Is Gumtree.com safe?

This is an important question that all flat searchers in London needs to ask. The short answer is "yes"... but you have to exercise a little caution.

Gumtree.com is arguably the best place to look for affordable rental accommodation in London. There are a huge number of properties advertised on the site from both agencies and from private landlords at all price levels and in all areas of the city. The problem is that due to it's success and popularity as the place to search for accommodation it has also attracted a good number of fraudsters who are basically looking to steal from unsuspecting flat hunters.

That is the bad news, the good news is that it is actually very easy to spot the criminals and to avoid getting ripped off. Just follow our Top 5 tips for staying safe on Gumtree below and you should be fine:

1. If the ad looks too good to be true... it probably is! Most of the ads posted by fraudsters offer very nice looking properties at very cheap prices. They use photos of very smart flats in great locations at bargain prices to lure you in. Always research other similar properties in the area. If the price looks ridiculous it is probably a scam.
2. You must always view a property before renting it. If you reply to an ad and the landlord responds asking for anything (money, documents etc.) before you actually see the place- walk away. You should be able to see a place without paying anything up front.
3. You must meet the landlord or agent in person. This seems to be a favourite ploy of the fraudsters- you email from the ad, they reply saying that they are overseas and just want to rent the flat quickly, but can't be there to show you. They say they want to be sure you can afford it, so ask for a bank statement or for you to pay something up front. This is a scam (also see rule 2)! You must meet the landlord or agent in person before renting anything.
4. Western Union & Money Gram are dodgy ways to pay. There is no reason why a landlord or agency should ask for payment by this method. You must meet the landlord or agent in person and you should be able to pay in cash, by cheque, by bank transfer or on card. 
5. Do some research and ask questions. If you are seeing a property with an agent or a private landlord you should ask questions about who they are, and the ownership of the property and make sure the answers add up. The internet is a great tool for checking out individuals and companies too! 

Gumtree themselves also have some very useful pages on staying safe here, and they are very keen for users to repost any suspicious activity. 

So if you follow these Top 5 tips you should have no problems staying safe on Gumtree and should have no problems finding your perfect place. 

We Love... Bayswater!

In this post we continue the Red Residential "We Love..." series and are going to cover one of our favourite areas of London- Bayswater W2.

Located just North of Hyde Park in the West of Central London, Bayswater is a very attractive, popular and cosmopolitan neighbourhood next to the other fashionable areas of Notting Hill and Marble Arch. Bayswater has a great mix of smart residential streets and excellent shopping areas, and of course direct access to the gorgeous Kensington Gardens.

Much of the housing in Bayswater is made up of smart and large white stucco fronted buildings, that are 4 or 5 stories high. These buildings are often split up into flats and many are arranged around very attractive garden squares such as this one below:

Queens Gardens, Bayswater W2

There are also a lot of hotels in the Bayswater area as it is a very popular place for tourists to base themselves when exploring London. This is because Bayswater is central, has good transport links to the rest of the city, and is a attractive and safe neighbourhood.

Most of the attractions, facilities, shops, cafe's, pubs and restaurants in Bayswater are found clustered around the street of Queensway and the area around Paddington Station. Queensway is a bustling thoroughfare with Kensington Gardens at one end, and boasts 2 tube stations (Queensway on the Central Line and Bayswater on the District Line), a huge variety of resturants, bars and cafe's and the large Whitleys shopping centre.

Queensway, Bayswater W2

The excellent transport links of Queensway are only beaten by Paddington Station which is one of London's main train stations. Here there are several tube lines, overland trains to the suburbs and beyond to the West of England and Wales, and the very useful Heathrow Express which is the fastest way to get to London's main airport. The station offers everything you would expect form a large terminus and there is a good choice of Hotels and restaurants etc. in the surrounding streets.

So, now for the famous Red Residential Top 5! Here, after a long and detailed survey, we choose our 5 favourite places and things in Bayswater!

1. Whiteleys- large shopping centre with everything you could need. There is a cinema, M&S, internet access, lots of cafe's and restaurants, lots and lots of shops and even a bowling alley. 
2. Kensington Gardens (Hyde Park)- one of the best parks in any city anywhere in the world! A wonderful place to relax and unwind at any time of the year. 
3. Some of the best restaurants in London- The Royal China and Mandarin Kitchen in Queensway (Chinese), Khans in Westbourne Grove (Indian), Helepi in Leinster Terrace (Greek), Satay House in Sale Place (Malaysian), Rodizio Rico in Westbourne Grove (Brazilian), Le Cafe Anglais in Whiteleys (French)... the list goes on...
4. Beautiful architecture- the grand white buildings of Bayswater are very smart, particularly when arranged around a well maintained garden square.
5. Great transport links- with tube stations at Queensway (Central Line), Bayswater (District & Circle Line), Paddington (District & Circle Line, Bakerloo Line, Hammersmith & City Line) the area must be one of the best connected in the whole of London. In addition there is overland services and the Heathrow Express form Paddington and a huge number of buses to every corner of the capital. 

Please feel free to make comments and add your own favourite things and places in Bayswater. Of course if you are looking for a place to rent in the area no better place to look than our website- www.redresidential.com

How is monthly rent calculated in London?

One of the questions we are most often asked when going about our business letting studio and 1 bed flats in Central London is " how is monthly rent calculated?", so in this post we will explain...

Rent in London is usually quoted as a price per week (pw) e.g. £200pw, and tenants are often surprised when they are informed that this does not equate to £800 per month. This is because there are not always 4 weeks in every month. Some months are 31 days long, others 30, 29 and even 28.

So to simplify things landlords charge rent per calendar month (pcm) which means that you pay the same amount every month regardless of the length of the month. This is calculated as follows:

weekly rent x 52 weeks = rent per annum (pa, or per year)

annual rent / 12 months = monthly rent 

So the monthly rent for the above example of £200pw is:

£200pw x 52 = £10,400pa 

£10,400 / 12 = £866pcm

We hope that this clears up some of your questions. Please feel free to comment or email us at mail@redresidential.com if you have any other queries.

Australia Day in London

You may be aware that yesterday was Australia Day, and Aussies around the world were commemorating the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788, usually with a few beers.

This fleet of ships carried the first settlers from the UK to the recently discovered continent on the other side of the world, to set up the first European colony. Now more than 220 years later the links between the two countries are as strong as ever, and any visitor or resident of London will know that there is a large and vibrant Australian community in the capital. 

Here at Red Residential we have a long association with our Antipodean cousins,  finding good value accommodation for many of them when they arrive in London. So if you are looking for a taste of Down Under in the capital here is our Top 5 places to celebrate Australia Day next year (or ANZAC Day which is coming up on 25th April):

1. The Walkabout, Shepherds Bush: West London's mecca for a bonza night out! This cavernous venue offers everything you could want- live music and DJ's from Down Under, vast quantities of Aussie beer, and large crowds of genuine Australians! All this in the heart Antipodeans neighbourhood of choice- Shepherds Bush Green!
2. Belushi's, Shepherds Bush: with a hostel popular with recently arrived Aussies right above this pub, a large crowd of revellers can be guaranteed. Located at the other end of Shepherds Bush Green from The Walkabout this popular venue could constitute part of an Australia Day pub crawl...
3. Brogans Irish Pub, Fulham Broadway: as the name suggests this is strictly an Irish pub, but every year they embrace their Antipodean cousins National Day. Aussies from across SW6 (and there are quite a few of them!) flock to this large pub in the middle of Fulham Brodway to sink a few cold ones.
4. The Southern Cross, Fulham: a slightly less raucous Australia Day can be enjoyed at this gastro pub on the New Kings Road.
5. The Prince of Teck, Earls Court: Earls Court used to be the centre of the Aussie community in London until the increase in rental prices pushed them towards Shepherds Bush and Clapham, and The Prince of Teck pub in Earls Court Road used to be the beating heart of Down Under London. Now a smart gastro pub it is worth a visit to relive Australia Days gone by!

As always feel free to make your own comments and add to our Top 5 and don't forget to visit www.redresidential.com if you are looking for good value studio flats to rent for 6 months or more in Central London.

We Love... Fulham!

Here at Red Residential we have a very long association with Fulham having worked and lived in the area for many years. So perhaps we are biased but we do love this leafy corner of West London, and we are blogging about it now as we have 2 excellent 2 double bedroom flats available in the heart of this smart area:

Bishops Road, Fulham SW6

2x 2 double bed flats £340pw (one with garden)

Fulham is very central and is in walking distance of Chelsea, Earls Court, Hammersmith and Putney and has good transport links with tube stations at Fulham Broadway, Parsons Green, Putney Bridge and West Brompton. There is a very wide range of accommodation in the area from large family houses to a good selection of flats and flat shares, and the prices are significantly lower than neighbouring areas such as Chelsea. 

There is a huge amount to do in Fulham, and here is the official Red Residential Top 5:

1. The Union Market- a farmers market right in the centre of Fulham Broadway! Gorgeous produce at not outrageous prices in the old tube station. There is a nice cafe too which does a good sausage sandwich too!
2. Chelsea Football Club- love them or hate them, no one can deny that having possibly the biggest football club in the world in the centre of the district gives the area a real buzz. If Chelsea win the whole area knows about it!
3. Pubs and Bars- Fulham has a huge number of places to get a drink including some of the best in London: The Harwood Arms- gained a Michelin star in 2010; The White Horse- the "Sloaney Pony" is the legendary hang out of London's original Sloane Rangers; The Rose- down a quiet backstreet and has a nice garden.
4. Parks: Fulham is very green: Parsons Green- very popular spot for summer sunbathing; Eel Brook Common- an oasis moments from Fulham Broadway; Bishops Park- beautiful park on the river with boating pond and it's own palace...; South Park- large park with lots of sporting facilities; Hurlingham Park- athletics, rugby and football venue.
5. Shopping- Fulham has it all! Smart antique shops on the New Kings Road, quirky independent shops on Fulham Road, high street stores in the Fulham Broadway Centre and the famous street market on North End Road.

We will be producing a more in depth guide to the area soon, but in the meantime please feel free to comment and add your own favourite places in Fulham.

West Kensington- home of ideological leaders part 2...

Following the great interest in our last post here is part 2...!

Our last post concerned the blue plaque on Talgarth Road W14 that commemorates the London home of Pan-Africanist and Ratafarian prophet Marcus Garvey, and today we will be discovering another hugely influential ideological leader who lived just around the corner...

If you head straight out of West Kensington or Barons Court tube stations you will soon wonder into a grid of beautiful white stucco terraced houses. These buildings date from the 19th century and form part of the Barons Court Conservation Area, protecting them for their architectural and historical value.

Although originally built as family houses, these buildings are now almost all converted into flats. The area is now a very popular area for young professionals and students to rent as it is a central location, the transport links are excellent and the prices are reasonable. Check out Red Residential's range of properties in Barons Court/ West Kensington here.

If you stroll along the elegant Barons Court Road you will soon see that there is a blue plaque outside number 20. This plaque commemorates the fact at this property lived a student that went on to change world history...

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in 1869 near Mumbai, India and studied in London from 1888 to 1891. He was studying Law at University College London, training to be a barrister. When he arrived in London he was just 19 years old and had an interesting time in the capital apparently taking dancing lessons and visiting the nearby Church on the corner of Castletown Road and Challoner Street. This Church has since become the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan whose "...teachings closely follow those of Mahatma Gandhi." according to their website.

After his time in Barons Court Gandhi went on to lead a fascinating and eventful life in India and South Africa before his involvement in the Indian independence movement. From about 1915 to the end of the Second World War in 1945, Gandhi fought for independence for India from the British, through encouraging civil disobedience in a totally non-violent manner. His cause was eventually successful when India was granted it's independence in 1947, and Gandhi enterd the history books forever.


Gandhi's teachings and actions have influenced world politics and philosophy hugely and this quiet corner of West London  played its small but important part!


More blue plaque stories coming soon...

West Kensington- home of ideological leaders part 1...

We are big fans of the W14 area of London here at Red Residential. There are good transport links, it is central yet rents are no where near as high in nearby Kensington & Chelsea, there are many gorgeous streets, good amenities and some excellent restaurants and pubs.

It seems that we are in good company too, as few know that two of the 20th Centrurys most important and influential political and ideological leaders lived in the area... In this post we will cover the first of these leaders, Marcus Garvey.

If you happen to pass along the busy Talgarth Road, between West Kensington and Barons Court tube stations, you would be forgiven for missing the blue plaque fixed high on the imposing exterior of number 52. This plaque commemorates the London home of Marcus Garvey, Pan-Africanist and Rastafarian prophet.

This influential figure was born in Jamaica in 1887and was politically active at the beginning of the 20th century. He argued for people of African ancestry outside of the continent to "redeem" Africa from the European colonial powers that occupied much of the continent. This Pan-African philosophy was know as Garveyism.

He later became Jamaica's first National Hero and although he wasn't an Rastafarian himself he became an important Ratstafarian prophet. His thinking greatly influenced Rastafarian philosophy and he is often mentioned in popular Reggae music.

The second world leader will be revealed soon in part two...