Central London office demand roars back to life as West End occupancy booms August 31, 2022 Central London office take-up has rebounded back to pre-pandemic levels this year and has even surpassed the ten-year average. Occupancy in the heart of the capital bounced back to pre-Covid levels during the 12 months to the end of 2022’s second quarter, according to data from real estate advisor CBRE. Take-up for offices hit 12.7m [...]
Trouble brews over London Southbank’s ‘The Slab’ development August 31, 2022 Trouble has been brewing over ‘The Slab’, the proposed Southbank development at 72 Upper Ground. Campaigners have claimed it will overshadow neighbouring post-war architecture and encroach on a riverside conservation area. The landmark redevelopment of the former ITV studios had been granted planning approval by Lambeth Council in March 2022. However, the #SaveOurSouthBank campaign, led [...]
Purplebricks’ top brass spend £1m on shares in a bid to boost shareholder confidence August 29, 2022 The top brass of struggling online estate agent Purplebricks have spent nearly £1m of their own money on company shares. Helena Marston, the new chief executive, and Paul Pindar, the executive chairman, both recently spent £100,000 and £851,000 on shares respectively, The Times reported. Pindar now owns a 5.4 per cent stake in the company. [...]
Supply and demand continue to wreak havoc on London rents, says Foxtons August 24, 2022 Supply and demand constraints have continued to wreak havoc on London rental costs, according to the latest data. Central London produced the highest average weekly rent in the year to date at £627, a rise of more than a third in comparison with last year, research by Foxtons, one of the largest real estate agencies [...]
Thousands more homeowners to be refunded after ground rents doubled August 24, 2022 Press Association Thousands more homeowners who paid a doubled ground rent on their property will receive a refund after the competition watchdog cracked down on “unfair” leasehold practices. More than 5,000 households in the UK will be compensated after being caught in contracts that saw their ground rents double in price every 10 years. Many [...]
US buyers of central London property snag ‘discount’ with favourable exchange rates August 23, 2022 US buyers of central London property are snagging an “effect ‘second’ discount” of around 12 per cent thanks to recent exchange rates, according to real estate investment advisory London Central Portfolio. The pound was at its lowest against the dollar since March 2020 this morning. Flats and houses in Mayfair and Marylebone are said to [...]
UK house sales up a third as mortgage rates rises spur movers August 23, 2022 Home sales in July were more than a third higher than in the same month last year, making it the most active month in 2022, according to the latest figures from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) today. Residential deals hit 110,970 in July, some seven per cent higher than June of this year. However, HMRC cautioned that [...]
Exclusive: Britain needs to keep building says Marshalls boss August 18, 2022 The Government must continue its plans to boost domestic infrastructure, argued the boss of building giant Marshalls.
UK house prices and rents defy inflation and continue to rise August 17, 2022 Despite rising inflation, housing prices have continued to grow since last year, official figures have revealed. In June, the average UK house price was £286,000, a £20,000 increase on last year, according to the latestfigures from the Office for National Statistics today. In London, house prices have seen 6.3 per cent growth in the last [...]
Restaurant design has changed since the pandemic: Here’s how August 17, 2022 The shortlist for this year’s Restaurant & Bar Design Awards has been announced, with hundreds of entries from across the world showcasing the most opulent, innovative and eye-catching dining rooms. Attempting to discern trends from the vast array of restaurants – of which the UK makes up only a small percentage – can be a [...]