Legal Q&A: I intend to extend the lease of my flat and read the price payable for an extension is 15 times the current ground rent? Is this correct? January 26, 2018 There is a popular myth that the price for a lease term extension is simply a multiple of the passing ground rent under the terms of the lease. Unfortunately, the price payable for a lease term extension is not as straightforward. Pursuant to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Land Act 1993 (the Act) [...]
Interiors: Lykke is set to be the Scandi trend of 2018, but what is it, how do you say it and what does it mean for my dining table? January 19, 2018 Copenhagen is not only one of the world’s style capitals, it’s home to the Happiness Research Institute. CEO, Meik Wiking, finds out and measures what happiness is and generates more of it. We know him as the author of The Little Book of Hygge in which he shares the Danes’ love of cosy – winter [...]
Interiors: Ditch the workout equipment and create an oasis of calm in the comfort of your own home January 12, 2018 Whether you bounced into 2018 or you’re still feeling weighed down by yuletide excess, it’s never too late to attempt a fresh start and you don’t even need to leave the house to do it. For tips on how to make your home a chilled out haven, we went to poster girl for all-round wellness [...]
UK house prices: 10 Locations where property values have risen most in 2017 December 28, 2017 A seaside town in Somerset is the biggest winner from rising property prices this year, growing more than 10 per cent since January, new research reveals. Homes in Cleveland grew in value by 11.6 per cent, more than any other place in Britain and ahead of the 3.5 per cent average growth across the country [...]
Focus On Dulwich: Forget the new shiny skyscrapers, this London village attracts well-heeled families with good schools, period houses and bags of charm December 15, 2017 A Tube stop is usually the making of a neighbourhood in London. But in the case of Dulwich in south east London, the absence of a London Underground station may have been an advantage. Left to its own devices and hardly a tourist hotspot, some say this has allowed Dulwich to develop a character all [...]
Property Legal Q&A: What can I do if I suspect my landlord is overcharging me for repairs and maintenance? December 8, 2017 We are five leaseholders in a block of flats and we have recently discovered the landlord has been charging more than 100 per cent of the outgoings for repairs and maintaining the building. What can we do about this? The general rule is a landlord should not recover more or less of the costs [...]
Interiors: Gather Christmas decoration inspiration for your house from the capital’s best festive hotel installations December 5, 2017 I’ve never felt as festive as I did last year on my tipples ‘n’ trees food and drink crawl of Old London Town. To regain my festive mojo, I’ve been schlepping the streets again in search of the best Christmas decorations and installations to visit with family and friends at this wonderful time of year. [...]
London’s house price to salary ratio has hit a record high November 28, 2017 The house price to salary ratio has hit a record high in London, piling even more pressure on the capital's strained property market. The average house price in London reached £496,000 in October, and average earnings were £34,200, representing house price ratio of 14.5 times Londoners' salaries. The ratios were also steep in Cambridge and [...]
As the first residents move into Television Centre, a new era is beginning for the BBC’s former home in west London November 28, 2017 When BBC Television Centre in White City, west London, was opened by the Queen in 1961, it was described by then director general Gerald Butler as “the largest, best equipped and most carefully planned factory of its kind.” Rather than goods, this building would manufacture culture and, at the time, it was the most ambitious [...]
M7 cancels IPO of its real estate investment trust which would have been the largest this year November 24, 2017 M7 Real Estate, a firm which invests in commercial property around Europe, has today cancelled the planned float of its new investment trust on the London Stock Exchange. The M7 Multi-Let Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit), which was set to invest in UK commercial property, aimed to raise £300m in a stock market listing which [...]