Newsletter December 09
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Newsletter December 09 Introduction by William Carrington Website design and hosting A walk through London by Keith Rigby Statistics by Harriet Black Market predictions lonres.com | Newsletter | December 2009 Introduction by William Carrington As the year draws to a festive end, I am compelled to comment upon what has been a remarkable year for the central London property market. At the beginning of the year, there was a great deal of uncertainty as to the direction it would follow, and we now know that its rise has been relentless. Prices appear to have reached the levels of the first half of 2007, but stock levels are worryingly low. We are listing less than half of that at the same period last year. The main difference must be interest rates. Base rate trackers and fixed rates of 1.99% as opposed to 5.39% two year ago have been a major contributory factor in the latest mini boom, which must be unsustainable. Do those buyers have a get- out plan, and does that mean we will have replacement stock in a couple of year’s time? What is certain, is that global and economic events of this year have not impacted upon the needs of property buyer. Many people have commented that it will be the election next year that will change things for us. Why should it? More of the same from a tired incumbent government, or more of the same from the Conservatives? Will it be climate change? Only as part of a range of increased taxation measures. Two things will affect the buyer next year: the downward reassessment of UKPLC’s credit status will have a profound effect on our ability to repay our borrowings; so interest rates will begin their upward creep, and the second item will be the inevitable tax rises that will begin to bite in the second half of next year. It is my belief that these two issues will affect our market in the next 12 months. The “when” is where the money is made! Anyway, it’s Christmas time and we should celebrate that and the resilience and professionalism of you, our subscriber’s. Happy Christmas to you all. Did you know...? Lonres can accept automatic feeds from any CRM System saving you time. We already accept feeds from Reapit, Aspasia, CML to name a few. To get set up please call Stephen on 020 7924 6622. 1 lonres.com | Newsletter | December 2009 Website Design and Hosting “Lonres were very helpful, understood what we needed, came up with an attractive design and it seems to be working very well for us”. “Lonres has become an invaluable, indeed indispensable aid to the modern London agent. Our website as designedJames andTaylor Edward Simpson constructed by that fi rm, has been widely praised by clients, applicants and colleagues alike”. “Couldn’t ask for more, good communication and a great fi nal result” “I just wanted to say that I am really grateful to you both for putting Nicholas Boden the website together. Your team have been really great and totally professional throughout the process”. Gary Latner Lonres Building, Designing and Hosting agent websites Contact Anthony on 020 7924 6622 if you are considering upgrading your website in 2010 2 lonres.com | Newsletter | December 2009 A walk through London by Keith Rigby Live local, work local, love local: North Kensington has not always been as popular as it is today, over the past few decades much of the area fell into disrepair At Bective Leslie Marsh the vast majority of the staff in the with the crime rate rising and the property prices slumping North Kensington branch, including myself, work within a dramatically. It was not until the mid nineties that the area was stones throw of the office on Ladbroke Grove. Over the years rejuvenated and a new influx of buyers came to North Kensington, I have lived here I have been immersed in the areas colourful, raising the profile and desirability of the area. community life, worked in the heart of North Kensington and brought a family up here. It has been extremely interesting to Conserving the Capital: see first hand over the past twenty years how dramatically the A large section of North Kensington is made up by the St Quintin area has progressed. Estate Conservation area. On the 24th February 1974 Since moving to North Kensington I have seen a vast improvement in a number of sectors. The crime rate has dropped considerably and various areas which once were renowned for being dangerous have been regenerated. These changes have made way for the introduction of trendy, independent boutiques and shops, along with popular gastro pubs and quaint coffee shops. The area has become extremely family orientated with excellent schools and opportunities for children in terms of extra curricular activities. These include the local under 18’s football team The Kensington Dragons who are sponsored by Bective Leslie Marsh. The area has gone from strength to strength with a the Kensington and Chelsea council received an application from regeneration program put in place to restore many of the the estates residents association requesting that the area be buildings to their former glory after a number of years of deemed a designated conservation area. The request was initially neglect. put forward to protect the site from the potentially harmful influences of the Channel Tunnel terminal which, at that time, was planned for White City. One of London’s most famous markets, Portobello Road adds to the popularity of the area attracting both locals and tourists every Friday and Saturday. It has retained much of its authenticity and there are a number of beautiful antique and jewellery stalls which have been handed down through generations. The Property Scene: Things have certainly changed dramatically in the past few decades in North Kensington and this is reflected in the property prices. During the mid nineties £350,000 would have bought you a four bedroom house where as today we are selling similar History: property for £1.1 million. Prior to the early 1790’s the majority of North Kensington There is an eclectic cross section of residents in North was made up of two adjoining farms- Portobello Farm and Kensington which adds to the unique personality of the area; Notting Barns, the latter of which belonged to Thomas Darby from the bohemian Notting Hill crowd to high net worth, high of Sunbury and was the earliest record of occupation on the powered, well heeled bankers and lawyers. The area has been site. The first major residential building work commenced home to various celebrities including Dusty Springfield, Sophie between 1860 and 1879 when the foundations for Cambridge Ellis Bextor, Rik Mayal, Jason Donovan and David Cameron. This, Gardens, Oxford Gardens and Bassett Road were laid. The along with the rising property prices and the increasing number first houses to be built on the estate were 60- 68 Cambridge of commercial businesses, including Stella McCartney, Designers Gardens which are three stories in height with centrally placed Guild and Sigerson Morrison have been established in the area, doorways flanked by columns and bay windows. In 1862 highlights the ever growing popularity of W10. Charles Henry Blake acquired 130 acres of land adjoining the Keith Rigby, Director. estate and more building took place, thus expanding the built 126 Ladbroke Grove, London, W10 5NE. up area. [email protected]. 020 7221 0330 3 lonres.com | Newsletter | December 2009 Sales An overview of London’s housing market by Harriet Black Polarised housing market growth in first 3 quarters of 2009 Average values of properties sold across London 2007 2008 2009 £5,000,000 £4,000,000 £3,000,000 £2,000,000 £1,000,000 £0 123456789 Source : Nationwide Source : Lonres Source: LonRes Change in new instructions across London Change in supply in different locations across London Q408 Q109 Q209 Q309 1200 400 1000 300 800 600 200 400 100 200 0 Feb- May- Aug- Nov- Feb- May- Aug- Nov- Feb- May- Aug- Nov- 0 07 07 07 07 08 08 08 08 09 09 09 09 123456789 Source : Lonres Source : Lonres Given the scale of economic events at the end of 2008, few would Supply has been one of the key drivers of 2009 with the have predicted that just over a year on the UK residential market lack of new instructions providing a degree of support to the would be showing genuine signs of the beginning of a recovery. housing market. Whilst technically we remain in recession, the prospects of a In its latest housing market survey, the RICS reported a small global depression have all but disappeared and the low interest increase in new instructions in recent months. Looking at rate environment has improved many households’ affordability. LonRes statistics, supply across London peaked mid-2008 before falling consistently over several months. There has Housing market data released over the last few months has been been a small amount of recovery recently but new instructions overwhelmingly positive. At the end of the third quarter, average are still well below the monthly average seen in 2008. values in the UK as a whole had risen 1.3% while in London growth stood at 3%. Although there was initially concern that the In London there is still a significant mismatch in supply market in London and the South East would be hit hardest given and demand. One result of this mismatch is the level of the exposure to the financial sector, these areas have been the competition for properties and many agents in our monthly first to stage a recovery with cash rich individuals and investors survey have reported an increase in multiple bids.