Helping Innovate Property (HIP) – Blog, Housing Market News and Articles

The Mayor of London has an ambitious target to make London a zero carbon city by 2030. One of the ways to meet this goal is to decarbonise all of London’s 3.5 million homes by upgrading and retrofitting – improving existing homes for high energy efficiency.

The London Assembly Housing Committee has been investigating the operational, financial and physical challenges of retrofitting in London. The Committee has also investigated the energy efficiency initiatives already established by the Mayor.

Plants are an integral part of our lives. Houseplants are common and much known. However, for people who have some extra feet in your house, you can plan to build a small pond to grow plants. This will aesthetically add to your home’s beauty and provide potential health benefits.

The number one reason for landlord and tenant deposit disputes is cleaning. Currys PC World asked Lynsey Crombie aka the ‘Queen of Clean’ for her top cleaning tips that could help you secure getting that end of tenancy deposit back that no one wants to lose out on.

Are you planning to fix up your home this springtime? It’s a great time to do it as you can open the windows without freezing the place but the temperatures are also not too hot to work in. The trouble is that when a lot of people want to renovate at once, prices of materials can be higher. How can you make your renovation more affordable?

Changing the flooring in the home can really help to transform the space. However, with so many different types of flooring available today, it can be difficult knowing which type to invest in.

Are you considering a new garden room in your back garden – many people are.

If you are in the search for a new garden room, then check out these 10 tips to plan ahead. Read the rest of this entry »

It is extraordinary how swiftly having an efficient broadband service has become a key lifestyle requirement.  As our homes acquire more and more smart devices and our work and leisure activities become increasingly internet dependant, a fast, data generous broadband service has become an essential component of modern life.  Our reliance on broadband will only increase as more and more smart devices become available and yet, according to Ofcom, ‘One in seven homes could be paying more than they need to for broadband and could get faster services for the same or less money.’

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It can be quite daunting to buy a wood for the first time. Everything related to the purchase and installation of the wood might seem very confusing, especially when some strange wood terminology shows up. Among them is one that you might come across more often: floating floor. But what is a floating floor?

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It’s obvious that smart home concept becomes globally popular and appealing idea. It eases our life making it more tranquil and secure. A lot has been said about the many benefits house automation brings to homeowners. But have you ever thought those smart home gadgets that gradually invade the world markets can actually help you save money and energy? Well, they really can! So, enjoy your high-tech house and avail of the clever devices you have invested in!

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Over the past five years we have seen an incredible shift towards homeowners and property developers sourcing the most sustainable and economically friendly floors for homes. Unsurprisingly this is a movement that has continued and whilst the threat of deforestation and climate change is still apparent there are many who are doing their upmost to help the environment. So how does this affect the flooring world and what steps have been put in place?

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Are you in the preparatory stages of a new build? Maybe you’re ready to bring in an electrical contractor but are worried about how they’ll fare coming up against Part L of the Building Regs? In this article, I’ll be covering how to choose an electrical contractor for a new build that will be required to pass an air permeability test.

What is Part L

In 2006 the government passed Part L of the Building Regs setting the standards for air permeability in certain new builds and extensions in the UK. The Regulation is concerned with the conservation of fuel and power through limiting heat gains and losses via the building’s fabric. Split into 4 parts the documents lay out guidelines for both new and existing buildings.
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