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Market update – post Brexit prices

Brexit certainly speeded up the summer recess and meant that in Prime Central London the property market tailed off sooner ahead of July. The post Brexit dormant period has perhaps lulled people in a false sense of security and the feelings about Brexit faded away over the holidays, perhaps suggesting that it is not quite as bad as everyone made out initially.

Post Brexit in Prime Central London

The reality is that in central London people with a need or strong urge to move will, whether this is dictated by schooling, job relocation, or personal circumstances. Good properties, priced at the correct market level, will sell; those that are not so good will sit around. Undoubtedly, Q4 will be a quieter three months than previously, as people wait, watch and see how the politicians handle negotiations and how the economy and market confidence fares. My feeling is that this is a good time for buyers to go in and make an offer and potentially drive a hard bargain – it is a buyers’ market. While new buyers entering the market post Brexit and the summer will not be rushing in but playing a waiting game, old buyers who were in the market before the summer, will see this as a window of opportunity to return with a reduced offer.

The post Brexit period has granted agents a justifiable reason to advise their clients on where the true price should be if they are seriously minded to sell. They will be using this opportunity to have a realistic conversation with their clients owning houses in ‘grade A’ locations like Chelsea and Notting Hill. Right now they will be recommending that the asking price is too expensive and needs adjusting to reflect the price sensitivity in the current PCL market. Those that listen are far more likely to sell than those who do not. Of course, aside from buyers and agents, the people determining property values in today’s market are the valuers, who remain overly cautious, creating a chicken and the egg situation.

by Simon Barnes

Amalgamating property – two houses into one

Simon Barnes on amalgamating property in Prime Central London, a trend being followed by buyers, investors and celebrities.

Belgravia and Mayfair are peppered with large grand residences and mews houses which date back to Georgian and Victorian times when each big house would own a mews houses to accommodate by staff, horses and carriage. In wartime years and the post war era over time these large residences were deemed impractical and too expensive to maintain and gradually mews houses were sold off separately.

Today, the mews house is very much an established property ‘genre’ – often quirky, ‘cool’ and well located in a prime central yet quiet cobbled street. However, now the property cycle has come full circle and increasingly there is a demand from buyers with bottomless budgets to reclaim and ‘marry’ back the mews house with the main residence, restoring both to their former glory. In doing this, hungry buyers gain increased security and privacy, essential private parking and staff accommodation, all part of everyday luxury living in Prime Central London.

Mews houses - amalgamating property — Mews houses in London

For example, take Green Street a mixture of traditional red brick houses, then changing to Portland stone. Behind the period façades only a handful of these houses enjoy a wonderful outlook over a private communal garden, while some look over a school or neighbouring property, but this is a secret few share.

The trend to sell off and convert mews houses over the years has not escaped Mayfair, so again knowing where to find these prized houses still in possession of their own mews is something of a skill. Take Charles Street with its seemingly narrow houses, insiders know there are just a sprinkling of houses including their original mews house.

Amalgamating Property in Prime Central London

A little while back, H. Barnes & Co bought a house in Upper Grosvenor Street dating back to the late 1700’s. The main house had become too expensive to maintain with families having moved out years before and offices taking the space over before becoming empty for a number of years. Originally, the house had also owned the mews house, which subsequently was sold many years before.

For us it made no sense to buy one without the other. Eventually, we secured the mews house despite the present owner being reluctant to sell but tempted by a generous offer from us. We were prepared to pay a reasonable premium in order to secure the mews because collectively the overall end result of having both the large main house and mews under the same ownership was always the objective.

There are increasing instances where owners are amalgamating property to create vast acres of lateral space. However, with restrictions from English Heritage and the floor-plate of typical London townhouses, this can be a difficult scenario with underwhelming results.

While such a large scale project may result in accommodation that works for the individual owner and family, it is often a less tempting prospect for buyers because in the reconfiguration space tends to wasted or not utilised in the way that another person requires. This means that a very expensive project can also cost you buyers, as in the case of Jamie Oliver, who knocked two houses into one in Primrose Hill.

by Simon Barnes

Life after Brexit referendum

In the wake of the Brexit referendum, Simon Barnes of H. Barnes & Co offers some timely advice to luxury property buyers …

After the last general election the pollsters got it very wrong, and they got it wrong again this time. In the months before the Brexit referendum, in Prime Central London there was an air of uncertainty and waiting, making for a stagnating property market.

Nothing will change instantly after the Brexit referendum

There is no doubt that the final weeks in particular before the referendum deterred some people from signing on their property deal, especially overseas buyers who wanted to wait and see how the vote impacted currency and how the pound stood up against the dollar/euro/rouble. However, now that we know the result there is no firm reason to sit on the fence, life really does have to move on and peoples’ motivation and need to buy property has not disappeared and will not disappear because of what happened on the 24th June.

Elections and referendums produce debate, fill newspapers and airwaves, but they cannot enforce dramatic change overnight. If ‘you’ve got to do it, you’ve got to do it’ and for the wealthy buyer looking to extend their property portfolio in Prime Central London, they will not be put off by the referendum outcome.

At the super prime level in the Prime Central London property market what really impacts and can halt impulse property acquisition are genuine global economic events, like oil prices plummeting or the Chinese stock markets plunging. Most discerning UHNWIs recognise that, pitted against the peaks and troughs of the global markets, London remains both a safe haven and a consistent safe bet in which to invest in prime property irrespective of whether it sits, now or in two years’ time, inside or outside the European Union.

Advice for Buyers

My advice for serious buyers wanting and needing to forge ahead with a purchase:

Be clear and importantly be realistic about what you want and need
Be brave and unafraid to look above your budget and then make offers
Be ready to move quickly and have all the legal work and finances in place to avoid unnecessary delays
Be willing to work with the vendor
Be flexible on exchange/completion timescales
Wear the buyer’s hat when you’re selling (typically vendors completely change their tune when they become buyers)

The key message is for those selling and renting to be realistic in their pricing to reflect the mood and tone of the PCL market; and that there’s always an element of compromise.

by Simon Barnes

Buying off the radar property in London

In London, established property experts acknowledge their geographical boundaries. The nature of the city’s geography and spread of property means that not only is there a north south river divide, but there are micro markets within relatively small areas of the city. Areas within close proximity may offer a differing mix, style and proportion of property, the density of housing, the layout of squares and streets and the range in value, all have distinct characteristics.

Prime Central London

In the same way you would not send your prized Rolls Royce to the local garage for a service, you probably wouldn’t go to the ‘local high street agent’ if you were looking to buy or sell a particular type of property. True, they may be able to do the job eventually, but they wouldn’t be specialised enough to get you the best results. You wouldn’t ask your local estate agent to sell your house in the country, or to find you a secluded villa in the South of France.

The very small market referred to as ‘Prime Central London’ is particularly specialised. Selling a large, lateral flat in Belgravia, or a substantial town house with adjoining mews house in Mayfair, is not about sticking it on your web site, an advert in the freebie property press, then sitting and waiting for the phone to ring. Just as looking for a particular style of house, with off street parking and gardens in Kensington, is unlikely to be achieved by simply registering with the local agents. Rental investment portfolios, unmodernised properties, with development potential, unusual houses. There are specialist ‘expert’ agents for each, but they’re unlikely to be the same agent.

Off the Radar

The property I seek out and deal with is largely off the radar; in fact sometimes it is never actually on the market. This is where that good old fashioned ‘ear to the ground’, tap of the nose stuff really kicks in. His ‘expert’ knowledge of a very specific area means he genuinely knows who lives where, who owns what and can describe the inside of a property from the outside before having crossed the threshold. When someone has been actively buying in an area over a long period of time, they will have their own extensive figures and comparable values to hand based on actual sales,. More importantly, they want to be advised by someone with first-hand experience, who can offer a fistful of examples which will instil confidence in the client and be incredibly useful in buying or selling at the best price and the right time in the market.

In this business some off the radar deals take longer than others. Depending on the circumstances of the deal time spans vary hugely. We completed an ‘off market’ deal last year within 10 days of the buyer seeing the property; but in another case, it took nine months to complete the deal because the seller needed time to find an alternative property. Patience and decisiveness wins the prize, one example being a successful purchase in 2011. We bought a house for a client last year. He was incredibly specific on the address in prime Belgravia, the type and style of house. Unfortunately the house was rented so we couldn’t get to see it. So we waited until the tenant vacated, the house would have been available on the open market and the interest would certainly have pushed up the price. We made the decision we wanted the house, so we bought it without seeing it.

The Buying Agent

It’s important to recognise the value other professionals can add and finding out about property which is not actually for sale is one of the trademarks of a very experienced buying agent and essential when scouting for the finest property investment in PCL. The bedrock is having a solid relationship with the Capital’s key agents built up over many years. Transacting several deals with serious high net worth individuals ensures one access to the best properties both on and off the market. I will often be the first person an agent calls with their ‘off the market’ properties

by Simon Barnes

Selling your home? Then smarten up your garden

Whether it’s a shady courtyard, a roof terrace or a family sized back garden, the reality is that first impressions count when it comes to enticing buyers into your home.

So once the last stroke of paint has dried in the hall, the curtains have been dry cleaned and the children packed off to school, it’s time to focus your energies on whipping your outside space into shape and making whatever you have small, medium or large, look well cared for and inviting.

Garden in Gloucester Road London SW7 – Aylesford International

In Prime Central London gardens and terrace tend to be all about planting without a nod to the seasons, loads of box hedging, topiary and evergreen arrangements, which definitely looks smart and is easy to maintain, but can result in a look that lacks variety in style and composition, looking pretty much the same in summer as in winter.

Cadogan Street private landscaped rear garden – Maskells

There are many varied evergreen and herbaceous plants which can also be incorporated for their contrasting textures, flowers and year round interest. Plants that are both reliable and will reward you with changing displays of colour, texture or scent, to provide relief from the usual evergreen formality and lack of movement. If you have space in a garden, it’s worth considering and taking advice on planting a specimen trees sourced from a specialist nursery to create visual impact and perhaps detract from an ugly object in eye range.

Green living wall and olive planting with glazed feature at Clareville Street, London SW7 – Lurot Brand

Clever informed use of planting can create a planting scheme that is individual and reflects a particular location, complementing the architectural building and the interior styling. Take advice on the garden’s aspect, the soil type and micro climate and plant species and you can create a more eye catching scheme that attracts admiring glances and boosts your home’s wow factor before any potential buyer has even walked inside.

Post Brexit in Prime Central London

Amalgamating Property in Prime Central London

Nothing will change instantly after the Brexit referendum

Advice for Buyers

The key message is for those selling and renting to be realistic in their pricing to reflect the mood and tone of the PCL market; and that there’s always an element of compromise.

Prime Central London

Off the Radar

The Buying Agent

Whether it’s a shady courtyard, a roof terrace or a family sized back garden, the reality is that first impressions count when it comes to enticing buyers into your home.

Contact H. Barnes & Co – Tel: 020 7499 3434