Mark

Did you go anywhere you'd recommend? If anyone else has any recommendations for somewhere in Croatia mid-September for a week with an almost 2 year old, I'd love to hear them. By the lakes, or beaches, we don't mind... Thanks in advance.

I agree it's good however only yesterday I had to write a negative review about a rubbish tiler I got from there (not in ED). I'm going to have to touch up his poor work myself, but some of it is too hard for me to to fix, e.g. he used 2 different colours of grout, holes in the grout. He had 99% good feedback but I really don't get it, he was rushed, messy, tatty finishing etc but if you read the reviews you would have thought he was great. In hindsight I should have waited a month for the tiler my neighbour recommended to become available.

It's not just about the distance and being "fit", you need to open doors wider to get children out of car seats and reduce the risk of them running in front of moving cars by being closer to the storefront.

On for the financial guys and gals... Company is offering warrants at 1.5 euros, exercise price is 15 euros for 50% in 3rd year and 50% in 4th year. How to you begin to weigh up of they're worth it?

It's not the end of the world and it depends how much you want the property. If it'll cost you a ?1,000 to sort it out do you still want the property? However I see no reason why you can't ask the vendor to finish paying for the completion of the treatment. If it takes on average 2 or 3 seasons to eradicate it, ask the company how much that will cost and get that taken off the house price, or ask the vendor to pay the company and show you the receipt. The legal situation taken from https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=218 Buying and selling property Since 2013, the seller is required to state whether Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) is present on their property through a TA6 form - the property information form used for conveyancing. Your conveyancer or solicitor will be able to provide full legal advice, however, here is a summary: If you are buying, the presence of Japanese knotweed will be stated in the responses to the TA6 form. This often results in your mortgage lender requiring assurances that it will be eradicated before agreeing the funds. A management plan by a professional eradication company, backed by a transferable guarantee, is usually sufficient. It is most common for this plan to be provided by the seller before the purchase is completed Def. have a read of that article.

L16579 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I think there has been a lot of over pricing by the local > estate agents which hasn?t helped. I'll refer you to a classic EDF posts "Want to be an Estate Agent?" posted by MrBen http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?20,1379816 It's a favourite because 2 days later an estate agents came round to ours and did exactly that (except number 5 as we didn't use them).

Long shot. Years ago I bought a T-shirt that was from a company called Mandarin is good which I believe was based on Forest Hill Road. My t-shirt says Sports, Leisure and Fashion and I still wear it today, even though it's maybe 10 or 12 years old. I'd like to know what they're up to and if there's any of their t-shirts still around?

I know someone who reused a plastic bottle once, they re-filled it with tap water from their kitchen, and they're fine. I believe they've done it a few times since and are still fine, hydrated but fine. Will they ever learn?

Thought this might be of intetest... Should you fix your mortgage rate for 10 years? https://www.which.co.uk/news/2018/06/should-you-fix-your-mortgage-rate-for-10-years/ - Which?

If you're definitely going to stay in your house for the next 5 years, get the 5 year deal. If there's the possibility of moving out then consider the 2 year deal. You get more flexibility and more risk with a 2 but more stability with 5. Unfortunately the perfect decision requires a crystal ball, so make an informed decision now based on what you know now. Don't put much weighting on your predictions of Brexit, elections, house prices etc to make that decision as no one knows what they will do and no one knows what effect they'll have on your mortgage repayments in 3/4/5 years. Depending on the charge to get out of your 5 year mortgage early, it could still be cheaper to switch early - see here for an example https://www.moneysupermarket.com/money-made-easy/is-it-worth-paying-a-fee-to-get-out-of-your-mortgage/ but of course without that crystal ball you don't know what's going to be available in 3/4/5 years! A good broker will clarify your mortgage fees and charges.

Conveyancer might be cheaper but you'll get a better service with a solicitor (can only work for one side, must disclose any backhanders, probably has had more training/experience etc). If you can get a recommended solicitor then go for them over a conveyancer, you might pay a few hundred quid more but it's worth it. I would recommend Glazer Delmar on North Cross Road, they're not the cheapest solicitors but they are very, very good. If your vendor on in the chain is using a crap conveyancer then a good solicitor can help. I recently remortgaged and the mortgage company used Enact Conveyancing, they were utter rubbish and I even had to get compensation from them, the pointless delays they caused meant I was paying over the top on the mortgage. Do not use them, even though they might be cheap. You may find your purchase goes though smoothly and you end up thinking, I could have saved ???? using online cheap conveyancer but it's a gamble but as a first time buyer I think a solicitor would be best. Speak to 2 or 3 local solicitors, get a feel for them, recommendations if you can and choose one. These might be useful: https://hoa.org.uk/2018/04/questions-ask-conveyancing-solicitor/ (a useful website for you and your questions :-) ) http://www.firsttimebuyermag.com/top-8-questions-first-time-buyers-ask-their-solicitor/ https://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/top-questions-homebuyers-ask-solicitor-buying-new-home and good old Martin Lewis https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/house-buying-guide

Hi Having been staying at a friend's house 2 weeks ago and burglars crept around as we slept, then our neighbour's car was stolen (to order) whilst she walked her dog on Sunday I've just installed a camera, this one http://amzn.eu/0fPqNEu After both incidents one of the first things asked by the police is "do you have cctv"? So, does it act as a deterrent to burglary or not. I don't know yet but this seems to say yes: Do burglar alarms and CCTV work? Burglar secrets revealed https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/burglar-alarms-and-home-security/article/burglar-alarms-and-home-security/do-burglar-alarms-and-cctv-work-burglar-secrets-revealed We asked what puts burglars off, and the top five things were: 71% having an alarm system 71% having a dog in the home 52% people in the property 46% CCTV 21% outdoor/sensor lights They don't always over their faces, it's too obvious they're up to no good to a passer-by. If you can hide the camera (but then it's not a deterrent) and/or make it inaccessible then all the better. The one I have has a movement sensor so I get emailed a snapshot, and a video gets uploaded to the cloud for safe keeping. So if a burglar does rip it off the wall you can record them doing so. After a day I'm already bored of the emails showing me a branch has moved in the wind so I'm still playing with it. Quality is surprisingly good though but you do need to be a bit techy to set up the send-video-to-cloud bit. I'd never expect to capture someone in the act with it though, I'd have to be glued to the screen for that to happen.

What do those towns have in common? Why have you listed them and numerous others? Do they have extremists?

Stephen Yaxley-Lennon should be in prison because the judge said if you do that again you'll go to prison. He did it again ergo prison. Extremism is a problem that needs to be tackled, I don't think anyone in this bubble can disagree with that. I don't like extremism and those videos are uncomfortable watching but I personally wouldn't attend a court hearing of a paedophile catholic priest to jeopardise justice or tar all catholics with the same peodophile brush. One of my form tutors from school is currently in prison for abusing children, doesn't mean all form tutors are abusers. The point is it's good to see where the line is drawn between the extremists, the one offs, the group within the group (the "clique" if you will) etc. If you don't understand minority group xyz it's easy to just say all xyz's are a bunch of cunts and persecute all of them. Some of them, the extremists, can well be cunts but I'd suggest getting the rest of the xyz's on side to help get rid of them. Pushing the good ones away is a bad thing.

No Ollie, Louisa is special, please give her that. It doesn't matter that it's a gathering of young Londoners from different races and cultures identifying in friendly environment brought together by awesome music. It's a chance for Louisa to showboat on the forum, just wait for the c word to raise its head. ETA: I've seen Norman Jay MBE a few times, fantastic DJ, well worth seeing and hearing. OMG! There's Jazz in Dulwich Village at Belair House in June http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?6,1938087. Take Aim!

double drop a disco biscuit...

Louisa Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > They should consult the local community before putting > this loud, messy event on, IMO. Lee Scoresby Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Some months ago residents near Peckham Rye Park were sent > forms from Southwark Council, informing them of an upcoming > commercial event in the park. And please do let us into your time machine that shows it's going to be messy, and be posh out of towners blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah zzzzzzzzzzzz Anyway, I hear Horse Meat Disco are particularly good this time of year.

I'm trying to read between Lee's vitriolic spittle soaked lines here, is the fence actually different to the map? And how exactly are security aggressively patrolling the site? Depending on your hearing filter one man's "excuse me please can you mind out whilst this vehicle comes through" is another's "get out the way you scumbag so this tank can run over the common land that your taxes pay for". I have to say the line up looks awesome: Scruff, Norman Jay, Carter and Wilson!

Just to clarify, your broker will charge a fee, it just depends if you pay it or the lender pays it. So if you find a better deal than your broker don't use them and so don't pay them.

They will all charge a fee Some brokers charge a straight fee which might be offset by the mortgage e.g. if you bought it direct the mortgage would cost your ?100,500 but if you bought it through broker it would cost ?100,000 + ?500 broker fee Most have access to a system that searches mortgages, a bit like a comparison engine, I believe they don't get commission but they legally have to tell you how they get paid. I'm not sure of the limitations of their systems but I'd suggest you do a search with a comparison site* however they maybe limited as they are based on commission. A good broker will tell you things like "if it's a buy to let mortgage get one with a mortgage arrangement fee, you can offset that charge as an expense". Of course this depends on your individual circumstances. Recently I found my best mortgage online, then checked with my broker and he came back with the same one at the same price so I did it through him anyway. *Always read https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/

Yes, ours was worth it and have now used him for about 15 years with remortgages, moving house etc. http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?30,1775047 His charge has varied over the years but he's alway up front about it (he has to legally I think). It's not just the cash but as SpringTime says it's also the hassle, when you're buying your first place you need someone to help take the hassle(s) away.

I seem to have a large amount of 2010 photos too https://photos.app.goo.gl/arvkA1yahTU2D62C2 (quite a few duplicates)

Just to back up what singalto says... Friend were burgled and didn't realise that had also stolen the spare patio door keys that were sat in a draw. A month or so later after the insurance had replaced all their stolen items, they were revisited with no forced entry needed second time around.

Ditto the above James, I only hope your succesor will put in the same or more (if that's possible) of the effort you have over the years. Good luck and thanks for creating undoubtedly the most constructive and useful thread to the community on the East Dulwich Forum. PS please let Admin know if you want the thread locked so the new kids on the block can start their own, as it's not possible to change ownership of threads.

Do you find it offensive in that context? I didn't