Buy A House in Horley

Fidler’s Castle to be Demolished

May 9th, 2008 at 08:58am Under Buy A House in Horley

I have just heard through the grapevine that the house / castle that was illegally built without planning in Salfords, Redhill is to be demolished and the land returned to agricultural use within 6 months.

The house was hidden for four years behind hay bales to mask the activity and removed when the four years were up. The house has been a talking point for many in the area, and indeed the country. Views are mixed - no one agrees that the house should be allowed to stand but also no one agrees with the fact that the council are allowed to do similar but with thousands of homes instead of just the one. Fidlers house was indeed doomed from the first moment the local council heard of the illegal build - after all, the council gets paid £1,000 for every house they choose to put up on a flood plain! They are not likely to let Mr Fidler build himself a million pound house for nothing!

Everyone is expected to abide by planning rules - not least that it’s assumed that no building inspection was ever done and therefore the house may not even be safe and certainly never sale able. It seems the the inevitable has always been that the house will have to be torn down. However, the hypocrisy remains that what’s good for the goose is most definitely not good for the gander with thousands of new houses being built a mile away that everyone objected to!

By Jez Add comment

Selling a house privately

March 6th, 2006 at 05:05pm Under Buy A House in Horley+ Property Rental in Horley Surrey

Private Property Sales

Selling a house privately in Horley or (anywhere for that matter) may be the answer that you are looking for. I have been looking at ways to reduce or eliminate estate agents’ fees. I have found some solutions that seem as though they are the right way to sell your house privately without having to deal with greedy estate agents. I have some friends who are selling their house in the south east privately and I will report on what pitfalls there are. Selling your own property and bypassing expensive middlemen might just be the way to extend finances for something better than you had hoped for.

I have to say that in the past, when buying my own property I doubt I would have been brave enough to attempt a private property sale, but now seeing that there are web sites set up to do that very thing I would certainly be more tempted.

I will keep you posted on my friends private property sale.

By Jez 1 comment

Water Shortage Crisis in the South East - Again

February 24th, 2006 at 05:50pm Under Horley Master Plan+ The South East Plan+ Buy A House in Horley

Water Shortage in South East

Sounds like it’s going to be a nice summer, queuing up at the local standpipe with my bucket. It’s looking likely that we in the south east will be facing our worst ever water shortage - in a long run of water shortages.

I hate to harp on about it, but how can anyone plan to build thousands upon thousands of new houses in the southeast when there is not enough water to go around for the existing houses?

Why can’t some of the land be put aside for some new reservoirs? It’s getting beyond the pail (geddit?)

Who in their right mind would want to move into a house in an area that has constant water shortages and a hosepipe ban every summer? Considering we aren’t even close to summer yet?

You also have to question the folly of building on known flood plains after the driest winter sways someone’s decision.

By Jez 1 comment

Horley Letting Agents

February 1st, 2006 at 11:58am Under Buy A House in Horley+ Property Rental in Horley Surrey

Horley Property To Rent

A few points to consider before renting

I suppose some questions should be asked of Horley Letting Agents also.

I wonder where someone might stand ( I know nothing about house or flat rental in Horley) if, say they were renting a Horley property that flooded due to being built on a floodplain?

Where would they stand if the road that they let their house or flat in suddenly became dangerous, noisy, dirty, smelly and uninhabitable? Would the Horley letting agent be liable? Or would the tennant dissapear down the To Let!

The main thing to ask before you rent a house in Horley is whether it has any history of flooding in the past and whether it is built on a known floodplain and might flood in the future.

Again, I welcome comments on this topic.

By Jez Add comment

Horley Estate Agents

January 30th, 2006 at 12:15pm Under Buy A House in Horley

Contact Horley Estate Agents

Speak to an estate agent in Horley (as opposed to an estate agent outside of Horley) before you buy or even look at a new house. Ask specifically if the house that you are interested in buying is going to be affected by the Horley Master Plan. Although this would be flagged in the most basic of land searches, the estate agent’s advice will be free and land searches cost money and can be time consuming. Put the estate agent on the spot and ask:

Will housing insurance be affected

Are there going to be traffic or parking issues

Is the current road layout going to be affected

Is the house built on a floodplain (has it EVER flooded if the question is eluded)

Is the area going to be one big building site for the next five years

How close to the River Mole is the house situated

An honest estate agent in Horley should be able to answer all those questions.

By Jez Add comment

Horley House Buying

January 27th, 2006 at 10:32am Under Buy A House in Horley