Reply to: Working in Canary Wharf

[d000hg]

I think your comparison sucks because you're not comparing like for like. In a hotel room only you can live, whereas in a £1200 flat (btw. month is not 4 weeks) you can maybe move in with your family? Also a hotel room is usually just a noisy box, for £1200 you can get a proper, separate bedroom(s) etc
1) £250 insurance is really an excessive premium - I used to pay <100 for a similarly priced London flat, also your stuff in a hotel in not insured or protected either, they explicitly say that!
2) council tax, if you're living single and is your second home will usually attract 25% discount, so more like £110pcm depending on the borough
3) when the s*** hits the fan and you let landlord know that you're out of work, they will usually be very keen to replace you - they'd rather have another paying tenant than some jobless bloke.
4)finally it's very likely that you'll find another gig in London soon enough so no need to get rid of the flat...
5) you can get a very nice broadband for £10 pcm in a flat, whereas for instance Ibis charges that per day! As most of us rely on Internet, it's probably good to factor that in.

Still one major advantage of the hotel is you can usually stay a bit more central, or at least closer to the tube station, and obviously if you factor in bank holidays and maybe working less the 5 days a week, it does change the picture...

It really does depend on the situation, but in an uncertain contract I would normally stay in a hotel initially and move to flat as time goes by (upon extension maybe)...

Just rent a serviced apartment. No hassles with utilities, you just pay and they sort it out including cleaning and so on. £100/day is possible right in the centre, I'm sure.

[Jog On]

I like Canary Wharf - and the city (prefer wharf). But I live inside the M25 and am from London...

I don't have much to do with the end client users, and when my day is finished I'm out the door.

I have worked in far far worse places

[Manic]

I'm currently in Canary Wharf and do a 2 hour commute here. 1 hour on train and an hour by Tube. It's true the place is full of career 10 hour a dayers with no concept or expectation ogf home life, kids etc. Home working is cussing and they expect you here 9-5 Mon/Fri.

Thankfully my balls are a little bigger and I negotiated one day at home, but that can't be a Monday or a Friday! Hell on earth.

[117MilesToGo]

I would never work up North again, it was one of the worst experiences of my life, working up in Bingley

P.S. for the sake of simplification I have assumed that everywhere north of Watford is the same as Bingley.

I lol'd at that ......... well I would as Ive never been north of the M25.

[oliverson]

I would never work up North again, it was one of the worst experiences of my life, working up in Bingley

P.S. for the sake of simplification I have assumed that everywhere north of Watford is the same as Bingley.

All that proper grass must have blown your mind!

[ChimpMaster]

As a fellow northerner I'd strongly urge you not to bother. <snip whinge>

I would never work up North again, it was one of the worst experiences of my life, working up in Bingley

P.S. for the sake of simplification I have assumed that everywhere north of Watford is the same as Bingley.

[oliverson]

Don't do it!

As a fellow northerner I'd strongly urge you not to bother. Find work where you are and don't chase the big bucks.

I've been down here for the last 3 years living in a combination of hotels, B&B's and rentals in London and in the surrounding counties. Let me tell you it's a living hell. This period has been the worst of my life. Unless you enjoy working with people who have no life or interest in anything other than working long days and talking about money then stay where you are, where the people are normal and honest.

It's been a good experience for me because I'd always have wondered what it was like (working in the City/Wharf). But now I've seen it I want out. I'm willing to lose some of my 'assets' and take a cut in rate just to be with my family.

£ 600 a day down here equates to around £ 400 back north. Everything is much more expensive. No matter how you budget the costs spiral.

Think again.

btw, plastic grass in some areas of Canary Wharf. Speaks volumes to me.

[117MilesToGo]

I commute to London on a weekly basis and stay in hotels and have been doing for 5 months. I'm still toying with the idea of an apartment but didnt want the hassle of finding somewhere and if the gig failed be left paying a bill I couldn't or wouldnt want to pay out for.

Some figures for you guys to stew over:-

Apartment:
£300 a week x 4 weeks = £1200 a month x 12 mths = £14,400 pa

I always do week * 4.3 to get my monthly figure. That extra 0.3 could make all the difference. In a leap year, there is not even a single month in that year that is only 4 weeks so its kind of flawed mathematics to start with.

[Fred Bloggs]

I agree, being able to cancel and walk away from a Hotel suits me just fine. I have always managed to avoid jobs so far, in the centre of London, due to the general hassle factor though.

[xchaotic]

Apartment:
£300 a week x 4 weeks = £1200 a month x 12 mths = £14,400 pa
Council tax (guestimate) £150 a month x 12 = £1800
Heating & Water = £50 a month x 12 = £600
TV license = £180 a year
Contents insurance = £250 a year

Total outgoings for apartment over 12 months = £17230

Hotel
£55 (max) a month x average 21 days a month x 12= £13860

I think your comparison sucks because you're not comparing like for like. In a hotel room only you can live, whereas in a £1200 flat (btw. month is not 4 weeks) you can maybe move in with your family? Also a hotel room is usually just a noisy box, for £1200 you can get a proper, separate bedroom(s) etc
1) £250 insurance is really an excessive premium - I used to pay <100 for a similarly priced London flat, also your stuff in a hotel in not insured or protected either, they explicitly say that!
2) council tax, if you're living single and is your second home will usually attract 25% discount, so more like £110pcm depending on the borough
3) when the s*** hits the fan and you let landlord know that you're out of work, they will usually be very keen to replace you - they'd rather have another paying tenant than some jobless bloke.
4)finally it's very likely that you'll find another gig in London soon enough so no need to get rid of the flat...
5) you can get a very nice broadband for £10 pcm in a flat, whereas for instance Ibis charges that per day! As most of us rely on Internet, it's probably good to factor that in.

Still one major advantage of the hotel is you can usually stay a bit more central, or at least closer to the tube station, and obviously if you factor in bank holidays and maybe working less the 5 days a week, it does change the picture...

It really does depend on the situation, but in an uncertain contract I would normally stay in a hotel initially and move to flat as time goes by (upon extension maybe)...

[virtualm]

I commute to London on a weekly basis and stay in hotels and have been doing for 5 months. I'm still toying with the idea of an apartment but didnt want the hassle of finding somewhere and if the gig failed be left paying a bill I couldn't or wouldnt want to pay out for.

Some figures for you guys to stew over:-

Apartment:
£300 a week x 4 weeks = £1200 a month x 12 mths = £14,400 pa
Council tax (guestimate) £150 a month x 12 = £1800
Heating & Water = £50 a month x 12 = £600
TV license = £180 a year
Contents insurance = £250 a year

Total outgoings for apartment over 12 months = £17230

Hotel
£55 (max) a month x average 21 days a month x 12= £13860


Diff = £3370 (or a nice holiday for you and the mrs)

On average renting an aparment costs £13 more a day (£3370 / 12 / 21 days a month)

For me hotels work, mainly because of 1) Minimum risk if the gig fails, 2) I get the room cleaned daily clean towels etc, but that's not saying it can be a pain in the a*rse booking hotels weekly and planning ahead...but, if you find a cheaper hotel like I'm paying £45 a night for a really good budget hotel then the justification for hotels wins. I just think it's too much hassle to be looking for digs, then sorting out all the bills and d/d's - I'm too busy for that, I just want to chill when I've finished work.

Hope this helps, mine's a corona.

[theroyale]

Some commutes these are! You start tending to when you have family and things I suppose... I move to where the contract. This afternoon I went home for lunch, five minutes by bicycle along a tree-lined street is current commute

[Jog On]

You don't have to rent too far in Central London, I commute into CW from Middlesex every day. Guy that sits next to me comes in from Bournmouth - every day

I can recommend the SW trains route into Waterloo - or if you can rent along the line into London Bridge you're only 3 stops on the Jubilee from Canary

[cojak]

Lower rate + easy commute is better than higher rate + tiring commute.

Most people underestimate the toll it takes on health/mind due to long (more than 1.5 hr each way) commute.

Fine if you find a contract like that. In the current climate you can't be choosey.

I'm doing Nottingham - Leeds and it is possible but it's the longest daily commute I'm prepared to do. If my next contract is in London it will have to be a stay over,

[mobi]

Lower rate + easy commute is better than higher rate + tiring commute.

Most people underestimate the toll it takes on health/mind due to long (more than 1.5 hr each way) commute.