Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Housing and Utilities in the UK
UK Yankee talks about housing and utilities in the UK on their website. With housing, they talk about things such as the types of houses, cost, rentals, and buying. Most houses in the UK are brick and are attached at one or both sides to another house. These are the house terms: detached- not attached to any other homes, semi-detached – attached to another home on the side, terraced – attached on both sides like a townhouse, and flat – apartment. Cost varies but homes are typically more expensive in the South and in built up areas such as London. If you are renting a house, be sure to have some written verifiable references with you. According to UK Yankee, “Just as complicated here as it is in the US, you make an offer, arrange financing, go through getting the house valued, an attorney does all the paperwork for you and a couple of months later…you’re moving in” (UK Yankee). You should look around for lenders and beware of so-called independent financial advisors. With Utilities, the website talks about electricity, water, gas, telephones, and the TV license. Local companies offer electricity, water, and gas services, but you have to be aware of the aggressive methods they use to get you to choose their company. The two main sources of heating are storage heaters and central hot water heaters. British Telecom offers telephone service, although other companies are available. You should shop around for a company that fits your needs because costs vary. Most people in the UK have mobile phones, and the rates are fairly cheap compared to the US. Pay as you go plans can cost 8 pounds per month. In the UK, if you watch television you have to pay a license fee. This is sort of a tax to pay for the public channels. There are five basic free channels: BBC1, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5. You can get digital TV through satellite, Digital terrestrial television, or cable. If you go the digital route you will need to purchase a set-top box decoder or a TV with one built in.
This website is relevant to my topic because if I plan to move to the UK, I will need to purchase a house and pay for utilities. This website was quite informative and gave me some new insights. I was surprised by how cheap the cell service can be! I probably wouldn’t even get a landline and just use my cell phone. I think the person who wrote the section on the TV license got the part about the basic channels wrong. If I’m correct, ITV is not paid for by the government, but through commercials therefore it wouldn’t be a free public channel. Overall the article was informative and useful.
"Utilities." UK Yankee. UK Yankee, n.d. Web. 21 Apr 2010.
http://www.uk-yankee.com/wiki-manual/index.php/home/utilities.
"Housing." UK Yankee. UK Yankee, n.d. Web. 21 Apr 2010.
http://www.uk-yankee.com/wiki-manual/index.php/home/housing.
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