Manse & Garret Property Search

Sometimes I wonder if we do the right thing extolling the virtues of prime central London real estate to risk averse overseas buyers looking for good capital appreciation and a safe haven for their hard-earned cash.  As London Buyers Agents, we do most of our business in prime established areas but we also buy in other areas of London including Hackney, Islington, Greenwich and Blackheath and others.

City buyers like Islington and parts of Hackney for the 20 minute commute to Bank.  Canary Wharf workers like Greenwich and Blackheath for similar reasons.  One of our Clients can get from his front door to his desk in 17 minutes.  But all of these areas were hit in the downturn and in our view Islington agents were the first to lose face back in 2007 when Lehman Brothers went down and Northern Rock followed.  So we tend to suggest prime areas, which are likely to weather future storms much better.  And are relatively immune to rioting.

As I write, the skirmishes in Hackney look relatively minor but this London Buyers Agent is under no illusions that we may see a different picture in the morning.  During the first six months of the year, Hackney house prices had increased by 4.1%, the third highest house price rise by borough across London according to the Land Registry.

Islington has also been a winner to date, with prices rising 5.5% year on year, but there was rioting there too at the weekend and now we hear Highbury resident BoJo is cutting short his holiday and  coming home to save the day.

Likewise, Lewisham which incorporates a small part of Blackheath and is the closest DLR to some of the lovely heath facing properties in West Blackheath, has seen violence today.  Property prices overall in the borough had increased by 3.2% year on year to June, but this rioting underlines the issues about the area.  One of our Clients who settled in Greenwich was considering moving to Lewisham at one point.  We strongly suggested they settle at least initially in Greenwich or Blackheath, which was admittedly more expensive, but what price do you put on safety?

I bet they are grateful today that they listened to our advice and although they paid more than they wanted to, we negotiated a significant proportion off the rent.

So I don’t regret being firm about areas with Clients.  Our job as London Buyers Agents is to find perfect properties on and off-market, negotiate great deals for our Clients and make sure they are buying in the right area for them in the first place.  London is a series of villages and although confidence and house prices in affected boroughs will almost certainly be hit, there is sure to be the right village for you.

Technorati Tags: blackheath, Hackney house price rises, Hackney house prices, hackney riots, House Prices, Islington house prices, Islington riots and house prices, islinton riots, lewisham house prices, lewisham riots, London riots

Tags: blackheath, Hackney house price rises, Hackney house prices, hackney riots, House Prices, Islington house prices, Islington riots and house prices, islinton riots, lewisham house prices, lewisham riots, London riots

It will be no surprise to London Property Buyers Agents that The Royal Borough and Fulham and Hammersmith are continuing to lead the charge with rising property prices according to the latest figures from the Land Registry.  Property prices in the two boroughs have increased by 6.6% and 6.4% respectively this year, followed  closely by city favourite, Islington with an average 5.5% rise year on year.

Other areas to have performed well during the first six months of the year include Hackney, where prices have increased by 4.1% year to date and where prices rose by 1.8% in June, second only to Harrow where they rose by 2.4% in the same month.  Westminster, home to Mayfair and parts of Belgravia, Marylebone and Bayswater rose 3.4% year on year, although the best properties have had a good year if priced well.

In our capacity as prime London Buyers Agents, we’ve been in several sealed bid situations this year so far as prime property continues to be in short supply and so well-priced property has sold well during the first half of the year.  We always have searches in Mayfair and there has been a real dearth of good flats this year, apart from the odd portfolio sale, so the few deals we have done here have been off-market.

Now we are in holiday season, the market feels softer, as vendors and buyers retire to their second homes for the summer, but people have to live somewhere and although transactions are down overall year on year the numbers of prime properties changing hands in London is still up on last year.  Interestingly, the number of properties sold in London for over £2million doubled between April 2010 and April 2011 from 71 to 141.  I would be very interested to know how many of those completed before April 5th, when the new 5% stamp duty came into force for properties over £1million.  If the experience of this London Property Buyers Agent is anything to go by, quite alot, I would imagine!

All statistics provided by the Land Registry House Price Index July 28th

It came as no surprise to switched on Brighton Property Search Agents that Caroline Lucas won the Pavilion seat in Brighton at the general election in 2010 and became the first Green Party Member of Parliament. This success was further underlined at the recent local elections where the Green party gained an overall majority of councillors. So how does this affect the quality of life and property in the City?

In 2008 Brighton and Hove Council opted into the Sustainable Communities Act, which enabled the local authority to adopt an environmental strategy as part of its core policy. Citizens of Brighton and the local council have already implemented some strategies; increased energy efficiency measures in all planning applications for private and public housing; the Council has already achieved an enhanced environmental management system; there are training plans in place to educate Council tenants in energy efficiency. The Big Lemon bus burning used cooking oil as fuel has been running between the city centre and the universities for several years in certain parts of the city. THere is a 20mph traffic limit to cut both carbon emissions and accidents. In addition the Council has set challenging carbon reduction targets for public transport, increased cycle lanes and installed charging points in the centre of the city for electric vehicles. The people of Brighton are forward looking in aspiration and deeds and strive to make Brighton a beacon of sustainable living. We are doing our bit at Manse & Garret Property Search in London, with the use of electric cars and we are looking to roll out the scheme to our Brighton Property Search Agents.

I hear you say, ‘but this is very political and I am not a supporter of the Green Party’. However few people are uninterested in the future of the planet; Brighton will be a healthier place to live with fewer toxic traffic fumes and prudent planning with ensure that the City is ahead in the race for sustainability. It is also a place where people’s opinions count and opportunities are aplenty for involvement in city matters, from gardening in the city parks to sharing one’s experience in almost any field from healthy eating, health walks and tourism, which is why Brighton’s premier property search agents have so many clients interested in relocating to this great city.

Come and see for yourself; the range of houses will not disappoint you or your budget and if you need any assistance – Manse & Garret Property Search will be delighted to help.

Technorati Tags: Brighton, Brighton Property, Brighton Property Search Agents, Electric Vehicles, Green Party, Manse & Garret, Planning, Sustainability

Tags: Brighton, Brighton Property, Brighton Property Search Agents, Electric Vehicles, Green Party, Manse & Garret, Planning, Sustainability