Saturday, March 23, 2013

The London International Ska Festival 2013

The London International Ska Festival 2013 from 28th to 31st Mar 2013 includes a star-studded line-up of Ska performing bands and DJs.

Ska, the music genre that blends facets of Calypso and Caribbean Mento amid American jazz and rhythm & blues, is all set to be celebrated yet again in this four-day long festival - The London International Ska Festival 2013. Rejoicing the essence of Ska, this year marks the 25th anniversary of the London International Ska Festival and features over 40 acts to be performed across various venues in London.

As per music enthusiasts, Ska is typically categorised into three epochs - the First Wave original Jamaican from the 1960s, the Second Wave English 2 Tone Ska revival of the late 1970s, and the Third Wave ska movement, which occurred between 1980s and 1990s. Scheduled to take place on 28th, 29th, 30th and 31st Mar 2013 at Clapham Grand in Wandsworth, Clapham, the festival promises to bring another splash of Ska from all these eras like every year.

The star-studded line-up has a number of Jamaican legends spanning different eras of ska with names like The Sidewalk Doctors, Rico Rodriguez, Lynval Golding from The Specials, and USA Ska initiators The Toasters. Silver Musgrave award winner Rico will be performing his classic Man from Wareika album on Day 1 of festival at The Jazz Cafe, in Camden Town. Other performing Bands include Ken Boothe, Freddie Notes (Montego Bay), Owen Gray, Vin Gordon Aka Don Drummond Jnr, Pama International, Intensified, Buster Shuffle, The Sidewalk Doctors, and many more.

The audiences can expect music influenced by the original American rhythm and blues and The Specials 2 Tone era and Madness as well. This platter full of 60s Jamaica through to the 70s and 80s resurgence is sure to be a delight for Ska fanatics. Various DJs like Jerry Dammers (The Specials), Gladdy Wax, Ras Digby (Sir Jesus), Jumbo (Java Hi-Power), Metro & Eddie Regal (Metro Downbeat), Chris Peckings (Peckings Studio1 shop), Tighten Up Crew, etc. will add to the fun with their excellent music mixes.

The events at Clapham Grand include an exciting array of pop and dance evenings from the resident DJs, along with various glamour and comedy carnivals also taking place at the same venue. If you are attending the London International Ska Festival you could also check out these other ongoing performances to complete the fun element.

Reaching to the venue is convenient with the Clapham Junction Railway Station or Wandsworth Town Railway Station located only a short walk away. You could also take the underground to Clapham South Tube Station and Clapham Common Tube Station situated in close proximity.

Friday, March 22, 2013

What Should a Rental Property Look Like?

If you are out there in the market trying to let out your property, then you must have already decided what kind of tenants you are looking to hand over the keys to. Although typically a rental property should look attractive, well maintained, and presentable, but the decision largely depends upon target market segment for your property.

A studio apartment or a smaller unit of residence is more suitable for a bachelor (working or student) or a couple. So depending upon the size of your property and your preference, you can decorate your home to make it eye-catching for the market segment. For instance, a school student looking to renting an apartment in London may like something bright, beautiful and decorative. Whereas, if a family moves into a home, they would prefer neutrally decorated interiors so as to give a sophisticated look to the house. Anyhow, you should bear in mind that the overall appearance should be pleasing, neither too stark nor too dull.

When you want to let your property and put it up in the market, you are obviously looking for maximum rental amount from the property. But in order to make the most of a deal, it is therefore very important for you to pay attention to the overall rent potential of the house apart from just the count of bedrooms.

Apart from interior decoration, there are various other things that tenants like to see in their new home. For example, a smart newly done kitchen is quite an attraction for tenants. So you could consider investing into redoing the kitchen to increase the asking price. Also, nowadays majority of the home seekers are looking for a kitchen fitted with good quality appliances. So make sure you keep that in mind.

Even modern smart bathrooms are important to tenants of every age. Even if your property has 3 bedrooms and is located at a great spot, a shabby washroom could be a total put off for a prospective tenant. You need to pay special attention to kitchen and bathroom especially if you are letting an ex-council property which is usually not in a fancy condition. Also, the overall look and feel of a house includes the exteriors as well, which includes the external paint, window panes, garden, outdoor lighting, etc.

As such, there is a market for every kind of property to let but how much do you want to invest into the appearance of the property depends upon how much rental do you want to get from the property. The cleaner, well maintained and crisp the property, the higher are the chances for a quicker and more profitable rental.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Guide to Renting Flats or Apartments in London

London is one of the world’s most prominent commercial and cultural hubs. Finding flats for rent in London could be a huge hassle if one doesn’t know where to look. Often first time buyers land in to deals which they would much rather have avoided or find out after making it official that they’re not getting all that they had bargained for. Rent prices have soared in recent years and looking up a place in the city has become harder than it was ever before.

In the face of such rising monetary considerations and daunting financial restrictions a growing trend has emerged, particularly amongst young professionals, of flat sharing. Although finding London flats to rent would nominally be considered a rather easy thing to do considering the wide reach of the internet and the classifieds available on it. However, the reality is rather different.

The most important thing with regard to looking for rental flats in London is being assured of the authenticity of the offer. This goes for both - landlords and tenants. Given the huge number of confidence tricks and other scams which are devised by illicit companies and dubious letting agents, particularly on the internet, knowing ones way around the real estate scene of the city would require either good insight or good guidance.

This also goes for flat owners looking to rent London flats. In such scenarios it can sometimes happen that the tenant is not trustworthy or may misuse the letting space. Subsequently they may also cause problems when the flat or apartment needs to be cleared. Therefore, in my opinion, it is best to approach a veritable residential letting agency when looking to rent flats or to put flats up for rent.

Ideally such agencies ought to have their headquarters based in London and must have been operating for at least a decade or more. Individuals looking for London flats to rent need to be assisted in acquiring residences according to their particular needs. Every person has a different requirement for their particular accommodation. These can be based upon location, price, time of lease, spacing etc.

To cater to the demand for renting apartments in London such letting agencies sometimes have particular parameters which make you find the required kind of flat much easier as compared to the effort which would be required to scour the entire real estate scene.

Landlords who wish to put up stylish flats for rent in London and want to do so in a secure and hassle free manner should also contact such letting agents. The number of contacts that such agents and agencies have would allow for the finding of trustworthy tenants much quicker than what one would be able to do on ones’ own.

One very useful feature of such agencies is that they divide lettings based upon duration so that only those parties on both tenant and owner side approach relevant persons. Also several of these agencies may also provide additional furnishing services which can be very advantageous to both parties. Also, the legal factors such as drawing up a contract, ensuring its adherence etc. are also done by them making the entire process of renting flats in London easy and uncomplicated.

Monday, March 11, 2013

A Helping Hand for Landlords & Tenants - London’s Lettings Agent

In the past few decades, London has become a prime international real estate destination. With more and more investors entering the real estate market, property values have risen exponentially as well as the number of London letting agents. Real estate developers in London state that this is the right time to make an investment, as the market is set to boom.

Real estate can be a very complicated industry to enter, for first time investors. There are a large number of scams and tricksters operating in this domain who can readily exploit unsuspecting novices. Therefore, investing in the wrong place, with the wrong London letting agents can be potentially disastrous.

Therefore it is advisable for first time investors to enter the market through London letting agents and real estate specialists. While approaching letting agencies in London it is also important of the authenticity of the ones which one is approaching. It is advisable to approach only the most well-known and experienced letting agents.

What this ensures is that the prospective tenants or landlords would get the best services available in renting, selling and buying real estate properties. Also, the older the letting agency, greater its web of connections and subsequently information relating to fats for rent.

Letting agents in London of such agencies would be spread out in almost all the residential areas throughout the city and therefore would be competently able to provide the exact sort of residential accommodation that their clients would require. Some of these London letting agencies also have offices in other countries whereby people from those nations could seek to purchase property in London and neighbouring areas.

It is most prudent, therefore, to approach letting agents when looking for a flat to rent as this would not only speed up the entire process while minimizing the amount of effort required at ones end, and at the same time ensuring that all parties get what they pay for and are not duped in any way.