thought we were going for another walk so she was very excited. As we drove up the lane I slowed down and looked again at the details from Rubble & Kay who had allegedly been ‘successfully selling houses since 1869.’ They had a supposedly witty cartoon at the bottom of the page with two chaps talking, one saying ‘do you want to buy my house?’ and the other saying ‘yes OK then.’ Underneath the cartoon was entitled ‘Life before estate agents.’ Maybe either Mr Rubble or Mr Kay had a sense of humour!

However, as Fickle and I turned the corner I was then in no doubt that Mr Rubble and Mr Kay liked a joke. I pulled the car to a stop and Fickle looked at me. I looked back at her and then we both looked out of the window. Dogs don’t talk you know, but Fickle was definitely saying ‘why have we stopped here and what on earth is that?’

On our left was a very muddy farmyard. It wouldn’t have mattered if you had been visually impaired. Or even blind. The stench coming from that farmyard was enough to identify it as a farmyard even if you were standing in northern France. Poor Fickle. Her nose is one thousand times more sensitive than a human one. Heaven only knows what she was smelling!

At the back of the yard was what looked like a farmhouse, with some very authentic manure outside. And then a few yards to the left of that were three terraced houses. These, it appeared, had been knocked into one house, and hey presto you have an ‘18th century detached cottage.’ Why is that estate agents these days call anything that is a terraced house a ‘cottage?’ According to that logic the cast of Coronation Street all live in ‘cottages.’ The last time I was in the back streets of Manchester I certainly didn’t see any ‘cottages!’ And I wasn’t seeing any cottages now either!

Just then a large very scruffy looking cow walked in front of the car and Fickle launched into the mother of all barking fits. The cow was not fazed at all and just swished her fly ridden tail in the air and sauntered on.

I glanced back at the details from the aptly named Rubble and Kay. ‘Outstanding natural beauty?’ ‘I’m not seeing any outstanding natural beauty,’ I said to Fickle. Then just at that moment there was the loudest train horn you have ever heard. I drove the car a few yards further up the road and sure enough there was a level crossing for a railway line. The 12 noon train to London had just passed , and had it been going any faster I think it would have melted the rails.

‘Fickle,’ I announced decisively, ‘we are not living in here!’

There was no argument from her, and after a deep doggy sigh, she lay down again on her seat, contemplating which angle the next cow might approach from.

As I drove back home feeling a bit dejected I wondered whether I should really be trying to move house at all? Things aren’t really that bad in The Vale, are they?

by Samantha May

My Top Tips on Buying a Property

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

1) Look for warning signs

Check for loose tiles and subsidence, listen as well as look...Stand back and see if there are any slates or tiles missing or slipping from the roof - look at the flashing (the lead/cement fillet that seals where the roof meets any vertical walls). Look for signs of movement - whilst signs of movement may be historic and add to the charm, it is movement that is ongoing that tends to be of more concern. You should be able to line up the vertical and horizontal lines of the exterior ie window headers, end (flank) walls, pointing lines etc and these will tell you if there has been movement. Don't panic though as most of our housing stock was built with relatively inadequate foundations and will have moved around a bit over the years. Check out the hot water system - if the property has more than one or two bathrooms it should have a more powerful system than a combination boiler - if you are a big shower fan - turn the shower on and check the pressure. Look around at the neighbours - there may be specific noise at times of the day ie a school - many are not bothered by childrens laughter (and of course if you have children its likely to be in the catchment area!) but if you do mind then steer away.

Trust your instincts - do you like the house? - if you get a good feel then it is probably the right one for you - if you get a bad feel then walk away.

2) Get valuations, a homebuyer's report or a full structural survey...

Remember that the valuation that you pay your mortgage company to carry out is carried out for their benefit not yours, to check their investment is sound. It is a valuation and not a survey, and if there are any defects that do not materially affect the property's value, they will not tell you about them. If you want a more comprehensive survey you need to pay more and arrange it yourself. A homebuyer's report is the more conclusive, but they are designed as a general rule for conventionally-built properties, built in the last 150 years. There is a great deal of information that they will tell you, but be aware that they will not be looking at every aspect of the property, as they do not take up carpets or carry out investigative work. A full structural survey/building survey is the most extensive of surveys and can be tailor-made to suit you and the property and go into as much depth as you require. They are expensive but can put your mind at rest if you are new to property or unsure about a property. Be aware that problems are likely to come up, so don't panic, just consider how much it is likely to cost to overcome them.

3) Don’t go for a short leasehold

Most mortgage companies want 40 years to be left on the lease once you have reached the end of your mortgage, which are normally 25 years. This therefore means that anything under 65 years on a lease is generally considered short. This doesn't mean you can't buy a property with say 50 years left on the lease and taking a 10 year mortgage. But there may well be a problem trying to sell it when the lease is now only 40 years or so. There are a few exceptions to these rules but they tend to be in the very upper end of the market.

4) Don’t be afraid to make a cheeky offer.

Take a house that is on the market at £200,000. You can only afford to offer £170,000, but you have no chain and could buy quickly. I would definitely offer £170,000 especially as you can't afford any more as the worst that could happen is that they turn it down. It might be worth starting at £160,000 so you are able to increase your offer. However if or when they turn down £160,000 which they are bound to do and you go back with £170,000 I would let them know that you are unable to increase it any more. It will then depend on whether it makes sense for the seller to sell at this level or not and that will be down to their own position and something you cannot affect. At least you know where you stand.

5) Work out how much you can afford - to avoid disappointment I would suggest you see a mortgage broker before you start looking for a property to ensure that you are able to get the borrowing you would like.

My Top Tips on Selling your property

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

1) Be realistic on price

As a general rule everything has a price - the chances are if you have not had any viewers or had viewers but no offers, it's probably on for too much money. If you really want to sell you need to drop the price, but not by a tiny bit. I would advise in a falling market you get below the market - you are far better off with several buyers all banging the door down to buy, than with no interest at all. At least then you have a decision to make as to whether you actually sell for that amount or not. Currently, I believe we are bumping along the bottom, so now is certainly not the time to overprice if you want a sale.

The two ways to value are to find out how much a home like yours recently sold for and/or look at what you can buy at the level you think you should be selling for - ie if you think your 2 bedroom flat should be worth £130,000 but there are lots of 3 bedroom houses at a similar level - you are unlikely to achieve your price.

2) Clean the whole house

If you smoke, stop smoking inside and clean all ashtrays - if you have pets, wash their beds. Pet and cigarette odour are the two smells that come up most often in ‘put off' smells list. Look at your kitchen and bathroom from an outsider's point of view - if they are really manky do something about it - often it only requires bleaching the grout and cutting out and re siliconing - get in behind the basin and loo and get scrubbing there, too . Deal with outside - start on the street - what do you see - potential viewers will stand and pause just there too and it's their first impression. Don't argue with neighbours about who is going to do what - check if they don't mind and get on and clean it up yourself. Outside space is a real luxury and one that should be cherished, especially in an urban setting. Give it a clean - get a few cheapie pot plants and look out for an inexpensive table and chairs to show you can use the space.

3) De-clutter

As if you haven’t heard it before, but use this as the perfect moment to move the piles of stuff you don't use to a charity shop - if you do a good clear out in one go you will be better about getting what you don't need to a suitable recycling unit or charity shop where someone might actually use your silly unwanted nonsense. You are then able to clear surfaces - this will give a much greater sense of space and almost more importantly, less of the feeling that the house is rather hard work to live in, in a tidy way. Like small gardens, it's rather more important to dress small rooms well, otherwise people may not be able to really envisage how the room could work. Try to avoid putting things just inside the door of a room - you ideally want to be able to get inside a room before you trip over something.

4) Don’t wait to get your house on the market

Traditionally there are busier and quieter times of the year for house selling. These are based on what much of the population is doing. December is quieter as everyone builds up to Christmas but the market tends to pick up in the new year - equally August tends to be quiet. However in these more uncertain times, I personally recommend that you don't wait, as despite what you endlessly read, the truth is nobody has any idea what is actually going to happen in the market. If now is the right time in your life to sell, get on with it asap. If the market falls lower by the ‘suitable time economically' you will kick yourself. Equally, if now is a good time in your life to sell, sell now, as you never know, the market may have moved down if you wait.

Direct property investment options: "Buy-to-let"

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

ARLA (The Association of Residential Letting Agents) open their info on Buy-to-Let in this way:

“It was designed to stimulate the growth of the Private Rented Sector by encouraging private investors to take the opportunities given by low, highly competitive, interest rates and the reasonable certainty of sustained capital growth over the coming years. Whilst in 2008/9 financing has not been so readily available it still remains an attractive investment with property being more affordable and the possibility that prices will rise again when the credit market along with the property market moves forward”

And that’s just it - times have changed and where, during the boom years, buying into property through buy-to-let was seen as a sure bet, in recent times the fall in the value of bricks and mortar has made people question this investment choice.

When I speak to people about my plans their reactions can be split into 2 camps - those hugely in support, believing that I should buy into the new low prices before they rise again, and those who wouldn’t touch buy-to-let with a bargepole. One fund manager friend predictably said “I can name 10 better investment choices for you in the long term”.

Well, please tell me if I’m wrong but I don’t know of any other investment which, over the long term, offers such good leverage opportunities to grow my ownership of assets. If I invested in a particular company or fund, I wouldn’t be able to approach an organisation for finance in the same way as I can approach a mortgage lender. Or, if I could, they would ask me to secure that loan against something ‘real’ - guess what that would be…property!!

Yes, just like stocks and shares, the value of property can go down as well as up but there is always something tangible, a physical asset, with value that ‘cannot’ go to zero, and when your equity rises in a property, this can be used to increase your asset base.

So it seems to me that buy-to-let is a great investment choice but ONLY if it’s for the long term and the figures add up (that’s why I made the property decision spreadsheet thingy). One thing that really helps make the figures add up is to buy below market value and that is a real priority of mine. I’ll post about it soon.

Different ways to invest in property...which to choose?

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

However, in the interests of explaining all my thinking here, I think it would be a good idea at this stage to look at some of the possible ways to get into the property game and briefly weigh up their pros and cons.

If I miss any out then please let me know…

Direct Property Investment (i.e. directly buying all, or part, of a physical property)
Buy-to-Let
Property Development
Buy-to-Sell (flipping)
HMOs
Off-plan
Off-shore
Commercial Property
Indirect Property Investment (i.e. buying stocks or shares or other type of investment that are linked to the property market)
REITS
ETFs

I’ll tackle these post by post or this would be one huge article!

Property Decision Spreadsheet

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I’ve put together a very rough and ready “Property Decision Sheet” and you can download it for free here.

Click here to download

It allows you to stick in the details of each BTL mortgage you’re currently considering for a potential property purchase - you then enter the relevant costs and charges and it will tell you what the yield, ROCE etc is. Any box that is Yellow is editable - don’t edit the other boxes in grey as I’ve left these unlocked so you can check my formulae!

Like I say, it’s very rough and ready but it has really helped me get an understanding of what’s going on.

One thing to point out is that it doesn’t take into account of the possibility of increasing interest rates after the term of the mortgage is up. Also, please do not use this sheet to make any financial decisions - there could very well be mistakes in it. By downloading it you agree that you are using it merely for reference and open it at your own risk! Phew.

The main thing it has highlighted for me is the importance of buying below market value! In fact, it has put a bit of a dampener on my enthusiasm as it just looks too expensive to get a BTL at the moment.

Any questions, let me know via twitter @propertyjourney.

I’m expecting some clever people to help me refine this sheet - so please get in touch!

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (3)

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Today, some good news! I have just had an offer on the house! Yes, an offer! Well, that’s the good news. The bad news is the level of the offer. “How much??” I said to the Twitskiis. “I’m sorry, I thought I must have misheard!”

I then stormed into the kitchen in a rage. Fickle ran for cover under the kitchen table.

“YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!” I screamed, McEnroe style.

“Two hundred and eighty thousand!” I huffed at Fickle.

“TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTY THOUSAND!” Don’t they realise I spent over an hour with them, showing them around whilst they poked about, looking at this and that, and asking me daft questions. And then they have the nerve to offer me two hundred and eighty thousand. OK, OK, I know the housing market is not great at the moment but that is ridiculous! RIDICULOUS!

Fickle was still hovering under the kitchen table, not entirely sure what the significance was of my tantrum.

“It’s OK,” I said to Fickle. “I’m not cross with you.” Fickle came out from under the kitchen table hesitantly and I gave her a cuddle.

“I’m just cross with those silly house buyers, that’s all. It’s OK for you, you only have to worry about your basket!”

I mean didn’t they read that house price survey last week? Prices are rising you know! Yes rising! According to that my house is worth one thousand four hundred and sixty-two pounds and eleven pence more than it was last month! Maybe I should tell the Twitskiis.

Apparently that is all the bank will lend them. And even that is conditional on the dreaded survey! Who knows what that is going to bring up? Wet rot, dry rot, wood worm, every kind of worm and all no doubt resulting in chunks being taken off their paltry offer.

And then, just when I thought things really couldn’t get any worse, I opened the local paper. There, right before my eyes, on page three like a beacon sticking out is the house opposite mine advertised for sale.

“YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!” I screamed for the second time in about five minutes. Fickle immediately ran for cover again. I mean why do they have to sell now? It’s my turn to be selling not theirs. I put my house on the market first, they should wait, shouldn’t they? And why does their garden have to look so pretty? I don’t have green fingers you know and I live with a mad border collie who shreds lawns faster than a combine-harvester.

“Immaculate four bedroom detached house for sale , with south-facing garden,” reads the advert.

“An opportunity not to be missed,” it goes on.

Right, I’m taking them off my Christmas card list. They were round here only the other weekend, all lardydar, saying how happy they were here and how the children had settled in so well at the local school. Mmm, now I come to think of it they were asking about how the house selling was going, and whether I’d had much interest. The little rats! That’s probably the only reason they came round, to poke about and see whether they thought their place was nicer than mine. Maybe Twitskii will be going over there now as soon as he sees this ad. I hope they ask them lots of questions. ‘So can you tell me the precise name, origin and density of the breeze blocks used to build the foundations of this house...?’

I decide to play it cool. Yes, that’s right. I shall sit on Twitskiis offer for a few days, make ‘em sweat a bit. I won’t mention anything to the snakes across the road either. We’ll see what happens. Maybe in another month the house will be worth even more. Might even have to put the price up! That’ll teach ‘em!

by Samantha May

Rural house prices in the UK have managed to hold their value better than those in urban areas

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Rural house prices in the UK have managed to hold their value better than those in urban areas, according to the latest Halifax Rural Housing Review.

On average, house prices across rural Britain fell by 13 per cent in the last year, compared to an average fall of 18 per cent in urban areas, meaning that the average price of a rural home at £203,535 is now a fifth higher than the urban average price of £168,376.

Just over a year ago, the difference was 15 per cent.

Rural properties are, on average, worth more than six times the average gross annual earnings, according to Halifax’s research, compared with just over five times for urban homes.

Interestingly, more than a quarter of buyers of rural homes are first-time buyers, and that is the highest proportion since the turn of the century. However, this is still significantly lower than the 44 per cent of purchasers who are first-time buyers in urban areas.

Suren Thiru, economist at Halifax, said: "Homes in rural areas continue to command a marked premium over urban locations, partly reflecting the quality of life benefits that many people associate with living in the countryside. Higher prices, together with generally lower earnings, mean that housing in rural areas remains significantly less affordable than in urban areas. The difficulties this presents for households living in the countryside are further aggravated by the relatively low levels of social housing in rural areas."

OTHER KEY FINDINGS

Rural house prices by local authority

South Oxfordshire is the most expensive rural local authority

The most expensive rural local authority (LA) in Great Britain is South Oxfordshire with an average house price of £307,518; 51 per cent above the GB rural average. Eight of the ten most expensive rural LAs are in southern England. Craven in North Yorkshire (£253,141) is the most expensive outside the south. North Lincolnshire (£122,052) is the least expensive rural LA in Britain.

80 per cent of the least affordable local rural local authorities are in the South West

Eight of the 10 least affordable rural areas – that is with the highest prices in relation to local earnings - are in the South West. North Cornwall is the least affordable rural local authority with an average house price (£230,459) that is 10.9 times local average earnings (£21,167). Hambleton in Yorkshire - where house prices are 8.3 times average earnings - is the least affordable rural area outside the South West.

Copeland is the most affordable rural local authority

Copeland in Cumbria is the most affordable rural LA in Britain with an average house price (£131,683) that is 4.0 times local average annual earnings. North Lincolnshire (4.2) and East Ayrshire (4.4) are the next most affordable rural areas. All ten of the most affordable local authorities are outside southern England.

Bridgnorth has the lowest proportion of FTBs

Bridgnorth in Shropshire has the smallest proportion of first time buyers (FTBs) in rural Britain with FTBs accounting for just 9 per cent of all buyers - a third of the GB average (27 per cent). In contrast, the Wear Valley in the North East and Ceredigion in Wales have the highest proportion of FTBs (both 47 per cent).

North East Derbyshire and Kennet in Wiltshire (both 22 per cent) have the highest levels of social housing in rural England, followed by Copeland (20 per cent).

Rural House Prices have risen by 118 per cent in the past 10 years

Over the past decade, house prices in rural areas have risen by 118 per cent (£110,132). This is greater than the 111 per cent rise in urban areas over the same period.

Penwith records the largest price rise over the past decade

Four of the ten rural LAs that recorded the biggest house price growth since 1999 - including the top two - are in the South West. Penwith recorded the highest house price growth over the period, with the average price in the Cornish rural LA increasing by 234 per cent. North Cornwall (230 per cent) and Craven in Yorkshire (218 per cent) experienced the next highest house price increases.

Source: Halifax Rural Housing Review

By Alison Steed (mymoneydiva.com)

First-Time Buyers Need £32,000 Deposit

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

FIRST-TIME buyers are facing the prospect of getting an average deposit together of around £32,000, with one in six considering taking out a loan to cover the cost of the deposit, according to data from comparison site Moneysupermarket.com.

A quarter of 18-34 year olds have already scraped together enough cash for such a hefty deposit, while nearly a third will continue to rent until they can afford to put down such a wad of cash.

Just over one in 10 18-34 year olds are considering getting onto the property ladder in the next 12 months to take advantage of the fall in house prices. But with the number of mortgage deals down by nearly two thirds in the past year, and deposits of at least 25 per cent needed to get the best rates. If you have 10 per cent – which used to be considered a reasonable deposit – you would now struggle to get any deals at all.

Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at moneysupermarket.com said: "Taking out a loan to pay for a mortgage deposit is a dangerous move, and must be avoided even if it means you have to delay buying your first home. Anyone who takes a loan is effectively taking out a 100 per cent mortgage through the back door. Not only will the mortgage lender decline the application if it discovers this is the source of the deposit but it is also a huge risk to the borrower - your monthly outgoings will be higher which means there is a greater chance of you finding yourself unable to keep up with repayments."

Some potential first time buyers are playing a waiting game with 14 per cent hanging their hopes on property prices dropping further and six per cent banking on the fact that we'll see 100 per cent mortgage deals return to the market.

Ms Cuming added: "It's easy to see why only 13 per cent of under 34 year olds are planning to get on to the housing ladder at the moment. The need for such a high deposit is pricing many people out of the market. The obsession with equity that has gripped mortgage lenders over the last couple of years has hit first time buyers hardest. Lenders need to concentrate more on assessing the affordability of the mortgage on a case by case basis and less on the size of the deposit if they are serious about improving the mortgage market."

By Alison Steed (mymoneydiva.com)

Act Fast To Secure The Right Mortgage For You

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

HOMEBUYERS need to act quickly to get the deal they want from mortgage lenders as the average time each product is available dropped from 23 days to just 14 days last month.

Turbulence in the mortgage market has forced borrowers to speed up their decision making, and the shelf life of mortgage products could reduce still further.

Rising fixed rates and lenders withdrawing products that were becoming too popular combined to push the shelf life of the typical mortgage deal down, according to the financial statisticians Moneyfacts in its Treasury Report on UK Mortgage Trends.

Darren Cook, analyst contributing to the Moneyfacts Treasury Reports, said: “It is bad news for consumers that mortgage deals are only appearing in the window for such a short period. There are now only a limited number of cheaper deals available and before the consumer has chance to look at them a second time, they are gone.

“LIBOR and SWAP rates are continuing to prove unpredictable and I would not be surprised if the shelf life is cut even further during the next few months.

“When the Bank of England cut interest rates by a total of two and a half per cent within two months back in November and December last year, the shelf life fell to only six days, which is less than the life of a pint of milk.”

Rate changes are the main reason for driving down the life span of many deals, with residential mortgage products only rising by 33 on offer to 1,299 in June. There are now at 1,305 products available.

Alison Steed is editor of the personal finance website www.MyMoneyDiva.com

Second-Home Renters Should Maximise Tax Breaks

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

SECOND-HOME owners who may be considering letting their property to generate some extra income should consider their tax position carefully, to avoid paying more than they need to.

Brits with holiday homes abroad should still remember that their income generated overseas would still need to be considered in relation to their UK tax position, said Leonie Kerswill, tax partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. They may also need to file a return in the overseas jurisdiction, and ensure they are taking advantage of any agreements between the UK and other countries to mitigate paying excess tax.

Ms Kerswill said: “If it's an overseas holiday home you may need to file a tax return locally and pay tax in that country as well as in the UK - if so you can normally offset any foreign tax against your UK tax liability on the same income.”

Each of us has a set amount we can earn each year before paying tax – from April 2009 to April 2010 it is £6,035 – and if you have no other income and your rental income exceeds this level, then you could be facing the prospect of filling out a tax return for the first time.

Ms Kerswill said: “If you've never had to fill in a tax return before and your holiday home profits exceed your personal allowance then remember to tell HMRC that you need to complete a tax return - the deadline to notify them is October 5, after the end of the tax year. Don't be tempted not to tell HMRC - they are currently focusing on rental activity and non disclosure will lead to interest and penalties.”

To calculate your tax liability, you would first have to exclude certain expenses from your income, such as advertising costs for the letting, agent’s fees, and repairs, but only if they are classed as “maintenance” rather than improvements.

Ms Kerswill added: “In addition you can deduct a proportion of ongoing annual expenses e.g. insurance, light and heat, and mortgage interest. Remember though if you've got a repayment mortgage it's only the interest element of the payment that can be deducted.

“If you're deducting annual expenses then it's only the proportion that relates to the time the property is let, or available for letting but un-let.

“If the property is close enough to them, consider whether student children at home during the holidays might earn some income from cleaning or gardening at the holiday home. These payments - assuming they're appropriate for the work carried out - should qualify for a tax deduction against the rental income and should be tax free for the student unless he or she has other income which exceeds the personal allowance.”

By having a furnished property to let, you can add an additional deduction to cover wear and tear of the furniture.

Ms Kerswill said: “This is calculated as 10 per cent x (rental income minus a proportionate element of rates, eg council tax). If your holiday home qualifies as a furnished holiday let (FHL) then you may get tax relief against other income if you make a loss on the rental activity. There are certain conditions you have to meet for the property to qualify as an FHL - the key ones being that the property is available for letting for 140 days in a 12 month period - normally the tax year - and is let for at least 70 of those days of which not more than 31 consecutive days are to the same person. In addition the property has to be let commercially, so allowing family and friends to rent at less than market value wouldn’t qualify.”

Alison Steed is editor of www.mymoneydiva.com

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (2)

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Why is it that when you're not quite ready for house viewers they are always ten minutes early, and then on the occasions that you are ready they saunter up to the house twenty-five minutes after they were meant to be there without a care in the world!

“Bing Bong!”

“Crumbs Fickle, the Twitskis are here already!”

Fickle skidded to a halt on the parquet floor in the hall and looked up at me.

“Basket now!” I screamed in a mild panic.

Fickle's paws immediately went into reverse and she headed speedily back to her basket.

“Now don't you move from there!” I barked at Fickle. “Remember we are trying to convince people that this is a gracious family home, where the air is filled with the scent of summer meadows and fresh coffee. A distant aroma of damp dog is just not the same! You shouldn't even be in the house anyway. I mean really, the day I have two lots of house viewers coming round you decide to eat the most disgusting thing on your walk I have ever seen!”

Fickle looked back at me sheepishly pretending that it wasn't her misbehaving this morning. Having checked that Fickle was sitting statue like in her basket I marched quickly back to the front door to greet the Twitskis, thinking to myself that the last thing I needed today was a dog with tummy-ache!

“Hello!” I said smiling graciously.

“Do come in.”

I was really trying my best to look pleased to see them. But to be honest the last people I felt like seeing today were house viewers. All that poking about, and one hundred and one questions about everything from where’s the stop-cock (no idea), to why are you leaving? I certainly wasn’t going to tell them why I was leaving!

The Twitskis looked a funny pair. Mrs Twitski was taller than him, younger, slim and quite pretty. Mmm. I wondered if they were married. What was she doing with him? He looked a bit tubby, losing his hair and had iffy teeth! Maybe he was rich! Maybe she was an internet bride! I always think that’s the best part about selling houses – trying to work out why people are with their other-half, what makes them tick and all that. I started showing them round the ground floor. Mr Twitski wanted to look in the garage. Why are men always so interested in the garage? It’s not as if they’re going to live in there is it? I put the light on and Mr Twitski went in whilst we stayed in the hall.

“It’s a bit dark in here,” came a voice from the gloom.

Well it’s a garage isn’t it I thought to myself. It doesn’t have windows!!

“Can we open the garage door?” asked Mr Twitski. I pushed the button just inside the door to the hallway and it started to open.

“Oh it’s electric!” said a happy voice. Mr Twitski was obviously into gadgets. Mmm, what other gadgets can I bamboozle him with I wondered?

I decided to lead Mrs Twitski on into the kitchen as if we had hung about too long near the garage Mr Twitski would have noticed the dodgy electrics on that door, and the lagging on the pipes was truly shocking, and there is all that canine stuff in there that people really don’t need to see!

Just as we walked into the kitchen I could see Fickle had one paw out of her basket. She was desperate to go over and greet the visitors. Mrs Twitski didn’t look in the least bit like a dog lover, so I glared at Fickle and she put her paw back in her basket, disappointed.

Then Mrs Twitski opened the oven! I rushed over to help her close it again, before something awful crept out of it. I mean why on earth did she have to look in there? I haven’t cleaned it for ages! It looks like the black hole of Calcutta! I guess to be honest I was leaving it for the new people to sort out. And anyway, they might want to clean it in their own special way!

Still, I got away without mentioning Tesco’s! There was no discussion about planning applications, giant supermarkets, new roads, noisy deliveries or anything like that. I feel a bit guilty really. But it’s not my fault they want to build the mother of all supermarkets a few feet away from my back garden is it?

And I’m still not sure that Twitski is their real name. Mmm. I wonder if they’ll make us an offer. And apparently she is a vet you know! A vet! A vet that doesn’t like dogs. All very strange! So not an internet bride then.

by Samantha May

Trials and Tribulations of a Home-Seller (1)

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I've just come off the phone to Mr & Mrs Twitski. They want to come round this afternoon. This afternoon!! Even Fickle, my Border Collie looks worried. The house is in such a state, Zac's toys are everywhere and the place still stinks of curry from last night's spur of the moment gathering after a few too many drinks in the Three Lions at the end of the road. I mean why do they have to come round today?!!

'Stop looking at me like that Fickle!!' I moan grumpily to Fickle. 'You need to tidy up your toys too. In fact, we will have to pretend you don't live here at all!' Fickle does a doggy shake in protest, followed by a big sigh, and then lies down again with a truculent look.

'The Twitskis might be the people to buy the house you know! So we all have to make an effort.' Fickle's eyes momentarily look up at me, and then look back down to the floor, and then a second later they are shut, tight as buttons.

Just great, I think to myself, am I the only person that wants to sell this house?!

I start tidying up anyway, trying to focus on the joy I shall experience later at having a clean and tidy home. I hope they don't start asking too many awkward questions about the Tesco's planning application. Mmm, I wonder what I should say if they do mention it. Shall I feign complete surprise? 'Tesco's? What Tesco's? No-one has mentioned it. What do you know about Tesco's?' Crumbs, I think to myself, I'm really not a very good actor. I think they might see through that little charade straight away. My drama teacher at school always said I was 'wooden'. What did he know about it anyway? I really wanted that part in The Pirates of Penzance you know. And didn't my drama teacher have a Polish name or something? And how can these people be called Twitski? Surely that's not a real name is it? Maybe it is. No-one would give themselves such a daft sounding name would they?

I carry on cleaning. I hope they don't look in here I think to myself as I start dusting the ornaments. They'd better not ask me any ridiculous questions, I'm really not in the mood for it today to be honest. What was it that chap asked me last week? 'Why didn't the roof of my conservatory have a snow guard?' 'A what?' I said. Something about if there was a lot of snow and it started melting it could form icicles which could then fall off the gutters, break the conservatory roof and kill someone! I pointed out that this was 18 The Vale not Val d'Isere, and the last time we had snow here my snowman was bigger than me, but he wasn't having any of it!

by Samantha May

Choosing the right insurance for student digs

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

By Felicity King-Evans, moneysupermarket.com

People might picture student flats looking like something from the Young Ones, but that's now far from the modern reality.

With most having laptops, iPods and mobiles, the value of the average student's belongings can easily run into thousands of pounds. What's more, because of the rich pickings that lie inside, student accommodation is a favourite target for thieves.

The Home Office reports that people aged 16 to 24 are three times more likely to be burgled than other age groups.

Contents insurance should therefore be a must for all students. But what are the options?

Relying on the parental policy

Many insurers will allow parents to extend their own contents insurance to cover their son or daughter while at university. However, it's not necessarily ideal.

Often your child's content will only be covered away from the main family home during term time. Also, if your son or daughter is burgled whilst at uni, it will affect your no-claims bonus and could result in a hike in your annual premium, so a standalone policy could be preferable.

Student-specific cover

There are several insurers that offer policies specifically for students. The National Union of Students recommends Endsleigh Insurance, which allows people to 'pick and mix' their policy, adding individual items to make sure everything is covered.

That means rather than paying for blanket cover, which may be more than is required, individual items can be specified. Those wanting to save money and only cover the bare minimum can insure a single item if they wish.

However, it's worth remembering that cutting back on cover can prove to be a false economy if you are burgled and uninsured items are taken.

What to watch out for

Timeframes

Some student home insurance and family home policies will only protect your belongings during term time. Make sure you find out exactly what is covered and when, and pick a policy that meets your needs.

Underinsurance

If the worst happens and you have to claim on your policy, the last thing you want is to find it doesn't meet all your costs.

Reduce the risk

If you can reduce the risk you'll fall victim to burglary, you could also cut what you pay. So, if you're sharing a flat with some friends, one with window locks and an alarm could well be cheaper to insure.

When you're out and about, take steps to protect yourself. Always walk with friends late at night, try to only use cash machines during the day and be careful who you let into your building.

Away from home cover

If you've taken out a policy because you're worried about your iPod, phone and laptop, make sure your provider protects these items even outside your home.

After all, you will be carrying these portable gadgets with you, so it makes sense to protect them from theft and loss.

Bicycles

Whether you're environmentally conscious or just plain poor, you may well decide to invest in a bike to help with travel at university.

These are prime targets for thieves, so chain it up when you're out and about, make sure it's secure at home and double check your insurance covers bikes as not all of them do.

You may need to increase what you pay to include a bicycle but it's worth it if you rely on cycling.

25 simple steps that could save you £10,000

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

By Felicity King-Evans, moneysupermarket.com

Saving money is easy if you know how. We've come up with 25 money-saving tips which could literally make you thousands of pounds a year better off...

1) Bundle your broadband, phone and TV - save £200

Almost eight in ten people think they are not on the best broadband, TV and phone deals, yet thousands of us fail to switch and save potentially hundreds of pounds a year.

Research by moneysupermarket.com found those who had switched services in the last 12 months had saved almost £200 and that some people could save as much as £320 a year.

The best value is usually to get all three products from the same provider - Sky, Virgin and BT all offer great bundles and you can tailor a package to meet your needs. Use our comparison tool to compare deals.

2) Install a water meter - save £100

All new homes are now fitted with water meters so the residents only pay for the water they actually use.

If you're in an older property but don't use much water, it might be worth getting one fitted. According to the Consumer Council for Water, a single person living alone could save around £100 a year by having a meter installed and only paying for what they use.

You water supplier should install a meter for free and if you're unhappy with the change you have 12 months in which you can switch back.

As a general rule if there's the same number of people living in the house (or fewer) than there is bedrooms, a water meter is likely to save you money.

3) Eat up - save £400

We throw away an incredible amount of food in the UK - around one-third of everything we buy.

Not only is this bad for the planet, it's bad for the pocket. The Love Food Hate Waste campaign estimates UK homes throw away more than £400 in food every year. Plan your meals carefully: eat what's in the fridge and save hundreds of pounds.

4) Barter and bargain - £600

We are getting better at haggling in this country. Add that to our increasing love of vouchers and the savings are incredible. The average person saves £50 a month by driving bargains, adding up to £600 a year.

5) Ditch the cigs - £1,597

Quitting smoking won't just make you healthier, it'll make you richer.

With 20 cigarettes costing an average of £5.57 and the average addict puffing on 13.5 a day according to the Office of National Statistics that means the average spend on smokes is a jaw-dropping £1,370.22 a year.

One year later, you can proudly inform your critical illness insurer that you've quit and save an average of £227 a year in premiums.

6) Open a new current account - £115

If like millions of others, you've not moved your current account for years, you'll probably be earning little, if any, interest. Yet you could earn as much as 6.0% - pretty impressive, given the Bank of England base rate is just 0.5%.

Alliance & Leicester's (A&L) Premier Direct account is paying a rate of 6.0%, fixed for 12 months, on balances up to £2,500.

So, if you have a balance of £1,500 in a Barclays standard account paying no interest at all and shifted it to the Premier Direct Current Account, you'd be £90 richer a year.

If you then recommend a friend and they open an account, A&L will give you both £25, pushing your gains up to £115.

Another option would be to switch your current account to the 1st Account from first direct using its Easyswitch service.

Pay in at least £1,500 a month for half a year and it will reward you with £100 - first Direct doesn't pay interest on current account balances though, so this is a one-off gain. Use our current account comparison tool to find the best account for you.

7) Make your savings work harder - £310

With interest rates at a historic low, the average instant access account is paying just 0.15% according to the Bank of England.

Someone with £10,000 saved could make £310 more in interest a year by moving to a higher paying account - Egg's Savings Account is paying 3.25% on balances of £1 or more. Read Clare Francis' article 'Make money from the savings war' for more information on the best savings rates and visit our savings account comparison tool to hunt out the best option.

8) Quit the coffee - £570

It's easy to let an expensive daily coffee become part of your working day routine. At around £2.50 a cup, though, this adds up to a staggering £575 a year, even taking holidays and weekends into account.

You can pick up a lidded, insulated mug for as little as £5 (that's just two cups of posh coffee!) and take your own coffee on the train, saving £570.

9) Switch energy provider - £170

When it comes to utilities, loyalty doesn't pay. In fact, if you're coming to the end of a fixed rate deal, you could save an average of £170 a year by switching providers, choosing an online account and paying monthly. Use our comparison tool to find out how much you could save - it will literally only take you minutes to do and you can arrange the switch online.

10) Turn the thermostat down a notch - £65

We're not suggesting you freeze, but when you put the heating on again in the coming months turn the thermostat down by just one degree centigrade- the Energy Saving Trust reckons you could save as much as £65 a year.

11) Use energy saving bulbs - £50

If you replace all your normal light bulbs with energy saving alternatives, you could save £50 a year in electricity, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

12) Cut back the cost of your home insurance - £116

By comparing more than 60 policies using our home insurance tool, you could cut your premiums by an average of £116 a year.

13) Find the best possible car insurance - £157

Use our car insurance comparison tool and find a cheaper policy.

Recent research from Consumer Intelligence, an independent market research company, found that motorists could save an average of £157 a year by using moneysupermarket.com.

14) Be beautiful at home - £896

This is mainly for the girls, although some well-groomed men may want to give it some thought!

By ditching the regular trips to the salon in favour of waxing and hair dyeing at home, women could save as much as £896 a year.

15) Ask a talented friend to cut your hair - £377

As with tip 14, if you can get the same effect for less cash then do. If you have a friend who's handy with the scissors, then asking him or her to trim your locks could save you as much as £377 a year.

16) Take a packed lunch to work - £690

It's incredibly easy to spend a fiver on lunch at work each day, but - even supposing you pay less than that and your midday meal costs you £20 a week - bringing your own will be substantially cheaper.

At £20 a week, workplace lunches will cost you around £920 a year. Making your own sandwiches can cost as little as £5 a week, meaning total savings of £690 over 12 months.

17) Switch stuff off - £37

Don't leave your appliances on standby - this uses electricity. According to the Energy Saving Trust, you could save £37 a year - as well as doing your bit for the environment - by turning things off completely.

18) Don't use your gym? Scrap it - £600

Many people pay around £50 a month for the gym, that's £600 a year, but just never get round to going.

If that sounds like you then quit! Save money by giving up a service you don't use and - if you do decide to exercise - go for a run around the park.

19) Ignore the tumble drier - £45

Hanging up your clothes to dry instead of bunging them into the tumble drier could cut around £45 off your bills, as well as being much more environmentally friendly.

20) Buy a bike - £364

The average commuter spends £454 a year on fuel just to get themselves to work and back. If you want to help the environment, boost your fitness and cut back on bills, why not consider cycling to work?

You can pick up some wheels for as little as £90, meaning potential annual savings of £364.

If it's too far to cycle then see if you can car share with a colleague - that could still slash your annual fuel bill in half. Your car insurance could also be cheaper because you'll be doing fewer miles.

21) Make your own bread - £14.75

Okay, it won't save you a fortune in the first year but you can be very smug when visitors ask for toast.

The average UK home buys 66 loaves of bread a year, at a cost of £85.14. A Kenwood BM250 breadmaker costs £38.45, while ingredients for 66 loaves comes to £31.94. That cuts your annual bread costs to £70.39.

Of course, that's just the year you buy the machine. After that, you'll save £46.69 a year.

22) Insulate your loft - £205

Another planet-saver from the Energy Saving Trust. If you put down the recommended amount of insulation in your loft, you could save a splendid £205 a year on heating bills.

Yes, you'll have the initial outlay - often as much as £250, meaning no savings in the first 12 months - but by the second year you'll be saving money and energy.

23) Only tip appropriately overseas - £135

If you're going abroad for your holiday this year, you've probably already hunted around for a bargain.

Marks & Spencer Money worked out that families can spend as much as 30% of the total cost of their holiday through tipping because they don't know what amount is normal in the country they are visiting. Look up the local custom before you go - or head to Japan where tips are an insult!

24) Use a cashback credit card - £381

If you're a sensible credit card user, well able to pay off the balance each month then a cashback card could make you money.

The American Express Platinum Cashback Credit Card - 19.90% APR pays 5.00% on spending up to £2,000 in the first three months, meaning you could easily make £100 by using it.

After that introductory period is over, you can earn up to 1.25% cashback with no cap on the cashback.

That means if you were to spend £2,500 each month you could earn £381 in cashback over the year.

Remember, a cashback card is only suitable if you clear your balance in full each month. If not, the interest you'll be charged will outweigh the value of the reward. Take a look at our credit card comparison tool to find the best card for you.

25) Use childcare vouchers - £2,390

Did you know there are childcare voucher schemes that could save you more than £1,000 a year?

The maximum voucher value is £55 per week. Some employers offer the vouchers as part of their employee benefits scheme but in many instances, they are available in return for salary sacrifice so the value of the vouchers are deducted from your wages before they are paid to you. This means you don't pay any National Insurance costs or tax on that amount, saving you money.

The maximum value of this tax-break is £1,195 for a higher-rate taxpayer. Because it's employee-specific not child, a couple could make combined savings of £2,390 a year.

Total saved by all 25 steps: £10,584.75

Do you think we could save you money? If so, and you would like to feature as one of our makeovers, contact us at makeover@moneysupermarket.com

What you should know if you're a landlord

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Laura Howard for moneysupermarket.com

Today's deflated housing market has brought with it raft of consequences that the country's homeowners would not have even thought possible back in the property hey day.

One of these is the rise of the accidental or 'reluctant' landlord - a term given to people forced to rent out their home as they simply can't sell for the price they need.

The number of people with lodgers has also soared as the recession bites. New research from Abbey found that the number of lodgers has tripled over the last 12 months as homeowners seek to boost their income.

The other thing that we're seeing is investors who've watched house prices fall now looking to take advantage of desperate sellers and bag themselves a bargain.

Whatever your situation, there are financial implications you should be aware of. From mortgages to tax-breaks to insurance, we take a look:

The accidental landlord

Unable to sell, the next obvious step is to rent out your entire home, relocate to your own rental property and wait for prices to recover while continuing to chip away at the capital debt on your mortgage.

But it's not quite that straightforward. Simply handing over the keys to suitable-looking tenants and moving out will invalidate the terms and conditions of your mortgage. In short, this means your lender could take your home back into possession at any time.

In this case, you will need to inform your mortgage lender of your plans. But - providing you can demonstrate the move is a last resort rather than for 'commercial gain' - it should offer you consent to lease. This means staying put with your existing residential mortgage opposed to switching to a considerably more expensive buy-to-let deal.

A 'consent to lease' charge may apply, however, typically between £100 and £200. Alternatively, your lender may add a small loading onto the interest rate you pay and/or set down a deadline by which you need to reoccupy your home.

The investor

The law of the modern jungle dictates that, where a recession removes choices for some people, it presents choices for others. For the cash rich then, now could be an ideal time to start out in property investment. That's if you have a robust credit rating, around a 30% deposit and proof that the rent generated by a property equates to at least 125% of the mortgage interest payments.

Louise Cuming, moneysupermarket.com's mortgage expert, said: "The housing slump has created a raft of property bargains which - unobtainable to many first-time buyers due to a lack of mortgage funding - are being snapped up by investment landlords."

What are the best buy-to-let mortgages?

Top of the buy-to-let mortgage tables is currently a 4.15% two-year fix rate with tie-ins to match from BM Solutions. But in return, landlords will need a 40% deposit and a hefty arrangement fee of 3% of the loan.

Investors who can only lay their hands on a 25% deposit will find the best deal is a lifetime tracker mortgage from Chorley Building Society, payable at a current 4.95%. The arrangement fee is still 2% of the amount borrowed but it will only cost seven days' gross interest to redeem the loan at any time.

Checklist for all landlords

Whether you plan to be a landlord or not, the same rules will apply. Take the following:

Get energised: Since October last year, all landlords are required to provide an Energy Performance Certificate. As it says on the tin, this measures how energy-efficient the property is on a scale of A to G and gives tenants a benchmark of what bills will cost. Prices for EPCs start at around £100.

Surrender your deposit: In a bid to protect the country's renting population the Government now insists that all landlords put their deposit (typically six weeks' rent) into an authorised tenancy deposit protection scheme within 14 days of receipt. You can find more details at www.depositprotection.com.

Get covered: As a landlord, you are responsible for the bricks and mortar of your home so getting adequate buildings insurance in place will be your responsibility. Even if your property is let unfurnished, it's still advisable to have contents cover for things such as carpets and curtains.

There are additional insurances that are also sensible too. For example to cover you in the event that your tenant fails to pay the rent or even if they make a claim against you from having an accident in your property.

A standard insurer probably won't cover you, but there are specialists who offer cover for landlords. These include CIA Insurance, Simply Business and Simple Insurance.

For more information visit moneysupermarket.com's insurance channel.

Get safe: The law requires that landlords have a gas safety certificate in place before the tenant moves in. It will cost around £100 and must come from a Gas Safe Register (formerly Corgi) engineer.

Securing the deal: Most mortgage lenders will insist that you have an assured shorthold tenancy agreement in place that sets down terms and conditions, and length of tenure.

Don't forget the tax breaks: Rental income is liable to tax. However, landlords can offset many of their costs through taxable allowances which can significantly cut the size of your tax bill - you may even be able to cut it to zero.

You get tax relief on things such as mortgage interest and professional fees - solicitor's and estate agent's costs. You can also deduct the cost of replacement furniture, white goods and furnishings. It's well worth getting a good accountant for this.

Rent-a-room: If you're one of the growing number of live-in landlords and are letting one of your rooms out to a lodger, you will still be liable to pay tax on the income. However, the first £4,250 you receive in rent is tax-free so your bill may not as much as you were expecting. According to Abbey, average rent charged per room is £393 a month. So at £4,716 a year this leaves just shy of £500 as taxable income.

Disclaimer: Please note that any rates or deals mentioned in this article were available at the time of writing.

With thanks to Moneysupermarket.com

Buying for enjoyment or profit?

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Property should be bought for the enjoyment that is drawn from it as well as the profit that is made

For years the appeal of rising house prices, coupled with the very British desire for "bricks-and-mortar" blinkered consumers to potential risks. Particularly for people nearing retirement, having all their eggs-in-one-basket has left many in serious financial straights. The mantra of "my home is my pension" had become the acceptable way to save but this left many with little to fall back on when prices collapsed. A poll by Scottish Widows found that a third of retired people in the UK are in the red on loans and credit cards, while their outstanding mortgage debt has also grown. The problem faced by many nearing retirement is that they are overstretched on property at a time of life when they either want or need to sell.

Will this teach a lesson to young people about investing in a range of assets, not just property? It seems unlikely. The lure of making money from your home remains and many shrewd property investors have been able to weather the storm. Unless you are an investor who can afford to take risks, property should be bought for the enjoyment that is drawn from it as well as the profit that is made. A house is a home as well as an investment.

Wow, there's a lot to learn...

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I’m now back after a long weekend of travels around what seemed like every town in England!! My time away from the internet and my computer meant I could ponder on my (our?) property journey ahead.

The first thing that hit me was how much I have to learn. Most of this will have to come from the experience of making my first few property transactions but I really hope that I can knuckle down and try to avoid a lot of mistakes that other people have made.

So I thought it would be a good idea to “plan the planning”, as it were. The main question is - where will I get my info? I’m anticipating that these will be my sources in order of importance:

My property network (currently a work in progress). My property network will be both on and off-line and be made up of property investors, mortgage brokers, surveyors, estate agents, friends, mentors…..in fact anyone who can speak from experience and who has a valid opinion to put forward. I want to try to get some of these people to put some posts up here too.

Experts. These will be those people with whom I have no direct contact but who still are worth following and learning from.

Books. Over the years I have read quite a number of books about property investing. These are mostly outdated now, having possibly relied on an economy pre-2007 for their calculations. However some have been great and I will put a new box on this blog at some point to give detailed reviews of each. Any suggestions for good books (or any reviews you would like me to publish) will be gratefully received.

Blogs and online info resources. This goes without saying. There’s a huge amount of information on many thousands of property websites. I’d like to review as much of this information as possible and present only the best ideas here in my posts so that when I look back over my diary, I have a nice concise info resource.

Right, I’m off to try to build up my property network some more.

Journey Update

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Ok, so things have been a bit quiet since last week.

However I recently met someone at a BBQ who works in the guaranteed income for landlords business, UK-wide. I will be seeing them at their office soon to get their opinion about the current state of the property market, where best to invest and how best to finance it all. (Although I don’t think I’ll be wanting to take part in the scheme itself - I just feel I’ll be wanting a more direct relationship with the tenants if BTL is the way to go).

I’ll be posting anything I find up here.

The perils of leasehold property

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

This subject is important for everyone in property. Although I have yet to get into the investment side of property in this property journey, it’s something about which I now have almost 5 years of experience as a homeowner and something that EVERYONE getting into property should be aware of.

In my opinion this area has the potential to really screw up anyone’s property investment plans.

When we were in the process of buying our small victorian 2 bed garden flat in London we were told there was over 90 years remaining on the lease. Just before exchange it turned out that there was only just over 80 years left. This turned out to be a hugely significant difference….and this is why:

Currently if you serve notice to the freeholder* to extend a lease that has more than 80 years remaining then, to work out the ‘premium’ you must pay for this extension there is a particular calculation. However, as soon as the lease drops below 80 years then this calculation has another addition, called Marriage value. The addition of marriage value means that the cost of the premium could be 10 times more expensive!!

For reasons I won’t bore you with, our solicitor made a big mistake that meant our application was ‘deemed withdrawn’. This meant we had to wait a while before we could re-apply to extend and by this stage the leasehold was below the 80 year threshold. The difference has been huge and the stress, not least due to the underhand tactics employed by the freeholder, has at times been difficult.

So - when you see ‘LEASEHOLD’ on the details for a property, make sure you know what that means and what you are letting yourself in for.

A few important points:

1) There are certain criteria that must be met for you to be able to serve notice on your freeholder to extend the lease (e.g. you must have lived in the property for a certain number of months, currently 24). Find out what these are before making a leasehold purchase or make sure that the current owner serves notice on the freeholder before you purchase the property, so the rights to continue with the application can be transferred to you.

2) Employ the services of a good chartered surveyor and a good solicitor who have done lease extensions before. Several times. Successfully. Ask for proof of this and if they don’t give it to you through testimonials and references then walk away. Seriously - there are many loopholes in the legislation (not least the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 - LRA 1993) that can be used by the freeholder to cause your application to be deemed withdrawn. Pay the money - it is worth it in the long run. We didn’t and we suffered the consequences

3) Know the costs you are liable for before you begin the process and include these in your investment calculations with a hefty contingency. Look up things like Section 60 costs and be prepared for greedy freeholders who will try to take advantage of the legislation any way they can to turn a bigger profit from the premium and the costs - possibly through stalling and making you fall foul of time-limits.

4) Keep abreast of the time limits required at each stage of the process - sometimes actions have to be carried out within certain time constraints and if you don’t adhere to these limits then, again, you may come unstuck.

Remember all this is subject to change through legislation so check for yourself - possibly at http://www.lease-advice.org who also have a helpline, although some of the people I have had contact with there (and at http://www.rpts.gov.uk) do seem to have an issue with talking politely with members of the public without being incredibly arrogant and rude. Why are they in that job!!?

There’s so much more to leasehold property and the process of lease extensions for flats and houses than I can include here. Please get in contact if you want any further hints - I clearly can’t give advice though, you’ll need to find yourself a decent property lawyer for that.

*(they LOVE being called landlords but I refuse to call mine that, because, to be frank, he’s an evil bottom-feeder who looks like a war criminal and is dead behind the eyes. He’s just a freeholder.)

Housing Crisis Over?

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I saw this recently in a Moneyweek article…

“It seems the worst is behind us,” says Nicholas Leeming of Propertyfinder.com. “Confidence in the housing market is at its highest since the credit crunch began.”

Also I see that new mortgage approvals are up and that Nationwide and Halifax are saying that house prices are not just flat, but rising.

So am I right to be thinking that now is the best time to be buying into property?Everyone I’ve spoken to over the past few days has agreed with me that now could be a great time to get into property again.

However, Moneyweek have 5 reasons why this might not be the case:

Banks are terrified of lending. Home loan conditions are still very tight – two-thirds of all current mortgage offers require a 25% deposit. And they aren’t showing any sign of easing up. Gross mortgage lending was down 52% year-on-year in April, while net lending reached its lowest for eight years, says the British Bankers’ Association.

Mortgage approvals are still 22% down on April 2008 and 60% belowtheir ‘pre-correction’ levels. That’s a long way off the 80,000 level that has historically been consistent with stable house prices, let alone values rising again. The rising cost of borrowing will EXTINGUISH any signs of recovery.If you’re taking solace in low interest rates, you better think again. Homebuyers are about to face their first mortgage rate rise this year. Nationwide has upped the cost of its fixed-rate deals by up to 0.86%, and state-owned Northern Rock has raised its five-year fixed rates by 0.2%.

Ray Boulger at mortgage broker John Charcol says most, and possibly all, of the part-nationalised Lloyds Banking Group – which includes Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB and Cheltenham & Gloucester – will increase their fixed rates, “in some cases by quite large amounts”.

“Any material rise in government funding costs will have a knock-on effect on secured borrowing, putting significant pressure on households,” says RBC Capital Markets’ John Wraith. “This could have a serious impact on any UK economic recovery.”

UK property is still MASSIVELY unaffordable. Do you really think that house prices have dropped to a reasonable and fair level? From 1983 to 2001, the ratio of mortgage advances to earnings remained within a range of two to2.5times. By 2007, it had risen to above four times. Although affordability has improved a bit in the last year, it remains stretched.

According to John Bell of Shore Capital: “If real [inflation adjusted] wages fall, affordability may not be restored for thebest part of a decade.”And real incomes are falling. UK average weekly earnings fell 3% year-on-year in March. During past downturns in Britain, Japan and the Nordic countries gains made during the bubble periods were entirely lost in real terms.

If history repeats itself, Bell predicts “house prices could more than halve from here”. UK’s own ‘sub prime’ crisis is about to explode.Almost a third of British non-conforming mortgages – where borrowers with weak credit scores were given loans on the back of minimal, or no, documentation – taken out in 2005 are now 90 or more days behind on their payments.

These are our ‘sub prime’ mortgages. According to David Watts at CreditSights these are “alarming numbers, uglier than expected”. It could all add up to another surge in repossessions, and more houses hitting the market when it’s least able to absorb them. But even the four factors above don’t take into account the housing market’s long-term enemy…

10% unemployment will make risinghouse prices avirtual impossibility

“Unemployment is predicted to soar from its current 7% to over 10%”, says George Hay on Breakingviews.

That’s perhaps the worst news of all for property prices.

When dole queues lengthen, home values fall.

Fewer people in work means lower disposable income available to make mortgage repayments. That both cuts the number of new buyers and increases the supply of forced sellers who can’t meet their existing home loan bills. Sadly, it also raises the level of repossessions.

According to John Philpott, Chief Economist at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, UK unemployment will peak at 3.2 million inJuly 29, 2010– the end of the second financial quarter.

This is around the time we should see a bottom in house prices.

To repeat: this brief rally in house prices cannot last.

If you want to profit in the next 24 months,get out of the property market.

This article really gave me pause for thought. I’m not quite so sure that I’ll be jumping in quite as quickly as I originally thought. However I will be researching just as thoroughly and keeping the discussion going here.

I think the main worry for me would be to jump into, say, buy-to-let on quite tight margins - i.e. the rent only just covering mortgage plus costs plus contingency and then the mortgage rates going crazily against me.

Anyway, I thought you might be interested in this. More later.

Day 0.5 - The story so far

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Just got off the phone to the last set of advisors on my list. By way of summary here’s what I found out so far:

Personal Income:

The majority of buy-to-let lenders now require proveable income from the applicant. This can be in the form of payslips, P60 or (occasionally) bank statements. Some lenders don’t require this but they are few and far between and generally the highest percentage they will lend is currently 65%. There are some that go higher but they are tough to find. When speaking with these advisors I have yet to get into the nitty gritty details of how much income is required but when I do I’ll update this post. If I don’t then please remind me!

Percentage loan to value:

75% is currently the highest loan-to-value offered, and as stated above these products require proveable income. This figure is quite frustrating because it means more ofmycash would have to be tied up in each investment. This cash, if not invested in property, could be invested elsewhere and be earning income. This will have to be taken into account when carrying out my calculations.

Best rate available:

Currently it seems that the best rate available - and we’re talking pure rates here, without taking into account the arrangement fee etc. - is 3.69% for a 1yr fixed. This has a rather meaty fee of 3.5% (which would be added to the loan). This particular deal can only be used for a loan-to-value of 60%. There are still lots of other deals out there that could work out cheaper and these depend on the applicant and property meeting all the various lending criteria.

I’ll make some more calls later and keep you posted!

Day 0 - The start of the journey

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Wow! Well hello and welcome and thanks very much for reading my first post to my property journey blog.

This is what I know - “I’m pretty certain I want to invest in property”. That is pretty much the sum total of my knowledge!

Yes, I have a rudimentary understanding of yield and current buy-to-let mortgage possibilities but I know nothing in-depth and every step of my journey will be recorded here for your (and my) information. As in the tagline above, I really am an amateur at all this. I work in IT and would love to get into property full-time. I made the tagline above to motivate me to reach my goal of being a property entrepreneur by the closing ceremony of the 2012 olympics!

I have a completely open mind regarding what form this investment will take. I will examine all the fundamentals and take action (or not) depending on the results. All my calculations will be presented here for all to see.

I will leave no stone unturned in my quest for successful property investment and I’ll make sure that all the real gems I find out about are noted down here. I’ll also make sure that any difficulties I face are also shown in all there glory - I’m not too proud to admit when I’ve made a wrong turn and hopefully describing it here will prevent me from doing it again - and stop you falling into the trap in the first place.

Ok. Its 11.30 am and I’ve devoted the next two hours to finding out a little more about the financial aspects of investment. I’ll be back to let you know what I find out!

Why am I doing this blog?

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

When I first started thinking about getting involved in property I knew that I would need to keep a journal of everything I did. Not only would this help me consolidate my thinking and keep me focused - it would also be a great reference for the future.

So now I’m thinking, why not publish this stuff as I go? That way I could help loads more people than just myself - and may well be able to get some help along the way from people who are on the same journey.

So here it is, my “property journey”. At the time of writing, I have no idea what form my investments will be - perhaps buy-to-let investment but perhaps not. Time and extensive research will inform this decision and I’ll make sure everything is well documented here.

I’ll be posting regularly to the main pages and will also build up some sort of searchable knowledge bank too.

You can follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/propertyjourney

Please let me know what you think of this blog. If I’m making mistakes, tell me. If you like what I’m doing, tell me. If you don’t like what I’m doing, tell me.

Thanks very much for reading my blog - message me and say hello!

You can follow the full journey or comment at:http://propertyjourney.tumblr.com/or on twitter @propertyjourney - but we will keep you up to date here with the most relevant updates.

Who am I?

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

I’ve been wanting to get my act together and invest in property for quite some time and now (Aug 2009) seems to be the ideal time to get my thinking straight and get prepared for taking the plunge.

I haven’t been able to find any truly unbiased advice on the net so I thought that it may well be useful if I collated all my experiences in one place as they happen. I hope you find this blog useful and subscribe to it. I’ll be wanting to return to the things I’ve written to make sure I learn from my mistakes, so I’m going to include everything here, warts ‘n’ all.

As I will be revealing quite a lot about my finances I think that for the moment I will keep my name off this site. I’m quite happy to be completely open, if anonymous!

I don’t have much in the way of assets. I do currently own my own house but the recent turmoil has had quite an effect on its value so I may well have to look elsewhere to get funds.

I work in IT and do not have a huge salary - although it does leave me with some disposable income each month.

That’s enough about me. I think it’s time to get down to it.

It’s currently Monday 17th August. Day 0 of my big adventure in property…. I wonder what I’ll be doing on day 500?!!

You can follow the full journey or comment at:http://propertyjourney.tumblr.com/ or on twitter@propertyjourney- but we will keep you up to date here with the most relevant updates.

What is Property Journey?

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

We've invited Pete from Property Journey to share his journey from being a property amateur to a hopefully successful property entrepreneur.

You can follow the full journey or comment at: http://propertyjourney.tumblr.com/ or on twitter @propertyjourney - but we will keep you up to date here with the most relevant updates.

We wish our Pete well in his quest into property developing.

Stay tuned for regular updates.

What's involved in selling your house?

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

1. HIP - If you haven't already got one, legally you must have a HIP (Home Information Pack) before marketing your property or face a fine. There are a number of different suppliers out there, some better than others, but you should expect to pay between £200 and £500 in most cases.

2. PHOTOS - You can take photos of your home yourself with a digital camera and upload them or you may decide to pay someone else to take photos, produce a virtual tour, or even film a video for you.

3. FLOOR PLANS - You may already have a floor plan that you can use from when you bought the property, or from when you had a planning application submitted. In which case you can upload this document to your home profile. If you don't have a floorplan, there are a range of options from sketching out each floor with measurements, and using a sketch and fax supplier (expect to pay around £20) to a professional floor plan company who will come and measure up and produce one for you (around £45 for properties up to 1,500 sq ft).

4. LEASE (FOR LEASEHOLD PROPERTIES) - Find out the details of the lease if you own a leasehold property. To start with you will need to know how long the lease has left and how much the service charge and ground rent is.

5. BOARDS - Do you want a sales board outside your home to increase awareness? They are proven to help with marketing, you can design and print your board and have it put up outside your home. Expect to pay around £40 for this.

6. VIEWINGS - Do you want to do the viewing yourself or do you have a friend or relative who could do them for you. Alternatively you can pay to use a key holding company who will do the viewings for you. Rates for this vary considerably.

7. PUT YOUR HOME ONLINE- Load your details onto your selected portal. Try to be creative here, you really need to make your property stand out. The more photos and information you can give a prospective buyer the better.

8. SOLICITORS - Contact your solicitor and let them know you would like to get paperwork in order in preparation for a buyer. If you do not have a solicitor I would suggest you ask family/friends for a recommendation. This is one area I think it is a bit unwise to be money driven.

9. PAPERWORK - Your solicitor should send you a fixtures and fittings form and a preliminary enquiries form to fill in. I would suggest you get these filled in and sent back as soon as you can. There may be extra paperwork that needs hunting down i.e. planning permissions, building regulation approval or details of your lease.

10. NEGOTIATION - When a potential purchaser contacts you, I would recommend that you negotiate with them initially online and do not give out more personal details than you have to, i.e. when you are away on holiday, where you work, whether you live alone, or your personal details.

11. SALE AGREED - Once you have agreed a sale figure you will need to agree exchange and completion dates and swap solicitors details. You then need to instruct your own solicitor giving them all the details of the buyer and sale.

12. CHECK - Ask your solicitor to contact the purchasers solicitor and check they have been instructed and that everyone is in agreement as to dates and details of the sale.

13. MORTGAGE/SURVEY - If a mortgage is required, check when it is booked in to be carried out. It is at this point that the purchaser will have had to part with some money and so you can be a little bit more confident that the sale should go through.

14. ACCESS - You may well need to be around to let valuers/surveyors into the property.

15. CHASE - Keep chasing your solicitor, asking them to check that the buyer's solicitor has all they require and has put any searches in place.

16. MORTGAGE OFFER - Check with the buyer as to when their mortgage offer will be through.

17. EXCHANGE - Once both sets of solicitors are happy that all paperwork is in order, a deposit is being held and that the mortgage offer is agreed, your solicitors can exchange contracts. This is done by a phone call between them.

18. POST EXCHANGE - Between exchange and completion you will need to arrange removals, contact your energy suppliers and arrange for post to be forwarded.

19. COMPLETION - You move out of the property. The monies are sent to your solicitor who will pay any charges against the property i.e. your mortgage and generally their fees. Any remaining monies will either be used to buy your next home or sent to you directly.

20. USE TEPILO – It’s new and innovative, and you can learn about the process for yourself.

Things are changing fast in the online property sector

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Things are changing fast in the online property sector

Simon Prockter was reportedly the first person ever to sell their property completely online in the UK, it was interesting to hear his thoughts recently on how things were back in 1997 when he sold his property himself:

“The whole experience of selling on the internet was painless. Mainly because it cut out the estate agent. Not wanting to be negative, I didn’t believe the agents were selling in my interest. I think the buyer felt happier as well as the line of communication was clearer. I also think being able to achieve it independently provided a much better feeling afterwards. I was disheartened to see sites like the one I sold through had all but disappeared when I last bought a property 5 years ago so I was delighted to see a new site, tepilo.com, come along and give the power back to the seller (and buyer). I’m interested to see how my next property sale goes with them!”

We also asked him how much he thought he had saved by selling himself online.

“I obviously saved a lot – not just through not paying fees but also by not receiving stupid offers. I was selling in a buyers market and I think agents encouraged stupid offers when I was selling – most offers via agents were £10k below the asking price, one offer was £25k below! Plus on top of that agent fees were higher then – something like 4-5 % if using more than one agent. So realistically I saved at least £13-15k – not much in today’s money but certainly a lot back then.”

Selling yourself now, you could be saving up to 3.5% of the value of your property, which is considerable with current property values, so something that I think everyone should be considering. If you are already with an agent, then look to the internet as a back up plan, the additional exposure might be what you need to find those buyers.

We have been surprised at the huge amount of high value property being advertised online, way above the average house price, you might expect this to sell better through a specialist, but in selling and advertising online, this is where the really big savings can be found and I guess this makes it an attractive proposition. Buyers will come where the properties are found.

Simon's property (featured above) is now for sale on Tepilo...

Valuing property is not an exact science; but be led by the local market...

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

There is no science to a valuation and once you understand how an estate agent or professional values your home you will be able to see how straightforward it is to value it yourself. The two ways to value are to find out how much a home like yours recently sold for and/or look at what you can buy at the level you think you should be selling for - ie if you think your 2 bedroom flat should be worth £130,000 but there are lots of 3 bedroom houses at a similar level - you are unlikely to achieve your price. Not much science to it really. Nothing that keeping a close eye on the local market and seeing how much other properties are selling for won't tell you.

Recently I had a valuation of £120,000 from one very large national agent and £250,000 from another for the same property (it ended up selling for £208,000). So if it’s all a bit of guesswork you can do a great deal of the same research yourself.

There are an increasing number of online valuation services too, Propertypriceadvice, Zoopla and Nethouseprices are among these, most of which use data on latest sale prices from the Land Registry or sophisticated algorithms to give predicted valuations based on your answers to sets of logical questions.

Internet or High Street - where would you go to find your next home?

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The number of estate agent-related queries on Google is believed to have grown by 35 per cent this year and more people are using the internet to search for properties to rent or buy than ever before. Twenty years ago if you wanted to buy a house, you would visit the local estate agents. Now it seems most of us look online. Rightmove, the UK’s largest property portal boasts that over 90% of all homes for sale in the UK are listed on its site, and the major portals such as Propertyfinder, Primelocation, Globrix and Fish4homes have seen a huge rise in property numbers, particularly since some major site updates in 2006/7.

I’ve recently launched Tepilo.com (this site), which differs from the major portals in that users can upload their own properties for free, without the need for getting an estate agent involved and saving you thousands in the process. Portals such as Rightmove and Globrix will only accept properties from agents, so there are limited places you can advertise your own property effectively. Tepilo also facilitates a negotiation process, viewing requests and offers through the site itself, and you can pick up useful advice throughout the process. Properties are displayed in a magazine style format, with plenty of images and handy information about the local area, such as transport links and nearby schools. Owners also describe the properties in their own words, which we think often provides the information you just can’t get through an agent’s description.

There is a general perception held by the public that selling your home is daunting and incredibly complicated. Of course this isn’t the case at all. By providing a simple to use platform, coupled with solid advice and a step by step guide, I thought we could help people through the process and dispel the myth that selling a home can be a minefield.

Estate agents still have their place

Selling online won’t be for everyone, you do need to put in some work, and some of you will be happy to pay for the ease of having someone manage your sale. So I think it’s unlikely that we will see the end of high street agents just yet. There are a number of very good agents out there, who admittedly can do what’s expected from them, but from my side this seems to be greatly outnumbered by the horror stories you hear.

Vendors pay twice as much for HIPs if with an agent

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

A new study released today claims that vendors who buy their HIPs directly from an agent could pay nearly double the amount than if bought through a specialist provider.

The report compiled by consumer group, Which? has warned that vendors would be paying up to £300 more for Packs that were commissioned by an agent.

Looking at the cost of HIPs provided by a range of estate agents compared with independent online providers for three-bedroom properties and two-bedroom flats finding a ‘staggering’ difference between the two providers.

As of yet, Countrywide offered the most expensive HIP for a three-bedroom property charging around £459, while a HIP from online provider Fridays Property Lawyers was only £189.

Furthermore, Spicehaart were named as the most expensive HIP provider for a two-bedroom flat at £516, whilst only £292 was charged by Hip Save.

James Daley, editor of Which? Money said:‘ Don't be fooled into thinking that you have to buy it from your estate agent. Our research shows that the most expensive high street agents charge over twice as much as the cheapest online HIP providers - so you could save hundreds of pounds by shopping around for the best deal.’

The NAEA’s chief executive Peter Bolton-King has also agreed with the research stating that the discrepancies were ‘symptomatic of these dysfunctional packs.’

However, much like the similar case back in April when a Channel 4 investigation found agents were ‘ripping vendors off’, it seems the research doesn’t show the full picture.

Paul Smith, chief executive of Spicerhaart, said: ‘The majority of the lower cost or free HIP providers add on fees elsewhere, for example, making it a condition of purchase that you use their conveyancing services for which they charge a higher price.’

Source: Ageants - 19th Aug 2009

Home owners save more than £3,000 by selling online, says Which? study

Wed, 19 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Selling online means home owners can avoid using traditional high street estate agents that typically charge between 1 per cent and 3 per cent of the sale price.

The study by consumer group which? said fees charged by online agents tend to much lower – from as little as 0.5 per cent.

However, it warned to watch out for additional costs, such as for sale signs, which can add £30 onto your bill.

The study compared three different online agents marketing a home with an asking price of £200,000 and the potential savings made versus an average high-street agent charging a commission fee of 1.5 per cent.

But while some home owners may decide to bypass the middle man and sell independently, Which? Money warned that this option can cost time and money to market the property.

Sarah Beeny, property television presenter and founder of online property service Tepilo.com, said: “Times are moving on – we don’t need to pay for estate agents shop fronts, mini bars, telephone systems and branded cars – if you would rather keep the money and spend it on a holiday in Seychelles or a new kitchen when you move into your new home, then pop your house online.

“Now in 2009 most people wanting to buy a house will go online pop into Google ‘houses to buy near Northampton’ and come up with a modern equivalent of those high streets. One click away and you are on an online portal and you can check out what is available, for how much and download the details.”

Source: Telegraph 19 Aug 09

Sorry, no peaking until 2014

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

There are two ways to read the report prepared by Oxford Economics for the National Housing Federation that came out last week, which suggested that house prices will fall throughout 2009 and 2010, with stabilisation coming in 2011.

One is that anybody who bought at the top of the market in 2007 will remain underwater for a long time. Even in 2013, house prices in England will be 3% below their pre-credit-crunch peak, climbing above it only during 2014. It seems it will be a long haul back to 2007 levels.

The same was true in the 1990s. According to the Nationwide, it took until the first quarter of 1998 to regain the third-quarter 1989 peak. On the Halifax measure, prices rose above their January 1990 peak in November 1997. For homeowners who signed up to Northern Rock’s infamous Together mortgages, a combination of mortgage and personal loans worth up to 125% of the value of the property, it will take a lot longer.

The other message of the forecasts, however, is that the recession is sowing the seeds of the next boom. Supply shortages are producing unusual movements in individual local markets. According to John D Wood estate agency, prices in Fulham and Notting Hill, both in west London, are up by 27% from their lows. The latest Halifax numbers, up 1.1% last month, have added to current optimism.

The Housing Federation’s concern is with the broader picture, including social housing. It expects 250,000 new households annually in England until 2026, in line with official projections, but warns that only 60% of the new homes required are being built.

There is room for debate about future household growth. New households formed at the rate of just under 180,000 a year over the period 1996 to 2006, though they swelled to about a quarter of a million annually after eastern European immigration to the UK in 2004.

Perhaps too much is being read into this short-term trend, amid evidence that the flow has slowed, if not reversed, in the recession. But the point remains. People have to live somewhere, so if not enough homes are being built, then housing will become more expensive, however much people would wish it otherwise.

- The first stages of the recovery in the housing market will be led by prime central London, according to research released by Savills estate agency. The report warned that new properties coming up for sale in the autumn will correct the imbalance between supply and demand, thereby taking some of the heat out of the market and eradicating the gains that have been seen in the last few months.

- Tenants cause an average of £511 worth of damage every year to their rented properties, according to findings from Homeserve, a home repair service. The biggest headache for landlords was fixing tenants’ botched attempts at DIY. Other problems include blocked sinks and drains, red-wine and mascara stains on the carpet, vermin infestation — even, in one case, a makeshift cannabis factory (which cost £4,000 to clean up).

Source: The Times - 09 Aug 2009

UK House Prices Will Rise 2% in 2010 as Slump Ends, CEBR Says

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Property values will climb 2 percent between the fourth quarter of 2009 and the end of 2010, the London-based consultancy said in a report today. Prices will decline by 3 percent in the rest of this year, bringing the total drop from the 2007 peak to 24 percent.

“The extent of house price falls already seen means further significant falls are unlikely,” said Benjamin Williamson, an analyst at the CEBR. “The key question now is the extent to which risingunemploymentand weak wage growth will lead to a second wave of house price falls, or whether this has already been built in to existing expectations.”

The property market may be starting to bottom out after the worst recession in a generation discouraged companies such as Taylor Wimpey Plc and Redrow Plc from building new homes. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said last week that prices may rise “slightly” in 2009, reversing an earlier prediction for a drop of as much as 15 percent.

Source: Bloomberg 10 Aug 2009

Jump in mortgage lending disclosed in CML figures

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Around 45,000 mortgage were advanced for house purchase during the month, the fifth consecutive monthly increase and the highest level for a year, the CML said.

There was also a steep rise in the number of first-time buyers getting on to the property ladder, with 17,200 mortgages taken out by people buying their first home, 26 per cent more than during May.

Despite the improved figures, the CML warned that housing transactions were still weak by historic standards.

The group said the number of mortgages advanced for house purchase was less than half the average number seen in June during the past seven years, while loans to first-time buyers remain well down on the 30,000-plus taken out each month by this group before the housing market correction began.

CML economist Paul Samter said: "Low interest rates and realistic selling prices have helped generate a welcome increase in transactions. But there is some way to go before we reach normal levels of activity."

A total of 116,700 mortgages for house purchase were advanced during the second quarter of the year, 50 per cent more than during the previous three months, but still 22 per cent fewer than in the same period of 2008.

The group said there were also "tentative signs" that the tightening in lending criteria imposed by banks and building societies since the begin of the credit crunch had ended.

The average deposit put down by a first-time buyer has remained unchanged at 25 per cent since February.

The average income multiples advanced have also started to increase modestly, with the typical first-time buyer borrowing 3.08 times their pay, up from 3.04 times in May, while former owner-occupiers were lent an average of 2.76 times their income in June, up from 2.74 times during the previous month.

The CML also reported a slight increase in the number of people remortgaging to a better deal, with these loans rising by 13 per cent during June to 34,000.

But volumes remained nearly two-thirds lower than in June last year, as record low interest rates mean many people are better off staying on their lender's standard variable rate when their existing deal ends.

Around 78 per cent of mortgages taken out during June were fixed-rate ones, the highest proportion since June 2007, although the popularity of the deals is in part likely to reflect their greater availability.

Source: Telegraph 11 Aug 09

Plans for the future

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Recently we've been working through the issues we have found with phase 2 of the site. Some of these are more obvious than others - and we still have much more to come.

Here's a few of the next steps:

1) Sharing your property with other portals and sites - we've been talking with a number of other sites and will shortly be announcing some agreements to promote your property elsewhere - to get you even more coverage.

2) Lettings - due to popular demand, we will look at adding this to the site. It's likely to be in the same format as what we have now - with a few obvious changes.

3) Partnerships - we've talked to a number of great websites and companies over the last few weeks, and will look to offer you some more services to help in promoting your listing and also help to get the Tepilo name out there.

4) Video content - we're about to get filming, so you should start to see some handy clips with advice and tips from Sarah herself across the site.

5) Fixing issues - you've been giving us some really useful feedback on what works and what doesn't, thank you. We value all your feedback and really appreciate you bearing with us while we iron these out.

If you've registered on the site we will keep you updated with any major developments - so you can be the first to benefit from new functionality, but please keep checking back to see what's happening!

Getting started - My Blog

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to this, so bear with me while I get started. If you have any tips or advice on best practice - then please do let me know - you can leave a comment for me here.

More coming soon!

Sarah xxx

Bringing you Property News

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Coming soon to Tepilo.com. Seen an interesting article or have some news of your own - let us know - please email hello@tepilo.com.

Guest Bloggers

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Please email your details, sample work and what you would like to blog about - to hello@tepilo.com.

Look forward to hearing from you.

How is Tepilo free and how will you make money?

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

This is probably one of the questions we get asked the most - What's the catch? How is it free?

Tepilo is a small company, enabling us to keep our costs down and offer you this service completely free. There really are no catches, and our aim was to enable you to wipe out or greatly reduce the cost of selling your home online.

We plan to run the site for some time with little or no "on site" advertising, and keeping the offering free for you. We need to establish ourselves, get the site finished and get our message out there.

In the future we may look for some choice sponsors to help finance the site, but we are determined not to pester you with offers, adverts or spam.

We have had huge numbers of companies wishing to offer services to you, and where relevant we will do our best to incorporate these over the coming weeks. We also have a few exciting partnerships to announce here very soon too!

Tepilo's launch so far

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

It's been a mad few months in the planning, but we're live and still working hard

Tepilo has and still is launching in several stages. We've been amazed at the amount of positive feedback we have had about the site, and the general concept of Tepilo - so thank you, and please do keep your comments coming. We aim to make Tepilo the best place to advertise your property, and still have a lot more to come on the site.

Property is building up incredibly quickly, and we have had periods of several hours where we have hit a property a minute uploaded on the site. Do keep checking back on the site regularly or set up an alert for regions you may be interested in.

More importantly we've seen a huge increase in the amount of people searching the site for property, and viewing requests and offers are flowing in nicely now. If you have a property to sell then there really are no catches - list your property and get some enquiries coming in, it's free.

Here's an outline of what's happened so far:

Phase 1 - was launched to enable you to upload property on the site, we needed to get some information there for others to see how the site worked, and this gave us some more time to get phase 2 of the site developed.

Phase 2 - has recently launched in the last few weeks - and now includes the ability to search through property listings, so for those of you that have uploaded property to the site, your listing is now public!

Our search functionality enables you to search by a number of different criteria, from value of property, to number of bedrooms, and distance from a particular location. Just look for the panel on the right of the search results.

We've also included some new negotiation functionality, enabling any buyers to make enquiries about properties on the site, and they will be able to make requests for viewings, managed through your own personal calendar and even put in an offer for properties when the time is right!

You can also, print or email a property, and add properties you are interested in to your watch list. You can also set up alerts if you don't find anything in the search results, so you are kept updated as we get more properties on the site.

If you haven't already, check out the buying and selling guides and Profit by design sections of the site, we've added much more information for you.