martinhutch,whats wrong with Butterknowle?

Now if you’d said Evenwood and Eldon were nicer than Butterknowle then it must be bad.

Better not tell you which “surrounding village” i live in.

Durham City is worth a visit and its got a good park and ride scheme.

Hamsterley Forest has easy off road trails for the kids and you can hire bikes.

Its generally nicer heading West,Barnard Castle,Middleton in Teesdale,Stanhope.

Might be worth a look at the National Railway Museum in Shildon.Its free and doesn’t take too long to walk around it.

Once out into the country you’ll find plenty of pubs for food.

Theres a wetland for birds at Low Barns just outside Witton le Wear.You can wander around and theres hides so you can view the birds ,and plenty of info.

Bowes Museum and Raby castle tend to be quite pricey.Richmonds quite nice.

I live in a totally “white area”and its very rare to see a coloured person.My doctor and dentist are the only ones.
I know that most of the population around here will have thoughts similar to the EDF.A pub landlord told me all his customers are racist and will make comments quite openly.
Where’s the dividing line between someone wanting to maintain Christian values in what is still a Christian country and a racist.
Do i want to see women covered head to to toe in black showing only their eyes in my high street.No i don’t.I can’t see the colour of the woman beneath so am i a racist.
The leader of the EDF reminded me of a football hooligan from the eighties and if the EDF do want a way forward and a rational voice then he’s not the guy.
Can’t wait to see the programme on Thursday night about Bradford as i used to live there.

Sportive road event in Bristol is £100.
There’ll be plenty of mugs queueing up to pay it.

I had a Nissan Terrano for 9 years from new.Fantastic.Not smooth or fast or economical but indestructible.

The UK is still a great place but returning here “rat race” comes to mind.
Its seems that the quantity of stuff that we own is more important for our happiness than the actual quality of our life.
This is pushed onto us continually through the media so i don’t believe people are necasarily greedy,just manipulated.
Living in a small Spanish village for a number of years without TV we were not in the consumer loop.No crap burger joints,takeaways,retail warehouses,drunken idiots or crime.Just ordinary people with not much money out socialising with their families on warm evenings.
I see Spain gradually going the way of the UK as consumerism is now taking over and younger Spanish now want,not need,to replicate other European countries.

I lived in Spain for over 11 years and just moved back to the UK last year.
I’m unsure that we’ve done the right thing and feel unsettled here.
It feels like theres more negativity in this country even though most of the people here have far more money than my Spanish friends.
Luckily we didn’t(couldn’t)sell the house in Spain so we’re looking to go back out at the end of this year.
The people i look most forward to seeing are my Spanish friends,not British.They are so welcoming and open,and because its a small village,the pressures of society seem to pass it by.

Is it really economical to hire a campervan,pay for the extra fuel,and then pay campsite fees on top.
Get a wet day on a campsite and the small space in a motorhome with kids is not the most appealing.At least with a car you have transport to seek out any attractions to keep the kids amused.

Bought bearings for my Reign from Kaesae.

Arrived quickly.Good quality.Cheaper than a bearing supplier.Tips on fitting the bearings if you need them.All sizes correct.Job done.
First place i’d look if i needed some more bearings.

I’m a private landlord. Have had a few bad tenants over the years but the time has passed when i could trust tenants with their side of the deal so its all on paper now.Shame really .

Calpe,north of Benidorm seems popular with professional teams.
Inland and up the Jalon valley and beyond into the mountains is where i headed.Can’t remember much as it was years ago but the village of Guadalest comes into mind.

Twin axles are the gypos favourite for stealing.
Twin axles are cheaper secondhand because of the weight to tow,insurance and security costs.
Look for delamination in the floor.Its a spongy trampoline sort of effect when you walk on it.Not disastrous in a small area,usually the heaviest walked area,but can be expensive to correct if its widespread.
Check fridge on all powers,especially 240v if you’re going to be on a site.They are horrendously expensive new to replace.

Theres nothing much in diy tenancy agreements that you couldn’t draft yourself.
Ultimately if the person renting walks away leaving unpaid rent or damage there is very little you can do about unless you want expensive legal action.
I have a lease agreement with a multinational which is 40 pages in length and cost £1500 to draft.Another lease on a flat is 3 pages,provided my agent.
The most important thing in letting is find out about the background of the potential tenant.Employment,how long,where.Previous renting experience.Endorsements from previous landlords,and get them yourself,not through an agent.
An agent may be able to get you a higher rent but bear in mind commission.The agent will also deal with the deposit and return of as it now has to be paid into a government scheme.The agent should also inspect the property every 6 month as the lease is renewed.
Agents work on getting someone in the property as quickly as possible and may not be as thorough in vetting the tenant as you would be.

cycnic-al,I prefer the “bras” to be out of position,but your “not sliding off the back” is good advice.

Tell me you didn’t actually pay for that mag.

Hotel La Mariposa in Gebas,Southern Spain.
Biking in the Espuna,Quad and Kayak trips.Swimming pool,hot tub,stunning location.Lots of interesting places to visit nearby and the area is SPANISH,which is a big plus in my view.
I have no financial interest in the hotel but know people who have gone on the quad and kayak trips and everyone raves about it.

Looking at the mtb section of the Espuna Adventure website it looks like they just do leisurely rides for groups (whatever they are).
I’m quite experienced with a decent full suss bike so looking for something a bit more inspiring in the Sierra Espuna.

I’m looking at solely off road stuff so the Espuna looks the most promising place.
Found a guy who does guided road cycling in the area but nothing really for guiding or routes on a mtb.
Erm,who’s Steve Wade ?

There’s good riding around the back of Benidorm(don’t be put off by the word Benidorm).
A lot of professional teams base themselves just up the coast at Calpe so i would of thought there would be tour companies in the area.

Friend had exactly same problem on same model.
Changed thermostat,easy few minutes job,and problem solved.

Have you been offered a new hip ?
My wife had a new hip a couple of years ago which we had to pay for privately.The consultant admitted that she needed a new hip but would not do the operation until she was over 60,which would be 10 years time.
The aftercare privately was appalling.
You have to stick to the advice you are given post op and make as much use as you can of the physiotherapy available.
My wife ignored the advice and 2 years on still cannot walk normally and progress is agonisingly slow.

Stick to the good old Yorkshire saying and thee’l be reet.

Hear all,see all,say nowt,

Eat all,sup all,pay nowt,

And if tha does owt for nowt,do it for thissen.

I had rain coming down the chimney in windy conditions and because the chimney breast had been taken away the water dripped onto a bedroom ceiling.
Easy fix was to cap off the chimney pot.

My mate bought a Cartier watch for his teenage son from a market whilst on holiday in Spain.
It went wrong shortly after so the son naively sought out the Cartier retailer in the nearest city.The conversation about the guarantee didn’t last very long and the lad left with a bright red face.

I wouldn’t buy £25 tyres its just that i can’t believe they can be turned out for that and be legal(not nicked,just not fit for the road).

I need some tyres for the car shortly and a neighbour has told me of a cheap place.They’ve quoted £25 a tyre inc fitting,for a Mondeo,and i’m wondering just what you get for £25.Even budget tyres start around £50 each.

I’m just getting a water meter fitted this week.
Charges for the year are £400 and using Northumbrians calculator for 2 people the metered bill should come out around £250.
The meter is being fitted in the kitchen by the stop tap,not out in the pavement or road,and is read electronically so the meter reader doesn’t need to enter the house.Hopefully it’ll be nowhere what we’re paying now.

Paid £315 for 500 litres a couple of weeks ago.County Durham.

We’re on oil for heating and hot water.Using about £100 a month over winter in a pretty well insulated large 3 bed terrace.
The plumber who services the boiler quoted £2200 for a new Worcester with a service life of 15 to 20 years.

Spend your warranty money on keeping the car well serviced,with good quality oil.
Its pretty unlikely a turbo would go at that mileage and remapping i wouldn’t bother.
I have a 2.0 TDCi Mondeo and the powers plenty enough for me.

For austerity to work,or not,then there has to be a period of austerity.
Can’t see much austerity around here.Plenty of expensive mountainbikes out on Saturday with upmarket cars in the car park.Pub down the road busy on a Sunday afternoon.
This is the North East where supposedly very little money is about.
Talking of Spain i lived there for 11 years.Most of the Spanish i knew who were unemployed didn’t mind it,in fact to get on the sick was a step up the ladder.Most worked for cash,and lived at home,so had quite a good standard of living.

A mate works out there for a telecoms(Chinese)company.
His working week starts on the Sunday,Friday and Saturday classed as his weekend.
Very long hours each day,12,but the high wage is tax free(until you bring it back to the UK).
He hires a car but is thinking about buying one.
Lives in a shared flat provided by Chinese company.Doesn’t go out much as its pretty expensive,but there are bars with alcohol if thats you’re desire.
An awful lot of Asians there,in fact my friends married a Vietnamese girl(a lot younger of course!).

Again,another one for Kaesae.Good price for my Reign.

Orange tried it and ditched the idea!adstick pointed out the reason why.

I used to go circuit training every week at my local sports centre.
We were all regulars who knew each other and one week a new guy came along.
He was quite chatty but did talk to one of the other guys quite a lot.
We were all in the communal showers,including the new guy, when he suddenly said to my friend “do you fancy coming back to my place for a coffee”. There was long silence,and a bright red face from the guy that had been propositioned.
His offer wasn’t accepted and we never saw him again.

Where are all you Orange owners!

Your rental yield figure depends on the price you pay for the property.
If you look at the typical prices in estate agents then the return on rental at these prices are negligible.
You have to be looking at things like auctions and repossessions to try and get the property at the lowest possible price.This means you are buying at the lowest possible price so if property prices do rise then you have extra yield on the property.
If you can do most of the maintenance yourself its a big bonus.
Employing tradesmen to do virtually everything will slash your income from the property.
I wouldn’t look at any property that gave less than 8% gross and it would have to have potential for growth in its value.

I had this problem repeatedly with a Deus set until in the end i just put an XT on.
You could try an extra spacer to see if it will take up the movement.
IMO you can crush the bearings as in my repeated attempts using too many spacers and then tightening up resulted in the bearings being tight.
Looking at the shaft on the Deus it had been spinning in the bearing and had worn a groove in the shaft.

6% gross return is ok,but i wouldn’t be paying the heating bills at that.
As most people have said look at the long term and letting without interuption.When the people move out you can re-look at the figures and an agent would probably get you more money.
If i was looking to buy more investment property 8% gross return would be my minimum figure.

Worked on the final part of the red route yesterday and there was a good turnout of people,despite the mud.
It looks like its not too far off being finished with plenty of nice smooth big berms.