As London Property Finders it is our business to know what’s going on in London, and the creation of two new tube stations is certainly big news in the property world. The Chancellor gave his backing to the proposed ‘Northern Line Extension’ at the end of November. This is part of a wider Nine Elms Regeneration project and the government is hoping to tempt developers into contributing towards the scheme, which is estimated to cost between £750 million and £950 million. With an agreed programme in place by 2013, the construction of the line extension is set to begin in 2015. It will involve extending the Charing Cross branch of the Northern Line from Kennington further south-west, and creating two new stations: Battersea and Nine Elms.

Taken by EG Focus

Nine Elms is a 200 acre stretch of undeveloped land south of the river opposite Pimlico. Situated between Battersea Park and Vauxhall it is just over 3 miles from Covent Garden. The re-development of the iconic Battersea Power Station and Tideway Wharf into luxury flats is something that has been discussed for at least twenty years, and there have been more recent plans in place for the US embassy to relocate here from Mayfair in 2017. I believe that the Northern Line Extension is the key to ensuring the successful re-development of this area – a sentiment the developers involved share. This is best shown at http://northernlineextension.com/ where a website has been created and consistently updated with positive news stories relating to the scheme.

Knight Frank ear-marked Nine Elms as one of its 2012 “Hot Spots”. They have predicted an 140% increase in property values by 2016, with people paying around £1,800 per sq. foot, compared to  £750 per sq foot which property currently achieves in the area. The new tube links will bring this area within 11 minutes of the West End and the City.  In central London, location and travel-time are more often than not discussed in terms of tube stations and tube journeys and by putting Battersea and Nine Elms on the tube map it makes the area more attractive to young professionals, increases demand, and increases property prices in the area. At Manse & Garret Property Search it is unlikely that we will see many of our clients looking to buy in this area, as end-users.  Some of our investors may be interested purchasing property here as buy-to-let investments, but we certainly won’t be buying for them at £1,800 per sq foot!

Technorati Tags: Buy-to-let, Buyers agents, House Prices, House prices in London, northern line extension, re-development, transport links

Tags: Buy-to-let, Buyers agents, House Prices, House prices in London, northern line extension, re-development, transport links

Musings of a Brighton Property Finder

The Times carried an article today about an accountant with 3 buy-to-let properties in Shoreham which he rented out through Scarlet Property Services.  Sadly for Scarlet and the accountant, the letting Agency ceased trading, taking deposits and rent with it.  Scarlet Property Services wasn’t registered with Arla, so the landlord has no claim against the agent, apart from a contractual claim under contract law, which would presumably leave him little in the way of change after he had paid a lawyer to represent him for the £3,000 owed.

The accountant also feels he has to repay the deposit to the tenants, as although the tenancy was registered under the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, the contract was between the tenants and the landlord, so the tenants have a claim against the Landlord.  Although the deposit is protected by the TDS, it is the landlord who has to pay if the Letting Agent can’t which seems a bit unfair, since due to government regulation, Landlords are now prevented from holding deposits!

As a company, most of our rental Clients are in London and at weekly rents which render the terms of the Housing Act 1988, obsolete.  Deposits we deal with in London typically start at £20,000 and the London office always insist that the tenancy is registered with the TDS and is subject to the terms of the Housing Act anyway and alert the tenant to the risks if the agent is not ARLA registered.  We also do a great deal of owner direct deals in London, in which case the deposit is either held in our Client account or in the Client Account of a reputable lawyer.

In Brighton however, few rentals are of values which render the Housing Act redundant, and although the market is still buoyant the example of Scarlet Property Services exemplifies the intensification of competition in the rental sector since rental income has become the main revenue stream for estate agents nationwide.  And as for the know-it-alls proclaiming that landlords shouldn’t use non-ARLA registered agents – it wasn’t long ago that one of the biggest London Agents, Foxtons, wasn’t registered and their future has looked increasingly precarious until very recently.

Ability to find a good tenant used to be the key criteria for finding a Letting Agency.  Buy-to-letters buying through this Brighton Property Finders Agency, will be strongly advised to check the ARLA thing too!

www.landlordzone.co.uk

Technorati Tags: ARLA, Brighton Property Finder, Buy-to-let, Tenant's deposits, the TDS, What happens when letting agents go bust

Tags: ARLA, Brighton Property Finder, Buy-to-let, Tenant's deposits, the TDS, What happens when letting agents go bust

Musings of a London Home Search Agent

The Times led this morning with the story that the government is considering introducing a £50 licencing fee for all buy-to-let landlords.  The proposal follows and independent review last year for the government, in which leader Julie Rudd, a research fellow into Housing Policy recommended a ‘light touch licencing system’.

Searching, as we are, for fabulous homes available for short lets in W11, W8 and W1 at present, this seems like yet another piece of red tape which will dissuade people from letting to us.  Since we work predominantly in the £3,000 a week plus bracket, we have top-notch Clients who expect breath-taking homes.  Frequently we are finding that the homes which really suit them are just developed properties which the developers had intended to sell but who let to our lovely tenants for a short time, to take a breather from the market.

We’ve also been known to approach Clients or contacts we know with suitable second homes in the capital, on the off-chance that they will be happy to let to named Clients.  So for us personally, this is just one more piece of red tape which will make our job on the lettings search side, more difficult.

The licence was conceived to protect tenants from unscrupulous landlords, given problems in some areas in the private sector such as over-crowding.  However well-intentioned I can’t imagine this is going to make much difference.  I’m sure I’m not the only impoverished graduate who signed up for a 3 bedroom flat with 2 mates and immediately sublet our lounge and TV room to other friends.  The kitchen was large enough to hold a ceilidh, so would have definitely made up for the lack of living space as from memory I think we would have all ended up paying about £60 a week in Pimlico, when all of us were paying £100 – £150 separately.

Unfortunately, the whole thing fell apart because the landlord suddenly realised what a goldmine he had, so renegued on the deal to refurbish and develop.

Anyway, I digress.  People with little disposable income will frequently put up with sharing with many people rather than pay more for personal space.  A friend’s Polish ex-lover springs instantly to mind.  When she met him, he shared his bedroom in a 3 bedroom house with 3 other people.  Presumably there could have been 12 housemates altogether, but he was happy as the rent split a dozen ways doesn’t add up to much.

However well-intentioned the planned licence is, it will hinder more than help.  And with the dearth of short-let supply in Holland Park, Notting Hill and St John’s Wood at the moment, it’s another thing this Home Search Agent could really do without.

Technorati Tags: Buy-to-let, buy-to-let licence, Home Search Agent, top end buy-to-let

Tags: Buy-to-let, buy-to-let licence, Home Search Agent, top end buy-to-let