Bucharest is the fastest-growing city in Europe

There’s been quite a lot in the news recently about the Romanian economy and housing market. Jones Lang LaSalle, the global property experts, reported that Bucharest’s GDP grew by more than 9% last year, making it the fastest growing city in Europe. They further predicted year-on-year compound growth averaging 8.4% for the next five years, the result of increasing inward investment, strong export growth and an acceleration of the already established increase in consumer consumption.

Almost 200,000 national and international companies have their headquarters in Bucharest, where a quarter of the country’s GDP is generated from just 9% of Romania’s population. Office and commercial property has very high occupancy rates and unemployment is exceptionally low.

Whilst the rest of the country may, as yet, be somewhat untouched by membership of the EU, Bucharest is racing ahead. It is in the new, western-style properties that local people want to live and invest, contributing to a significant growth in the secondary market for investors when their apartment blocks have been completed.

We still have a few remaining in Bucharest: why not call Sarah, David or Nigel if you’re interested on 0121 609 7095

Being British...

Being British is about driving in a German car to an Irish pub for a Belgian beer, then travelling home, grabbing an Indian curry or a Turkish kebab on the way, to sit on Swedish furniture and watch American shows on a Japanese TV. And the most British thing of all? Suspicion of all things foreign!

• Only in Britain can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.
• Only in Britain do supermarkets make sick people walk all the way to the back of the shop to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.
• Only in Britain do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a DIET coke.
• Only in Britain do banks leave both doors open and chain the pens to the counters.
• Only in Britain do we leave cars worth thousands of pounds on the drive and lock our junk and cheap lawn mower in the garage.
• Only in Britain do we use answering machines to screen calls and then have call waiting so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place.

AND...

• 3 Brits die each year testing if a 9v battery works on their tongue.
• 142 Brits were injured in 1999 by not removing all pins from new shirts.
• 58 Brits are injured each year by using sharp knives instead of screwdrivers.
• 31 Brits have died since 1996 by watering their Christmas tree while the fairy lights were plugged in.
• 19 Brits have died in the last 3 years believing that Christmas Decorations were chocolate.
• British Hospitals reported 4 broken arms last year after Xmas cracker-pulling accidents.
• 18 Brits had serious burns in 2000 trying on a new jumper with a lit cigarette in their mouth.
• A massive 543 Brits were admitted to A&E in the last two years after trying to open bottles of beer with their teeth.
• 5 Brits were injured last year in accidents involving out-of-control Scalextric cars.

I haven’t seen anything at all about HIPs (Home Information Packs) recently. Hooray! They’ve spawned some of the most aggressive, self-serving spin and propaganda merchants I’ve ever encountered. And in some cases the most illiterate. Still – if Brussels decrees...

The Tenancy Deposit Scheme is showing signs of developing a similar head of steam. Oh no!

I’ve temporarily forgotten the name of the next piece of misguided legislation from the land of the bewildered, but what it says is that, from April next year (I think) councils will no longer pay Housing Benefit direct to landlords. They will instead pay it to tenants/benefit claimants themselves who will then pay it to their landlord. In your dreams!

Apparently, if (when) a tenant becomes 2 months overdue with their rent, the landlord can apply to the benefits office for payment. How long do you think that will take to be paid? In what possible way is it better than current legislation?

Most importantly, where will the benefits claimants live when all private landlords (myself included) refuse to accept benefits claimants any more. At last count I had 7 tenants whose Housing Benefit is paid direct to my managing agents. As soon as any of them leave, they will be replaced by privately funded tenants. Definitely. No more HB.

Is that what they intended, or is it yet another piece of poorly thought through legislation?

www.viceroyinvest.com

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