strae

Congratulations James.

I live nearby and always take it really slow as I exit that turn onto Adys. The lack of visibility as you make the turn is another hazard to negotiate. What I do find amazing is that oncoming traffic on Adys (particularly cars coming from Goose Green end) regularly get belligerent as I pull out, even if it is only to then immediately hug the curb so that priority traffic can proceed. The issue seems to be that they feel it's their right of way (which it is) and that therefore unless one is able to pull out using some kind of advanced driving manouevre, no gap in traffic is wide enough to accomodate pulling out without somehow inconveniencing them... kford Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > david_carnell Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > The thing is, if vehicles are being driven so > > carelessly I'm rather glad the bollard is there > > rather than it being a person getting swiped. > > > As I said earlier, pedestrians wouldn't be hit if > the pavement was left how the Victorians designed > it. They'd be on the original pavement, rather > than a build-out and cars would be able to > negotiate it, like every other corner in the area. > > > It's poor design, pure and simple, and the bollard > is a problem put there to solve another problem, > at our expense.

We had one installed in our old place which we miss terribly in our new place which is gas. The key + points for us in addition to what folks have already said are: - Safety - especially for children - Ease of cleaning - spills and splats wipe off and don't bake in - Appliances don't heat up the way they do on a gas hob because there is no indirect heat from the flames, so handles etc are cool to touch and you don't get accidentally singed... In terms of brands, FWIW: Bosch, Neff, Siemens and Gaggenau all come out of the same manufacturing plant, so functionally and reliability wise they are very similar with key differences being styling and incremental gadgets. Gaggenau makes beautiful kitchen equipmenbt, but I am pretty 20 secs on high is the same accross all the brands... Good luck!

In a similar vein: Let's start a petition for a giant perspex cloche to descend on ED to preserve the way of life we know and love. They are currently on special on Rumplestiltskin.com unlurked Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > As have clearly stated in the Ooh a new cinema is > coming thread with local libdem politicos in > league with private chain businesses, eg the > cinema, M&S etc, the green light has been given to > all chains to turn LL into a dross filled flat > pack high street shopping precint to remove choice > and line pockets of huge environment destroying > fat cat companies. You got what your short > sightedness wanted.

Agreed - Oliver, Tom, Domininc, Ayesha all excellent. Our purchase would not have happened as speedily without their intervention.

Actually AF, I find it much easier to form opinions without the benefit of having seen the applications. I leave it to more diligent citizens of the EDF to argue points of detail - I will stick to being outraged on principle. Arthur Facksake Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > strae Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > > > > Suspect they have also forgotten about a > > pedestrian barrier / cattle grid to ensure that > > offending patrons (e.g. old people and young > > children) emerging from the darkness of the > cinema > > into the light of the street are prevented from > > causing unnecessary traffic disruptions. > > > Actually if you'd bothered to visit the > presentation or view the photo of the proposed > scheme posted above you'll see the pedestrian > barriers which are already there will stay, > probably for the exact reason you've stated.

I take back what I said about thoughtful process - agree with unlurked that lice is a big problem, and disappointed that there was no provision for anti-lice upholstery in the planning application. Suspect they have also forgotten about a pedestrian barrier / cattle grid to ensure that offending patrons (e.g. old people and young children) emerging from the darkness of the cinema into the light of the street are prevented from causing unnecessary traffic disruptions. I vote for Lord of the Flies.

Such great news and so happy that they have taken time and been thoughtful about the process... Worth celebrating when something is done right I think!

Seems we have a few posters on this thread who are calling a bubble and awaiting the day of reckoning. How did this group make out in 2007/08? Did you all pounce and buy your dream homes for a fraction of the price? I am not sure I know of anyone in London who: 1. Was forced to sell at the bottom (negative equity maybe, but mortgage payments much lower than rents definitely) 2. Whose house is now not worth more in absolute number of pounds since then 3. Whose historical mortgage is not "cheaper" relative to current offers I do know a few people who were renting, and sitting on a deposit for a house patiently waiting for the crash, who then found themselves facing: 1. A market with fewer homes for sale that were actually desirable (i.e. buy to let stock not the same as family house) 2. Much more difficult and expensive mortgage market 3. Devaluation of their savings due to inflation being higher than savings interest rates I was one of them. Thx to QE/BoE, patient/risk-averse savers didn't exactly do well and its hard to make the case that aggressive risky behaviour was punished. At least not in London. Why do we think it's going to be any different?

Amusingly, the 2 houses you point out are right next to each other and exchanged one day apart! motorbird83 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > DaveR Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > BTW, has anybody actually paid ?1 million yet > for > > a 'normal' ED house? > > Yep: > > http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatc > hing.html?prop=42438371&sale=50402987&country=engl > and > http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatc > hing.html?prop=39909598&sale=50172515&country=engl > and > > This last one is also pretty close and given these > properties would have gone under offer back in > late summer, I imagine many extended 4-bed > terraces could now fetch ?1m > > http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatc > hing.html?prop=40926643&sale=50668643&country=engl > and

We should remember that in 2007 the pound peaked at 2.1 USD to 1 GBP and we are currently at 1.67. The story vs the Euro is very similar. So 1 pound today is worth roughly c. 80p in 2007 pounds in an international spending context. In the mean time, UK inflation (as measured by RPI) has been c. 23% in total (not per annum), between 2007 and today. If you wanted to measure it via CPI, inflation has been c. 21% over that time. So 1 pound today is worth roughly only 80p in 2007 pounds in a domestic spending context. So from the context of an "international" buyer, London today is STILL 20% cheaper than 2007 (purely from currency perspective). And for "local" buyers, house prices would need to be c. 20% higher just to have kept up with inflation. And despite all that, it's not clear that taken as a whole London house prices have actually done all that well. According to the Halifax London House Price Index (seasonally adjusted), the peak was 810.6 in September 2007. The latest reading for Dec 2013 is 778.8 (so just in London, according to this one index, we are still 4% below the peak in 2007). The problem with indices (not saying this one in particular) is that they mask a multitude of specifics. As an extreme example, House A may have gone up by 100%, house B has stayed unchanged, while house C could have halved in value. And if we equallly weight all three, then the average change is an increase of 17%, which tells you nothing useful about how the price of any of those 3 houses has performed. The boffins that calculate the indices try their best to adjust for this, but the principle of the average not being especially helpful about the specific remains true to some degree. Yes - houses in ED are changing hands for more pounds than ever before. But those pounds are also worth less in real spending power. This isn't breaking news. But certainly you can see why our politicians are not keen to point it out, because no one wants to be associated with the great loss of value that has otherwisely stealthily taken place, and not when the prospect of housing riches makes the average punter go out and spend more. Perhaps I am cynic. Perhaps another ?4 coffee will cheer me up. rahrahrah Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I keep hearing how (in some areas) prices still > haven't returned to 07 prices. But surely that's a > good thing? 2007 was the last time that the market > was dangerously overheated. > > DaveR Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > In particular, in much of the UK (and in > > many parts of Greater London) prices remain > flat > > and have not returned to 07 prices

Since the advent of discount / loss-leading booze by our favourite all-conquering supermarkets, pubs have been on a hiding to oblivion. The only ways for pubs to stay economic has been to do some combination of: serving food at better margins / opening for longer / charging for entertainment / increasing drink margins. I think the Flying Pig is great because it offers a rotating range of beers I've never heard of, and will let me try 3 or 4 thimblefuls before making a choice. I also happen to like the food. The prices cannot be described as cheap, but I think they are reasonable given the cost associated with providing such a selection. Having said this, it most certainly does not offer a cheaper way to drink generic beer I could otherwise buy in a supermarket. Personally, I am happy that it has chosen to do the former rather than the latter. Jeremy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > DulwichFox Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Some over priced. > > Maybe. Certainly some of the beers are expensive. > But not convinced they're overpriced unless you > can find the same beers in London for > significantly cheaper.

Further to Jeremy's suggestion there is also the Gowlett Pub around the corner if you are worried about back-up options A proper neighbourhood boozer with the added benefit of seriously good, wood-fired pizzas! mancity68 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I'm thinking of pPopping in for first time on > Friday night. Does it get very busy? I know they > don't take bookings and I don't want to walk all > the way there and find out there's no table > (taking aged relative). > > Thanks

I rate it. Food is tex-mex inspired with emphasis on barbecue (American-style, so lots of smoked, charred flavours) but you also find things like soft shell crab quinoa salad (go figure!). I actually think the menu is excellent because you have all your "bar food" standards like buffalo wings, nachos, burgers and they're all done well, made from fresh ingredients but there are also "adventurous" options like the aforementioned salad. The beer selection is very good too - I find the rotation (when a particular beer is gone, its really gone) a nice incentive to check from time to time. The place is family friendly on weekends esp at lunch - at dinner time, the crowd is definitely more adult/grown up. Worth a try and offers something different to EDT and other spots of LL. shelly2012 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Can any one recommend or tell me what it's like > please

Very nice indeed!

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-40772164.html?premiumA=true 1 bedroom flat in Battersea - a snip at ?830k. Relative to this, ED is not even on the radar...

Otta Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Just had to the call to say I've completed on our > flat in Penge. So I am now the proud owner of a > whopping 7% of a property. And whilst it may not > be the home I always dreamt of buying (actually > I've never really dreamt about buying a home), I > do feel very fortunate to be in this position. > > And I'm a 10 minute walk from McDonald's! ;-) I look forward to the inevitable article touting Penge as the new hot spot! Shortly followed by the also likely inevitable post about on these forums about how Penge is just not quite what it was! Jokes aside, congratulations and well done!

lane lover Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Estate Agents are the lowest form of living > creature. > > http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/Estate_Agent They do have a bad reputation, some of which is deserved. I think the fact that it is a role that is potentially very lucrative per unit time, requires very little in the way of formal qualifications and is for the most part unregulated means that it attracts a certain type of personality. I suspect very few people decide to be estate agents to serve a higher purpose or to fulfill a moral calling. These are folks who are looking to make a money without having to jump through too many hoops beforehand or incur much risk in the process. And in hot markets like these ones, their ranks swell with temps, dilletantes, chancers and punters who smell a quick profit. Add to this the fact that in all likelihood, your interaction with any agent will be a one-off and therefore there is no incentive for them to be well behaved because they know they will likely never have to deal with you again! There are lots of exceptions of course and I have had the pleasure of dealing with both good and bad 'uns. Fair to say that when they are good, they can be very good. But when they are bad... oh boy.... But as newboots and simonethebeaver point out - in the end it's sellers and buyers and the nature of the transaction that provides the setting / opportunity for bad behaviour. Clearly some people are downright nasty and estate agents can either be unfortunate scapegoats or willing accomplices to that bad behaviour....

red devil Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > LondonMix Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > I think that's what strae was saying. That its > > the system rather than the individual agents, > > sellers or buyers that is flawed... I tend to > > agree > > strae referred to the UK, it's not a UK wide > problem... My apologies - and thank you for pointing that out. Quite topical given current discussions re Scottish independence...

Not to be unsympathethic, but isn't the issue here that conveyancing actually happens a long time after initial offer and acceptance in the UK. For every story of gazumping, there is probably another of so-called cash buyers who turn out to rich in gumption but poor in funds, or buyers who change their mind when a better house gets listed etc... Nothing means anything until exchange. And since for most transactions that is a good few months from the initial frenzied bid-offer, buyers are exposed in rising markets and sellers are exposed in falling markets. There was a call to reform this a while back during the previous boom in 2008 and it died a slow lingering death of 1,000 apathetic cuts. Property owners could care less when prices are going up. In other markets, buyers need to be fully financed before submitting an offer (i.e. letter from bank stating ability to proceed etc) and sellers need to have a fully vetted info pack with all attendant representations (i.e. all planning permissions in place, all regulations complied with, all risks disclosed) so at the point that a buyer makes an offer and the seller agrees - the deed is done. Given the experience of 2008 (where agents and owners railed against even reduced scope HIPs), I think this is realistically never going to change in the UK. Makes the whole process rather stressful, but it seems that this is what people prefer.... And paradoxically, the euphoria of emerging from the gauntlet having successfully completed probably adds to the willingness to both do it again and perpetrate it unto others...

powercow Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > We sold our house in East Dulwich last summer and > reached a record high figure for our road, which > came as a complete shock to us (bonkers price!). > The agents we seriously considered using were > Acorn, Foxtons and Winkworth. In the end we > dismissed Acorn because they didn't have enough > similar properties on their books and Foxtons > because they won't negotiate on their fees (2.5%), > whereas other agents would (we ended up paying > 1%). And I liked Ollie at Winkworth. > > Winkworth were brilliant. We had a buyer within > 10 days. Although different staff did viewings, > they were all gen'ed up on the property, features, > selling points etc. A particular shout for > Ayesha, who ended up being the person who ensured > the completion went through on the agreed date. > When our buyers were being slow and there were > issues with the top end of the chain, she was the > only one (out of all the agents and solicitors > involved) to take control. > > (We bought our new house through Harvey and > Wheeler...the words "chocolate" and "teapot" come > to mind). To second Powercow, I think our purchase would have fallen through if Ayesha had not taken it by scruff of neck. Yes, we can't claim we got a bargain by any means (so they earned their fee I'm sure) but also, quite frankly there were lots of points in the transaction where we were ready to give up and she talked us back from the edge...

FWIW, the planning site provides a list of all the neighbouring properties consulted, so if anyone feels they should have been consulted, but have not received a letter, you should be able to cross check to the list. And as Londonmix has pointed out, anyone else is free to submit their views too.

James Barber Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Yes LondonMix. Department of Health so painful > (excuse the uninended pun) that we've had to find > alternative sites. > First permanent one found, just need to find > second permanent site. > > Saying that I still hope the temporory Primary > school site will be the Dulwich Hospital. Thanks for the update James. Against the realm of possible outcomes, the fact that this will become a school is great, all things considered.

monica Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > From a buyers point of view, do try Winkworth > SE22. I bought my property with the team and had > a lovely experience. Dominic Barry and Oliver were > amazing. > Peddar were also very helpful. > Good Luck Would agree with Monica about Dominic and Oliver. The team in general at the LL branch were all a pleasure to deal with.

???? Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Saila and DaveR touch on something as important in > the price rises. From the 40s to the 80s, even > into the 90s the overall trend was for most middle > class people (infact most people) to aspire to > move away from inner city London, the ideal was to > move out. It's a simplification of course but it > was the underlying aspiration for many. In the 90s > suddenly City life became seen as more hip again, > there were more singles, people not getting > married as early, the emergence of a more > confident and out gay culture (which is pretty > city focussed; inner city infrastructure and life > had a linked rennaisance. I also think that > changes in the work place including more woman, > including mum's, in full time 'career' type jobs > and dad's actually wanting (or being > allowed/expecting) to see and help with their kids > than in the past combined with job pressure > meaning longer hours at work meant that commuting > longer distances looked more impratical/infexible. > So many of us embrace the urban - with smaller > more expensive living rather than the beefeater > and golf course life. The return of the city being > popular for families again has driven prices; > educational improvement; and gentrification of the > inner city. > > and MickMack wrote: ----------------------------------------------- As regards, being out of reach of most people - "most" people don't set the prices, the prices we see are set by those who can afford to move and actually do move. I'm not one of those. If everyone was moving, the prices would reflect what everyone can afford to pay. The trouble is that the people who can't afford to move are looking at prices set by those who can, and there is obviously going to be a mis-match. __________________________ Completely agree with both views: - ED is nothing special, no more or less outrageous than other similar areas in London - "Similar" meaning: Victorian housing stock, village feel, proximity to schools and green spaces, transport into town - "Above" market percentage price increases in ED are simply a catch-up, comparing to Clapham, Wandsworth etc (and without even needing to go North) ED is still less expensive and sadly probably has room to rise further (check out house prices in the above and you will see what I mean), provided that the folks who buy in Clapham are ultimately the same type of folks who would buy in ED... - Re ????'s observation, commuter villages have not experienced the same level of increase, despite arguably benefitting from the same economic drivers (low rates, London economy) probably at least partly because of the change in living patterns you describe: living in family-friendly zone 1-3 London is now more attractive for the average family than it was previously. On another note, wanted to make a counter-factual argument which I think is seldom made on these forums: 1. We have lots of people who long for the sepia-toned past where we are told ED was in its heyday (for newcomers like me, understand this completely but honestly hard for us to relate to because we simply weren't there) 2. Lots of people who wish prices were more affordable in ED (me too, and this is up there on my list along with wealthier, taller and more attractive to both sexes, this is 2014 after all, why shouldn't we have it all?) But imagine the scenario where ED was not participating in what is otherwise a London wide phenomenon? One that saw Peckham and Brixton house prices rocket away while ED languished... Would folks in camps 1 and 2 still be pleased then? Because clearly if that were true, we'd probably have bigger problems to worry about than rising houses prices... Not suggesting that the answer is that we all stop worrying and learn to love the Bubble - just saying other side /= greener grass.