Category: Green Issues

Wind Farms Revealed Officially to Reduce Property Prices

Property Surveying – The Valuation Agency Office (VAO), a subsidiery of Revenue & Customs, has recently revealed that it has down-graded council tax bands for a number of homes situated near clusters of wind farms. The reason is that the values of these homes have been forced markedly down by the presence of the turbines, in some cases, for example at Fullabrook Down in North Devon, by as much as a quarter of the total value even as far as 650 yards away from the installation.

A Halifax survey, however, found that the most prolific reducer of value is actualy noisy neighbours, with 17 per cent of homeowners affected by this issue to the tune of an average £31,000 reduction.

For advice on your property’s value, find your local surveyor here.

Brighton & Hove takes on One Planet Living Framework

Brighton Surveyors – To curb the localities ‘voracious’ appetite for resources which many believe is unsustainable for both the community and the planet at large, Brighton and Hove have taken on the One Planet Living Framework with ten guiding principles to creating a pleasant, sustainable and ‘green’ environment.

The result has been a new community f 172 flats within Brighton, next to the railway station, which were completed in 2010. They have been constructed in local, high performance materials and the energy is generated via a biomass boiler, solar panels and a contract to fill the remaining requirement with guaranteeed green energy from the One Brighton Energy Services Company.

Bristol Council releases solar property map

Bristol Building Surveyors – Bristol City Council has recently released a map which you can use to check your property’s suitability for solar panels. A user can simply type in their address and see a graphic of their property and the surrounding area, revealing an estimated potential for solar generation between ‘limited’ and ‘very good’.

Further details are listed, including estimated system size, electricity generation and CO2 savings.

Halifax’s annual quality of life survey reveals that home is where Hart is

The recent release of Halifax’s annual quality of life (QOL) survey has highlighted what some are calling a widening of the north south divide. In a thorough ranking of all 405 local authority districts, just 8 areas of the top ranked 50 locales can be found outside the southern and eastern regions of England.

To read the rest of the article, click here.

High Court to assess Norfolk County Council’s £500m waste incinerator battle

kingslynnsurveyors.co.uk The people of King’s Lynn have taken their battle with Norfolk County Council to the High Court in proposals for a judicial review of the planned £500m incinerator development on the outskirts of their town.

Read more on the case on the propertysurveying news website here.

Should rules surrounding the ‘Green Belt’ be relaxed to allow for further development?

A new report originating from a popular think-tank, ‘Policy Exchange’, has put forward strong arguments for the relaxation of rules surrounding development on ‘Green Belt’ land.

To read about these arguments and the wider response, click here.

Solar Feed-in-Tariffs cut drastically in Government review

As of 31st October 2011, the Government has announced that they will be slashing Feed-in-Tariffs for domestic solar installations. Government Ministers have emphasised the need to stay within the allotted budget in the face of falling solar costs, but critics are foreseeing a sharp contraction of demand and an end to free solar financing schemes and social housing projects.

Read more here.

Japanese Knotweed – Your guide to identifying and dealing with this silent invader

A recent outbreak that led to the demolition of a £300,000 house has highlighted the damaging effects of Japanese Knotweed, Britain’s most invasive non-native plant. Most people don’t even know it exists until it appears in their living room, but with growth rates of up to 4inches a day and paying little attention to the small matter of walls, this plant can be deadly to properties all over Britain.

To read more about this threat and how you can avoid disaster, click here.