Vivastreet blog

Once you have found a property that meets your requirements, it is important to inspect the following:

• Time – Take your time looking round the property
• Ask Questions – Don’t be afraid to ask direct and blunt questions about the property
• Photos – Take pictures of the property so that you can look over them later with fresh eyes.
• Measuring up – Take a tape measure with you to calculate the size of each room, or get a rough idea of floor space in a room with furniture by looking at the ceiling size.
• Bills – Find out what is the cost of Council Tax and the average costs of other utility bills such as electricity, gas and water.
• Damp – Is there a smell of damp or any other sign such as the walls feeling damp, wallpaper peeling, paint bubbling, watermarks or mould.
• Power – Make sure there enough power points - how old do they look?
• Internet & Phone – Ask if the property has a phone and internet connection and where are the connection points.
• Electrics, plumbing and heating – Ask the agent or the owner to confirm that the boiler, electrics and plumbing in the property are all in decent working condition, and to see copies of guarantees and service certificates. Have there been any problems with the boiler; when was it last serviced by a Gas Safe engineer?
• Planning permission – Ask if permission has been granted in principle for an extension or other home improvement. Can you put up pictures or redecorate?
• Exterior – Don’t forget to examine pipes, drainage and the condition of the roof.
• Insurance – Check if there have been any recent claims on the property’s buildings insurance – including flooding – and ask for details.
• Neighbours – What are the neighbours like – are they noisy

Welcome to our first iPod Nano competition!

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:

• Become a Vivastreet FAN on Facebook
• Tag yourself or your friends on one of the photos on Facebook
• By all means, share this with your friends that can qualify for an iPod as well

Win an iPod with Vivastreet

For more information click here.

Good luck! xXx

Micro Pigs Babies Available NOW!

Micro pigs are the newest trend in itty-bitty pets especially since Victoria Beckham snapped up a pair for hubby David. They’re adorable, extremely clean, and look quite manageable at only 14-18in high.

However If you are purchasing a Micro-pig, make sure it’s from a respectable breeder and be careful of people selling pigs that will grow much bigger than stated. Make sure you always ask breeders where their parents come from.

We have plenty of Micro pigs for sale on the Vivastreet website right now, however please remember Micro pigs are hard work as pets and require the same time and care as a dog or any other animal.

The new year is a good time to consider relocating

With the new year comes an opportunity for fresh starts and new beginnings, and in our previous post we showed you lots of ways you can dust off those cobwebs and kick start a brand new you.

However some of us may be considering a bigger life change than simply losing a few pounds or getting a new hairstyle. Maybe you’re thinking about a complete change of scene, and upping sticks and moving homes. Well, the new year is the perfect time to think about relocating as more people put their homes on the market once the chaos of Christmas is out of the way.

Here at VivaStreet we have a wealth of properties for sale and for rent, from tiny pied-a-terres and studios to this luxury five-bedroom house. Perhaps you have had enough of city life and have always dreamt of living near the sea. We’re happy to report that you could go and make that dream a reality with this lovely 1930′s property in Devon, complete with panoramic sea views. Or for those who prefer a more tranquil water location, then take a look at this gorgeous house which has its own canalside private mooring. Heaven!

For the more ambitious, we also have a section specially dedicated to land for sale for those looking to build their own home. If you are in the fortunate position of having a sum of spare cash you’re looking to invest wisely, you could do much worse than considering purchasing land. Take a look at our investment land section where you will see an array of different types of land for sale from building plots on the Scottish borders to cheap land in Bulgaria.

Which leads us smoothly on to the option of relocating abroad. Our overseas property selection is extensive, with properties for sale in Europe and beyond. We list a huge number of homes on the market, from farmhouses in Italy and France, to ski chalets in Austria and villas in Cyprus. This farmhouse in Brittany kills two birds with one stone, as it comes complete with an established cattery business – ideal for those wishing to relocate asap!

So what are you waiting for? You may be saying au revoir to cold Blighty before you know it!

Let VivaStreet help you write this year's New Year's Resolutions

It’s that time of year again when it’s out with the old, in with the new. The start of a new year is the perfect excuse for a spring clean in all areas of our lives. For most of us it’s time to make some changes as we resolve to get healthy, tone up that ever expanding waistline, and sort our lives out. So whatever your New Year’s resolutions are – and even if you haven’t decided what they are yet – VivaStreet is here to help you firm up your very own realistic and achievable goals for 2010.

One of the first things we all think about doing after making a pig of ourselves over the festive season, is to shed those extra pounds. Here at VivaStreet we have all manner of ideas of how you can get in shape. Perhaps you’re thinking about getting your diet in check by joining WeightWatchers. You can find your local group which meets in your area right here on VivaStreet. But the food is of course only one aspect. We need to get our backsides off the sofa too! Whether you’re into circuit training, boxing, or maybe getting yourself your own personal trainer, you’ll be tightening up that belt buckle or dropping a dress size in no time. And how about (perhaps for the more uninhibited among us!) belly dancing, or even pole-dancing! There are all sorts of ways you can get yourself looking trim.

Another thing many of us want to do with the coming of a new year is to ditch the cigarettes. Well instead of going down the tried (and often failed) route of nicotine patches, why not try hypnotherapy? It has worked for many people wishing to kick the habit once and for all. While you’re at it, you can use these electronic cigarettes to get you through the tough moments en route to quitting.

If you feel like you could do with taking a look at your whole life, then have you ever thought about enlisting a life coach? By having a few sessions with one could really help you identify and unlock any issues you have been having, and give you some tips as to how to improve your life.  But if all that’s a bit much, then you could begin with some self-help books to get you started.  This self-help e-book is a great way to begin exploring for yourself whatever stresses have been getting you down.

And finally, the new year provides the perfect reason to give yourself a kick-start and learn a new skill. How about brushing up on your IT know-how by taking  a computer skills course? Or how about French or Spanish classes? Check out which courses are being run in your local area and you’ll be Parlez-vous-ing francais before you know it, and speaking like a native in time for 2010′s summer holiday!

So however you want to improve your life, just remember that there’s no time like the present, and that you will always miss 100% of the opportunities you don’t take!