NEED TO RENEW YOUR BRITISH PASSPORT? GO ONLINE

Passport applications for Britons resident overseas must now be made via the GOV.UK website
All British residents living in Spain must now make their passport applications online at www.gov.uk/overseas-passports.

The new passport process, which is part of a worldwide changeover, helps to reduce the possibility of making errors that can delay applications.

Applicants will find that the new process, which includes online payment, generates a personalised pack that must be printed, signed and sent with photographs and any additional documentation that may be required to the Passport Office in the UK - and no longer to a British Consulate or Embassy.
Once an application has been submitted, applicants will receive instructions on how to track its progress via the website.

It is important to apply in good time as a new passport will take at least four weeks from the time the completed application pack is received by the Passport Office in the UK, or six weeks if replacing a lost or stolen passport.

 “Don’t leave it until the last minute to apply for your passport,” advises Will Middleton, Consular Regional Director for Spain. “You can apply up to nine months in advance and any unexpired time will be added to your new passport.”

Applicants who cannot access the online system or who experience any difficulties should contact the Passport Advice Line on +44 300 222 0000.

Source: theleader.info

The Options Available to Stop Foreclosure of Your Real Estate

Foreclosure is something that no homeowner wants to face. It can mean the loss of your dream home, any equity in your home, your credit rating and most importantly, your dignity. Foreclosure is a very public process, with your name listed in the public court records and then published in your local newspaper. Even when you have put everything behind you and ready to move on with our life, the incident follows you like a shadow. It appears on your credit report for at least 7-10 years. In addition, all mortgage applications will ask about it.

Once real estate is lost to foreclosure, the owner’s credit score can drop by as much as 250-280 points. The credit score can be restored only after strenuous on-time payments done regularly over a period of three years or more. If the foreclosure is an isolated event, you may be able to restore your records in 24 months if your credit record is otherwise sound. But this usually does not happen as foreclosure comes with escalating rates that only push the individual deeper into debt.

If you have experienced a temporary setback, you may have several options available to you to stop foreclosure of your real estate.  Here are several proven strategies to avoid a foreclosure:

Don’t Panic. Face the Situation Squarely, Calmly

The prospect of being unable to make their mortgage payment paralyzes many with fear and anxiety. They start avoiding phone calls and defer paying the bills. The best way to start repairing the situation is to stop panicking and act fast.  Gather your bill statements and most importantly, call your lender to explain your situation.

Talk to Your Lender to Work out a Plan

Avoiding your lender is the last thing you should do. Contact your lender as soon as you realize that you have a problem. Remember, lenders do not want your house. Their business is structured to deal with such situations and that’s why they will have many options to help you through tough financial times. Responding to all mail from your lender will send a clear signal to them that you are serious about resolving the issue.

Mortgage Restructuring

Mortgage modification is a practical option available to stop foreclosure. If you have experienced a permanent reduction in income and cannot afford a repayment plan, the terms of the loan may be adjusted to match your current income levels. The interest rate is lowered or the term is extended so that monthly payments become affordable.

Forbearance Agreement

Forbearance agreement is normally used if you have experienced tough financial times that’s now firmly behind you and you can resume making regular payments. It is a popular option when you can’t pay all of your past due mortgage payments at once.  Under the agreement, the lender agrees to move your pending payments to the back of the loan. This helps you stop foreclosure and also gives you a long breather to get things back on track.

Working out a New Repayment Plan

Modifying the repayment plan is one of the most preferred methods of lenders.  Here the lender agrees to let you draw level with the back payments by adding a portion of the pending amount to each current monthly payment until the account is back to normal again.

Refinancing Your Mortgage

Mortgage refinance is a way out if you have suffered a setback financially and unable to make regular mortgage payments. You can refinance your loan with your existing lender or a new lender but you must furnish proof of good credit prior to the setback, and also establish that you can now support the new mortgage payment. This is usually not a sound option unless you agree to very high interest rates. But it can save you from foreclosure and help you bounce back when earnings improve and your finances are back on track.

Filing for Bankruptcy

Filing for bankruptcy will temporarily stop the foreclosure case. You are allowed to file any time before the foreclosure auction. However, this should is usually the last and most painful way of stopping foreclosure. The move will not permanently end the foreclosure but it can buy you months or years without losing your property. This method however has a high risk of failure. This is because the reorganization arrangement typically requires the homeowner to make plan payments that are much higher than the original payments. Given the tough financial situation, that is often an uphill task.

Author Bio: Karrie Morton is an online marketing associate of HomePropertySearch.net - provides real estate services. Karrie’s interest range from providing improvement tips on home and yard. She also loves finding new ideas for home improvement projects. Connect with Karrie through her social media accounts. Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Pinterest

How To Make Your Own Greenhouse

A greenhouse can be a very practical addition to your garden. It allows you to start seedlings, grow exotic plants and even produce your own food throughout the year. Furthermore, it can give an additional charm to your garden, especially if beautifully built. And the best thing about it is that you can make it on your own, of course, if you have the time, some DIY skills and the basic tools. Below are two easy to follow instructions on how to make your own greenhouse.

Making greenhouse from PVC pipes and joints

Using PVC pipes and joints is probably the easiest way to make a greenhouse that meets your specific needs and space available. But before you head to your local home improvement store, be sure to determine the size of your future greenhouse and write down the dimensions in order to be able to calculate how many pipes and joints you need to buy.
Now that you have everything you need, begin assembling your greenhouse starting at the bottom section. The shape is of course completely up to you – you can build a triangular or quadrangular greenhouse if you like but if you want to grow tomatoes or other slightly larger plants, it may be worth to consider making a quadrangular structure with a triangular roof. By making an extra effort to make a triangular roof rather than flat one, you will also increase the amount of daylight getting into the greenhouse as well as prevent rain and snow from accumulating on the roof. When you assembly all the pipes, you simply cover the structure with plastic and you're done.
Since PVC pipes are very light, you may face issues with the wind. If the wind's strong enough, it can blow your newly built greenhouse away. Rather than making it entirely from PVC pipes, it may be a good idea to make a wooden base in order to make it heavier and avoid any wind issues.

Building greenhouse from recycled windows/glass doors

If you want a larger greenhouse to give an additional appeal to your garden, grow flowers or food all year round or/and accent your home exteriors but don't want to spend several hundred dollars on pre-made structures, there is good news. You can build a greenhouse from old windows and glass doors that are thrown out by homeowners remodeling their houses. This option is of course much more challenging than making a greenhouse from PVC pipes. In addition, it may take some time to find the right windows/glass doors.
If you decide to build a greenhouse from recycled windows/glass doors, you are recommended to make a rough plan of how it should look. But don't start building it until you get all the windows/glass doors you need. If you can't find the right windows/glass doors in a reasonable amount of time, it may be a good idea to make changes to your plan in order to be able to get started with what is available.

Rob Gould works in home construction and renovation in Vancouver, Canada with Gold Coast Stucco Design. When he's not working, he loves gardening and fixing up old furniture.

How to Choose Colors for a Bathroom Remodel

When it comes to remodeling your bathroom, the best way to finish the job is to put on a fresh new coat of paint to really make your bathroom’s transformation complete. Applying new color to your bathroom’s walls will add to the tone of the room and let you express your taste and style. If you don’t know what you’re doing, it’s advisable to hire some bathroom remodeling Austin specialists. 

If you wish to do the job yourself, then be sure and hand wash the walls that will be painted then sand all surfaces. Next you will prime the surfaces to ensure a quality finished coating with a clean, smooth surface. Keep in mind that there are other ways to add color to your new bathroom. Accessories such as mats, toothbrush holders, and more will let you change the color schemes to set the tone of the room.

When choosing the colors that will go on your bathroom’s walls, look at the size and style of your bathroom. You may not want to use a dark color for smaller bathrooms, and on the other hand light colors will make a large bathroom seem empty. 

You will want to look at the color of the flooring to not clash with the wall colors. Use caution with  accents like tiles because of the potential color clash with other aspects of the room. You may want to search on the internet for photo galleries of nice looking bathrooms to give you some ideas of what you might like. The colors you choose will change the mood of the room. For example, blue is relaxing and brings thoughts of water. Using more than one colors makes the room more dramatic.

You will want to get some color samples from paint stores and compare them to see which will look best on your bathroom’s walls. You may want to try other ways of adding color to the bathroom, without the use of paint. This may be by using tiles, wallpaper, or accessories.

Before you apply a color to a whole wall, you may want to try painting a small area in a closet or other surface to see if you will still like the color once it has been applied to a wall. Often times, people will change their minds about how a color looks on the color sample after they have seen it on a wall. It would be a bad thing to paint a wall or whole room and then decide that you don’t like the color.

It is also a good idea to get a second opinion from friends or family to help you decide on what color you will use.

GOLF FIGHTS CANCER

On the 17th January 2014 at El Plantio Golf Resort, nr Alicante will be the inaugural Golf Tournament on the Costa Blanca with a “Mixed Pairs” competition to highlight the fight against both male and female cancer. 

It’s an opportunity for golfers who are committed to using golf as a platform to raise money in the fight against cancer.
The mission of Golf Fights Cancer is to tap into the passion and generosity of all golfers to raise needed funds for cancer-related organizations supporting research and people living with the disease.

The tournament organised by the Vega Baja Premier Golf League officials will raise funds to present to AECC (Asociación Espana Contra el Cancer – Pink Ladies).
The logo depicts the symbol of male and female golfers with pink ribbon for ladies breast cancer and blue for the men’s prostate cancer.
This is planned to be an annual event which includes competition green fee, buggy and dinner.

Source: theleader.info

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY WINNER!

After a very well supported and successful draw for a five day Christmas holiday in Benidorm, the winning ticket was drawn on Thursday 22nd November at the offices of Coachtrips S.L. by Jennie Mutter, Executive Fund Raiser for AFA Torrevieja (centre holding the winning ticket ). The winner was Rita Monahan. Supervising the draw was Shona Cooke, manager of Coachtrips S.L. (right) and Judy Ferris of Alzheimer’s Ass. Torrevieja (left). The final amount raised will be announced as soon as David returns from England.
The Holiday was generously donated by David’s Coaches (Coachtrips S.L) with all the ticket money going to AFA Torrevieja ( The Alzheimer’s Association ). This is a truly tremendous and welcome boost to funding the work of AFA, particularly in these straightened times, when the need far outstrips the  available income. All the money collected goes directly to supporting our two day centres and the home care given to people suffering from this cruel and non-curable disease. We also support the families and carers of our patients.
Judy Ferris, also from AFA Torrevieja wanted to say a very big thank you to all those who bought the one euro ticket, especially one man who on buying ten tickets wanted his winning ticket ( had he won ) to go to a patient from AFA with their partner, and another who said should his ticket be the winning one, he would offer it for sale and give the sale proceeds to AFA. Wow what lovely people supported this event.
David, of David’s Coaches is a well known supporter of local charities as well as the hard working owner of Coachtrips S.L. and has for many years taken literally thousands of us on day trips, short holidays and even cruises. He has now offered two people the chance to win a free all inclusive 10 day cruise at the end of next summer,again supporting Torrevieja’s  Alzheimer’s Association.
So watch out for these tickets coming on sale very soon. This could be your chance for an all inclusive ten day cruise around the Mediterranean and the Adriatic next year.

Source: .theleader.info

New water pump for volunteer firefighters

A NEW water pump has been donated to the volunteer fire brigade from Balcon al Mar.
Their equipment was damaged at the beginning of October as they attended a fire in La Guardia, Javea.
The volunteers play an important role in Javea and in many cases are the first people to arrive at the scene of a fire. As a result, Amjasa, the company that supplies water to Javea, decided to help the volunteers and donate a new water pump to the firefighting team.

The assistant manager of Amjasa, Josep Lluis Henarejos, has replaced the volunteer’s old pump with a new one which is valued at €3,000. This new pump can accommodate eight pipes simultaneously without the loss of pressure.

The volunteers also received a €2,000 donation from The Original Charity Shop in Javea to help them replace other items of damaged equipment.
The Mayor of Javea, Jose Chulvi, said the budget for the volunteer fire service will increase next year to ensure this vital service continues.

Source: euroweeklynews.com