Author Archives: admin

Cost of living questions in Scotland?

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Hi there:) Im going to be living in Dalkeith. Would it be expensive to say, everyday go on a bus ride to glasgow, edinburgh etc etc to explore scotland, or is it not really? if i want to rent out a one bedroom flat, with my partner, how much would we need to earn to survive with food etc? thanks a lot :D

i suppose it depends on where you are coming from, as to whether you will find living here expensive to be honest

compared to most places in England say, living here is cheaper
rent etc

here is a link for rentals

http://www.s1rental.com/renting/search/forrent_search_results.cgi?location=592

that gives you a rough idea how much that will cost
travel? you will be better buying some kind of travel pass, both Edinburgh and Glasgow have great transport links and negotiating both cities is easy

eating, like everywhere else can be as cheap, or expensive as you allow it to be

i hope you enjoy Scotland

council tax? explain…?

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im moving to glasgow with my partner, to rent a flat. He is in college therefore a student, i am going to look for work and im doing a home learning course. Do i have to pay council tax and how does it work?

Yes you have to pay Council Tax. As your partner is counted as a student, you will be counted as a single occupier and therefore entitled to a 25% discount. Get a form from the college to show that your partner is a student and go to the Council office to get your discount.

Landlord offered me his heart, what should I do?

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I am a 32 year old woman from Glasgow, Scotland and earlier in the year I moved to London to study for my masters degree. While looking for a flat share I was put in touch with a single man of 48 also origonally from Glasgow who was looking for a flatmate. He is a performer and is often out of town working. The rent was offered at a reduced amount in return for some light house work and making sure that there would be things like milk and bread in the house for him coming back from working away (he leaves me money for this) as he said he was fed up coming home to an empty house. We get on well and I like him a lot and when he is home we often have dinner together or watch a DVD etc and it’s quite cosy. However I did pick up on some signals from him that made me think he might be interested in me romantically. My suspicions were confirmed by a note he left for me last sunday before he left for the some gigs up north. In it he basically tells me that he has developed strong feelings for me over the past 8 months and hope that we might share more than friendship. I am confused about this, I like him a lot but worry as I am already living with him. I think that he feels women tend to reject him out of hand as he thinks of himself as ugly and that perhaps I have by living with him been able to see beyond that. I have but it just seems risky to start something with my land lord and I would struggle to get another flat I could afford!

What should I do?
I don’t thin it is just about sex his note mentions marriage also, but of course depending on how I feel about it.

and what… prey tell…. does this have to do with MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE?????

Life outside London for a gay man?

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Well i ve been in London for 11 years (originally from france).
I am done with London. The life is too expensive. Now i am fed with the club scene, i need a better quality of life so i am not looking at gay areas, just a nice place where it doesnt cost £650 a month (PER PERSON) to live in a flatshare. I am fed up with the tube and having to spend 2 hours to cross the city to meet friends for a drink.

So what would you advise? I was thinking about Glasgow as i looked at the price, and u get a rent a one bedroom flat for under £500 a month.

Any other places i should consider? Bear in mind i don’t drive so public transport has to be good,
I ve been to Glasgow a few times for work but was staying in Posh hotel so didnt really get to see the @real@ Glasgow. But i quite liked what i ve seen.

As for Edinburgh but personnaly wasnt very impressed, i do apologies for poeple for live there, but i didnt find abything special.

However i have been told by several people Glasgow is not safe and overall it s quite a violent city. Mind you where i live now in London isn’t the safest place on earth either.

But does Glasgow deserve its reputation of being unsafe ???

I am gonna find out more about Inverness, there is something quite appealing about it.

Edinburgh is far nicer than Glasgow, Glasgow has a lot of violence. Inverness is also a nice place.

Going to America for 6 months.?

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Hey, im in my final year at high school, and have decided to take a gap year before heading to university. I plan to study media and film or psychology in either Stirling or Glasgow. Starting in Sept 2010.
From August 09 – Dec 09, i plan to get a job and earn money to fund this trip to america. Then in January 2010 i plan to go to america for 6 months. However, i don’t know what part, and how easy it would be to get a job. Hopefully i will have secured a job before i go out. I would prefer to move in with a flat mate, as then i wouldn’t need to buy furniture. Does anyone have any info that could help?
Like how to go about finding a flat mate?
How much rent is likely to be?
What part of the usa to move to? I’d prefer, new york or l.a but ive heard there expensive and dangerous.
I’ll be 18 at the time i go.

Thanks.

You may visit in the u.S. under the visa waiver program for up to 90 days..but you CANNOT work, and you cannot under any circumstances, get an extension on your visit. If you apply for and receive a B-2 tourist visa, you may stay for up to 6 months, but, again you CANNOT work. The only legal way for a foreign citizen to work in the U.S. is to apply to immigrate and get a green card…which takes years and an incredible amount of luck…OR…have a college degree and badly needed job skill, then find an employer to give you a contract and sponsor your work visa….not a possibility in your circumstances. So if you want to stay 6 months, you will need to be financially prepared for that. New York and L.A. are unbelievably expensive, and NOT typical of the rest of the country. Many people want to do what you want to do, and many americans would like to do the same in the u.K….the big problem is that you cannot work in a foreign country without a work permit…and those are nearly impossible to get anywhere.

apprenticeships?

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what is the best way of getting on an aprenticeship in glasgow, preferably for accounting or administration? what is the money like? is it enough to live and rent a flat with? ta

I dont believe they do apprenticeships in these fields,they may do training schemes.either way the money wont be great for a few years. You will have to share a flat or maybe get a room or digs.Try your local job centre they should be able to point you in the right direction.Good luck

I want to move to Manchester, where should I live?

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Me and my boyfriend live in Smalltownsville in Fife, Scotland and want to head for the grimy life of the city before we decide to settle down and have kids! London too expensive and Glasgow/Edinburgh too close. I want to rent a flat and be walking distance to everything city centre but in a nice area with parking. He is an artist and won’t go far living here and i am sick of having to travel to Edinburgh for a decent night out! Cheers.
i am doing this city thing for a year or so BEFORE i want to come home and settle down, not to move there and have a family! what is ancoats like? seen some nice modern flats there and also what about Salford Quays?
also, i can currently drive to Manchester in just over 3 hours so no point in living an hour out of town! thanks guys.

Salford Quays is very nice, but could be expensive, check out the rents first, go on Salford.gov

I want to move to Glasgow?

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I am currently unemployed and living in Dundee. I have applied for alot of jobs in Glasgow. I know that my chances would be greatly improved if i actually resided there but i can’t afford a months rent and a deposit in advance on a flat share. Short of selling all my stuff does anyone have any advice or suggestions that could help me get to Glasgow.
My plan is to get a bar job or two to keep me going until i can tie down more secure work. I have lots of bar experience and Glasgow has hundreds if not thousands of bars, pubs, hotels and cafes so i am pretty confident i can find work. I even plan to go to night school and learn web coding. :)

It is difficult enough for people who actually live in Glasgow to get accommodation, so unless you have someone who will put you up until you get enough money to rent somewhere your chances of getting a flat are pretty slim – sorry! You could still apply for housing just to get on the waiting list. Check out this link for more info – http://www.gha.org.uk/content/default.asp?page=s14
Or, as the person above me said, look for a live in job. Check out this link for more info – http://glasgow.gumtree.com/jobs/live_in
Good luck!

‘Jointly and severally liable’ – normal for student flat in the UK?

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My daughter has found a flat to share with four of her friends next year at university (Glasgow/Scotland). As parents we are being asked to sign a legal document to act as gurantor for her (OK, that bit’s fine), but also stating that we are ‘Jointly and severally liable’ for all rents/damages. In other words, if a flamate fails to pay the rent or leaves the flat within the year’s tenancy, we have to stump up!

This seems a bit harsh. Is it normal? Is it even legal? Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.

Please note: this is UK only

Yes this happened to me when our flatmate stopped paying rent we were asked to pay their share, it is quite normal. However we requested our landlord pursue their individual guarantor first before asking us to stump up and it paid off in the end! There are always going to be risks when young people move in together for what is usually the first time but it normally works out and in the end you just have to trust that everyone is going to do their bit.

Dating, I am asking too much?

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My girlfriend of 3 months has dumped me. Is it because I am asking too much? I am 30 years of age. I have a good job with a high 6 figure salary. 3 cars (2 sports, 1 business). I have 3 houses which I own. 1 in New York, 1 in Manchester and 1 in London. Also a flat that I rent in Glasgow. When I am with a girl I expect to treat her as I treat myself. I go holidays regulary. I do spur of the moment things like fly to Paris for a candlelit meal. I love sports and like my girlfriend to keep in shape. This girlfriend do not like the way I make decisions, ie last minute. I booked 2 tickets to Italy last minute. When she said she couldn’t go I told her to quit her job and I would support her……that was the end of that.

Any ideas?
Any women looking for a man, LOL?
I don’t want money to stand in my way. Should I slow my life down to deal with her professional life and commitments?

i have not much money but did the same spoiling my girl friend to, of 3 months i made her happy but i move to fast like you and she dump me so slow down ladys dont like money in there face so next time be pour going out in old car and be nice