Property & Business
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PROPERTY & BUSINESS 2014/15 This timeline shows the Under the leadership of our name changes since the senior partner, Ian Walter, the firm’s inception: activities of JHWalter (JHW) have become more diverse, Our roots go back over reflecting the changes in the 200 years and we are naturally world of property and business. proud of our past. This has seen members of the same family We have approaching 40 staff practising in separate firms at at 1 Mint Lane in Lincoln. Our the same time - all referred to partnership has a highly colloquially as “Walter’s”! experienced team delivering property, business, planning And so it is now. There are two & energy solutions through property services practices in a comprehensive range of Lincoln with the same surname professional services. - not connected, although we do share the same history. If you wish to use JHWalter or follow up a property enquiry One is a partnership with under the purple and green purple and green branding, banners, please ring: JHWalter LLP, Chartered 01522 504304. Surveyors – this is us. The other is a company branded red - Walter’s. Rica Wter fooedWter & Sn JosehWter, Wter Sn & FviWter &FviJon Wter Wter & Ptt Wter & Sn Jon Wter Joseh E Wter Joseh E Wter Joseh& Sn E Wter Jon& Sns H Wter & WteSns Bsine lits JHWternt JHWter LLP n Wte 1790 1857 1868 1869 1873 1877 1880 1887 1892 1926 1933 1954 1990 1996 2008 Our three JHWalter brands Property and Business is published by JHWalter LLP Editor Tim Atkinson Design and Publication Fran Thornton and Kate Wells This publication is intended as a general guide, and although every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, liability cannot be accepted for any errors of fact or opinion. Always seek professional advice. foreword JHWalter can trace its foundation back to 1790, the year after the French Revolution. Nelson’s famous victory at the Battle of Trafalgar would not take place for another 15 years. The Enclosure Acts and Agricultural revolution were the drivers for a profession of the land to develop. The name of Walter has been synonymous with the sale of land and property in Lincolnshire since then. We have had a presence in the City of Lincoln for the best part of two hundred years and have witnessed and advised on many of the significant developments which have transformed the City and County. Seven generations have served the community, an unbroken succession.Today the professional practice is much more than just a family firm. Today JHWalter buys, sells, and values all types of property throughout the region. Indeed we advise on most of the activities associated with the ownership and occupation of land and property, including development and renewable energy. Ian Walter Property, business, planning and energy BSc (Hons) CEnv FRICS FAAV are what we know and what we do. Senior Partner, Chartered Surveyor e [email protected] t 01522 504333 contents \\ jhwalter Pages 02-07 land agency PROPERTY property \\ jhwalter Pages 15-18 commercial property \\ jhwalter Pages 08-14 residential \\ jhwalter Pages 21-22 property auction \\ jhwalter Pages 23-26 business BUSINESS \\ jhwalter Pages 27-32 planning PLANNING \\ jhwalter Pages 33-37 energy ENERGY \\ jhwalter Pages 38-40 news in recent years. The more investors in the What drives market, the stronger it is. Many of the Danish investors who read the market the Land Market? correctly in the last 10 years have The farmland market continues to already cashed in their winnings break records, out perform other and returned in the long boats investments and generally leave from whence they can, heavily laden. observers wondering why? Others still remain, but it has always been thus. Here are a few observations, based on 35 years buying and selling farms The free market conditions and the and land for clients. strength of the market has seen the emergence of more investors, simply Why buy farmland? The benefits of buying and selling a commodity. Whether ownership this is the long term interests of a resource of crucial importance to the nation is for others Secure investment to judge. Land has always been seen as a safe haven to store wealth and a hedge against inflation. Over the centuries families and Soil is a resource that must be managed for the long term. The institutions have held land and benefitted from the status short term drive to maximise return from land is just another and the income it brought. pressure, which is being put on the planet. Whether you agree or not, the Prince of Wales is absolutely correct in bringing these real Secure income concerns to the attention of the population as a whole. As they Land provides a safe income stream. There is never an empty farm, say in Lincolnshire “the job will not stand it”. It is important that as there are empty shops on the High Street. The low return now land is managed responsibly. Proper rotation and the growing of compares very favourably with the return on cash deposits. grass in the rotation was done for very good reason. The income stream, whether from rent or farming income is How land is sold underwritten by Single Payment Entitlements. What other business Traditionally land was sold by auction. In recent years more and can rely on such payments to bolster its income? more agents have reverted to Sale by Tender. It can produce outstanding results for the vendor. A prospective purchaser who Economies of Scale can afford to pay more than anyone else for a particularly valid Farming benefits from economies of scale. As machinery gets ever reason can move the market seismically. Likewise those seeking larger, needing fewer personnel per 1000 acres, it is easy to expand to buy into the market can pay handsomely to open doors. and farmers are prepared to pay to do so. The influence of buying agents Scarce commodity Over the last thirty years more and more purchasers are taking As farms get larger and an ageing population of farmers retire, advantage of Land Agents offering a land buying service. smaller holdings are absorbed into larger holdings. If the reasons This network of agents can become secretive and not transparent. for ownership outlined in this article do not disappear, economies Uncertainty and distrust can creep into the process but that is of scale will drive land ownership, and in particular the farming of the nature of a free market that does not require land to be it, into fewer and fewer hands. The larger the farming unit becomes, traded in the open market. Agents encourage purchasers to use the greater its purchasing power to absorb more acres into their services on the promise of “off market” deals. It can work. the business. When will it settle down? Tax return The economy with its uncertainty and the low return on The very rich are getting richer and constantly seek ways to investors cash has surely influenced market perception. Has land shelter their wealth and avoid taxation, in particular been just a port in a storm? Perhaps, but the other factors which Inheritance Tax. The benefits of Agricultural Property Relief are continue to drive the market will not go away. The world considerable and this is a major reason for a number of prominent population continues to grow. The Chinese are getting a taste for people entering the market. It must be said that IHT relief was protein and the population are very food aware. As long as the designed more for the smaller family holding than for those who current supply Ian Walter are planning to hold wealth for the generations to come. Post War continues to Estate Duty lead to the break up of many estates. The pendulum BSc (Hons) CEnv FRICS FAAV Senior Partner, Chartered Surveyor contract, the price has now swung to the other extreme. e [email protected] will continue to t 01522 504333 go up. Enjoyment Land ownership, and its occupation and farming can be stressful. The elements constantly provide real challenges to earning a living from the land, particularly for smaller farmers and Arbitration livestock farmers. But, it can be hugely enjoyable and rewarding Landlords and Tenants with unresolved agricultural rent reviews emotionally. Rich investors are paying huge sums of money to buy may need to appoint an arbitrator before the rent review date. works of art depicting landscapes. But what better picture to look This process needs to be approached carefully. If you need advice at than the constantly changing seasons on a piece of England’s on how to approach arbitration and appoint an arbitrator please green and pleasant land? do not hesitate to contact Ellie Allwood, herself a rural arbitrator, for independent practical advice on the whole process. A free market There are no bars to entry into this market, other than financial Ellie Allwood resources! It is a market which is not only attracting new entrants BSc (Hons) LL.M MRICS FAAV to invest, but also foreign buyers who have influenced the market Partner, Chartered Surveyor e [email protected] 01 \\ jhwalter t 01522 504320 land agency The farmland market in the East Midlands remain strong with arable prices at times Farmland Market topping £10,000 per acre for large units and good land in the right location. The RICS Survey for the second half of 2013 reports an average arable value in the East Midlands of £8,438 per acre and £7,000 per acre for pasture. Significant open market sales have included: Toft House Farm near Market Rasen - 896 acres guided at £8,000 per acre.