The Green Deal: The Biggest Home Improvement Scheme Since WWII

November 13th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Green Deal, Home Improvements | 3 Comments »

The Green Deal UK is quickly starting to build momentum and has been said to be the biggest home improvement scheme since the Second World War. The government scheme aims to make properties more energy efficient without putting any financial strain on property owners. It seems too good to be true, right?! The Green Deal, however, has been carefully thought out and does offer a solution to the problem of properties being extremely wasteful, but property owners not being able to afford the necessary improvements to make them more environmentally friendly.

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Should I be selling my home?

November 12th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Estate Agents, Property Market | 1 Comment »

If you’re seriously considering selling your home then there are many factors that you will need to consider before you go ahead with it. It’s not just the reasons for selling your home but whether your home is ready to be sold. If you want to move as quickly as possible, it’s important that your home is appealing to those buying it; otherwise you may be sitting with a ‘For Sale’ sign in your front garden for some time.

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Report asks landlords – Do you trust your tenants?

November 8th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Insurance, Landlords | Comments Off on Report asks landlords – Do you trust your tenants?

Many would argue that for landlords, if you want to have peace of mind. We thought that we’d therefore conduct an investigation into the how trusting the relationships between landlords and tenants are.

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What to Look for in a Buy to Let Property

November 5th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Landlords, Rental Market | 1 Comment »

If you’re considering investing in property, now may be the best opportunity for you to do it, but you need to make sure that the property you are looking to buy is going to make you more money in the long run. If you’ve got some spare cash set aside for your investment, you’re in a good position to start purchasing your buy to let property, but there are several things you are going to need to consider.

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How long does it take to sell a house?

October 31st, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Property Market, Property Portals | Comments Off on How long does it take to sell a house?

Now that the property market is trending more towards buyers, it’s probably a good time to talk to your estate agent about putting your home on the market. If you want to know how long it will take to sell your home (avoid investing in a new property prematurely), there really is no simple answer.

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A Practical Guide to Planning Permission

October 17th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Legal, Property Developers | Comments Off on A Practical Guide to Planning Permission

When doing any work on a property, from a large project to a minor modification, ensuring the work adheres to planning permission should be top of the priorities list. If not it could cause a major headache.

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What to Consider when Choosing a Rental Property

October 15th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Landlords, Rental Market | 1 Comment »

There could be a whole host of reasons as to why you want to rent, from it being the more affordable option to a short-term stay in a particular area, but this doesn’t mean that choosing a rental property is any more lighthearted than actually buying one. From the start you need to know exactly what you should be looking for, what cautions you will need to take, all the while looking at everything as if you are the buyer.

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Do We Really Need a House Phone?

October 11th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Financial Products, Home Improvements | 1 Comment »

In a week when the new I phone 5 was unveiled it proved a timely reminder that the house phone is becoming ever more superfluous. Almost everyone now carries a mobile phone and with smart phones they can do just about everything but cook your dinner! The final nail in the coffin for the landline seemed to come this year when statistics confirmed that texting is now the most popular form of communication ahead of actually ringing.

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Extending Your Home with a Conservatory

October 8th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Home Improvements | Comments Off on Extending Your Home with a Conservatory

If you’re happy in your home but feel like you need that extra bit of space; or you’re looking for a way to add something to your home because you can’t afford to move at present, a conservatory could be the answer. A conservatory can be a lovely little sun trap during the summer months, but can be enjoyed all year round, providing a lovely retreat during those colder winter months. But before you go ahead with getting your conservatory, there are a few things you will need to consider.

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Your House is Sitting Over a Mine – What do you do?

October 4th, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Land Registry, Local Authority Searches, Property Market | Comments Off on Your House is Sitting Over a Mine – What do you do?

You’ve recently discovered that your house is sitting on top of a mine; or you’ve known all along but you’ve never really been concerned about it, but now, your house is starting to sink – what do you do? Sadly, this isn’t just the stuff of nightmares, this is something many people have had to face and will have to face in the future. With so many mines in use and disused across the UK (171,000 coal entries are recorded, but it is thought that there could be more), houses are sinking all the time, but would you know if this was happening to you and what can you do?

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5 Positive Things about the Current Property Market

October 1st, 2012 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Property Market | 2 Comments »

For most people, their home is the most valuable thing they will ever buy. So the current difficulties in the housing market are indicative of just how hard the economic times are in which we live. House prices are falling, so-called second steppers cannot afford to move up the ladder to larger properties, huge deposits are required to get a mortgage, and the list goes on.

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