Latest Homes magazine

Local lettings company Young Lee celebrates ten years at the top of the game.

On Saturday 19 November local lettings company Young Lee announced they were celebrating ten years successfully trading in the Brighton and Hove property market and beyond. Established in 2001, business partners Susan Gray and Juliette Smith set up in an office in Wilbury Grove. Both had extensive knowledge of the lettings industry and many years’ experience. Before too long their business grew and they expanded into prestigious offices at the heart of Seven Dials, one of Brighton’s most desirable residential quarters. Read the rest of this article »

Mad about the pad

You can call it a flat, you can call it an apartment, you can call it what you will – but we are going to call this property a pad. Read the rest of this article »

Andrew Kay it will come as no surprise, is living in a parallel universe

In a previous existence many years ago part of my job was to art direct book covers for science fiction. I made the immediate mistake of referring to them as sci-fi but the chief editor of the genre Malcolm soon put me right. “Sci-fi is film,” he announced ,“we call it SF, pronounced ess eff.” I resisted the urge to tell him to ess eff off. Read the rest of this article »

Malone tries to find a way with words

The school is giving my child extra help with her reading. I’m not surprised as she refuses to be encouraged to read or even play any reading games with me. I thought perhaps she had an instinctive reaction to dismiss any games that are educational. But then I downloaded a maths game with monkeys in it, and now I can never get on my computer! Read the rest of this article »

Richard Hearn writes a letter to Noddy

Dear Noddy, as much as I admire your positive approach to life – when we bought your branded slippers in France it turned out you were known by your catchphrase “Oui! Oui!” – I would like to inform you that I feel the need to point out some aspects of your lifestyle with which I disagree. These are itemised below.
Point one: You are a taxi driver, but you appear to live in a place no bigger than a village. (Yes, I know it is known as Toy Town, but the frequency with which you bump into people makes me think it really counts more as a village.) I feel your reliance on vehicles isn’t environmentally friendly. You also appear to have a plane, which you sometimes use to simply fly above the your own town/village. Read the rest of this article »

Robert Nemeth reports on the MCHA awards

This year’s Montpelier & Clifton Hill Association (MCHA) awards ceremony was a most pleasant occasion – but something rather important was sadly missing.
The MCHA covers one of Brighton’s most desirable districts, the Montpelier & Clifton Hill Conservation Area between Western Road and Seven Dials. Each year, the Association is supposed to presents a blue plate to the winner of the awards’ residential category. Read the rest of this article »

The Landlady finds a damp outlook

It is quite unbelievable that it should happen again, but Katy and I are experiencing problems with our tenants in Hastings. They have not paid their rent for two months and when challenged by the letting agent claimed that the front wall in the living room is damp. I am fully aware of this problem, have spent the earlier part of this year organising the rectification of it and have had to let the wall dry out before it can be re-plastered. The tenants are au fait with all this, yet are using it as a flimsy excuse not to pay their rent. I am going over to Hastings today to show the decorators what they have to do and am not looking forward to having a contretemps with the tenants. They are claiming housing benefit for the property and, rather than paying the money directly to the letting agent, the council are paying it directly to the tenant. At least with our old difficult tenant, the council were paying us rent during the whole time our tenant was systematically deconstructing our flat… Read the rest of this article »

Perfectly formed homes as first steps on the ladder or personal boltholes

A studio is a home perfectly built for one, in that’s it’s easy to maintain and manage and can still include some of your favourite architectural features, whether that’s coving or a fireplace or even a garden. And it’s affordable. As a first step on the property ladder – either to live in or as an investment, studios and bedsits make a lot of sense to start your journey into property. Read the rest of this article »

A big & beautifully modernised home with uninterruped sea views from Hamptons

Having recently been upgraded, this three storey four bedroom house lies directly on the Kingsway with uninterrupted sea and coastal views.

• Completely refurbished semi-detached house • Contemporary kitchen/breakfast room • First floor terrace with sea views • Private parking • Coastal views • 4 bedrooms

James Mason from accountants Fifth Element talks straight about business

How good are your business records?

The taxman’s ‘Business Records Check’ scheme steps up a gear…

HMRC’s initial findings in respect of their ongoing Business Records Check pilot scheme reveals that 44 per cent of businesses have issues with their record keeping and 12 per cent have seriously inadequate records. Fines could be as much as £3,000 and HMRC is planning on making 20,000 spot check visits during the 2012/13 tax year. This is what you need to know. Read the rest of this article »