Homes & Gardens

Your first family home is an exciting, but slightly scary prospect, a sure indication that you have made a firm commitment.

You might think that once you have negotiated the minefield that is choosing your first home, whether you have chosen to buy or rent, then the hard work is done. Not true – the work is just beginning, as your next job is to furnish your new home from top to bottom.

Here are some pointers to help you create a home that can live up to the wonderful memories that you will soon be creating there.

Plan

You might think you are “not a lists...

A recent nationwide study has revealed figures that show that young people are struggling to find their place on the property ladder, perhaps due to their lack of understanding about the buying process and the schemes and support available to them as first-time buyers.

The study was commissioned by life insurance provider Beagle Street , and surveyed 2000 UK residents age 18-40 years old who have never owned a home. Of those surveyed, 80% said they hoped to be on the property ladder at some point, and only 3% said they never wanted to buy a home. Most of the people surveyed in the...

East Devon District Council is looking at setting up its own local housing company to play a more significant role in the local housing market and increase housing supply in the area to meet the demand for good quality housing.

The company, which would be wholly owned by the council, could play a key role in delivering new homes to the district’s growing population. It would be financed by the council and any profits would come back to the council.

Other key priorities for the new company would be to improve the quality of rented accommodation across the district, provide...

Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service remind you to make sure your chimneys are safe and clean as possible, especially if you own a thatched property. Last year the fire service attended a total of 26 thatched fires of these, 23 were chimney fires and three were thatch roof fires.

According to English Heritage the number of thatched properties listed in Devon and Somerset is 5,916.

Marc House, Community Safety Prevention Manager said: “Fire in a thatched roof is difficult to detect and once started is difficult to control. Once a fire has taken hold within a roof...