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Just a quickie, take a look at http://brit-information.typepad.com/tours_of_britain/ for lots of information. Or take a look at Tours of Britain

Houses for Sale property Gazumping

There’s lots of houses for sale and there’s a piece of property news today that is both bad and good if you have houses for sale. With so many houses for sale I only mention it because for the last six to eight months or so, all the news has been bad with prices falling and little or no help from banks.

A couple of houses for sale this week have involved the house buyers experiencing GAZUMPING. “What that?” I hear you say.

"Gazumping" is when a property owner refuses to formalise a property sale agreement at the last minute in order to accept a higher offer.

In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, houses for sale and property prices were incredibly bouyant and gazumping became very common in England and Wales (not so in Scotland because they have a different buying system) because a buyer's offer is not legally binding even after acceptance of the offer by the vendor.

See more on this subject here Housing Property in UK

When an owner accepts the buyers offer on houses for sale for a property, the buyer will usually not yet have commissioned any building survey or had his solicitor perform any of the recommended legal checks. So the offer to purchase the property is made "subject to contract".

Until written contracts are exchanged either party can pull out at any time.

As it may take up to 12 weeks for all the formalities to be completed, the vendor, or their agent, may receive another – higher – offer.

I have written more here on the subject of Banking Money Finance in UK.

or see my other blog relating to Money Finance and Credit

Although it is frowned upon, the estate agent has a legal duty to pass on all offers to their client and don’t forget that the higher the selling price, the more commission the agent makes. So the seller may be tempted, by greed, to accept the higher offer – even if it is a few minutes before the contracts are exchanged. This can leave the buyer in the predicament of having to better the new offer if he still wants the property or lose it. Back in the 80’s – 90’s this trick was frequently used by sellers to get a better offer from the buyer by introducing a fictitious new buyer at the last moment to get a better price.

Gazumping can have several effects … after the buyer has called the seller a few choice names.

There is a financial impact – if you up your offer, you pay more. If you don’t, then the money that you have already paid out for legal expenses and surveys will leave you out of pocket when you don’t get the property.

There can be a logistical impact – you may have already sold your old house or given your current landlord notice. You may end up with nowhere to live.

There is an emotional impact – that feeling that you have been “taken for a ride” or worse (…………………) insert your own bad words here!!

so what’s the good news …… well if people are being gazumped on houses for sale … is it a reflection that the housing market is just beginning to pick up ever so slightly?

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David

UK Flat House Rent

Following many years of growth in the UK flat house rent sector of the housing market it has now slumped with an annual fall to date of approximately 15%. Lets take a moment to look at what is happening and where the market is going, particularly at the house flats and apartment market.The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) says that houses for sale property are at their lowest level since their monthly surveys began in 1978. The annual fall in house flats prices is about 15% and property prices have returned to the levels seen in early 2006.There are several reasons for this fall. The “Credit Crunch” means that banks are less able to raise funds from their wholesale markets and therefore do not have the funds to lend on to fulfil the houses for sale property market, even despite the huge bale out that has recently taken place both in the UK and the US. In addition, whereas this time last year banks were keen to lend to almost anyone in the housing and property market, they now see this same housing market as too risky and want only to lend to buyers who are really safe customers. What this means is a buyer who has a very large deposit, an excellent credit rating and a property that is a bargain.For the potential house buyer, finances have been and are being squeezed with much higher costs for food, energy and fuel, and with an official recession here with us, employment is not secure for anyone. Such pressures have not been seen for a decade. I have written more on employment at Work, working and jobs so do take a look.

Many recent house flats buyers are now falling into negative equity.
TO summaries, there are fewer house and flats buyers who have secured mortgages and with fewer house buyers there is less demand for houses and so prices have fallen even further and some experts predict that house and flats prices will fall by as much as 25% in total from peak to trough until the market begins to recover in 2010.
So what will stop the freefall? Well this is the 64,000 Dollar question. The UK government has announced some, in effect, minor measures: interest free loans, a stamp duty level rise and help for those not affording their mortgage. This was a welcome help but is unlikely to stabilise the market significantly as the key problem is the banks having funds to borrow and then those banks having the will and taking the risk to lend. The UK Official Bank Rate today came down again and is now at 1% - quite a help if the banks and building societies actually pass the rate on to customers.Any return to the previous easy lending criteria and large salary multiples are very unlikely and even when banks have funds to lend they are going to demand that the borrower show that they are a good investment: with a big deposit and affordable repayments. For much more on UK housing and property click here.

The housing bubble may have burst but the fact still remains that the property market in the medium and long term will be backed by the simple necessity of housing requirements. We simply still do not have enough houses for sale property, especially affordable property, suitable for the first time buyer market. The population is increasing and there is not enough housing to home everyone.

With drastically less sales, property developers are currently very short of cash and are putting their projects on hold. As a result new house building will be well below the government's targets and as demand outstrips supply prices will go up again. The Centre for Economic and Business Research expect house prices to rise by 30% between late 2009 and 2012.And so the UK housing market is expected to be slow or even at a standstill as we go into 2009 but as the economy recovers so too will the housing market – as sure as eggs is eggs.

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David

Unemployment and a new job

The Unemployment figures are rising alarmingly to levels we have not seen for a long time and jobs are disappearing. The predictions for job losses in the near future of both the United Kingdom and the US show that employment rates will rise and indicates that we should expect those numbers to multiply. Certainly this is no time for employees to adopt a wait and see what happens to my job attitude. The Motto of the Scouting Association is “Be Prepared”.

So get prepared now before your job disappears and you are left holding a pink slip (in the US) or a P45 (in UK) in your hand. So what can You do??Cut Your ExpensesReduce your monthly expenses drastically. If you lose your job, the cuts are going to have to be made anyway so cuts made now can be made without too much pain. Do you really need the gym membership you do not use. We’ve cut ours. What about your meal expenses. Do you need to eat out so often? A family restaurant meal can be replaced with a meal at home. It only takes about half an hour for most basic meals and for less than a quarter of the cost of eating out. Over a month, replacing 8 restaurant meals with meals at home saves a huge amount of money. Just do the maths. I know that I can use that extra money to catch up on bills or grow my savings account.Keep Your Money SafeUncertain times are not a time for any ‘unusual’ or risky investments, unless of course you can afford to lose the money as well as your job. Don’t play the stock market. Instead, consider one of the higher paying online savings accounts. If you have money you do not need right now, shop around for good bank interest rates. In good times, bank interest rates do not seem very exciting. Right now, they can look pretty good.What about Re-training YourselfExamine your skill set. Can you take an online class, or a class at a local community college that will make you more attractive to your current or future employers? Computer and writing skills will always be in high demand. If you work in a technical job, is there some specialty you could train for and master that will make you stand out and make your current employer think twice before letting you go.It’s difficult but can you protect your income with some suitable Insurance.
It may seem silly, but this may be a good time to learn how to clean out the loft and cupboards (closets) and have a garage sale or operate an online auction such as EBay. I have known people who raised quite a lot of cash this way, all by getting rid of things they had accumulated but did not use. If the latest exercise equipment just gathers dust, somebody else may want to buy it! If you cannot fit into that designer dress or expensive suit, somebody else can. Clean out your clutter, and raise some cash!Examine Your Career GoalsIs your current job your dream job? Some people cannot imagine doing anything else, but most employees are fairly flexible. A period of unemployment can be a great time to grow if the unemployed person has prepared for a few weeks or month without a regular income.

What may help - I've written far more about getting a job in our Ebook Working and Employment in UK It is equally relevant to getting a job in other countries because the principles are the same with details of CV's, interview techniques and how and where to get a job.

Subscribe and we’ll speak soon.

David

www.brit-immigration.com

That new job

So are you losing your job? Did you take up that job and career when you didn’t really want to do that in the first place? Perhaps you were pushed into the job you may be about to lose. What do you think? Don’t ask me – I don’t know all the answers – hey I don’t even know all the questions.

But seriously, if your job is about to grind to a sudden halt through the effects of the current recession, is it time to re-evaluate where you are with your life and a potential new job and is it time to consider a life changing leap in the dark.

Maybe it is time to dream.

Do you dare to dream

So re-cast your dream, do some soul searching and dream afresh. This may be the time for you to look at your life, your job and your career completely afresh. Often, as one door closes another opens. Introspection may help find answers to the gaps that lie between what you aspire to do, vis-à-vis capabilities needed to succeed. The most important thing is to translate that dream (or those dreams) into reality and hence setting a goal to make it happen is an essential first step.

Capability can often be scaled up and redirected with little investment and high commitment into retraining. Maybe it’s just a case of getting another job or trying harder to keep the job that you have at the moment, in which case take a look at Working and Employment.

Perhaps after you have searched the depths you feel the need for total adventure as well as the redirection … ever thought about emigrating to a different country ….. perhaps its worth taking a look at Come to the UK for some inspiration.

Let your mind wander.

Don’t forget that Steve Jobs came back to The Apple Corporation and his wandering mind led to a disruptive innovation known all over the world as the IPOD which is a runaway success in personal entertainment systems.

Our jobs and careers will be subject to waves and troughs due to external and internal factors, and hence a set of achievable actions blending short term needs and long term goals can help mitigate our problems and must be kept in mind.

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David

Losing your job and getting a job.

You may be in the process of losing your job or you may have already lost it, perhaps you just didn’t have one to start with. Whichever it is, make sure that it is only your job that you might lose.

Our basic instincts are predatory, it is vitally important therefore that we retain a sense of accomplishment. So engaging in activities that drain you both emotionally and physically if you are not in a job is a way of staying on top of your game. Many many people seem to give up and lose sight of the things that are important – they lose their job - they lose the plot – they will find an excuse for not trying, they take the opportunity of sleeping-in late and eventually don’t even bother to get themselves out of bed in the morning to even try to find a job.

Guess what they end up doing, they join the ranks of the long- term unemployed and drown in their own sorrow. And the longer it becomes since they had a job then the more difficult it is to get a new job.

So we must keep this sense of accomplishment, no matter whether it is big or small because it helps to restore the lost pride that people feel when thrown out of work.

Have a go at trying this bedroom game, use it as a booster. Waking up to a new morning and looking at a new day is invigorating. Small milestones need to be established for the day so that one can get a sense of achievement even if it is apparently trivial. Every morning look in the mirror – see yourself as others may see you. In amongst the ‘others’ think about how a potential employer would see you

Use your hobbies to retain this sense of achievement, you have the time so if, for example, you like photography then get out there and use your camera, if you climb rocks then do some rock climbing.

Do what you like.

Only people can help other people, so keep connected with people close to you – friends, relatives, your office network and social network. People help people, and self help is the best help.

Losing a job does not necessarily mean losing an acquaintance. While, normal human tendency is to shun failures, these are unpredictable times and hence some sane mind and kind heart might reach out to help. All good salespeople know, businesses close deals and orders by asking for the deal and not sat quietly in a dark corner assuming that the deal will just happen. So reaching out and asking for help is the best option to find a new job, or to get a good reference from your old job.

For more information and help getting a job, take a look at Working and Employment in UK , it's a mine of information about getting a job and although it's aimed mainly at people coming into the UK to work and get a job, the principles are just the same and they work all over the world.

Try it .. you may be surprised.

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David

Jobs and more jobs. Working and employment

The Job losses

With so many jobs being lost so far this year including jobs around the world and jobs in this country, jobs in your street and perhaps jobs in your family and household and we are only 4 weeks in.

So many people are desperately struggling to save their job while others are going through emotional turmoil, financial distress, breaking relationships and staring at a bleak future trying to get a new job.

It's the P45 form in the UK and the "Pink Slip" as it’s known in some other countries is being issued faster than anyone could ever imagine and so many jobs are disappearing fast.

Many people will just weather the storm, others will emerge from this recession stronger and evolved and others will survive and thrive but many will not.

If it’s going to happen, then it’s going to happen and you might as well accept it gracefully. The boss doesn’t really want to fire anyone, it’s usually a case of being forced to make people in the workforce redundant or the whole organisation will go under. Sometimes the business owner, whilst trying to survive in a recession will not be drastic enough when it comes to letting people go but when recession hits, employees always feel that they are being hit the hardest. They often have the impression that businesses feel that employees are a resource that can be dispensed with in times of crisis.

Whatever you do, do not fall out with the boss over it.... do not make an enemy ....you may need a reference from the guy in the future or when we come out of this recession you just might be offered your old job back again.

If you are loosing your job (or never had one to loose in the first place) You must move on from a position of disbelief to one of acceptance and this can help to reconcile you to what is happening. This is the hardest step and one that is so important to handling the drastic change that is unemployment.

There must be a change of mental attitude, you will slide into a discomfort zone but you must move into a new zone of comfort, a ‘can do’ attitude. It isn’t you or your performance in your job that has caused you this problem, it is global, it is national, it is regional. The problem isn’t you but the problem is affecting you.

You may well feel the need for a little help and Working and Employment in the UK may be just what you need and although this Ebook is aimed primarily at people coming to get work in the UK from overseas, the principles that it contains will help you as well, no matter what country you live in. Click the link and take a look. Nothing lost and everything to gain.

Losing your job will thrust you into a zone of fear, change and perceived discomfort. A baby is reluctant to stand upright and leave its comfort zone because of the pain, sacrifice and effort involved. However, due to compulsions and limited options there comes a point when the baby stretches to stand up right and with every successive effort the confidence grows and grows, leading to independence and walking.

The key to dealing with the fear of failure is taking one small step into that zone of discomfort and gradually building your new comfort zone. You can recover and you can recover well, be better, be stronger.

I think it was Henry Ford that said…

‘If you think you can …. and if you think you can’t ……… your right’.

Think about it!!
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Regards,
David

Jobs, job, jobs London, next jobs.

This blog is to help you get your next job, or even your next jobs.

This blog may also help you to keep the job, or jobs, that you already have.

Although we are based in the UK and we aim principally at UK jobs and jobs London, the principles apply all over the world and they will be especially useful if you intend coming to the UK to live, get a job and work.

Over the next few weeks this blog will discuss:

-Jobs, work and employment. How to approach getting the right job.

-Where to find a job.

-How best to apply for a job.

-CV’s tailored to the job

-Job interviews

-London Jobs

-Employment Laws

-Working conditions once you have a job

-Links to other sources of job information.

-A list of contacts to help you get your job.

The blogs will be in no particular order – just how they come …. but if you can’t wait that long then why not take a look at our website

Brit Immigration.com

where you can see our Ebook Working Employment in UK and instantly download it straight to your computer to give you the advantage in your job search.




Don’t forget, Knowledge is Power

That knowledge can be yours in minutes and downloaded directly to your computer.

There is no waiting for the mail to arrive in a few days – just click the link that we send you and you download the whole Ebook within minutes. You can use it on screen or print as many copies as you need.

Regards,

David Wheeler

Your UK Immigration Visa and Passport

Click below to visit our website.

UK Immigration Visa and Passport

Everything you need to know about United Kingdom immigration, the UK visa and the United Kingdom from the immigration viewpoint.

Brit-Information could be your passport to the United Kingdom.

Everything you need to know can be found in our series of Brit-Immigration Ebooks which can be downloaded straight to your computer within minutes and each one is packed with knowledge to help you come to the UK to live and work.

Even more important, the information contained in each Ebook – whether it is about immigration, a visa, living or working in the UK will save you money and give YOU an advantage.

Just some of the subjects covered include:

Come to the UK - UK immigration - this covers the whole lot.

Visas for the UK details – including the new UK Immigration Points System

Working employment and jobs in the UK. Every aspect of getting a job and working in the UK

Housing property in UK and other accomodation both to buy and to rent

Arrival Living in UK also Life in the United Kingdom What's it like here.

Car ownership in UK including driving licences, registration and insurance.

Driving advice for Britain All the details of UK roads, regulations and driving on the left.

Banking Money and finance in the UK including Credit

Welfare System Health Services the UK

Education System in the UK

And much more

To see the full range of Information Ebooks, visit our website at

http://www.brit-immigration.com/

I’ll be discussing each Ebook in this blog so subscribe now to get the updates.

Best regards,
David Wheeler

We stock are range of information ebooks.