Renting London Flats – Week Ending 23rd August

Things round here are getting more organised. The bits that help you find things are in the column on the left, and the links I want you to click on are on the right. Feedback has asked that we should loosen up the spammer controls to make it easier to comment – DONE! Now it’s over to you, please comment. Additionally I’m sorting this summary into 4 sections:

Jump to Property, Jump to London, Jump to Renting, Jump to General,

Property

Companies have been asking for upfront fees to source below market value deals and marketing property deals that, once surveyed for mortgage purposes, are figures far short of the original claim. A victim of the Ahuja Group bought a property that was supposed to be worth £100,000 with a monthly rental income of £1,541 for £3,000 – the survey valuation came in at £72,000 and the rental figure was just £375. Full Article

With so many companies in the property market on the edge of bankruptcy – will a landlord get their rent when an agent goes under? If you rent through an agent make sure that all client money should be kept in a special clients account, separate from the agents own money. If this is done, the money will still be available even if the agent becomes insolvent. Full Article

Squatters have turned Inspector Morse’s once elegant home from the classic ITV series into an ugly eyesore, the 19th century house – actually on the Castlehill Park Estate in Ealing, West London – now lies derelict with its windows and doors boarded up. Full Article

Grant Bovey, the property tycoon and husband of Anthea Turner the television presenter,  whose buy-to-let empire collapsed with debts of more than £50m to the taxpayer, has abandoned his comeback venture after just four months. The Distressed Property Company hoped to market properties worth between £200,000 and £1m, potential investors were asked to pay £250 for joining a register to view pictures and films of homes on sale for 40% less than in 2008. It was hoped the bulk of the firm’s earnings would be commission from developers and banks keen to offload properties. Full Article

A review of iphone apps and mobile sites after Rightmove launched their new iPhone app which is topping the ‘Top Free Apps’ league on iTunes. Full Article

You can buy the property, but not sell it! Under new powers in the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, more than 13,000 small rural settlements will be designated “protected” areas across England. Shared ownership properties in these “protected” areas will be retained by either restricting to 80% the share owners can buy or allowing owners to acquire up to 100% but ensuring the provider, for example a housing association, buys the property back to retain it for future purchasers. Full Article

London

Visitors to London always have to be on the look out for pickpockets, but now there’s another, more positive phenomenon on the loose – putpockets. Anything from 5 pounds to 20 pound notes is being surreptitiously deposited in unguarded pockets or open handbags in Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and other busy spots, being funded by a broadbrand provider, which says it wants to brighten up people’s lives in unusual ways. London’s police have been briefed about the plan, which will see at least 100,000 pounds given away. Full Article

Tributes were paid to a larger-than-life Pimlico youth club leader who died. Full Article

Hundreds of angry motorbikers converged in Westminster for the latest protest against bike parking charges introduced by the council. The motorcyclists have been campaigning for the last 12 months against daily parking fees of £1.50, or £150 a year, to park in the borough. Full Article

A garden party was held in the beautiful open space on the Lillington and Longmoore Gardens Estate, in Charlwood Street, the gardens, nicknamed the ‘Hanging gardens of Pimlico’, are an oasis of calm just five minutes from Victoria station. The party was to celebrate the achievement of picking up a third Green Flag accolade for being among the nation’s best green spaces. Full Article

Renting

Judges are being forced to make unfair court orders thanks to the way the tenancy deposit protection scheme (TDPS) legislation was rushed through without due consideration. Judge Jacklin DJ Lightman commented that “the sooner Parliament looks at this the better” Full Article

Students – Halls or a shared house? Full Article

A private landlord who was successfully prosecuted by Cardiff Council for failing to licence a property under the 2004 Housing Act and may now be forced to repay 12 months rent. Full Article

The weird side of Gumtree – Offered a ‘hardly used, mostly empty’ flat (both caveats were unsettling). He was evasive about rent (‘We can work something out,’) and even if he owned the place. I held back with answers. Then he said, tentatively: ‘…In your ad, you describe yourself as a professional female. That’s an interesting phrase…’ Just the standard wording, I said.  ‘It makes you sound like a working girl. Would you be interested in male company?’ Only a festering, man-size wart would interpret ‘Flat Wanted’ as ‘Hey ugly guy! Me love you long-time for garret in hovel.’ Full Article

General

10 Signs You Really Need To Get A Life

Interest rates will remain at historically low levels for years after the Bank of England gave a strong hint that it might again expand its policy of flooding the economy with money. Full Article

Review of Credit Report Websites –  a lot of web sites that offer free credit score and credit report, however, many of them are not really free and some have down right misleading advertisement regarding their offers. This website contains some of the most popular web sites that offers free credit report and credit score. From the list, two of them offer completely free official credit report from at least one of the three credit bureaus. Full Article