My Blue Heaven

Landlords from hell

I’ve just experienced firsthand getting shafted part of my bond as a tenant in the UK. I can’t believe how bad the system is here. There is no Bonds Tribunal here like there is in Australia.. no third party, no legal protection for tenants if the landlord decides not to give back the bond. If they don’t give it back, there is very little a tenant can do.. other than things like small claims tribunal, or a CCJ. Which costs money in themselves so might not be worth the cost and trouble.

See I moved out early from the flat in Finchley – before the legal 6 months, in good faith due to the landlords personal circumstances. The landlord had promised she would pay the deposit (plus the extra one weeks rent) early to help with my next deposit, seeing as she was asking for an early vacating of the flat. But later she went back on that saying she’d been advised not give deposit back until after inspecting the flat. So ok, I agreed, settling on paying back the deposit the day we left. She didn’t saying she was busy that day (saturday – apparently her birthday), and we settled on payment for the Monday.

Now I recieve an email from her yesterday claiming she was “deducting £180 for cleaning services as the place was very dirty and it took the cleaners 2 days to clean it back to the original state when you moved in”. How on earth it takes cleaners 2 days to clean an empty studio flat is beyond me. Seeing as I personally vacuumed, washed, cleaned, wiped down the flat before I left. Yes a little bit of dirt was left on the carpet whilst the removal of boxes/furniture was taking place by the movers. Since the vacuum was packed away, I couldn’t really give it a final vacuum (which seems excessive to me anyway).

I disputed this fee, and she replied today (the day she had promised to pay in the deposit – by lunchtime.. which she didn’t) saying she wouldn’t pay anything until the dispute was resolved (smells like blackmail to me), going through the cost of cleaning (professional carpet cleaning plus the cleaners bill), and listing out the areas she had found unsatisfactory. I took pictures just before leaving the flat, and I really don’t think the flat is dirty.. it looks lived in yes, and not spotlessly perfectly professionally cleaned, but I believe it was acceptable. Does that kitchen and hob look like it “hadn’t been cleaned in 7 months”?? Grrrr.

*sigh* Anyway. After getting advice from numerous people, including a lawyer friend, I decided it was best to just take her first offer, swallow the bitter pill and accept the £180 cleaning services fee, and part on good terms (esp as I asked her to forward any mail that might inadvertantly arrive there). She has agreed to this, and I guess that is that. I really need that cash too, after the blow of paying deposit plus 1 months rent in advance – all in cash. It’s a bit annoying that she’s been withholding it – and there is nothing I can do about it. At least I’ve learnt my lesson. My work colleague told me, apparently the only way you don’t get shafted your bond, is to get the place professionally cleaned yourself… and to KEEP THE RECEIPT AS PROOF! Lesson learned. Renting sux.

Current listening :: “Real Love” – Mary J Blige (ahh.. good ol’ old skool R&B..)

Goodbye Finchley, Hello Croydon!

So, I’ve just successfully completed moving flats to the opposite side of London: Finchley = far north, Croydon = far south! This would be my 5th move over the last year since coming to London. And hopefully the last for at least the next year! Speaking of years, yesterday was my 1 year anniversary with dreary London. Yep it has been exactly 1 year since I arrived here. How time flies.

I was gonna do something to celebrate yesterday, but I completely forgot about it as I was too preoccupied with unpacking, settling in, buying groceries so I could eat, and discovering my way around the plethora of shops in croydon (there are 2 huge shopping centres, a main high street shopping mall.. and generally heaps of shops everywhere). There’s even a Mango and Zara here in the brand new shopping centre Centrale. Yay! Plus there’s a huge “new” Ikea only about 10 mins away by tram – a direct tram from just outside my street! And next to that is a humungous megastore Sainsburys (supermarket.. like woolies or coles back home). Phew. I guess I won’t have to commute into central london to do my shopping anymore!

I’m pretty happy with my new location. Its a really convenient location to live. Only 5 mins walk to the tram stop just outside my street – trams come every 1 to 3 mins (until about 1am – though less frequently at late hours – the tram network down here rocks!) to East Croydon station, which is only a 5 min journey. Trains at East Croydon (which is a the most major station in the area – sorta like Waterloo in central london) every few minutes at peak time into central london, and there are FAST direct trains too!

Anyway, the move itself was quite a lot of work. I was packing boxes on Friday nite from 7pm until 4:30am. Got all of 3 hours sleep before getting up to finish up last minute packing before the moving van came to load up and drive down. The movers were pretty cool – amazing how fast they loaded everything into their van. The drive down to Croydon took about 2 hours. Ugh. Then spent the rest of saturday moving in, cleaning the place before I could unpack and put things away. Its an unfurnished place too – but I have my own bed and chest of drawers so it was ideal. I need to buy a bookshelf though, coz my last place had come with one. This is where the nearby Ikea comes in handy! At least this new place comes with a wardrobe. So unpacking is only about half done. Half my things are still in boxes.

This place is really spacious compared with Finchley. It’s a 1 bed flat and actually has a living room!! And a proper kitchen! And even a garage! Yay! However, its not as nice as Finchley – eg. it doesn’t have halogen lights (the other place did – which provided much better lighting and gave the place a warmer, more modern feel), the interior is a bit old (the other place was newly refurbished), the bathroom isn’t as nice (bathtub/shower is a lot smaller, shower head is cheap, toilet has difficulty flushing sometimes), and generally interior design is a little.. dated.. kinda makes me feel like I’ve stepped into the early 90s/late 80s. Heheh. Also has a slightly cheap feel to it (eg cheap plastic vinyl floor in the kitchen uneven in places, old washing machine, cooker has a half sized oven – other half is a griller). But for the price, space, and convenience for transport, this place is a gem! 🙂 And the landlord is pretty cool – I can make a few changes to the place to suit my tastes (at his expense!) things like lights and curtains can be changed, and the builder is coming in this week to “update” the bathroom, put in some shelving or a cabinet for storage (currently has nothing, not even a towel rail). Might even be able to get the landlord to pay for the bookshelf, if we leave it in the flat. Water pressure is good coz there’s a special extra pressuriser thingy you can turn on when you take a shower, but a new shower head is needed. And a new shower curtain. Also need new curtains for the kitchen window, and a net curtain too for privacy (it’s a ground floor flat facing the road and footpath – yes, I’m gonna buy home & contents insurance asap!) So I guess there’s freedom to personalise this place, which is good. Can make it my own. 🙂 Might invest in some nice halogen lights later (hello Ikea :P) to brighten the place up. And maybe an inexpensive sofa!

Phew. Moving and setting up a new home is lots of work. But its a nice feeling, settling into a new place, making it your own. I don’t have internet or phone line set up yet. Its gonna take prob 2 weeks to setup BT line and move my homechoice connection over. Ugh.

So, other than moving, my weekend was.. well.. all about the move. Myself and Kwai did watch Mission Impossible III on sunday. That was pretty cool!! A very action-packed, exciting, tense movie! May is an awesome month for movies! Last week was Mi:III, next week The Davinci Code, and following week is… X-Men III!!! Yay! Ok tis time for lunch.

Current listening :: “Sea Song” – Doves

Fond memories

Well, as promised, I’ve finally uploaded another set of photos taken in Sydney. These were all taken at my favourite beach in Sydney – Palm beach. 🙂 Kwai and myself made the most of our last day in Sydney (which happened to be a gorgeously sunny, blue skied day) and soaked up the sunshine at palm beach. We also took a fair few pics with Kwai’s digital SLR. Below are a few highlights (geez it was hard to pick only 8!) – you can view the rest here.

Isn’t it just beautiful? *sigh* I’ve ingrained the memories of that day in my head – they’re gonna have to last me the next year or so!!

May is a good month

So we just had yet another long weekend, only 2 weeks after the easter long weekend. It’s called May Day – a bank holiday on the 1st monday in May. Yay. 🙂 Then at the end of this month we get another bank holiday – called spring bank holiday or something. Not a bad time of year hey… and summer is just around the corner! The days are warming up.. no longer do I have to suffocate myself in 3 layers, scarf and gloves. 🙂 I look forward to the day I can wear t-shirts again! This thursday is even forecast to hit 25 degs. Yay!

Anyway, on Saturday I went to this err.. political demonstration / protest / concert.. called Love Music, Hate Racism. It was a free gig in Trafalgar Square. I went mainly because Belle & Sebastian were playing. 🙂 It was a protest against racism, and the British Nationalist Party – coz elections are coming up. Good cause – about 3000 turned up, but it didn’t get much media coverage at all.

On sunday myself and Kwai went to St Helens (we’ve pretty much settled on going there regularly now). Monday we played basketball with some of the guys from St Helens, ate an infamous Hot Salt Beef bagel at the Beigel Place on Brick Lane, and watched 16 Blocks (quite an intense movie).

Movin’ out

This week is gonna be pretty busy for me, as I’m moving this weekend! Yep, the flat was found (in east croydon), the decision was made, credit and reference checks were all good… so I’m moving on Saturday! Gotta pack everything into boxes.. and have to move furniture too coz it’s an unfurnished flat. What a hassle to move. BUT the new place is more spacious (a 1 bedroom, as opposed to studio flat).. and cheaper.. plus it has a garage too! It is further from central london – but there are very regular fast trains into central london, so its actually quite a convenient location to live (and its very close to public transport). Many central London workers live out in this area and do the commute by train. You definitely get more for your money out here.

Well I gotta head off soon. Am meeting Kwai at St Helens – we’re starting another bible study course tonight called The Big Picture. Should be good!

Current listening :: “Better together” – Jack Johnson

Hello from the office toilet!

Yes. I am bored today. 😛

Notice the new blue glasses? (See cam pic for close-up view.) 😀

*yawn* Man I’m tired today.

Current listening :: “I ain’t gotta tell you” – Ne-Yo

A foggy day..

.. in London town. Yep it is quite foggy and miserable today in London. On days like today, pictures like the ones below make me feel rather homesick.

These were taken during the trip home. The first of 3 visits to the beach, at one of my favourite beaches in Sydney – Freshwater. 🙂

But anyway, my weekend wasn’t bad. Watched two movies on Saturday (oh the unlimited card rocks!) – American Dreamz and Eight Below. The first kinda sucked, even though Mandy Moore was in it. I didn’t really like the ending. Eight Below was great! A definite must for dog fans, esp if you like Huskies – its an absolute Husky-fest! Its way better than Snow Dogs, but beware, there are a few tear-jerker moments. 🙂 Its a typical soppy disney, but I loved it. Makes me wish I had a husky… or 7. 😛 Here’s a still from the movie (more pics in the “more” section):

Farewell KC Actors Studio

Tonight is the KC Actors Studio Showcase, where the students from this past term get the chance to perform for agents and directors. It’s the also the end for KC Actors Studio. The school hasn’t done well financially, so Kwai’s decided to put the whole thing on hold for now and go back into Banking for a bit (selling his soul, as he puts it). But its sure been hectic leading up to this Showcase – so many things to organise. Ugh. I’ll be glad when its all over. Though there won’t be much time to relax, as I’ll have to start packing soon because I am possibly moving next weekend.

Dinner for 2.. on the company!

Work is going pretty well for me at the moment. I’m quite happy here, and my bosses tell me I’m doing a good job. I just completed a project last week, and as reward for a job well done, the CEO is giving myself and Kwai dinner on the company, anywhere we want!! We’re thinking of going to a Gordon Ramsey restaurant (3 michelin stars). Either at Royal Hospital Road or Claridges. The menu prestige looks absolutely mouthwatering. *drools* And so it should be for 90 pounds per person! I think budget isn’t an issue as my boss (also worked on the project) will be going up to The Fat Duck (which won the best restaurant in the WORLD award last year and also has 3 michelin stars). I’m tempted to try it too – it’s renowned for its creative and innovative dishes – eg bacon and egg ice-cream – sounds wierd, but its supposed to be really really good! Tasting menu is nearly 100 pounds for one person!! Hrm.. so which one should we go to – Gordon Ramseys or The Fat Duck?

Current listening :: “1001” – The Cat Empire

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