Fitzroy Place - Sales reach fever pitch

Fancy living in the same neighbourhood as Lady Gaga? Some Hong Kong investors have shelled out more than £8 Million for that privilege.  They've snapped up apartments in a new development Fitzroy Place in Londons Fitzrovia district.

Now its developer is in Singapore this weekend.  Daniel Van Gelder Co-Founder of Exemplar Properties commented on the initial success "The first allocation was sold out in 3 days, so now we are here in Singapore with the second allocation, absolutely huge interest from Singaporean buyers with some 20 units pre-sold prior to the exhibition"

Private bankers are saying that Asias super rich are buying more luxury homes in the West as they face punitive property taxes in their own back yards, this has pushed prime property values in London by 12% in the last year.

The third allocation will be sold next weekend in Kuala Lumpur and information on this and other exhibitions across Asia can be downloaded for free every Friday from the 1st avenue websites Asia Pacific web page.

You can see the full video on this blog at Channel News Asia here.

London's Crossrail could see residential property prices soar by 50%

The new Crossrail routes in London will have a "dramatic effect" on the value of residential property in the areas close to the new transport links. This is the opinion of one leading property consultancy, which has estimated price growth of around 50 per cent or more for homes near Tottenham Court Road, Canary Wharf and Farringdon over the next six years. By 2018, the firm expects prime properties in the Tottenham Court Road area to have climbed in value by 57 per cent. Meanwhile, rises of 47 per cent and 48 per cent for the most sought-after homes around Canary Wharf and Farringdon are anticipated respectively.

Read the full article by Katherine Lewis here.

EPC Changes could render 18% of UK property unlettable

New green proposals surrounding changes to the EPC have largely been slammed by the property community at large.

Land Securites Chief Executive Francis Salway, who chairs the British Property Federation's sustainability committee has called on the prime minister to rethink plans to outlaw the letting of 681,000 properties by 2018.

The measures outlined in October 2011's Energy Act will wipe out the value of F and G rated residential and commercial buildings unless the owners can fund the green improvements required to bridge the gap.

The lack of investment reflects the imbalance between landlord and tenant relationship, whereby the landlord pays for the improvements and the tenant receives the benefits, although it could be argued that an energy efficient property will likely rent quicker, achieve better premiums and attract a stronger tenant.

Closer to home the property industry is still unsure how new changes due to take effect on the 6th of April 2012 will affect the way residential property is marketed in paper and online. The front page of the new EPC must be attached to a property brochure at branch, in print and on the internet.

The line of compliance remains a largely grey area with a lack of guidance from government as to the correct implementation of the new changes. Issues raised about the need for showing the address and EPC number on the web and in magazines could contravene the data protection act, coupled with an increased opportunity for fraud from a lack of privacy.

Should it stay or should it go now

A Grade II-listed Art Deco masterpiece, and Europe's largest brick building, Battersea Power Station is a London icon that has appeared in films such as Alfred Hitchcock's 'Sabotage' and Monty Python's 'The Meaning of Life',

In recent times it has grown ever more derelict with the sound of one off events such as the "Redbull x-Fighters" and music events pumping through its veins much to the annoyance of local residents at odds with the noise and disruption created.

The 38-acre site is in administration after £5.5bn proposals to build homes and offices by Irish-backed vehicles collapsed under a debt mountain. According to property consultancy EC Harris, the West London site is more likely to be revitalised if a developer is allowed to start from scratch by knocking down the power station which will allow for around 1,200 extra apartments to be built.

The full article can be read here

Life is just beachy in Greenwich

These days all the cool things are happening on the Greenwich Peninsula.

In the shadows of the 02 arena, Europe's longest artificial beach is set to open this coming May on the Delta Wharf site and cater for up to 5000 revelers.

Expected to open annually for the next 5 years, the pop up plage will boast an Olympic volleyball court, restaurants and a live event stage bringing a brilliant new facility to the shores of the river Thames, that can be enjoyed by local residents and visitors.

In order to create Londons first long term beachfront, tons of sand will to be ferried to the site by barge from North Norfolk. Other sites around London are also planned including Victoria Park and Fulham.

Lettings market remains bullish dispite rumours of double dip

The London lettings market shows no signs of slowing down in 2012, in fact its positively booming.

In spite of media reports suggesting the UK is heading back into recession, increasing numbers of high calibre City and Canary Wharf tenants are escalating demand and competing for dwindling rental stock, further boosting rents.

1st avenue research points at headline rents across Prime London and surrounding quarters showing strong improvements this month up an average of 11% against December and surging unbounded past the pre crash market peak of March 2008, with rents at least 17% more pricey than a year ago.

With a market so constrained and new applicant registrations volume up 58% on January 2011, landlords are taking advantage of record rents and improving gross yields by re-negotiating periodic tenancy agreements and renewals from an almost bullet proof position .

The rental outlook depends on which side of the fence you are standing on. Today, for landlords - the horizon is blue without a cloud in sight.

London continues to shine for investors

Buyer confidence may rest on a knife edge but we dont build wealth by sitting on our hands.

Despite the continuing Euro debt crisis, Prime Central Lon­don res­i­den­tial prices are nearly 38% above their post-Lehman low of March 2009 with strong growth expected across all sectors of the London market this year.

A rise of 10% in rents against 2011 are not outside the bounds of reality as renting becomes the tenure of reality over choice. Pricing is further pushed by Olympic contractors, staff and consultants snapping up multiple apartments around the Olympic Zone; further squeezing an already stock starved local market.

Those willing to add to their port­fo­lios this year are looking to London. Although weakening slightly, the financial crisis has largely missed Asia and wealthy Hong Kong and mainland Chinese investors in particular are buying at Prime London developments in large numbers as Lon­don look­s in­creas­ingly like value-for ­money.

The fall in the value of ster­ling over the past three years has made Lon­don much more af­ford­able. The Yuan has ap­preci­ated by 27 per cent since Septem­ber 2008 and the Hong Kong dol­lar is up by 22 per cent. Speculation on sterling remains a key factor for overseas investors in many purchases today.

The forecast for London investment property is sunny on the proviso the Euro avoids a meltdown.