Focus on Soho: West End hotspot proves that central London never stops moving April 23, 2015 Moments away from Oxford Street and its swinging sister Carnaby Street, Soho has been frequented by artists, writers and more than a few ladies of the night over the centuries. But the recent influx of boutiques, gourmet burger chains and private members’ clubs means the area has caught the eye of London’s prime property developers. [...]
London property in pictures: A former car showroom has been converted into Mayfair’s “largest” flats April 27, 2015 It's the antithesis of London's latest trend for tiny houses squeezed into gaps between buildings: a block of flats described as London's "largest" apartments – on the site of a former car showroom – has gone on sale in Mayfair. Glebe, the developer behind The Mellier, says its apartments have the largest rooms of any [...]
Return of London’s mansions: The former homes of aristocrats are being converted June 25, 2015 It isn’t often that a prestigious street in London falls out of favour. You won’t see a regeneration of Eaton Square or the King’s Road any time soon. But Connaught Place, a handsome street lined with Georgian mansion blocks overlooking Hyde Park, was the Belgravia of pre-war London and it’s experiencing a resurgence in popularity. [...]
London house prices: Kensington and Chelsea is now growing more slowly than Bristol April 24, 2015 London has lost its housing crown: for the first time since 2005, central London price growth is being outpaced by cities across the UK. According to data from HomeTrack, the triple-threat of electoral uncertainty, mansion tax fears and affordability issues have conspired to slow growth in the country’s most-valuable areas. Boroughs such as Chelsea and [...]
Dell Park in Englefield Green is a polo fanatic’s dream on part of the Candy brothers’ former estate in Surrey June 25, 2015 The British polo season has got off to a galloping start, but for some fans of the equestrian sport, viewing it from the sidelines just isn’t good enough. That was certainly the case for the private European owner of Dell Park in Englefield Green, Surrey, who set out 10 years ago to build a contemporary [...]
Marks & Spencer leading the FTSE losers: Why clothing boss John Dixon’s departure gives M&S two major headaches July 17, 2015 Marks & Spencer is leading the FTSE 100 losers this morning, after it confirmed its executive director of general merchandise John Dixon had quit. M&S' share price opened down, and has continued to tumble throughout early trading. At pixel time, itwas down 1.3 per cent. When Dixon took up the role in [...]
Conservative manifesto: Extending right-to-buy will transform the prospects of low income families April 14, 2015 The centrepiece of the Conservative Party manifesto, unveiled yesterday, was a significant expansion of the right-to-buy scheme. Giving families the ability to own their own home is a wonderful thing, and extending the scheme to housing associations, as the Conservatives propose, will certainly do that. The broad economic benefits of home ownership are well established, [...]
Boris Johnson’s sale of London police buildings frees up £125m and housing space July 3, 2014 London mayor Boris Johnson yesterday hailed the better-than-expected sales of under-used police buildings across the capital, which had raised £125m – more than three times the estimate. The figures, in the second annual report of the mayor’s office for policing and crime, showed that 32 no longer operational buildings were vacated and sold in 2013/14 and [...]
George Osborne’s great government sell-off: Taxpayers risk getting burnt as sun may yet shine on RBS June 10, 2015 So after almost seven years, the moment has arrived. The symbolic importance of George Osborne’s announcement last night that the Treasury is to begin selling Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) shares at a loss is hard to overstate. “I’m not interested in what is easy – I’m interested in what is right,” he told [...]
Hyatt Hotels eyeing up purchase of luxury Grosvenor House Hotel March 11, 2015 Hyatt Hotels is considering purchasing the Grosvenor House Hotel in London, after the landmark building was put up for sale earlier this month. The luxury five-star hotel on Park Lane in Mayfair was previously owned by troubled Indian conglomerate Sahara Grosvenor House Hospitality. However, its lenders called in administrators after it defaulted on a loan, [...]