Letting Your Property for the Summer

As we reach the end of May, summer holidays in the UK are quickly approaching. For many Brits, it means jetting off to somewhere exotic for a few weeks, whereas for some who may be on a budget, a ‘staycation’ will be more ideal. Britain has lots to offer as a holiday destination, even if the weather is highly variable.

With the summer holiday period and London Olympics on its way, hundreds of national and international visitors will be staying in Britain’s finest locations.

This provides landlords with a golden opportunity to promote short-term lets as an attractive alternative to hotels. For any landlords interested in renting out their property for multiple short term tenancies, it is important that they protect themselves with good landlord insurance as a variety of people will use their property as a temporary home over a number of months.

UK Holiday Property Hotspots

As you are all aware the UK’s biggest attraction this summer is the 2012 Olympic Games. For many months now there has been news about property prices in London increasing, landlords demanding higher rental yields and some even unexpectedly evicting their current tenants in order to capitalise on the influx of visitors. Now while it may be appealing to jump on this bandwagon, remember that London remains one of the most expensive areas to purchase a property and a lot of the Olympic demand has already been met. Besides, the UK has other appealing holiday locations.

Seaside Escapes

The coastal regions of the country are extremely attractive retreats for families and couples who want the benefits of the beach without boarding a plane. Most of these places are located in the southern part of the country, which is typically more expensive. They include Brighton, Weston-Super-Mare, Cornwall and the Channel Islands. Further up North places like the Isle of Man, Blackpool and Southport are equally appealing.

Countryside Escapes

Wales is one the UK’s most popular countryside retreats and the property prices here are fairly reasonable. There are also plenty of other picturesque villages, intimate cottages and large family manors for people to rent throughout the country, depending on their needs. Some of the most popular countryside destinations are Kent, Devon, the Lake District, Oxfordshire, Cambridgeshire and rural parts of Scotland.

Festivals and Events

Speaking of Scotland, the annual Edinburgh festival which runs throughout August attracts a wide variety of performers and audiences; making Scotland a great weekend break alternative to London this summer. Countless other world renowned and local festivals/events are taking place across the UK, which can be researched online, and have the potential to provide landlords with a solid demand for temporary rental properties.

For more information on Landlord Insurance, visit www.QuintessentiallyCovered.com or call     +44 (0)8454749975.

The Wedding Battle: Traditional or Contemporary?

Big white dresses, flowers and favours, or a minimalist ceremony in a barn - the battle between traditional and contemporary weddings continues, and no one is quite sure which is most popular.

Since 1981 the number of marriages each year has fallen by a third. It’s therefore no surprise that contemporary weddings are looking to distinguish themselves from the tried and tested formula of traditional weddings in order to make a break from history.

 

If you’re a new tourist to the wedding circuit, these hints could give you an indication of whether you’re at a traditional wedding or a more contemporary affair:

 

Tradition rules if you see....

 

Big dress: a big white dress is a sure sign of tradition. If the dress code is coupled with top hat and tails, then you’re almost certainly in the land of tradition.

 

Lots of flowers: White lilies and red roses are perhaps the most common flowers for a traditional wedding. 

 

Seating plan: Perhaps one of the most complicated traditional wedding rituals. Should Aunty Joyce sit next to cousin Frank again? We all know what happened last time.

 

Favours: A thoughtful way to say thank you to your guests, and a sure sign of a traditional wedding.

 

Welcome line: If you have to shake hands with the whole wedding party before you get anywhere near the bar, then you’ve almost certainly walked into a traditional wedding

 

Contemporary style reigns if you see...

 

Individual dress code: red, blue, green or even a black wedding dress - anything goes if you’re getting married in a contemporary wedding. 

 

Personalised decor: a contemporary wedding might use balloons, trees, photos or even recycled material to decorate the venue. You may even find you get roped in to help do the decorations too!

 

Informal plan: You may have to navigate canapes or a buffet at a contemporary wedding, with a more informal structure for the evening. You may even see a ‘cake’ of cheese, rather than the traditional wedding cake

 

Speeches: let the bride have her say! More and more, contemporary brides are saying their piece at their wedding, rather than just letting the groom and father of the bride make the speeches 

 

Venue: get married in a pub, on a beach, in a foreign country or even in a ruined castle with a contemporary wedding. 

 

The twist

It’s easy to split weddings into traditional vs contemporary, but some couples may choose to take ideas from both styles. You could get a bride in a big white dress getting married in a civil ceremony, perhaps lots of traditional favours for guests, but the food is served buffet style. The main thing to remember is that there are no rules when you’re getting married - go traditional, go contemporary, or go individual and create your own style. 

 

Whether you get married in a traditional or a contemporary wedding - don’t forget to take out wedding insurance to cover all aspects of your wedding. Regardless of the style, wedding attire, flowers, cake, suppliers and the venue are usually covered in your wedding insurance policy. There are usually different levels of cover depending on your budget and style of wedding. If you chose the best style of wedding to suit you, you should ensure that your wedding insurance suits you too.

 

Why Consider Fine Art Insurance?

Collecting fine art and other serious collectibles is more than a hobby. It's a passion and it's a long term investment. Fine Art can range drastically in price—some paintings being worth several millions. If the unthinkable occurs and a piece of your collection is damaged, lost, or stolen, you do not want to be left with a hole in your collection. Having specialised fine art insurance can help protect you and your belongings in this respect.

Your fine art collection needs to be protected from the unforeseen. The large amounts of money that we invest into our passions is money well spent, but it can be money that is lost if some sort of tragedy were to occur. Fine art coverage reduces this risk so that you can go about your day without that tiny bit of fear creeping up in the back of your mind. 

You will want to make sure that your coverage policy meets all of your needs and other concerns. Having the correct policy in place will literally allow you to sleep more easily at night. You will know that your valuables are safe and accounted for. A specialist insurer is your best option in this case. You want a company that specialises in the sort of insurance that you require—this allows you to rest assured that they will know what they are doing and will be able to fully meet your needs as an art investor. The risk of being a serious collector is not something that should be ignored; therefore, you need an insurance company that understands just what your risks are and has a background in combating those risks.

Whether your collection is a large one, or just a few pieces, you want an insurance agency that has experience in protecting the finest pieces of art out there.

This includes things that might technically be able to be covered with just a rider on your homeowners' insurance. Things like jewellery and antiques are extremely important to you, so you will need to make sure that you have the right coverage for these prized items as well. Taking out a fine art insurance policy on traditional items like these might be able to give you a better degree of coverage, and possibly for a lower price. While homeowners' insurance is without question a good thing to have in place, if you have a large quantity of valuable items, it is simply not enough to protect you to the degree you need. A supplement becomes necessary—fine art insurance can fulfill this need of yours to protect your valuables.

For specialist Art Insurance, visit www.QuintessentiallyCovered.com .