In case you missed it: Two Stars anger neighbours by carrying out works that are often regarded as needing no planning permission.
Planning permission is often misconstrued as only being associated with buildings and houses, but as an ex-Bond girl and current England footballer found out it can include the felling of trees and play areas for kids…
To read the whole article, click here.
The state of Britain’s High Streets and their recent trend towards decline has been a topic of concern for many British stakeholders over the last few years. Whilst economic fortunes are improving, the success of the internet and out of town shopping centres are still major threats. We look at a report which has recently identified the secret to rejuvenating a British high street and the views of expert Mary Portas following her recent study into the area…
To read the whole article, click here.
A survey produced by the insurance firm LV (formerly Liverpool Victoria) found that almost half of people (49%) of those who has bought a new home since the beginning of the year discovered unexpected damage after moving in. Almost a third of people (some 29%) of those who had bought a property already so far this year believe the seller deliberately concealed problems at the property during the sale.
To read the whole article, click here.
The property market fact file is a collection of data compiled each month by our Chartered Surveyors and the PropertySurveying.co.uk team; collating survey data, statistics, trends and information from the property market. This aims to help many persons with an interest in property gain an accurate view of what is happening in the UK property market as a whole.
To read the monthly fact file, click here.
With much of the South West underwater, flooding has once again become a hot-topic. We look in one of our monthly articles at the huge range of questions the Government and its agencies much ask themselves if flooding is ever to be nullified as an issue of great concern for British homeowners…
Here’s a few questions we raise:
Britain has a substantial housing shortage – so where do we build? On green belt protected land? Urban sprawl across our green and pleasant land? That wasn’t well received when Nick Boles proposed to relax green belt regulations.
Should innovation be encouraged to create houses that are watertight up to first floor level? Should it be made a planning condition for developments on flood plains with a flood in the last 10 years to construct watertight houses up to a certain standard? What about a government competition for architects and building product designers to come up with the best solution?
Read the whole article and join the debate here.
New report identifies 43 locations where houses now sell for an average of more than £1 million, including several outside London. Compiled by estate agents Savills and analysts Property Database, the document also charts how house prices have risen over the past decade.
Some areas have outstripped the national average of 29.7% over the last 10 years by over 10 times and 34 of the 43 areas averaging over £1m are in Greater London, including Knightsbridge and Belgravia at No. 1.
Cities excelling outside of London include Bath, Oxford and Cambridge.
If you are thinking of investing this sort of money in a property, a report by a Chartered Surveyor will substantially mitigate the risk of your investment and help you manage your new home. Find your local surveyor at www.propertysurveying.co.uk
54 per cent of households are reportedly too skint to stay warm at Humber and Trent Towers in worst-hit Nechells, Birmingham. Jobless labourer Michael Simpson, 45, lives there on £63 a week — and a quarter of that goes on fuel.
The city’s Wye Cliff Road area has 53.5 per cent of families facing a similar crisis. Nottingham was third on the list, with 52.9 per cent shivering at two high-rise blocks in the Lenton area.
In a ‘significant’ decision for Housing Associations across the country, the High Court, presiding over an appeal, has made two important findings:
-         That it should not interfere with a housing association’s eviction of a tenant under a contractual relationship with a local authority.
-Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â That it was proportionate to end a duty to house a tenant with a serious medical condition, where they had rejected alternative accommodation.
We explore the details of this case, and the morality behind it, in a recent article here…
Consumers have in recent weeks been hit by price rises of up to 11.1 per cent – equating to between £100-200 extra per year on the typical household’s fuel bill. A number of the “Big Six†energy firms have claimed that the increases are because of rising wholesale prices, but recent data doesn’t support this.
Statistics released from Ofgem, the energy regulator, suggests that wholesale prices rose by only 1.7 per cent over the last year – a mere fraction of the levels energy companies are attempting to justify. The figures will undoubtedly prompt fury across the country as homeowners prepare for winter and questions are aksed as to what the real reason is for these rises?
We look into the issues, the real reasons and potential solutios here…
A new report published in October values the smart cities industry at more than $400 billion globally by 2020, with the UK expected to gain a 10% share ($40 billion). This comes as the Government announces the creation of a Smart Cities Forum.
A smart city uses intelligent technology to enhance our quality of life in urban environments. Cities can use the data in a variety of ways; to save money, minimise waste, measure domestic water usage and manage transport routes. An upcoming computer game – Watchdogs – will explore the possibilities of a software integrated city, with wifi provided free in every location and software programmes operating everything from traffic lights to crime prediction systems.
