Procrastinating no more!

chewmylegoff

Conrad wrote: »

HSBC are my Bankers. I oft' get annoyed at thier incompetance. I call my local business manager only to be put through to India where of course they often cannot answer my simple request so they then have to go through a process where upon my local Manager eventualy gets a message to call me.

same for me (although personal and not business). i went through all this [EMAIL="!!!!"]!!!![/EMAIL] a couple of times, and eventually worked out that if you send them a message through internet banking asking to speak to someone about a specific issue, generally speaking someone who knows what they are doing will ring you back. it doesn't always work first time, but it's far less frustrating that trying to do it on the phone (and no slower, really).

milliebear00001

Really2 wrote: »

There is one risk renting in the area and buying outside, school placement fraud, this has been cracked down on quiet a bit in recent years.

My Ex teaching uncle and his wife made the best ever point to me. It only takes the head of a state school to move or retire to make a good school a mediocre one (and vise a versa).

You may as well buy a cheaper house and go private than bank on an area still having good schools in the future.

But the more sensible is chose an area then re-evaluate it when it comes towards secondary school choice time.

i would absolutely agree with this (as a teacher and parent). It is madness to base your choice of house on catchment area before you even have kids! By the time you are applying, the schools you thought you wanted, may be a shambles! Schools change quickly, for many reasons and Ofsted reports are not that difficult to fudge. My own daughter's school, has gone from outstanding, to good, to satisfactory in the space of five years (and three Ofsted visits).

Also, the sibling rule is not universal. Many schools set catchment over siblings, and many schools set their own entrance criteria entirely (esp. church schools). All LA maintained primary schools now have a single 'normal' area, so you will only have one catchment area school for your address. Check, and double check what the application criteria is before you buy!