>> Basically each wall is a sheet of plasterboard. So, looks pretty, but no
>> sound damping, and you can't make any holes in it. (It'll just snap in
>> half.)
>
> I imagine the landlord won't let you put holes in it, though it certainly
> is possible to drill holes in it.  But hanging stuff from the holes can
> be a bit tricky unless you use an anchor. :)

Some of the stuff already on the wall is falling off it. :-S

> Yeah, curtains should probably be on your "to buy" list sooner rather
> than later.

Indeed. Actually, since my grandparents owned their own company making 
custom curtains sold the world over, I think I know where I can get 
quality curtains. Trouble is, the flimsy little curtain poles I've got 
would be ripped straight off the wall. (Besides, who the hell wants 
their curtains hanging a foot away from the wall so it lets the light in 
around the edges??) I need to buy and put up some proper curtain rails. 
Looks like the space above the windows might actually be structural, so 
I can attach stuff to it...

>> Having said that, it's warmer since I turned my PC back on and set four
>> instances of POV-Ray running. (I've lost about two weeks of render time
>> due to this move...)
>
> That's one way to get the temperature up.  What kind of temperature do
> you find you sleep best at?

It seems I feel some comfortable (day and night) when the thermometer 
says between 21°C and 23°C. Below 20°C and I'm actually shivering. Above 
24°C is too hot.

> Wouldn't you know, I couldn't sleep with the heat on?  I have to have it
> around 55 degrees F in order to get a decent night's sleep.

Hehe, you Americans and your obsolete measurement systems...

>> Weird thing is, it says Honeywell on it - I thought they went out of
>> business about 30 years ago...
>
> Nope, Honeywell is a Minnesota-based company, in fact - I went to middle
> school ("Jr. High" as we called it then) near one of their manufacturing
> plants.  They make pretty decent thermostats.

Mmm, OK.

Is it true they once made computational devices? Because that seems like 
a pretty random product combination - heating systems and computers...

> Some programmable thermostats have a removable front panel that has basic
> instructions on it (we've got two that are like that, but different makes/
> models).  If anything, there'll be a model number on it somewhere that
> you can get to without taking it off the wall.  Usually there's a
> battery, too (unless in the UK they run off a 220v circuit, which seems
> unlikely), so sometimes looking inside the battery cover might help find
> that info.

No instructions, but under the front plate there's a model number. I 
imagine it shouldn't be hard to locate the instructions. That's what we 
did with the washing machine. (Which, incidentally, has a drying 
function. I've never heard of such a thing before...)

>>> Oh, no, property values can (and do) go up.  I bought my first place
>>> out here in the mid-90's, paid about $89K for it (well, the bank did,
>>> and I paid them back when I sold the place and we moved in 2001.  The
>>> new place cost roughly double that (I think about $160K when all was
>>> said and done), and our realtor tells us that we should be able to get
>>> about $325K for it when we finish the last few little things that need
>>> finishing (a couple hardwood floors to professionally clean and
>>> refinish, and a little bit of painting).
>>
>> How does that work out after you correct for inflation?
>
> I'll still end up ahead.  We'll have about a year's worth of spare change
> in the bank.  The thing is, when you take a loan out for property, the
> loan is for the purchase price, and that doesn't adjust with inflation.

No, but the interest on the loan is 18x inflation. ;-)

>> I figure if you buy a property that's almost brand-new, once you sell
>> it, it's not brand-new any more, hence drastically less desirable. Also
>> half this block of flats appears to be empty currently, so...
>
> So you shouldn't have many noise complaints from your neighbors if you
> decide to listen to some music or watch TV. ;)

Having been threatened with physical violence for DARING to park in 
somebody else's space, I'm not going to risk it.

> Our house was built in 1912, with an addition added in the 1960's.  Real
> estate valuation is different than, say, a car (which generally
> depreciates).

Few things depreciate faster than computers. ;-) I bought a £250 CPU. I 
was thinking about selling it - until I realised that AMD still 
manufacture it, and you can buy it retail boxed for £21.

That's 1/11th of the original price I paid. *Clearly* no sane person is 
going to buy a second-hand CPU when they can get it brand new with 
manufacturer's guarantee for less than the cost of postage...

But, in general, most things seem to become more worthless the older 
they are. (Including me, sadly...)

> Again, it's supply and demand.  If there are 10 people who
> want to move into a neighborhood where there are only 3 houses up for
> sale, those 10 people will determine the value of the property simply
> because there's more demand than supply.  That can actually drive
> property values up.

And if there's already lots of empty flats?

> But there are other things that add to property value - local schools,
> available public transport, crime levels, access to parks and other green
> spaces, "walkability" (ie, can you get to the shops by walking or do you
> need to drive somewhere to get your groceries?), proximity to local
> employers, and so on.  The value isn't entirely in the specific property,
> but in the surrounding neigbourhood.  That's one reason why a real estate
> agent will pull "comps" - prices on nearby "comparable" properties that
> have recently sold.  That gives the agent an idea as to what the going
> prices are for houses like yours.

OK, so I now live on the shore of an artificial lake in an idyllic green 
parkland, with various water-sports centres and so forth. This end of 
the city is still fairly green in general, although they're slowing 
building on it.

Since this grid-square is half under water, there are no local shops. 
I've yet to work out where the nearest local shop is. There are various 
supermarkets in various directions, if you want to drive. Basically I 
don't really know my way around this side of the city yet; I've lived in 
the western corner all my life, and never really come out this way much. 
(As I say, there's not much here.)

Everybody seems to *say* this is a low-crime area. Then again, none of 
those people live hear. Last weekend some lovely chaps smashed several 
glass bottles in the middle of the car park, which I then had to drive 
over. But overall it seems *reasonably* low-crime.

> Then, too, there's improvements (as I mentioned before).

It's a block of flats. You can't really do much to it.

> Also, not everyone wants "new".  Some people prefer an older property
> with "character".

I'm not sure a government-funded block of cheap flats is what most 
people would call "character".

But hey, I ain't trying to sell this place just yet!

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