Estate agent Winkworth has just released an interesting Summer 2009 Price Guide for London and UK property, revealing the minimum and maximum rents for the properties their offices have dealt with in Summer 2009 and 2008.

One cannot say that the prices have fallen throughout the city in this past year – in some areas the rents for some properties have actually gone up:

Harringay 1-bed flat:
Summer 2009 min£760 max £1,040
Summer 2008 min £750 max £1,000

Edgware Studio Flat:
Summer 2009 min£600 max £750
Summer 2008 min £500 max £675

St John’s Wood 2-bed flat:
Summer 2009 min £1,700 max £2,600
Summer 2008 min £1,200 max £2,600

Still, in most cases the minimum price has remained unchanged while the maximum has taken a more significant fall:

Kensington 2-bed flat:
Summer 2009 min£1,500 max £3,500
Summer 2008 min £1,500 max £10,000

Islington 2-bed flat:
Summer 2009 min £1,200 max £3,000
Summer 2008 min £1,200 max £3,500

Highgate 2-bed flat:
Summer 2009 min £1,085 max £1,300
Summer 2008 min £1,148 max £2,166

Click here to download the full guide.

Safety inspections are being carried out in highrise tower blocks all over London after six people were killed in a blaze in the 12-storey Lakanal House, on Camberwell’s (SE5) Sceaux Gardens Estate last Friday.

Retired architect Harley Sherlock, who has worked on social housing in Islington, comments the situation in Islington Gazette:

“I think these blocks are dangerous. 19 storeys is too high to have just one staircase. A fire ladder can’t reach that far. Any block which is higher than a fire ladder can reach should have two staircases.”

In London, the highest a fire ladder can reach is 10 floors.

A few examples of how many buildings are at risk:

Camden

In Islington N1, there are 78 blocks with 7 or more storeys. And 51 of them only have a single staircase. They include the 19-storey Hind, Talbot, Citizen and Lillingston House towers, on the Harvist Estate, off Hornsey Road, Holloway, and the 17-storey Ilex House, off Crouch Hill.

Haringey

Haringey has 47 council blocks with six or more storeys.

Wandsworth Police have reported that the borough has suffered a spate of burglaries recently. Most of the thefts have occurred as a result of windows being left open on hot summer days, but others are being blamed on inadequate locks.

In order to reduce the chances of falling victim to burglars the police are advising residents to keep all windows closed when you are out, check your locks are sturdy and robust and keep car keys and handbags out of view and away from windows and doors.

A building that presents itself as unoccupied and insecure is far more likely to be targeted than one which is properly secured.

Any of the following factors can increase the risk of a break-in:

• side gates open
• accessible windows open
• ladders left out, allowing access to otherwise inaccessible windows
• garden tools available to force entry
• untrimmed hedges or high fences preventing natural surveillance

Other factors which may increase the likelihood of a break-in include:

• milk bottles or parcels on the doorstep
• newspapers and mail in the letter box
• unlit houses after dark
• all windows shut in very hot weather

Simple steps which can reduce the chances of being burgled are:

• Prevent letterbox burglaries by storing keys away from the front door
• Do not label your house keys in case you lose them and they fall into the wrong hands.
• Where possible, try to keep valuables out of sight from windows.
• Install timers which switch lights or radios on and off automatically.
• If you’re away have a neighbour or friend pop round to clear your letterbox or doorstep.
• Encourage a neighbour to park on your drive.
• If going out after dark, draw the curtains, leave some lights on and a radio playing.
• Install window locks, especially on older windows.

If you are away for extended periods:

• Cancel the delivery of milk and newspapers
• Disconnect the telephone answering machine, or re-word your greeting message to give the impression that you are only temporarily unable to answer.
• Enlist the help of a neighbour, friend or relative to keep a regular eye on your property and keep the front door clear of deliveries.
• If you are prepared to leave a key with a willing neighbour/relative, ask for curtains to be drawn and lights to be put on at night. If snow is on the ground a few footprints will make the house appear inhabited.
• Check your insurance policy. Some insurance policies for contents don’t cover you if you are away for more than 30 days.
• Set your burglar alarm.
• If you do not have an alarm, consider investing a few pounds in a dummy alarm box. It may well deter the opportunist thief.

Source: Wandsworth Council

From 1st April 2009 Gas Safe Register replaces CORGI as the register of approved gas engineers in the UK. The video explains the changes, and also talks about the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Just in case you didn’t know:
- Tenants must get a copy of the gas safety certificate for their property from their landlord.
- This certificate shows that gas appliances have been safety checked and serviced once a year by Gas Safe Registry registered engineer.

Visit Gas Safe Register website to find a certified engineer or read more about safety in your home.

The video was originally posted in YouTube by ShoutCatherine.

Renters are advised to not to pay rent up front for more than 1 month when moving into a property, unless they have proof that the landlord has not fallen behind with his mortgage payments. The number of buy-to-let investors who are in arrears, and face losing their property, has soared in the last 3 months.

Chris and Siobhan Taylor rented a five-bedroom house in Loughton, Essex, in August. They paid £48,000 upfront for the year after being offered a £6,000 discount. Now settled in, they have discovered that their landlord is already tens of thousands of pounds behind on his mortgage repayments.

‘We are feeling very vulnerable. We had no idea when we rented the property that this could happen. We just assumed that everything was OK. We face losing all our money and our deposit, or having to go to court, should the lender want to repossess during our one-year tenancy,’ says Siobhan, 39.

The Taylors have fallen into a gaping hole in the legislation covering tenants. As their rent is more than £25,000 a year, they had to sign a standard tenancy contract, not an assured shorthold tenancy contract, which would have given them a raft of protection.

It also means their initial £7,850 deposit was given directly to the landlord rather than being held by a third party under the Tenancy Deposit Protection Scheme.

Read the whole story at MailOnline.

It would normally be up to the letting agent to check that the landlord’s lender knows about the property being rented out but do not count on it – it would be wise to always ask for some sort of proof on paper.

Here’s a piece of BBC Watchdog’s story:

Before he arrived in the UK, Emily had asked Lazaros to prove he had the funds to pay for the flat. To do this, she asked him to use Western Union to transfer the 1st month’s rent and the deposit to someone he knew – even to himself if he wanted. All Emily wanted to see was the receipt for the transfer which would show Lazaros did actually have enough money. So Lazoros transferred £660 to himself and sent Emily the receipt as she requested. When Lazaros discovered that his flat wasn’t for rent, and that Emily Brown didn’t exist, he went back to Western Union to retrieve his £660. But it had gone. Someone had already withdrawn the money.

Read more…

Police are reminding residents with uPVC doors to lock them with a key.

Some people think that by lifting the handle and closing the door the lock is engaged, but unless the key is used too it can still be opened from the outside.

Officers spread the message after a significant increase in burglaries involving unlocked uPVC doors in recent weeks, reports Barking and Dagenham Post.

Recommended reading: Home security

(photo: upvcdoorcompany.co.uk)

BBC has discovered the problem of the fraudsters advertising on Gumtree, deceiving tenants out of thousands of pounds.

See the video story HERE.

The problem really is more serious than we think. We are not hearing about those cases so much because as one victim confesses – she felt stupid and naive. Not many people would admit that.

We have talked about our own experience with those scams in HERE, HERE and HERE.

(Image: BBC)

Twitter from Bathori.

What could Gumtree and other classifieds sites do about the increasing number of scam ads in their accommodation section?

Even if we say we would never fall for those scam ads – filtering still wastes a lot of our precious time. The last time we tried to find a flat through Gumtree, we ended up contacting the professional letting agent just to avoid further headache. The first two replies from flat advertisers were scams, and our patience ran out.

It’s hard to protect people with just providing warnings, hoping everyone will read them carefully. The youngsters and foreigners are usually in a hurry to find a place to live. Many have no-one to talk to, no-one to ask advice from.

It’s also very unlikely you’ll hear someone confessing falling for a scam like that. Cry in a pillow is what they’ll do. That doesn’t mean the problem doesn’t exist.

The scammers aren’t disappearing anywhere, so no use denying. In the 7,5 million people metropolis, the fraudsters know there’s always someone who’ll swallow the hook.

We like Gumtree too much to give up using it so we’re hoping their team is working on the solutions as we speak. Perhaps a simple IP registration notification could scare some? Or should all private landlords go through some sort of digital or physical authentication process?

Here’s the reply the tenant received for another E-mail today:

Thanks so much for getting back to me and i really appreciate for having interest in my flat and here is the address Regent St London, W1B 5SP,(oxford circus),the flat is just 5 minutes to the nearest station in oxford circus station.Rent is £1200 per month include all bills with council tax and the security deposit is £1000.Utilities include:  double glazed windows, low voltage lighting, wooden flooring throughout, luxury fitted fully furnished  kitchens with integrated appliances, bathrooms with power showers, balconies,fully fenced yard, these apartments are available furnished,electricity, gas,internet access.security cable phone, ideally located with 2 bedroom king size and cable TV and fully  equipped with TV, VCR, DVD and stereo. There is a fully equipped kitchen with refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, coffee maker, pots pans and crockery is available for light cooking. There is a full size washing machine and a dryer.private flat not share FEATURES::Central Heating,Double Glazed,Laminate Flooring,Available Now Furnishing: Furnished apartment situated in Regent St London, W1B 5SP,(oxford circus):its fully furnished and fenced arround, DG, GCH, bath/wc, its laminated flooring, 24 hrs Security and Porter Service available and entry phone and intenet access in the flat.You can get back to me if you are still intrested so that we can proceed asap
Thanks

In addition to the odd description, the pictures above were attached to the E-mail. Yes, in that exact size. Yahoo.com E-mail account is another sign that says there is no doubt – this is a scam.

The first ad was gone the next day and we’ll not bother to look for this one.

Makes me sick to my stomach thinking these fraudsters are walking freely on the street.

We’re browsing letting agents’ websites.

We’ve just got our hands on a classic scam E-mail from the “landlord” of the flat that sounded too good to be true. Apparently our tenant (who has been browsing through listing every day during this past month) stumbled on a £250 Sloane Square flat on Gumtree…

Here’s the first reply from the landlord:

Hello,

Thank you for your e-mail.
My name is Louisa and i am from Wien,Austria.
I had an aunt in London and after her death she left me her apartment
from London a few years ago.
Till last mounth the apartment was rent by some stutdents from Germany
and now they left and the apartment is available again for rent.
The price i want is 250 UK pounds per week and i do  not work with any
agency because they have big comision.
About the advance it is the price for the first 2 mounths.

If you want to rent it and you have the money i could came to London to
meet you in a few days but you must be sure you want to rent it.

I will wait for your
e-mail.

After asking for some additional photos/information, the second E-mail arrives:

Hello,

Thank you for your e-mail.
Flat location is Sloane Court East, Sloane Square and it is fully
furnished and bills are included.
As i said i live in Wien and i must came to UK to meet you and see the
flat and i want the rent for the first 2

mounths in advance,that is 2000GBP.
If you have the money i could came in the next few days to make the
contract with you but first you must be sure

because 2 weeks ago a person from UK told me he is really interested and
he asked me to go to London to meet him

and sign the rent contract and when i arrived there no person showed up to
rent my place and i lost time and money

for nothing.
Please note that i am a deaf person and i could comunicate only via
e-mail and i can not afford to came again to

London for nothing,i do not want anybody to make again a stupid joke.
If you want i will send you more pictures of the flat to make your
decision but i want you to be sure you want to

rent it and i must be sure you have the money and you are a serious
person.

Also,i could came to meet only in the weekend,i could buy a fly ticket
for a friday night and i will be in London

to meet you on a Saturday.

I will wait for your answer,have a nice day!

***

The landlord is obviously working towards getting a payment before showing the apartment. Which doesn’t exist…

You might know this is a scam but hundreds of people are fooled every year, especially those who are new to London, don’t know the language so well, and need a place fast.

We’ll report the ad to Gumtree, who has warned users – If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is!

Clown photographed by =alexander=

Here is a reference list for those who want to filter out more problematic areas for renting. London Metropolitan Police has listed the top 20 wards with the most residential burglaries during 2007:

The list of the wards with the fewest residential burglaries during 2007 reveals that Kingston Upon Thames was the safest borough.

Source: Evening Standard