Help calm me. House buying and selling stress

Just back from a hair raising dog walk, not safe to be outside. Luckily my dog's buggy has a 'wind' shield that zips round and none of the flying debris got to him.

Morning all, Storm Malik is as bad as predicted, I can't escape the noise of it anywhere here. TV aerial is rocking like Elvis and the tiles the roofers left are shifting about on the roof. At least the sun is out - for the moment.

Stay safe everyone if it is in your area.

Wishing you a safe night marymary62, just back in from a very windy dog walk. My neighbour had exchanged and lost forty foot of fencing in Storm Arwen. Luckily he managed to salvage the wood and repair it.

I asked the roofer how much the wood bundle was he was unloading today - £90, he said it has tripled in price since Suez etc. I volunteered at an elephant sanctuary and saw terrible films of elephants being injured logging, I'm very careful to find the source of any wood I buy.

If you have any problems with your roof the men today were from Hillerby's in Blyth, they were polite, worked solidly, and wouldn't stop for refreshments. Tel:01670 719181.

Might wear ear plugs in bed!

Thanks Sandy and good luck with the new roof - we are certainly being battered with storms here in the north ! We are up high on a hill in Northumberland so will no doubt have a sleepless night with the slates rattling !!

Hello marymary62, lovely to read your news, I do hope you hear something positive from your solicitor soon. I am sorry your daughter is suffering so, how ridiculous her buyer waited until the 11th hour to raise an objection.

I'm just popping in to wish everyone in the north of the UK/Scotland safety in Storm Malik tomorrow. We have an amber warning here of 70 mph winds early hours tomorrow until late afternoon. According to the insurer my damage occurred at 78 mph. It will certainly be a test of my new roof!

Hope yogi’s move goes well and shandy’s roof holds - storm Arwen caused us to be without power for 12 days ... I like’ can do ‘ people too and it sounds like everyone is doing what they can! I’ve been a bit fed up with my new diagnosis of osteoporosis bothering me and in trying to increase my exercise I’ve damaged a shoulder ! Just trying to keep as active and fit as possible
House moves ..... well I’m still getting rid of things - sold some old gold jewellery and half sovereigns for what seemed like a small fortune so leased with that. It’s the small things that seem hardest to get rid off ! We’re waiting on solicitors still so no idea when move will be.
My poor daughter ( having waited 6 months for vendors to have their new build ready ) had her buyers solicitor raise an objection the day before contracts were signed -they’ve had 6 months ! Her vendors are threatening to pull out and her buyers are threatening to sue her for extra costs - none of it is get fault ! So it’s all in jeopardy now and I can do nothing to help apart from support from a distance - at least if we’d moved I could help look after the baby .
Other daughter is also still having problems so none of us have moved yet ! All bets off for who will be first
At least I’m getting to enjoy the winter aconites that came from my mother’s garden ....
good luck and good cheer everyone

Morning all, I finally have a big black shiny roof on again. Fingers crossed the forecast rain is brief! Still work to do as the soil pipe needs to be replaced, and new gutters need to go on. Two very experienced hard working men, they were telling my builder some dreadful tales of the cowboys that have appeared in the area because of the storm. One woman was quoted £40K for her farm roof - they quoted £15k.

Hope all going well for you Yogi, it's a very tiring day. My removal men reminded me of the robot in Terminator, they seemed to have endless energy, I was on my knees by the end of the day. Didn't help that I had my boots on, but I learnt my lesson after damaging my toe so badly in my move to the rental cottage. Glad to say the nail is finally growing, I couldn't wear open toed sandals last year, was so urgh!

I've just received another mail order parcel karmalady, I need to start saving again, I was but I've recently started spending. I've just bought a bamboo bath wrack from Aldi and it's huge at 75 cm, but luckily the bath has a surround, so will do.

Still waiting to hear about my car, poor dog hasn't been to the beach for four days. I can't manage the long walk pushing him in the buggy, he weighs 11 kgs and the buggy 22kg. It's only about three miles but it's a very steep hill, I just don't have the puff at the moment.

Enjoy your afternoon

Many thanks for all the good luck message, I need it. Here we go......xxx

I am back on the saving wheel and thank goodness for that, a good start to 2022. Not a lot but nevertheless, a bit added to my savings account. I always remember an older woman on another forum, old school with her own small home and a husband who needed to be looked after. A cheerful woman with a can-do attitude. She was very proud that she managed to save a little every month. I remember that eventually, she had a hip operation and had her washing arrangements changed to a walk in shower. She was delighted and so were her online friends. Having that shower enabled her independence to continue. Her savings did that and so did her wise and feisty attitude. I must say that I do like this type of person, a do-er with attitude

I popped out to the post office, it is my nearest shop, 15 minutes and I was home again. I still have that `lucky` choice feeling in the pit of my stomach, it is a flat interesting little walk. It is still very much a `what if I had picked an area far away from shops`. Eternally grateful that I managed to keep my sensible head on when looking, it was all too easy to be swept along in estate agent and new build sales speak. Anyone house hunting, at a `certain` age or solo in particular, needs to be very meticulous and hard nosed about what is practical with increasing age

I had forgotten the hugely satisfying taste of a bowl of melting shin beef stew. I made some this morning, gave it 3 oven hours and boy was it worth it

yogi, I hope you have a very good day tomorrow and that it all goes smoothly as planned

Franbern, there is always a lot of work for the secretary of a management company. It isn`t so bad if most people pull their weight and help in other ways but sadly that was not the case last two times we were involved in running the management company. Last one was very small and only for communal outside area but I ended up chairperson as well as secretary as well as doing jobs in that area

We have some communal area here, just the drive-in and turning areas, there have been a couple of minor problems but I am keeping mouth zipped and staying right back, I have done my share of organising and dealing with people. I do clean the long narrow gully nearest my house, sand has been bounced out of pavers by rain and there are some weeds and blown debris from time to time. Management co has not been handed over to the residents yet, in due course gully cleaning and drain maintenance will be on the list of jobs

I think I have self clean glass here, they just don`t get dirty outside. I may be the only one, I saw a window cleaner go to my neighbours yesterday. My cills are stone and don`t need cleaning either but I do wipe the frames a couple of times a year, spiders and flies

Yogi best wishes for tomorrow. It is the end of one l..o..n....g story and (hopefully) the start of a new happy one. with regard to updating computers, think you will eventually need to do it - updates will cease for windows 10. TBH, I prefer to do this, get it done, find out the differences and sort them out. Feeling pretty confident with 11 now.

Karmlady, I do know that some maintenance fees include window cleaning. (Not many include things we have, though). The reason I was so exasperated with this question was because I had listed the many things we DO cover - more than most company (for less fees). We do maintain ALL the public areas, including regular decoration. This last year alone, we have had all the carpets in all public areas professionally cleaned and all the public areas painted. In 2020-21 we had all 25 garage doors around the ground floor, all painted. These are also washed down by our cleaner regularly. Obviously, we cover the cost of the leccie in public areas, and our large entrance lobby is well lit the whole time. Porch lights are on a wide motion control system. We do have the public area windows cleaned inside and out. The glass in our individual flats windows is , supposedly, self clean. This is okay, but nothing like how bright and gleaming they come up when the window cleaner does his work on them.
Shandy you seem to be getting on well with the external building work. The nightmare for you will soon become a thing of past.

Morning all, anxiously waiting roofer, I do hope it's warm enough for resin, if not it will be rubber. Wind has dropped luckily, lots of banging around up there in the night.

Car not ready yesterday as the parts didn't arrive, fingers crossed it passes the MOT. I won't have to take my dog with me on the bus when I collect it as the roofer doesn't need access to the house.

Good luck tomorrow Yogi, I hope you have good weather.

Morning all

Thanks for info re Insurance.
I never upgrade so will have to watched for mine upgrading to 11 and stop it. Keeping my mobile too, as such a pain to swap over. Very busy day today, as tomorrow is moving day, Yikes!!!

I've stopped my laptop upgrading to Windows 11 Franbern, I did have a look when it was offered. I'm stopping it by pausing my updates, seems I'll have to do that every 7 days.

window cleaning is standard within many management charges. We had window cleaning when we lived in a town house, both before freehold was bought by the leaseholders and also afterwards. Every property, flats included, had window cleaning. What the management charges cover does vary. We covered electricity in communal areas, managing the large grounds, window cleaning and buildings insurance. Maintenance of communal areas etc Gas boilers and water rates were not covered.

Yogi Any multi -occupied building, Whether purpose built or conversion, should have building insurance arranged via the Management Company. Each flat owner / renter would need to arrange their own contents insurance. This is the probable reason why your existing insurers stated they could not just 'transfer' your exiting policy (assume that is contents and building).
I spent all of yesterday afternoon having a 'battle' with my laptop. I had taken photos of my existing kitchen, ready to do an eventual 'Before and After' folder. Transferred those form my 'phone via email to me. Cannot remember how many times in the past I have done this and then sent them from the email to my pictures. However, recently upgraded to Word 11 and found I just was unable to do this so easily. Two and a half hours later I did finally manage this all successfully and have noted down how to do it for the future.
Waiting that first quotation for my new kitchen, once I receive that I will know whether I can go ahead, as I wish to have this work done in May/June this year as I hope.
The EA selling the empty flat here, whose description had some errors, which I sent an email correcting over the weekend, has now come back asking questions regarding lease and window cleaning. I had already told her that our maintenance money covers all water rates, building insurance, and British Gas cover on central heating boilers, etc. Why should she think it would also cover individual flats window cleaning I have no idea. Oh well!!!! More views were here yesterday. Seems to be a lot of interest.
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yogi re the flat. If it is leasehold then the freeholder will have arranged buildings insurance and you just need to arrange contents in future. The freehold may be held by the flat owners but would still need to be a joint buildings insurance. Details should be in the management co transfer pack

yogi, amazing memories, well out of the ordinary

I tried to swap my house insurance over to my new flat, after answering 100 questions, the assistant said they couldn't insure me as my new property was a conversation & lease hold! [?]

Amazing story Karmalady Reminded me of when I went to live in Rhodesia in 1979. Arriving with a helicopter overhead with army guys hanging out with guns. Getting into the transfer bus, sitting next to the army guys with big riffles, the helicopter overhead and a tank following with a guy up out of the tank with a machine gun. The road to our hotel was lined with guys lying in the ditches with riffles. I thought what am I doing here When we got to our hotel the tank driver got off the tank and introduced himself as our manager, doing his 2monthly service!

I see that yet again there is no rain in the forecast for the week, belt and braces for me as I don`t want to be putting precious tap water on the garden in a few months time. I re-connected my two big water butts in the hope that february/march brings some rain.

Seed sorting is also finished, ready for the new cycle. I am still living in hope, that my painter comes early february, like he said he would. I feel stuck until that happens.

yes yogi, he left Poland a young man to fight in ww2, with the Brits, fought all through the war and never saw his mum again. He married my mum, in Holland, met her after being billeted in the family home. He could not return to Poland, would have been shot by kgb. Settled in England and had to sign on as an alien. Reared 7 children, who all became aspirational professionals, medical, teachers and engineers

His story started well before then. His parents and 2 children were forcibly taken in cattle wagons, to be forced slave labour in russia. He was actually born in that slave camp and eventually they were returned to Poland. Lived on a small farm and soon the russions stole that farm when parts of poland were annexed

I was 15 when they thought it was safe to visit family in Poland. I remember, we were very poor,he sold an insurance policy to pay for the trip. 10 year old bedford van, he put windows in and seats and a spare petrol tank underneath. All 9 of us, I was the oldest, drove to Poland via Holland from Liverpool, those days 60 miles to Blackpool was a long way. I remember the sheer terror at going across east Germany, the soldiers and the tanks

Yes my solicitor was very thorough, always asking many questions, to the point of the other solicitor protesting!

Scary stuff Karmalady my son is just filling me in, terrible about your uncle! Weather not good, but no rain Hurray

The bus station is a disgusting hole karmalady, considering it is the Duke's seat. Rubbish, drunks, rubbish and drunks. So glad not to have to sit there at all today, the bus driver was just getting into the bus as I arrived.

Now steeling myself for the long walk to the beach with the dog. He can't stop barking, every time the men bang or crash he thinks someone's knocking at the front door.

My neighbour's daughter has actually just knocked - she is going to have to sell the house to pay the fees, her Mum's savings have nearly gone already

I just read your update shandy and yes whoo hoo, reading that has hit me too made me ever so grateful just now, that I bit the bullet and moved from my last cosy home, in a small village, with one bus every 2 hours between 8 and 4