Although there are many taller buildings around the world now the Empire State Building is one of the oldest and tallest. The Willis Tower in Chicago was the world’s tallest building from 1974 until 1998 when the Petronas Towers were constructed in Kuala Lumpur. I recently went to New York on holiday, and the views from the top of the Empire State were ridiculously good. If you want great photos of the skyline, this is the place to go. Go up early to avoid the queues though.

Those with assets of £2million net, who invest in an approved property for exclusive residency (and have not lived in Gibraltar in the last five years) are likely to qualify for what is known as Category 2 status. This status ensures you pay no more than £24,500 tax on your worldwide income.

I recently went to New York, America, where their tallest building (following the tragic loss of the World Trade Centre buildings back in 2001) is the Empire State Building. To think this building is dwarfed by the new Dubai tower, is incredible.

I’ve also been up the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia which were one of the many previous champions. Check the 3 buildings out below.

Empire State Building

Petronas Towers

Burj Khalifa

Sarah Beeny, property expert and face of TV’s  ‘Property Ladder’ recently quoted:

“I have seen thousands of properties over the years which fail to achieve a good price because they were quite simply dirty and smelly.”

Research conducted by leading estate agents in Britain and among house buyers has revealed that a clean home will not only go for a higher price but will also sell quicker. The statistics back up this statement – one in four would bid a staggering £5000 less if the house was in a bad condition or untidy, unhygienic or smelly.

Domestos were behind the survey amongst estate agents, so if you’re looking for a quick property sale then my advice is to get down to your local store, get some kitchen and bathroom cleaner, a pair of marigolds, some bleach, and get scrubbing. That’s if you value your house.

Banks and building societies are being urged to continue to do more to help, and it appears that chains like Northern Rock have again slashed their mortgage rates (for the forth time in a month) while Abbey have also cut rates on their tracker mortgage and fixed rate mortgages by up to 0.3 per cent.

It seems it may be the time to buy so good luck to those considering getting on the property ladder!

Pink or purple houses generally send their children to private schools, although I knew someone who lived in a pink house while I was growing up and they went to the local comprehensive school with me. A third of people in pink or purple houses educate their children privately whereas only 14 percent of people living in magnolia coloured properties send their kids to private school.

Green home owners have an average salary of £13,100 per year and are the lowest in the average salary when compared with other colours.

Blue indicates that you may be intellectual and calm, whereas red depicts a friendly, lively and altogether stimulating personality.

Personally I think its all about what your favourite colour is rather than what your personality is.

The report looked into different criteria; objective and subjective. Objective criteria looked at things such as crime rate in the area, employment opportunities or unemployment, amenities available etc, whereas the subjective research looked at people’s opinions e.g. liking or disliking the area.

Perceptions of the area came out at the top of the pole rather than other issues such as crime, amenities or opportunities.

Ossie bought the luxury detached 4 bedroom villa a little over 4 years ago, overlooking one of Marbella’s many golf resorts La Quinta. It overlooks the first Tee at is currently on the market for £1.5 million, however that is a reduction from £2 million a year ago.

Most people would love the chance to build their ideal property in the sun. Marbella is Spain’s equivalent of Monte Carlo, however Ossie cited being bored and having little to do in winter as one of the main reasons for a return to the UK.

He quoted:

‘Our sons Pablo and Freddie, who are now 35 and 31, weren’t married back then’ [when they bought the property], ‘but now we have grandchildren and we also wanted somewhere with a bit more life in winter. It can be very quiet out of season down there. So the dream vanished and we came back home.’

To be honest, if I could afford a property out there then I think I could put up with the odd quiet winter!!! Each to their own!!!

This is when landlords encounter difficult renters – those who vandalise properties, disturb neighbours and do not respect policies like pet bans. By far the worst offence is none payment of rent.
Approximately 10% of those people renting are considered bad renters, with over 30,000 renters evicted each year. Evictions can be a long drawn out process and costly with it, and usually come about due to non payment of rent. The court proceedings can take up to six months at an average cost of £800 plus the missing revenue from the property for what could be five months worth.

Should the rent day not be met, in the first instance you should visit the tenant and request the payment. Apply some pressure by visiting and telephoning regularly. If there is no response you can then threaten legal action. You can only proceed to court after eight weeks of rent has been missed.

Avoiding this is by far the best option – so by getting a minimum of one months’ rent as a deposit will help and ensure the tenancy agreement stipulates the terms and conditions clearly for payment dates and the consequences of none payment. Also have a detailed inventory of all the items in the property, to avoid discrepancies later on. Put values next to items if necessary.

Seek professional help when evicting people, as most renters will oppose it and it could get messy. Don’t get too personally attached – even though it is your property, remember it’s a profession you have entered in to.

Over half the renting population are pet owners, so don’t make a rash decision and deny pets from your property, as you could be reducing the number of potential renters considerably.

Negatives attached to renters with pets:

• Pets cause damage if not under the correct supervision by their owner – this can lead to repairs that exceed the initial deposit, and trying to obtain any back dated claims from ex-tenants can prove difficult

• Pet odours can linger, so you may find cleaning bills are higher and items like carpets may need replacing more frequently

Positives associated with offering pet friendly rentals:

• Pet owners prefer longer terms as pet friendly rental accommodation may be limited

• Larger deposits are usually agreed because of the potential of higher cleaning bills or to cover damage caused by pets

So when deciding on whether to accept pets take into account the potential costs it may incur, but weigh up the benefits of maybe being the only rented property in an area, thus making your property more desirable to those with pets.