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House buying, renting & selling

Archives for October 2004

Help Please Should I Buy a Flat or not ?
I wonder if anyine can help me , me and my girlfriend have been looking for a flat to buying for around 2 years now. We have see good ones but everytime we see one we get out bidded. Since then we found one in July we put an offer in and it was accepted at 156'000 2 bed first floor flat with garden no parking, when the…
Buyer pulled out? No buyers? Sale guar
Saw this chainbreaker thing on charleslister.co.uk: http://www.charleslister.co.uk/_page.php?page=chainbreaking Not sure if it is any good, but if you wait too long and market falls, well, your loss could be much greater than their "lower" offer.
Buying 1st Home, DIY Clueless !
??? ??? ??? I am currently in the process of buying my first home, and I am pretty clueless when it comes to diy / home improvements There's a side building which I want to convert into a utility area, however I am not sure if I need to get an architect, or simply get a builder ? Or are there specialists for this type of…
should i sell flat in brighton to buy in london
Help! I am getting so much conflicting advice. I own a flat in Brighton with about £80,000 equity which i rent out. I really don't make much from rental (about £150 per month) and want to buy somewhere in London where I am now renting. I really want to sell the brighton flat cause i find being a landlady a real pain. But…
Buy to let insurance
Probably on the wrong board... but here goes.. About to jump into letting my flat i bought as a buy to let (bought it 3 years ago when property prices werent stupid) and have finally got round to letting it out. Who is the best company is your opinions for buildings insurance for the BTL, most reasonably priced... Cheers,…
Sell Your House Free With No Commissions At All
Hi there, Having just benefited from a tip from this website and received several mobile phones at a knockdown price from Woolworths, I am in a jubilant mood and have decided to give something back to everyone on this board who is considering selling a property – no strings whatsoever attached. I should at this point state…
Terminating contract with estate agent
Can anyone please tell me if it's possible to terminate a contract with an estate agent before it is officially due to end? The contract I've got is for 8 weeks, but so far they've been less than useless so I want to get rid of them now! Any ideas would be most appreciated! P.S. For anyone about to sell their house in…
Capital Gains Tax
My wife bought a house 3 years ago, which she rented out after our marriage last year. We now plan to sell it :D . Question: When do we have to pay CGT, if we sell it? Is it 3 years after she bought it, 3 years after she moved out of it, or 3 years after we married? Secondly - how much is it?
Buy to Let - Ltd Company or not?
I currently have 3 properties which I own mortgage free and am now considering buying some more property by raising a mortgage on one of them either to fund one extra property, or use the funds raised as deposits on several properties. Does anyone have any experience in this area and does anyone know if it would be…
Arrgh! Tradesmen!!
Can I just point out that acquiring the services of tradesmen (at least here in Brum) is a difficult, anxious and disappointing experience. You see, with the jobs market already buoyant, the market for tradesmen is manic. YOU CAN'T GET PEOPLE! I have been let down numerous times, the price changes and you end up with a YTS…
Council Swop - Please Help
I live in a Seafront 2 Bed council Flat in Southsea, Hampshire. I want to move to London........Kilburn / Stanmore Areas How does one go about looking for potential council swops between cities? What are the chances of getting a larger property in exchange ...possibly 3 bed Flat / House. I would sincerely appreciate any…
Investing in rental property in Dubai?
Just looking into rental in this emerging market. Does anyone have any experience of the developers in this market - there are a few big players who are taking instalments on properties due for completion in 2006/2007. Is it worth it - studios from £40k. 1 beds from £55k? Riz
Recent boom was 9/11 hangover?
If you look at the graphs here: http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/house-price-crash-graphs.htm You will see that the only reason base rates went down like a flight of stairs in Sep 01, is because consumer confidence collapsed after 9/11. Otherwise, no such "basin" or "trough" after this would exist on the graph. The BOE…
Balance portfolio and hedge against slide..
It might be obvious to some people, but for those of you who didn't know, property represents just one of the four investment classes. As such, you should ensure you are not over-exposed to it. I plotted a bar graph and found a huge bar next to property, but tiny boxes next to equities, bonds and deposits. When you see it…
Bidding War
We have found the house we want... but somebody else seems to really want it too. We offered £105k for the house, but the estate agent said that the vendors had hours earlier accepted the same offer from someone else. She said she would put our offer forwards anyway, and we raised it to £107k. Not heard back yet, but my…
House Price Crash Poll Press Release
The following is the text of a press release put out by MoneySavingExpert.com https://www.MoneySavingExpert.com Free To Use, Ad Free, Unbiased News Release 22 October 2004 Half the country believes house prices will fall over the next year House prices set to drop by 3.9% next year says the UK public A new poll of 2,200…
Low offers is the way to go
House prices are currently ridiculously overpriced in this country. One possible solution for want to be first time buyers is to put in low offers (in terms of what you are prepared to spend and think is reasonable) or to wait out and rent (or even better stay with friends and family where you aren't giving anything to…
Buying without Selling
Hello all :) I'm just after a bit of advice really. We currently have our house on the market with a relatively small mortgage. We've found a house that we love, have put an offer in which has been accepted...Hoorah! But now the dreaded fear has started to kick in that we might lose it if we don't sell ours quickly…
Key Worker Living - Moat
Do any of you guys know anything about this scheme? Basically, my partner and I are moving from Liverpool to Essex - she's taking up a permanent teaching position in Basildon. Our combined salaries are £45,000 - we're looking to buy an apartment for around £140,000 - £160,000. From the Moat webiste we appear to be eligible…
making an offer
does anyone have any thoughts on what level % below the asking price is acceptable ? I am sure there are many of you who have offered well below the asking price and got some properties at a snip, I am considering making an offer of 250k and the asking price is 275k any thoughts?

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MSE News

Ofgem proposes new 'no standing charge' Price Cap – but Martin Lewis warns vulnerable customers need to be opted in or it won't work
Ofgem has today launched detailed proposals for a major shake up to its Energy Price Cap that dictates the price over 80% of homes in England, Scotland and Wales pay for their energy bills.
Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland to cut overdraft rates for millions but hike them for others – here's what's happening and full help
If you're a Lloyds, Halifax or Bank of Scotland current account holder, the interest rate you're charged for using your overdraft could change soon as part of a fees shake-up. The Lloyds Banking Group, which owns all three brands, says millions of its customers will pay less after the changes – but a "few" will pay more.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
Around 2.7 million more low-income households, including 900,000 families with children, will become eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount this winter, as the Government has confirmed it will remove the existing 'hard to heat' eligibility criteria. The extension has only been confirmed for winter 2025/26, with further changes possible for future years.
Martin Lewis: At last a chance to fix Council Tax flaws impacting millions – debt collection, difficulty challenging your band, discounts and more
Major flaws in the Council Tax system in England could finally be fixed in future, as the Government has launched a wide-ranging consultation to review hideous debt collection practices, the difficulty of challenging your band, the overly complex and horribly-named Severe Mental Impairment discount and more. MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis, who has long campaigned on these issues, shares his response and analysis.
Energy complaints to be dealt with more quickly and Energy Ombudsman to get new powers under Government plans
If you have a complaint about your energy firm, it may be resolved more quickly in future, as the Government has announced a raft of proposals to strengthen consumer protections in the energy market. The planned changes include giving the Energy Ombudsman new powers to force firms to comply with its decisions – but it's still very early days. Here's what we know so far.
Warm Home Discount expansion confirmed with millions more eligible for the £150 top-up this winter – here's what we know
Around 2.7 million more households, including 900,000 families with children, will become eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount this winter, as the Government has confirmed it will remove the existing 'hard to heat' eligibility criteria. The extension has only been confirmed for winter 2025/26, with further changes possible for future years.
Base rate held at 4.25% – here's what it means and when it might be cut next
The Bank of England has held the base rate at 4.25%. Below we explain why, when it might be cut, plus what it means for your mortgage and savings.
Applied for South West Trains 'boundary fares' compensation? Act now to claim it
If you applied for compensation from South West Trains before the deadline in January 2025, you now need to provide your bank details to the claim administrator so it can be paid to you. Here's what you need to know.
Winter Fuel Payments to be reinstated for millions – Martin Lewis explains how it'll work, what it means and if it's an improvement
All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. Here MoneySavingExpert.com founder Martin Lewis shares his instant response and analysis, and we include answers to your key questions.

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House buying, renting & selling

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