In our last blog, we looked at how much it costs to rent a short-term property versus renting one long-term. The surprising finding was that once you take all the moving costs, the expense of furnishing an apartment and the bills into account, it's cheaper to rent on a short-term contract than a long-term one (not to mention all the time you save not having to deal with energy suppliers, researching everything you need to buy, staying in for things to be delivered, waiting around for Virgin to set up your broadband...).

We compared two people sharing a two-bed serviced flat in West Bridgford for 6 months and our comparison showed that the short-term let worked out at £700 cheaper over that time. So we thought it would be interesting to do the same calculation but this time we'd compare staying with us in a short-term rental with staying in a hotel.

Who remembers Lost in Translation? It was a look at how impersonal and dehumanising staying in a hotel can be, something we talked about a while ago in this blog – Business Travel: From Dehumanising to Enriching – Are You Up For the Challenge? We don't mean to put a negative spin on hotels but having an apartment all to yourself or you and your partner is so much nicer, isn't it?

But is it more expensive?

A quick search on trivago to stay in a hotel in Nottingham tonight came back with options ranging from £29 to £153. PWC's forecast for hotel prices outside London in 2017 predicted an average of £70/night. Nottingham's prices are a bit above average, the average in Nottingham was £64/night in 2014, and £71/night in 2015 (according to this report by The Daily Mail). So, why don't we work with a rate of £75 per night for a double room.

OK. So, let's work out how much that is for a month:
£75 x 30 nights = £2250

And for six months:
£2250 x 6 months = £13,500

How does that compare with renting a short-term apartment? Our special rate for lets of 3 months or more is £2000, which is:
£2000 x 6 months = £12,000

That's already a saving of £1500. But... with a rental you get two bedrooms. If you wanted to rent two rooms in a hotel your costs immediately doubles to £27,000. Wow.

The other benefits of short-term serviced apartment

Not only do you get two bedrooms, you get a living room, a fully-equipped kitchen, and a parking space as well. So you can cook your own meals, the kettle is a sensible size, you've got a Nespresso machine (not Nescafe instant). You can eat what you want when you want it. You can have midnight feasts, early morning smoothies, late morning brunches. Plus preparing your own food is so much cheaper and healthier than eating out all the time. And when you do want to go out you've got the many many gorgeous restaurants West Bridgford has to offer on your doorstep.

You also have space for your family to visit or stay, friends can come round too and you have enough chairs for everyone to sit down! You don't have to work at a tiny counter next to the TV amongst your possessions because that's the only flat surface, you can spread out across an entire table!

You've got free parking right outside – most hotels charge for parking these days, so that can add £5/day (or 
£900 for six months) to your hotel bill. And you can come and go as you please. The cleaners come at a time to suit you, and you don't have to fit in with reception times or meal times.

What do you think? If you're renting for more than 3 months, is it cheaper to stay in short-term accommodation or go for a long-term letting?

I bet you answered 'long-term', right?

Surely you pay less per month with longer leases than you do with short-term ones, how could it possibly be the other way around?

But it is! When you look into it there's an awful lot more to renting than just paying the rent.

If you take all of the other costs into account, a longer lease stops looking like such a great deal. And if you count non-monetary costs (like your time, hassle, peace of mind and convenience) short-term renting is by far the cheaper and easier option.

I know what you're going to say, 'we would say that' given what we do, which is why we've got the figures to back it up...

(We used like-for-like 2-bedroom properties in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire for comparison based on 2 people relocating to the area – as most of our guests are – and renting for 6 months)

SHORT-TERM LET
Rental per month £2000* (includes weekly cleaning)
Rental per month £1900* (equivalent without cleaning)

Additional charges for:

• Letting agent administration, references & inventory £0
• Deposit £0
• Gas & electricity £0
• Council tax £0
• Fast broadband & phone £0 (calls extra)
• Water £0
• Furniture (beds, bedside tables, chest of drawers, wardrobes, dining table & chair, sofas & armchairs, bathroom cabinet, soft furnishings, pictures, T.V., fully equipped kitchen including Nespresso machine, a fridge/freezer, and washing machine) £0
• New bedding £0
• Removal company £0
• T.V. licence £0

TOTAL FOR 6 MONTHS:

6 x 1900 = £11,400

*Please note that this is a special reduced rate for rentals of 3 months or more

LONG-TERM LET
Rental per month £650 (without cleaning)

Additional charges for:

• Letting agent administration, references & inventory £404 one-off**
• Deposit £650+ (refundable so not taken into account)
• Gas & electricity £85/month
• Council tax £110/month
• Fast broadband & phone £35/month (calls extra)
• Water £25/month
• Furniture (beds, bedside tables, chest of drawers, wardrobes, dining table & chair, sofas & armchairs, bathroom cabinet, soft furnishings, pictures, T.V., fully equipped kitchen including Nespresso machine, a fridge/freezer, and washing machine) £5000
• New bedding £200
• Removal company £1000 (once at end of tenancy)
• T.V. licence £12/month

TOTAL FOR 6 MONTHS:

6 x 650 rent = £3,900 + 404 + (267 x 6) + 5000 + 200 + 1000 = £12,106

That's £700 MORE than the short-term let!

**Average estate agent fee charged by ARLA licensed agents is £202 per tenant (November 2016)

You do still have all the furniture at the end of your rental so there's an option of not spending £1000 on  moving and selling what you spent all that money on but even if you have the time and capacity to do it, it generally ends up on Gumtree for pennies.

So there's no way around it, short-term leases are cheaper.

Not only that but they save you heaps of time too because there's:

• no researching everything you need to buy
• no time spent signing up to utility companies and organising your Council Tax
• no finding and booking a removal company (and all the hassle involved in packing up and moving)
• no waiting in for Virgin to come round or the electrician to call
• no taking time off work to be there when your furniture's delivered
• no taking and sending off meter readings
• no hidden costs like there are with many estate agents if you decide to leave earlier than planned, for example

With our minimum 3 month lets there's no faff at all.

Just 100% flexibility and a readymade home with all the creature comforts you could possibly want waiting for you to move in.

We also offer tailored relocation support if you need any help finding the right school, church, sports club, other parents, or anything else you need to start living the moment you move in. Our properties are guaranteed to be immaculate when you move in, plus if you have any issues during your stay we're on-hand to deal with them.

We don't understand why anyone would you do anything else?!

Please let us know what you think about our findings in the Comments below or feel free to ask us any questions. We'd love to welcome you to West Bridgford soon and show you what all the fuss is about!

I can't believe we're into the third week of January already (where does the time go?!). Is it too late to wish you a Happy New Year? We hope you had a great Christmas and have a brilliant 2017. We've got an exciting year ahead, we've taken on a number of new luxury apartments – soon to be featured on our blog – and we're set for another year of growth and lots of happy guests.

If you've gone back to work and you're already a little underwhelmed by the same old routine maybe it's time to think about a change? Our guests come from all four corners of the world, taking up new and exciting opportunities in Nottingham and the East Midlands. I know we're biased but there are some seriously good reasons to join them. Here are the top 5...

1. Business is Booming
​No one seemed quite sure what would happen after the Brexit vote last year but so far the economy is doing just fine. We talked about Reuters setting up a new subediting office in Nottingham last June, bringing new jobs and opportunities with them. And they're not the only ones. Romero insurance brokers have expanded their operations into the Midlands and chose Nottingham as the perfect place to set up shop, and we've seen scores of new restaurants arrive in the city in the last 12 months, keen to be part of the thriving local scene.

2. Local Schools
Whatever age your children and whether they go to a state school or a private one, you'll find the perfect place for them to study locally. Nottingham and wider Nottinghamshire are home to every type of school, college and academy you could possibly want. The area is well-known for having very good state primary and secondary schools (which is one reason why house prices are so buoyant in West Bridgford). For more info about private/independent schools pop over here and you can research local state schools via this link.

3. Sports Facilities
West Bridgford is not only home to Nottingham Trent Cricket Club, we also have Nottingham Forest and Nottingham City grounds right on our doorstep, the river Trent (perfect for rowing, dragon-boating, walking and cycling), the National Water Sports Centre with its choice of fun activities down the road at Holmepierre Pont, numerous gyms and tennis courts, and for keen walkers the Peak District is only 30 miles away. There's a never-ending list of sports and activities you can get involved in, it's easy to see why West Bridgford was named England's Home of Sport.

4. The Social Scene
You may have picked up that we're *quite* keen on going out (!). We're HUGE fans of Nottingham Playhouse and the arts in general, and who doesn't love going out for drinks and dinner?! So it's lucky really that Nottingham and West Bridgford have so much to offer. As well as Nottingham Playhouse, if the theatre is your thing there's the Theatre Royal, Lace Market Theatre and Nottingham Arts Theatre, which are all different and show a wide range of productions. When it comes to art galleries there's Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham Lakeside Arts and the Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery. And we've got four cinemas to choose from too (independent and arty Broadway, cheap tickets at the Savoy, luxury seating at the Showcase and IMAX at Cineworld). 

We've talked about going out for cocktails and dinner before so here are a few useful links to help you plan the perfect night out:

• ​The Best Cocktails in West Bridgford & Nottingham
• The Humour Behind Local Pub Names
• Our Favourite Nottingham Eateries
• Where to Go for Live Music​

​There's also a bi-weekly Farmer's Market on the Croquet Lawn on Central Avenue, West Bridgford – with either a plants or crafts fair the alternate Saturdays – which is perfect for picking up delicious locally sourced food. We have a wonderful park just off Central Avenue where you'll find Bridgford Hall and a great big children's playground to take your kids to after you've treated yourself at the Farmer's Market and got yourself a coffee from Al Fresco!

5. All the other brilliant things that don't fit into one neat category!
​We're very proud of all the awards the area wins. West Bridgford has been named England's Home of Sport, and the 8th top performing suburb in the UK, Nottinghamshire hosts two of the best golf courses in the country, and Larwood & Voce pub serves the best Sunday lunches in the UK!

Our well-fitted luxury apartments are in the centre of West Bridgford, with excellent travel links into Nottingham city centre and the station (about 5 mins), to East Midlands airport (an easy 20-minute drive), the wonderful public transport networks (excellent tram and bus services, plus it's only 1 hour 45 minutes by train to London). What's not to love about living here?!

If you're thinking of relocating to Nottingham or West Bridgford and would like any more information about the area feel free to get in touch, we LOVE talking about all the reasons to move here!

Way before we decided to Brexit, Londoners have been waking up in their mid-thirties and realising that they could move somewhere other than the South East, cash in on the equity in the house and introduce their children to fresh air, a buzzing lifestyle and a great education. Even this week in the Sunday Times Martina Lees was singing the praises of doing exactly that.

Here in Nottingham, we have long been used to large corporates relocating here (Capital One and Reuters Hub to name just a couple of recent ones) as well as our well-known homegrown big hitters like Experian, Boots, and Speedo. 

Well, I've written about this before, many times, and I don't want to bore you but at the top of the agenda in my current thoughts is that it is not really companies who relocate - it's people - young graduates, growing families, and executives and the marvellous thing about that is that we have something for everyone here in our fabulous suburb of West Bridgford just one mile outside Nottingham, where Nook & Cranny chose to place its luxury serviced apartments. 

Just as an aside, I am speaking from a position of experience. I was born and raised in Wimbledon, lived there until I was 19, chose Nottingham University to do my degree in Economics with a focus on Entrepreneurship, and loved the place so much that I stayed. So I've been a graduate here, I've raised my 3 sons who are all teenagers now and one has gone off to University himself.

West Bridgford has been a fabulous place to:

• Play Sports – National Watersports Centre, 3 health clubs, 5 tennis clubs, squash courts, a bowling green and a plethora of activities based around rowing and sailing on the River Trent for adults and kids alike
• Watch Sports – Trent Bridge Cricket Club, Nottingham Forest, Notts County, and the Watersports Centre again. We also have The Nottingham Tennis Open before Wimbledon each year too.
• Set up and run an independent business – we have the highest density of independent retailers, bars and restaurants outside London, which is great for consumers but also great to set up your own thing here and live the life of an entrepreneur, this place is really buzzy...
• Travel by public transport – we have the easiest to use, most comprehensive Bus & Tram Network outside London too... Very green aren't we?
• Educate your children – we have many excellent primary schools and three of the best senior schools in the country, all based in West Bridgford. We also have excellent public schools if you prefer.
• Buy a house – we may not be at the heights of capital growth that London has enjoyed (thank goodness!) but it's still been a great investment to buy property in West Bridgford over the years and that doesn't seem to show any signs of abating. In fact, one my favourite estate agents, Steve Parker, told me last week that they had had their best week in a long time, just one week after Brexit, which speaks volumes to me.
• Feed your family well – with our Farmers Market, a popular vegan restaurant and all the usual national chains and many great independent restaurants and coffee shops. 
• Have fun – whether it's music venues, cocktails or coffee, run routes or restaurants – we have it all!

Personally I left London for a great job, a high standard of living and to avoid the daily grind of the tube into London (and, shucks, I stayed for love). But whatever reason you pick to Lexit, do consider Nottingham and its exciting opportunities, and feel free to get in touch if you think you may need any local info or a serviced apartment to call home while you look for your new, more permanent home.