Homes & Gardens

Common Home Maintenance Mistakes to Avoid

Every homeowner needs to know basic maintenance that will help them keep their home in the best condition, but this is an area many struggle with. Keeping on top of maintenance can help prevent small issues from erupting into large, disruptive, and expensive issues, so it is vital that you know how to keep your property in good condition. There are a few common mistakes that homeowners make when it comes to maintenance, which can lead to disruptive issues and expensive repairs/replacements. With this in mind, this post will take a look at a few of the most common mistakes and how they can...

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App holds key to success for students

A team of Exeter students have reached the final four of an international competition, designed to showcase technological innovation.

The Computer Science undergraduates devised a ground-breaking home security system, which allows doors to be locked and unlocked via a normal mobile phone.

The four-strong team of Matthew Gilbert, Joshua Holmes, George Young and Ashleigh Udoh were one of around 20 university teams from across the UK and the US to enter the Project Arduino competition organised by Thales, a leading engineering and technology company.

They are now one...

Everys champions Exchange Ready for new-build buyers

Everys Solicitors has pledged to help ease the buying process of new-build properties with its Exchange Ready package.

Everys’ Exchange Ready service makes sure all the paperwork is prepared in a timely way to meet tight deadlines, such as those imposed by new-build developers.

Property conveyancing solicitor Anju Newcombe said: “We have been using Exchange Ready very successfully to help speed up the process once our clients have found a buyer for their property. This allows them to be prepared with all the key documentation in place to be sent immediately to the buyer’s...

Heating systems advice at RGB Exeter

As the weather continues to be cold, wet and wintery, RGB Building Supplies is urging the local community to ensure that their boiler is fully maintained so that their heating and hot water systems are working to their optimum.

To enable customers to find out more information about the importance of maintaining a boiler, and how the correct boiler can help to cut energy costs, they are holding a free event on Thursday 12th February between 12.30pm and 4.30pm at their Exeter branch.

Experts from Grant UK, one of the country’s leading heating experts, will be on hand to talk...

Hybrid estate agency launches in South West

Purplebricks.com, the modern model of estate agency, has launched in the South West following successful roll outs across the Meridian and Central regions of the UK. The transparent estate agent combines the expertise of a Local Property Expert with a unique, 24/7, online platform at a fraction of the cost charged by high street estate agents. Since its initial launch in April 2014, Purplebricks.com has sold over 1,000 properties and saved consumers over £1.2 million in estate agency fees, with 99% of all properties sold securing the asking price or more. With 25,442 properties currently...

Register your appliances for a safer home

Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service are encouraging you to ‘Register my appliance’ so your home is safer.

Did you know that only 36% of consumers register all of their large domestic appliances? This leaves thousands off the radar if a recall is required.

New research reveals just over a third of British purchasers currently register all of their appliances with the manufacturer, leaving many thousands of owners virtually untraceable if a safety repair is required.

To combat this, the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances (AMDEA) is today...

Stamp Duty optimism boosts demand for houses in SW

House prices and the number of potential new buyers in the South West rose in December, bucking the general trend across most other parts of the UK, according to the latest RICS Residential Market Survey.

In the region new buyer enquiries turned positive, with 23% more chartered surveyors seeing an increase in December 2014. 22% more respondents in the South West are also seeing prices continue to rise.

Across the UK as a whole, 10% more surveyors saw the number of potential new buyers decrease in December 2014 and London saw the weakest demand with 45% more surveyors...

Free firewood at Donkey Sanctuary

The Donkey Sanctuary, Sidmouth has teamed up with local woodland co-operative AxeWoods to offer local people the chance to collect free firewood for a limited period this month.

Recent coppicing operations at one of The Donkey Sanctuary’s farms in Sidmouth have produced a large volume of willow that the charity is offering to local people to collect for firewood on key dates at the end of January.

Events and Wildlife Manager for The Donkey Sanctuary, James Chubb, explains: “After coppicing an area of our willow beds we’ve now got a great stack of wood that we’d like to...

Get mortgage fit with Barratt in 2015

As 2015 gets underway attention moves to a new home for the new year, five star housebuilder Barratt, which has a number of developments in Exeter, is urging homebuyers to get mortgage fit now to secure the best mortgage deals available.

Changes brought in in 2014 under the Mortgage Market Review have caught some buyers unaware but by being proactive and following a series of simple practical steps, potential housebuyers can make themselves more attractive to mortgage providers and that means not only getting a mortgage but getting a cheaper rate as well.

Barratt managing...

Warning over e-cig charger fire dangers

Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service are warning people not to leave e-cigarettes on charge for long periods.

Marc House, Community Safety Prevention Manager said: "Our advice for e-cigarettes is the same as for many smaller electrical appliances such as mobile phones and laptops - don’t be tempted to buy cheap unbranded chargers, don’t leave them to charge whilst you are out of the house or asleep and keep them well away from flammable materials.”

Advice has been issued nationally to e-cigarette users after reports of several devices exploding while charging,...

Private house building fuels growth in SW

Construction workloads increased in the South West in the final quarter of 2014, albeit at a slightly slower rate, and private housing saw the strongest growth despite the shortage of bricklayers reaching a record high.

Over a third (36% net balance) reported that workloads in the construction sector had grown in the region in Q4 2014 with 57% more respondents saying that the private housing sector was fuelling the greatest growth, followed by the private commercial sector (48%).

Around 60% of respondents across the UK reported that material shortages, skill shortages and...

Homes & Gardens

Common Home Maintenance Mistakes to Avoid

App holds key to success for students

Everys champions Exchange Ready for new-build buyers

Heating systems advice at RGB Exeter

Hybrid estate agency launches in South West

Register your appliances for a safer home

Stamp Duty optimism boosts demand for houses in SW

Free firewood at Donkey Sanctuary

Get mortgage fit with Barratt in 2015

Warning over e-cig charger fire dangers

Private house building fuels growth in SW

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