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Written by By Dave Ackermann
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Sunday, 08 August 2010 12:06 |
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I recently did an article on the phenomenal rate at which the London property market is growing. It seems this latest trend of growth just continues to gain more and more momentum as the months pass by and London properties for sale are now on average more expensive than properties in Monte Carlo, making prime property the most expensive of its kind in the world!
The study carried out by a London estate agent has revealed that a London property that costs around the £5 million mark is currently being sold at a rate of about £4000 per square foot of property. This is significantly more than Monaco which is second on the list and selling property at an average of £2190 per square foot of property. To give you an idea of how expensive this is, picture a normal sized walk-in closet in central London. At a price tag of £4000 per square foot of property, you could by a 3 bedroom house in the North of England for the same price as a walk in closet in central London.
A house in Belgravia was recently sold for a phenomenal London property sale of £30 million. If that sounds like a lot, it's still nothing in comparison to a London property which is owned by steel tycoon, Lakshmi Mittal. The 12 bedroom property situated in Kensington Palace Gardens is rumoured to be worth more than £100 million.
The current rate at which the property market is growing is the fastest in 30 years. Estate Agent Clapham North has been part of the research which has revealed that people who live in prime areas such as Chelsea, Kensington, Knightsbridge and Hampstead are currently earning more than £4000 per day on their London properties.
The current growth in the London property market is expected to stabilize in the middle parts of the year and then regaining pace again towards the end of the year. This is all good and well for the London market, however there are still serious concerns about the rest of the country's property as there is not much growth showing in other parts of England. The average price for a property for sale in London is about £350,000 whereas the average price of property in the North East is less than half of that at £129,000. Let's hope the London property industry is able to carry the weight of the entire country!
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Written by Terence Sackett
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Sunday, 08 August 2010 11:30 |

The streets of London were thick with beggars and confidence tricksters in Victorian times. In the 1880s 300,000 Londoners were classified as poor. Many beggars made desperate efforts to lift themselves and their families out of their unrelenting poverty by taking on a trade, however small and insignificant. They were reluctant to apply for Outdoor Relief under the Poor Law. The match sellers, shoe blacks and flower girls, very often displaced from the countryside where life was yet more unendurable, were given short shrift by many of the great and wealthy. An 1888 tourist guidebook suggested the following evasive action be taken by travellers: 'To get rid of your beggar, when wearisome, take no notice of him at all. He will only follow you till you meet a more likely person, but no farther'.
Street traders faced suspicion from the public and persecution by the police on a daily basis. Their lives were a constant struggle to win food and shelter; many lived in cheap, crowded lodging houses in poor areas of the West End and the City, where they were preyed upon mercilessly by voracious landlords. There was, of course, no social relief, and families had to rely on their wits to keep body and soul together.
The Victorian social critic Henry Mayhew reported that the chimney sweeps were a tight-knit community, and that master sweepers often let rooms to families in the same trade. The climbing boys, often from the workhouse, earned 2d or 3d a day, but were sometimes given an extra 6d by grateful householders. They climbed easily up through wide flues using their elbows, but often found themselves stuck and near-suffocated in narrow nine-inch chimneys. For young children it must have been the most terrifying experience. George Smart's invention of the familiar set of hollow rods topped with a broad bristle brush encouraged an end to the cruelty, and an Act of Parliament finally made child sweeps illegal in 1875.
There were once 2,500 cabinet-making shops in London, many employing children. When powered sawmills and mechanical production methods brought ready-made furniture onto the market, many thousands of craftsmen lost their jobs, and had to scratch a living by going door to door mending furniture or re-caning chairs.
The gingerbread man with his laden tray was a welcome sight to children. His dark-coloured cake of flour, treacle and ground ginger was a favourite snack with Victorians at fairs and street events. The roughly-shaped pieces were measured into paper cones and topped with a blanched almond. The gingerbread was probably made by his wife or daughters.
Sporting their red uniforms, the bootblack boys were a familiar sight on the streets of London. The bootblack business grew into a highly organised philanthropic affair: the Ragged Schools, Saffron Hill, set up the first society, and nine others followed. Their aim was to educate orphan boys and to give them a good start in the world; by the 1880s the shoeblack societies had 400 boys on their books. Members of the Shoeblack Brigade were licensed to trade by the Metropolitan Police and carried on their business unhindered.
Small children loved to cluster round the hokey-pokey stall licking at the cheap ice cream. The hokey-pokey men were usually Italian immigrants (during the winter they often worked as hurdy-gurdy men). Every morning in summer they froze the ice cream they had mixed the night before, and went their rounds crying: 'Gelati, ecco un poco!' ('Ice cream, here's a little!') - hence the slang words for ice cream. The hokey-pokey man sold his ice cream in small glasses, 'licks', which he wiped clean when his customers had finished with them. Edible ice cream cones began to be used in the 1890s. A popular nonsense rhyme in Victorian times ran:
'Hokey-pokey, pokey hump! Hokey-pokey, a penny a lump. Hokey-pokey, find a cake; Hokey-pokey, boil and bake. Here's the stuff to make your jump; Hokey-pokey, penny a lump. Hokey-pokey, sweet and cold, For a penny, new or old.'
In almost every Victorian city street you could find a child selling matches. Bryant & May's matches, such as their fusee 'Alpine Vesuvian' matches, popularly known as Brimstones, were popular products. This was hardly a desirable job, but a match seller was considerably better off than those poor Londoners who were involved in the manufacturing of matches: the yellow phosphorus used in the process caused a debilitating disease of the mouth known as 'phossy jaw'. Bryant & May employed 700 girls in their match factories. In 1888 these girls went on strike for better pay and conditions, but such a protest and threat to public order was rare amongst workers in Victorian Britain.
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Written by Chris Tomkins
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Wednesday, 18 August 2010 21:10 |
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Live entertainment has been a long standing entertainment tradition and what better city to enjoy these venues than London? A night at the theatre gives spectators a chance to have live interaction with their entertainment. The biggest misconception of theatre is that it is an expensive night out. Considering current family activity trends, such as theme parks and shopping excursions, theatre has actually become one of the less expensive alternatives.
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Written by by telegraph.co.uk
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Thursday, 19 August 2010 09:32 |
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Spanish public television showed dramatic images of screaming spectators, including children, frantically trying to avoid the animal after it hurdled a security barrier that surrounds the arena as well as a fence and clambered into the crowded stands.
The incident occurred on Wednesday evening in the bullring in the town of Tafalla, in the Navarra region.
Some 30 people were injured, the local Diario de Navarra newspaper said.
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, 08 June 2010 13:22 |
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Home sweet home. We do love our houses whether it is located in a quiet suburb, center of the city or on top of a hill. It is a comfort zone for most people, a place where you can hide from all the tussles of life. It is not just a mere piece of structure built to protect its owners from the natural elements of the planet. It’s a place where we feel loved, cared, respected and most importantly, one can be freely himself.
Since most of us live in a regular type of abode, I cannot help fantasizing about living in a luxurious mansion, with 10 bedrooms to accommodate all the family members, an infinity pool, a modern home theater system and a gym, a huge one. Well, since I am still dreaming about it, let me share the following most expensive houses bought by those who can afford it.
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 08 June 2010 13:27 |
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Written by Amy Goodman
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Wednesday, 18 August 2010 20:57 |
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Most cultures of the world seem to all have a similar tale of a mythic flood that all but wiped out the civilizations of the time. This flood of yore, of fame was so huge and devastating that it all but annihilated civilization. Indeed many times archaeologists – many of them famous and of great repute have thought that they in their diggings and studies had actually uncovered as well as documented actual proof and direct evidence of the giant flood which we in the “Western World” know and refer to a “Noah’s Flood” of biblical fame and origins.
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Written by By James A Gold
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Sunday, 08 August 2010 12:24 |

London loft conversions are an increasingly popular way for homeowners to expand the useable space within their house without going through all of the hassle and expense of moving. Planning law in England changed significantly on 1 October 2008 with 'The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (No. 2) (England) Order 2008' coming into force. How does this new law change the situation for London loft conversions and does it mean that I do not need planning permission?
The idea behind the changes to the planning laws was to reduce the pressure on local planning departments by allowing many domestic extension projects to proceed under 'permitted development' rather than having to apply for planning permission. This means that certain types of work, such as many loft conversions and extensions, do not require planning permission. To understand how the law has changed, it is necessary to briefly examine the position prior to 1 October 2008.
The previous legislation governing permitted development for London loft conversions was the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. This established a system of allowing homeowners to develop their property by a certain volume depending on the type of house. For instance, a terrace house could usually develop by up to 50 cubic metres (40 of which could be used for a mansard or dormer loft conversion) and a semi-detached or detached house by 70 cubic metres (50 of which could be used for a dormer or mansard loft conversion). This effectively meant that any house with an existing large ground floor extension would have already used most of its permitted development volume and could not undertake a loft conversion in London.
The most significant change brought in by the 2008 Order affects extensions at ground level. The system has now been changed from one of volume to one governed by maximum dimensions depending upon the location and number of storeys. For instance, a single storey extension to the rear of a terrace house can be a maximum of 3 metres deep from the original rear wall.
This means that ground level extensions completed prior to 1 October 2008 which fall within what would now be considered the maximum dimensions do not affect the volume that can be used for London loft conversions. It is possible to use up to 40 cubic metres in a terrace house and 50 cubic metres in detached and semi-detached houses for a loft conversion, whilst also having a large ground level extension.
More restrictive limits apply to conservation areas, areas of outstanding natural beauty, National Parks etc. Limits may also have been applied by the local authority to individual properties, such as properties of historical merit, or areas by means including planning conditions and Article 4 directions.
In general it is strongly advisable to submit an application for a 'Certificate of Lawfulness' before starting any work, even if you believe that it clearly falls within your permitted development rights. Local Authorities often have quite different interpretations of what London loft conversions are permitted under the new legislation. A certificate of lawfulness is a straightforward application that only costs £75 and gives you the peace of mind that what you are proposing is lawful and does not exceed your permitted development rights.
This article is a brief summary of the law specifically relating to extensions and permitted development in England and should not be relied upon as a complete statement of the law. To understand your rights and obligations fully, study the relevant law or consult a planning solicitor. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is accurate, it does not constitute legal or other professional advice.
James Gold is a director of Landmark Lofts, one of London's leading loft conversion specialists. Landmark Lofts undertake London loft conversions throughout the city and offer a full design, build and management service using their in-house team of Architects, Chartered Building Surveyors, and Chartered Builders.
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Last Updated on Sunday, 08 August 2010 12:30 |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 03 May 2010 13:35 |
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By : Vikas Rathi
Business proposals have become quite common these days which small as well as large business owners need to submit their clients in order to get business from them. What a Business Proposal is All About?
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 08 June 2010 12:09 |
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Written by Dave Ackermann
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Sunday, 08 August 2010 11:20 |
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I heard a rumour that the global recession is slowly becoming less of an issue as the world economic climate seems to be recovering ever so slightly form a terrible year in 2009. The London property market was one of the worst hit areas in the UK and now I'm wondering whether or not the property market will be recovering with the rest of the world's financial situation. I did some research and found that the influencing factors sway from negative to positive in a seesaw kind of pattern, each positive balanced out by a negative. Take a look:
The UK as a whole is definitely recovering from a tough 2009. Most businesses around the country are starting to recover and their employees are starting to have a little bit more money to spend each month due to a general drop in retail prices. However the unemployment rate in the UK is still continuing to rise which means just because companies and their employees have a little more money, jobs are still scarce as companies are hesitant to start hiring too soon. Unemployment rate is one of the major factors that affect London property prices will have a slight negative effect on London property prices.
The slight relief in the recession however means that that people are obviously feeling a little more financially confident and willing to start buying major assets (such as houses) again. Buying a house is an extremely emotional purchase and the fact that everyone is feeling happier about finance means that we could see a major increase in property purchases in and around London. This will have an immediate positive affect on the London Property market.
Although people have more money and property might start changing hands again, problems might still arise when people start applying for credit from major money lending institutions. Banks and money lenders are aware that the credit crunch is improving, however most of them are not quite convinced just yet which we can expect interest rates to still be slightly higher than we'd like, and this, once again will have a negative effect on the London property prices.
There's no doubt that there is money changing hands in the commercial sector. Due to the fact that businesses have a little more money to spare for the first time in ages, we can expect to see an influx of commercial property purchases in and around London. Commercial property accounts for a massive percentage of the property market and therefore London property sales will have a definite positive influence on the market over all.
As you can see it's really an equal case of negative factors vs. positive influences and they seem to just be leveling one another out. If you're looking to possibly buy a central London property right now or later in the year, my advice is to keep an eye on the market and follow your gut feeling. If you feel uncertain, don't do it just because people claim things are improving. If you're feeling hesitant, perhaps you can look for a London property to rent in the meantime until the situation is clearer.
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Last Updated on Sunday, 08 August 2010 11:26 |
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, 03 May 2010 13:37 |
Airspace throughout northern and central Europe was gradually reopening Tuesday but officials say London airports are likely to remain closed. A new wave of ash forced Norway to close airports on the southwestern coast.
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 08 June 2010 12:33 |
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British Queen celebrates

World Cup
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