KEYS TO SUCCESS Trophy homes are in a class of their own
UP, UP AND AWAY
A taste for the high life
GREEN ACRES Exclusive gardens that are the envy of the world
welove LONDON
SAVILLS
AS MUCH AS YOU DO
To find out
HOW PROPERTY PRICES have changed in your area over the last
5 YEARS
and what we’re
FORECASTING they will be in the next 5 years,
go to savills.co.uk/london-property-map
Welcome
LONDON KNOWS NO BOUNDS Not only is it a capital that attracts investment from all corners of the world but it continues to be a city where people across the globe want to live. London remains unrivalled in terms of its distinguished architecture, long and fascinating history, rich creative culture and an infectious enthusiasm for life. We at Savills feel privileged to work in London. We love the way ancient and modern blend seamlessly, the past and the present bouncing off each other to such compelling effect. If you want to feel at the epicentre of twenty-first century living, then you must establish roots in London. But you’ll be spoilt for choice – and that’s where we come in. Savills is uniquely placed to offer a comprehensive, professional and discreet service to our clients. In the last decade alone, we have doubled our network across London, with 25 offices, all providing a sales and lettings service, as well as offering services that go far beyond the realm of property. I hope this Journal will give you a taste for London and a deeper understanding of Savills. We look forward to working for you and with you in the near future.
JONATHAN HEWLETT
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34 High society
Lofty living and impressive views are attracting international and local buyers alike
CONTENTS 21 East side story
How east London is giving the west a run for its money
22 Enchanted gardens London’s private squares offer safety, exclusivity and charm to key-holders
6 Talk of the town
26 Tales from the riverbank
13 Keys to success
28 The villages of London
News, views & perspectives from the capital
A trophy home is the ultimate prize with all the requisite fixtures and fittings for smart living
18 Bohemian rhapsody Midtown is attracting a new generation of artists, writers and creative warriors
Property to suit every budget and style
37 Lords of the manor
The great estates, owners of much of London’s desirable property, are true champions of the urban environment
We love London’s infectious enthusiam for life and the fact that no matter how long you’ve lived here there’s always something new to discover
40 Bolting on a bolt hole When London gets too much city dwellers break for the border
43 Gazetteer
A guide to the key residential areas from our experts
50 Directory
With over 500 offices and associates worldwide, Savills is at the heart of the global property market
These distinctive areas provide a perfect blend of city style and country living
32 Generation rent
Renting has become a fashionable way of life for many Londoners
The London Journal is published on behalf of Savills UK Ltd by Casella Productions Ltd. All information correct at time of going to press. All rights reserved. Articles may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Opinions expressed are those of the author and not Savills or the publisher. While every care is taken in compiling content, neither the publisher nor Savills UK Ltd assumes responsibiity for effects arising from this publication. Property Misdescriptions Act: Savills recommends that applicants discuss their interest in a property with the negotiator who can answer more specific questions and advise if it is under offer. This is especially important if you are contemplating travelling some distance to view the property. All descriptions, dimensions, references to condition and necessary permissions for use and occupation, and other details are given without responsiblity, and any intending purchasers or tenants should not rely on them as statements or representations of fact, but must satisfy themselves by inspection or otherwise to the correctness of each of them. Investment Advice: The infomation and opinions contained in this magazine do not constitute professional advice and should not be relied upon. Specific advice relating to your individual circumstances should be obtained.
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theartof
LONDON
“I’ve lived in London for nearly 25 years and it’s long been the inspiration for my prints. There are so many iconic landmarks dotted across the capital and an ever-changing ‘cityscape’ to draw from, where the industrial past rubs shoulders with the boldest and brashest of the present. For me, it’s not about the conventional tourist spots but the buildings that are loved by Londoners themselves - the Brutalist monuments of the South Bank, or Erno Goldfinger’s high-rise blocks, or its disused power stations and gas towers. There’s always a list of buildings bubbling away in my head that I’d love to capture in my work.,” says Paul Catherall, a London based printmaker and illustrator, famed for his bold linocuts of architectural landmarks. www.paulcatherall.com
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News, views & perspectives
PRIME NUMBERS
8.1 MILLION
Live here and there are more multi-millionaires (individuals worth over £19m) than any other city in the world
607 London covers 607 sq miles, making it the largest urban area in Europe
WHY I LOVE LONDON
“London’s accolade as a safe haven for investors is well deserved. For those who work in the City, the time zone, its position as Europe’s financial centre and the quality of family life are all big draws.”
“The wonderful thing about living in central London is being able to walk everywhere. Most cities are horribly homogenised, but there are still little villages here with their own lovely quirky characteristics.”
JUSTIN MARKING, HEAD OF SAVILLS RESIDENTIAL
OLGA POLIZZI, DIRECTOR OF DESIGN, ROCCO FORTE HOTELS
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The London Underground, which is the oldest in the world, has 270 stations
WHY I LOVE LONDON
“We lead the world in business, have an amazing cultural offering and are one of the greenest cities on the planet. But a city is nothing without its people and the diversity, creativity and welcoming spirit of Londoners is second to none.” BORIS JOHNSON, MAYOR OF LONDON
There are 8 Royal Parks, covering 5,000 acres with roughly 135,000 trees
WHY I LOVE LONDON
“London is a magnificent city state, which you leave at your peril.” SARAH SANDS, EDITOR, EVENING STANDARD
“London has inspired everyone from Mahatma Gandhi to Jimi Hendrix, Sigmund Freud and Claude Monet. It brings together the peoples of the world in the most tolerant and inclusive place.” TOM JONES, AUTHOR OF TIRED OF LONDON, TIRED OF LIFE
News, views & perspectives
PRIME NUMBERS
15.2 MILLION People from overseas visited the capital last year, spending over £8.6bn. It’s also home to more overseas banks than any other international city
WHY I LOVE LONDON
10 The number of St Paul’s Cathedrals that could fit inside the O2
£19.2 300 Languages are spoken by school children alone
MILLION
Kensington Palace Gardens, W8 is the UK’s most expensive street. Homes here cost an average £19.2 million – 93 times the national average
WHY I LOVE LONDON
“My friend Alan says, ‘North London: born, live, die.’ And he’s right. I live in Kentish Town and can walk over the Heath to Hampstead for tea in 20 minutes. Panzer in St John’s Wood does the best bagels in London.”
“I love London not just for its riches but for its rich rubbish like the bronze helmets that are washed up from dark, Thames mud. In London you are always in good company, whether it is dead or alive.”
“From art to fashion, from money to music, from dance to debate, from shops to shapes – London has it all. And once you’ve got the ‘famous bits’ out of the way you can appreciate and explore those parts that really make London great.”
GILES COREN, FOOD CRITIC & COLUMNIST
BETTANY HUGHES, HISTORIAN
RICHARD QUEST, CNN PRESENTER
700,000 In the next 20 years the number of households in the city is expected to grow by nearly 700,000
WHY I LOVE LONDON
“It’s one of the most sophisticated places to live in the world – it’s steeped in history and culture and it has great schools and universities.” WILLIAM DUCKWORTH-CHAD, DIRECTOR OF SAVILLS
“The thing that makes London great is its multi-cultural face. Now people promenade in London as they’ve done on the Continent for years. They dress to be seen, sit in cafés and bars. It’s a theatrical place.” PADDY RENOUF, LONDON INSIDER AND TOUR GUIDE
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News, views & perspectives
Hidden
TREASURES TOURISTS FLOCK TO LONDON’S GREAT MONUMENTS AND MUSIC HALLS BUT LESSER KNOWN VENUES ARE OUT OF THIS WORLD
MADE IN ITALY
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HOUSE PROUD
Lincoln’s Inn Fields is home to the Sir John Soane museum. The influential architect, who was responsible for The Bank of England, Royal Hospital Chelsea and Pitzhanger Manor, designed this house and decreed that it should be open to the public as a museum after his death. Soane was a great collector and the house is stuffed full of paintings, antiquities, sculptures, furniture and even a crypt complete with tombs and mummies. On show is the magnificent “Laughing Cavalier” by Van Eyck and pieces from Egypt and Greece (there are over 700 in his collection). You can also see the architectural sketches of Soane’s London landmarks. The museum is open Tues-Sat from 10am-5pm, and on the first Tuesday of every month it is lit by candlelight from 6-9pm. soane.org
The Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art, housed in a Grade II listed Georgian house in leafy Islington, holds what Sir Nicholas Serota, Director of the Tate, calls “one of the finest collections of early twentieth century Italian art anywhere in the world”. A great body of work here is by the Italian Futurists, including pieces by Giacomo Balla and Gino Severini. Amedeo Modigliani and the Surrealist Georgio De Chirico are represented too. There are six galleries, regular exhibitions and a café. Open Weds-Sat 11am-6pm; Sun 12-7pm. estorickcollection.com
News, views & perspectives
AT YOUR SERVICE
Meet David Forbes, Head of Savills Private Office, who advises clients on every aspect of their property requirements
PICTURE PERFECT The Dulwich Picture Gallery, the first to be purpose-built in the UK, was designed in 1811 as a series of interlinking rooms illuminated naturally through skylights. It’s a beautiful space in which to display one of the finest collections of Old Masters in the world, including important works by Rubens, Rembrandt and Van Dyck. It also has a programme of exhibitions. Open Tues-Fri 10am-5pm; Sat-Sun 11am-5pm. dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk
Discretion, expertise and service are the watchwords in Savills Private Office. Established five years ago under the expert direction of David Forbes, it is there to assist international, high net worth individuals with interests in property. Forbes has 30 years experience in property. He is extraordinarily well-connected, and well-travelled. This year he has been to Turks and Caicos, Italy, Spain, New York, Panama, Brazil, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sweden, Qatar, Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur to meet with clients. Travel is in his blood. After Eton, he spent 5 years serving as an officer in the Gurkhas; he then worked and lived in Malaysia,
Brunei, Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand and Nepal. “Whether you’re looking for a private island in the Caribbean or a student flat for your children in Edinburgh, a ski chalet in the Alps or an investment in Nine Elms, we are here all day, every day, not only to advise on purchasing but on any property related issue, from running the Olympic Village to operating a nightclub, from managing a sporting estate to sorting out a polluted trout stream. It is these ‘value adds’ that make our service indispensable at all levels,” he says. For the impeccably connected and confidential services of the Private Office, contact David Forbes on +44 (0) 20 7824 9001 or dforbes@savills.com
SOUND OF MUSIC LISTEN TO PERFORMANCES BY THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC’S BRIGHT YOUNG STARS IN THE BRITTEN THEATRE OPERA HOUSE. IT IS EXQUISITE AND TICKETS ARE A SNIP. THERE’S ALSO A MUSEUM OF MUSIC WITH INSTRUMENTS DATING FROM THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY, FROM THE WEIRD, A CONTRABASSOPHON, TO THE WONDERFUL, TROMBONES OWNED BY ELGAR AND HOLST. RCM.AC.UK
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News, views & perspectives
STILL ON TRACK
LOVE IT OR LOATHE IT, THE LONDON UNDERGROUND HAS REACHED A MAJOR LANDMARK
M
illions of Londoners jump on the Tube each day. It’s as much a part of the city as the bright red buses, Buckingham Palace and Boris Johnson. A feat of Victorian engineering, the Underground is the oldest subterranean railway in the world and this year marks its 150th anniversary. The first journey took place on 9 January, 1863, along the three and a half miles between Paddington and Farringdon on the Metropolitan line. It was a slow moving two and a half hour trip, with the train travelling at speeds well below 20 mph. In those days there were leather seats in First Class. It was instantly popular – 40,000 people used it on the first day. The Daily Mail swiftly named London’s new transport system the Twopenny Tube.
The concept and design of the Tube has been copied in cities all over the world. And it continues to expand. Work began on Crossrail in 2011. Set to open in 2018, it is Europe’s biggest, most expensive construction project. During 2012, 1.7 billion people rode London’s multi-lined, 249 mile long network. Yes, sometimes it’s late or even cancelled, but London’s Tube keeps the city connected and resolutely on the move. Shame about the absence of those comfy leather seats.
HOTELS WITH STAYING POWER...
The old ones are not always the best but these renowned hotels have stood the test of time 1865 CHARING CROSS Suites from £490 per night guoman.com/charingcross
1837 BROWNS The Hellenic Suite, £2,950 per night brownshotel.com
1835
1840
1854 CLARIDGES The Davies Penthouse, £8,280 per night claridges.co.uk
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1845
1850
1855
1865 THE LANGHAM The Infinity Suite, £12,000 per night langhamhotels.co.uk
1873 ST PANCRAS RENAISSANCE (as Midland Grand Hotel). Royal Suite, £12,000 per night marriot.com
1860
1865
1870
1879 THE CONNAUGHT The Apartment, starts from £10,800 per night the-connaught.co.uk
1875
1884 ANDAZ (as Great Eastern Hotel) Andaz Large Suite, £330 per night hyatt.com
1880
1888 THE CADOGAN HOTEL Two bedroom suite from £1,050 per night cadogan.com
1885
1889 THE SAVOY The Royal Suite, from £12,000 per night fairmont.com
1890
1895
1900
1899 THE LANDMARK LONDON (as Great Central Hotel) Presidential Suite, from £4,200 per night landmarklondon.co.uk
News, views & perspectives
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS
Markets ebb and flow but Lindsay Cuthill keeps his hand firmly on the tiller and ensures that clients make the right choices at the right time
B
LINDSAY PROVIDES A LONG TERM VIEW
uying a house is not just a matter of choosing a property and paying for it. For many people, it is part of a far wider, long-term strategy to do with quality of life for them and their family and ensuring their future financial security. That’s where Lindsay Cuthill, Head of region for south west London, comes in. With more than 30 years of experience, Lindsay is ideally qualified to offer clients sound advice, helping them to make decisions based on a proper analysis of the current market and a thorough understanding of their personal circumstances. “I aim to give people a wider
DESIGNED FOR LIVING The Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour is a one-stop shop to equip the very smartest of homes - and yachts. Right on the river, beside the iconic Lots Road Power Station, the light-filled space offers more than 500 of the world’s most sought-after brands. From artisan floor coverings by Tim Page, Stark and Tai Ping to sublime wall decoration by Fornasetti and Vivienne Westwood at Cole & Son and graphic textiles in Zinc and Leff Jofa. It’s all here. Nicholas Haslam Ltd is Chelsea Harbour’s first store curated by an interior designer and includes everything from furniture to exquisite finishing touches. You can gain inspiration from the bookshop stocked with design tomes and take it all in over coffee beneath the South Dome. Light refracts off the giant ceiling pendant and meetings are held at the glass-topped tables. Close by on Lots Road (and corner of King’s Road) is the Furniture Cave, a glorious warren of goodies: furnishings, sculptures and curios (Chinese kilims, leather horses, vases) from a variety of dealers. For something a little scruffier around the edges, cross the river to Vauxhall and enter the intriguing salvage and antiques yard, Lassco, replete with old Parisian cupboards, quirky door pulls, cast iron radiators, chandeliers, iconic advertising and art deco furniture.
view, based on their needs, a broader perspective. Sometimes this means telling a client that they should not be selling now but waiting a couple of years,” says Lindsay,. “I take the view that if you look after a client properly he or she will come back to you.” Lindsay has been selling houses since the early 1980s. He worked for George Stead orginally until Savills acquired that agency in 1996. Since then he has been based in Fulham, where he also lives, just off Parsons Green. He has a forensic knowledge of the area and is regarded by his peers as being unrivalled at spotting highs and lows in the
property market before they happen. “I thoroughly enjoy the personal contact with clients and the trust that comes with it. “Recently I went to see a couple who were looking to move without considerably increasing their overall investment in property. I happened to know that a new development was being built in the area and that it would have a positive impact, and so I was able to tell them they should stay put and hold tight.” So what is one of Lindsay’s greatest strengths after so long working for Savills? “My feet are planted very firmly on the ground,” he says without hesitation.
From furniture to finishing touches, the Design Centre at Chelsea Harbour offers the style-conscious home owner the very best interior brands under one roof
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News, views & perspectives
FLAT ORHOUSE?
PRICES OF FLATS IN PRIME CENTRAL LONDON HAVE RISEN TO AROUND £5,000 PER SQ FT. AND WHEREAS IN THE PAST IT WAS MAINLY PEOPLE FROM OVERSEAS WHO TENDED TO FAVOUR FLATS OVER HOUSES, TODAY, MORE AND MORE BRITISH BUYERS ARE FOLLOWING SUIT. WILL THIS TREND CONTINUE? AND WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF LIVING IN A FLAT RATHER THAN A HOUSE? HERE, TWO RECENT PURCHASERS PUT THE CASE FOR THEIR PERSONAL PREFERENCE…
FLAT “My husband and I have become converts to flats. We are both in our 50s, both work in London and both have busy social lives. When we were younger we always lived in houses but then we visited some friends who had spent most of their lives in a mansion block. They started telling us about their valet parking, the 24-hour concierge service, the high level of security. And suddenly it all made sense. My husband thought he would miss not having a garden but in fact we rarely sat out in our London garden. Now we have a pretty balcony with great views – and I enjoy looking after a few colourful pots. We find life is easier living in a flat. The communal areas of the building are not our responsibility and we like the idea that someone else will sort out a new roof when the time comes. We travel abroad quite a lot and it’s so easy just to lock the flat up and go.” Mrs H-S, Kensington
“Flats are fashionable, sought-after and highly desirable, with the fully serviced flat setting the gold standard,” says Alex Christian, Savills Director of prime central London flat sales.
HOUSE “It might be a cultural thing but we would never consider a flat. Flats are for people in transition. One of the key factors is that we are used to freehold not leasehold. I want to feel we are in complete charge of where we live. Aesthetically, I feel hemmed in by a flat. I don’t believe you get that same sense of space. The options are broader if you live in a house: you can do a loft conversion or dig out the basement, and add space and value, to your home. Having a proper outdoor area is important to us. Our garden is not huge but it’s big enough to sit six people for dinner in the summer. I feel more integrated into our local community, more involved, more at the centre of things. I do find it a nuisance that I can’t always park outside my door and, yes, it would be nice to know there’s a doorman to take care of deliveries but you can’t have everything! Miss T, Chelsea
“I love the classic London townhouse, and those in good areas are getting between £2,000£3,500 per sq ft,” says Barbara Allen, Savills Director of prime central London house sales.
DISHES that dazzle
You can eat spectacularly well in London. The flavour at these quirky establishments is distinctly international
Quilon: quilon.co.uk Buckingham Gate might sound an unlikely destination for Southern Indian food, but if you like fragrant curries, steaming parathas and delicate fish then Quilon is the place. The interior is every bit as elegant as India’s finest hotels.
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Lima: limalondon.com Ceviche, suckling pig, pisco sours – this tiny restaurant on Rathbone Place celebrates Peruvian cuisine. It’s the work of culinary creative, Chef Virgilio Martinez, and it features all things Peruvian, including art by Peruvian artist Juan Bautista.
Duck and Waffle: duckandwaffle.com Find food with a view 24 hours a day atop the Heron Tower. The Dish of the Day is duck and waffle, of course, with duck confit, fried duck egg, waffle and lashings of maple syrup. It’s weirdly wonderful.
Brasserie Zedel: brasseriezedel.com An unexpected treat, a yawning Art Deco/Beaux Arts space serving food with typical French flair in a lively atmosphere. The food is traditional, and delicious, the setting transporting. Bang in the middle of the theatre district.
SUCCESS For the man or woman who has everything there is always room for something a little extra in the world’s most sought-after capital WORDS C A R O L I N E M C G H I E
Trophy homes
T
he wealthy who want to invest in London real estate and savour the highlights of the city are always in search of the ultimate prize: the trophy home. Homes in prime spots in the capital, which represent wealth and status as well as a safe haven in a troubled world, come with asking prices running into many millions of pounds. From the grand stucco mansions of Kensington Palace Gardens to the mini palaces of Hampstead’s Bishop’s Avenue, standards and expectations among high net worth individuals are rising inexorably. “The world has got smaller and taste has gone global. The quality of finish has increased in step with wealth,” says Jonathan Hewlett, Head of London Residential at Savills. “People expect brand name designers, celebrity architects, brilliant locations, services, smart building materials, rare marbles and stones. They want instant gratification, absolute luxury, and they are prepared to pay for it.” This spectacular five bedroom duplex in Chesham Place, beautifully interior designed by Candy & Candy and overlooking one of Belgravia’s finest private gardens, epitomises everything wealthy buyers are looking for in a prime London property. A trophy home is likely to be just one part of a portfolio of properties from around the world. High net worth individuals are likely to have additional houses in other financial capitals such as New York or Geneva, as well as holiday homes in beachside or ski resorts. “But London will be the hub, partly
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TROPHY HOMES MUST BE IN THE BEST LOCATIONS AND CREATE A STAGE FOR LAVISH ENTERTAINING because of the beneficial time zone and the educational excellence it can offer,” says Jonathan. So, what must the finest homes provide? They must be in the best locations, be architecturally impressive and create a stage for lavish entertaining. They must have a chef ’s kitchen as well as a domestic one and space to house staff – or at least a staff day room with lockers. A separation between public and private space needs to be factored in, as does an awareness of security. People like to step from car to house without being seen by others.
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Live
THE DREAM 21ST CENTURY FIXTURES & FITTINGS Family life is important, too.This means teenage rooms, media centres and cinema screens, as well as gyms and pools that provide leisure and pleasure space. Some buyers like to have access to six-star hotel services, including concierge and sports facilities such as those offered by developments like One Hyde Park, The Knightsbridge and The Lansbury. “It’s all about the ease of life,” says Jonathan. “A trophy home needs to function like a mini boutique hotel.” And the choice of area is broad in the capital. There are special homes, from the grand to the historic and the eccentric, all over the city. Even among the Victorian
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houses of south west London, there are trophies waiting to be claimed. On Clapham Common, for example, Savills recently sold Grade II listed Wren House for just over £7 million. And in Wimbledon The Old Rectory, with ample garden and gatehouse, is on the market at £18 million. In north London, the smartest homes are around Bishop’s Avenue, Hampstead, in leafy St John’s Wood, or in the terraces and villas of Regent’s Park. One Hanover Terrace is on the market at £21 million. 21 CHESHAM PLACE, BELGRAVIA SW1. PRICE ON APPLICATION
CHEF’S KITCHEN WINE VAULT AND BAR PRIVATE UNDERGROUND PARKING MEDIA/CINEMA ROOM GAMES ROOM SPACIOUS BEDROOMS LAVISH ENTERTAINING SPACE SEPARATE FAMILY ROOMS TEENAGE ROOMS DEDICATED SPACES FOR EVERYTHING INDOOR POOL SPA AND STEAM ROOM SOUND-PROOFED GYM PRIVATE TERRACE STAFF DAY ROOM WITH LOCKERS GUEST/STAFF APARTMENT PANIC ROOM 24 HOUR SECURITY AND CONCIERGE
Trophy homes
LUXURIOUS LIVING Whether newly built or beautifully refurbished, these trophy homes in prime spots are in a class of their own BIG AND BEAUTIFUL Avenue Road, NW8 An Ambassadorial-style stucco residence, it has a sweeping central staircase and a 10-person lift, together with a pool, sauna, spa, gym, media room, games room, wine cellar, catering kitchen, and a concealed car lift to a car park with space for 5 cars. Price on application. Stephen Lindsay Savills St John’s Wood +44 (0)20 3043 3600 slindsay@savills.com
MODERN CLASSIC Manresa Road, SW3 A unique first floor duplex in one of the most highly regarded buildings in Chelsea. It has exceptional open plan entertainment areas, a private gym, a staff flat, a terrace and access to a large communal garden. It has 24-hour security, porterage and underground parking. Guide £39,500,000. Ben Morris Savills Knightsbridge +44 (0)20 7590 5065 bmorris@savills.com
ON A GRAND SCALE Brick Street, W1 A truely exceptional low-built house tucked away in the heart of Mayfair offering over 16,500 sq ft of accommodation built round an internal courtyard. There are 7 bedroom suites, a cinema, bar and games room, pool, gym, solarium, underground garage and a roof garden. £20,000 per week. Mark Tunstall Savills Knightsbridge +44 (0)20 7584 8585 mtunstall@savills.com
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BOHEMIAN
rhapsody
Fitzrovia, Bloomsbury, Holborn – welcome to Midtown, a swathe of London attracting a new generation of artists, writers and creative warriors WORDS M A R K P A L M E R
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New frontiers
T
he best of all worlds is a tantalising proposition. But when it comes to prime property in a sublime London location, the choices are often limited. What’s needed are new frontiers – or, more to the point, the rediscovery of areas that have always been there but tended to be overlooked and undervalued. Which brings us to Bloomsbury and Fitzrovia. Bohemian, creative, edgy, contemporary and, crucially, with a high
proportion of beautiful Georgian buildings ready to make perfect family homes, these two London villages are beginning to take on a momentum all of their own. Together they make up what is now known as Midtown, and Sir Terry Farrell, the award-winning architect, has likened it to the revival almost 20 years ago of New York’s East Village. An easy comparison to make in an off-the-cuff remark, perhaps, but Sir Terry has gone one further by producing a vision for the area in the form of six mini masterplans
to preserve the best of the past and further enhance its reputation as a leading cultural and educational quarter. Midtown broadly runs from Euston Road in the north to almost The Strand in the south and from Farringdon Road in the East to Tottenham Court Road in the west. “Midtown has just not been on people’s radar as a place to live,” says Charles Lloyd of Savills Mayfair. “I would say that Fitzrovia in particular is about where Marylebone was 15 years ago, when there were lots of
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New frontiers wholesale fashion companies and only about two restaurants. Look at it now.”
F
itzrovia is a short walk to Regent’s Park but also a gentle saunter to Regent Street. It has bustling Oxford Street on its doorstep and gutsy Soho further south. And, significantly, it has a brand new development under construction that has imbued the whole area with a sense of anticipation. Fitzroy Place, as it is called, comprises three residential blocks with 235 luxury apartments in a variety of sizes, with an astonishing 90 different floor plans from which to choose. Superbly positioned in Mortimer
FITZROVIA IS ABOUT WHERE MARYLEBONE WAS 15 YEARS AGO Street, this ambitious scheme is being built around the first new London square to grace the city in more than 100 years. In addition to residential homes, there will be office space, retail outlets and a members-only club complete with its own cinema, gym and concierge service. Look out for high ceilings that reflect the area’s famous Edwardian mansions, combined with simple lines and the fresh thinking of modern design. The ambition of the developer is to create something unique but a scheme that pays homage to an area rich in creativity. Ian McEwan set his acclaimed novel, “Saturday”, in Fitzroy Square and Guy Ritchie shot part of “RocknRolla” in
Fitzroy PLACE
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nearby Charlotte Mews, which also made an appearance in the Beatles 1960s movie, “A Hard Day’s Night”. Fitzrovia has a musical tradition, too. Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan all played in the area before going on to achieve international fame and fortune. And you don’t go hungry in Fitzrovia. It can claim to be one of the culinary capitals of the world. Bloomsbury already has a literary ring to it. It was home to that fascinating circle of pre World War Two, free-thinking writers “who lived in squares and loved in triangles”. Virginia Woolf had a house there and so did John Maynard Keynes, the great economist, along with the painters, John Constable and Augustus John, the poet Dylan Thomas and writers George Bernard Shaw, Charles Dickens and George Orwell. “It is a place that people want to explore and it offers remarkable value compared with its neighbours to the west or south,” says Charles. “It feels different to traditional parts of London, with a great mix of people and businesses.” But it is also the change of use from businesses to residential homes that has given Bloomsbury a spring in its step, both in the sales and lettings markets. Take, for example, Bedford Square, which has long been dominated by offices. “These Grade I buildings do not always lend themselves to modern offices,” says Charles. “You can’t put in air conditioning or make open plan work places. We are seeing a lot of these wonderful buildings being converted back into residential homes – and they are simply beautiful.”
Fitzroy Place is one of the most significant developments in Fitzrovia for over 50 years. It comprises 235 apartments ranging from one bedroom flats to double-height duplexes, grouped around a new public square. The residents will benefit from a full range of services including a 24 hour concierge, 20 seat private cinema, fully-equipped gym, residents lounge, club room, private dining room and kitchen, business lounge and meeting rooms, underground parking and storage. Completion of the project is scheduled for late 2014, with 80 per cent already sold to UK and international buyers. Prices start from £950,000, rising to £15m.
New frontiers
eastside STORY Cockney rhyming slang, proper food markets, improved transportation, magnificent Georgian squares – is east London about to give west London a run for its money?
E
WORDS G R A H A M N O R W O O D
ast London used to be a second choice. It was where you lived if you could not afford the more salubrious honeypots of Chelsea, Hampstead or Belgravia. How times change. Thanks to improved transport links, the London Olympics legacy, a burgeoning financial services sector and the arrival of high-tech industries, east London has scrubbed itself up and is ready to do business. Take Islington for example in north east London. Now a destination in itself, it is also just a walk from the City, Clerkenwell, Bank and the fashionable “Silicone Roundabout”, otherwise known as Old Street, where many of the world’s top internet service providers and webbased firms have set up shop. “Islington used to be as far ‘east’ as many buyers would venture, but now it’s just the start of an expanding eastern zone,” explains Paul Williams of Savills Islington and an agent with 25 years experience of property in east London. He describes this zone as “proper London” with a mix of new homes, flats converted from period houses, Victorian terraced family homes and £5m mansions on Georgian squares. “Connectivity has improved hugely in the area,” he says. “Eurostar is now based at St Pancras, Farringdon will be a very popular place to live when its Crossrail station opens in 2018, and large investment in Finsbury
Park’s overground trains means that it is now one of the capital’s major transport hubs. Today east London is easy to reach from anywhere.” The lettings market is another symbol of the east’s regeneration. Being on the doorstep of financial services and IT employment centres has transformed the landscape. “Five years ago high-end rents from, say, Islington to Clerkenwell lagged 20 to 30 per cent behind other London
BUYERS CAN HAVE A FLAT NEAR THEIR WORK YET ESCAPE TO CULTURE OR THE AIRPORT IN MINUTES areas considered more fashionable and more in demand, like Notting Hill. Now they are the same,” says Dan Parker, head of lettings at Savills Islington. High-end homes in the eastern zone rent at £33 to £46 per sq ft, higher than much of Fulham, Hampstead and St John’s Wood and even rivalling some areas of central London. Against that backdrop, Dan has seen increasing interest from three different investment sources. First, more British buy-to-let investors have been acquiring units; second, institutions and funds are buying properties in the area and, third,
the number of individual overseas investors is on the rise. “The final two sources tie in with Savills residential development teams who travel to South East Asia in particular to sell units under construction. The buyers often then use us as agents to manage and let out the new properties they buy,” says Dan. Certainly the new homes sector is buoyant in east London. Savills is advising on 14 schemes from Islington to Canary Wharf, with the first set to be occupied in 2014 and the rest over the following four years. For property professionals like Lauren Ireland, leading the sales and lettings teams at Savills Wapping and Canary Wharf, this additional supply is likely to be snapped up rapidly. “Some 80 per cent of resale properties we’ve sold in the past year have gone to international buyers, and around half of these have been South East Asian. Some buy to let to corporate tenants, others for sons and daughters studying in London, others as a pied-àterre,” she says. The new Crossrail link will mean that Woolwich and Canary Wharf will be around 15 minutes from the West End and 40 minutes from Heathrow. “People can have a flat near their work,” says Lauren, “yet escape to culture or the airport in minutes.” The property buzz in this thriving zone is tangible. It can hold its own in any company – and that includes the rest and the best of London.
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Edwardes Square, Kensington, is one of the most exquisite in London
London Squares
enchanted
GARDENS Nowhere does garden squares like London. Offering solace for grown ups and a safe haven for children, they remain as desirable as ever WORDS C L I V E A S L E T
Photograph: Tracy Craighead/London’s Hidden Jewel
L
ondon is a famously green city. Air passengers en route to Heathrow know this only too well as they fly along the Thames, looking down on a cityscape in which roofs and roads are broken up with dense blocks of green – the unrivalled London squares. The proportion of tree cover is so high that this city, one of the biggest in the world, meets the official definition of a forest. But it’s not a conventional forest, of course. You can stroll through forests; only a lucky few can wander through London’s best squares. These are largely private reserves. For key-holders living around the squares, they offer safety, exclusivity and charm. Leafy and reposeful, they provide a refuge from the bustling city around them: a place to read the Sunday papers or play tennis; to organise a picnic or, in some cases, walk the dog. For many London parents, they’re an essential resource – a patch of green that might have been hived from the parkland of a country house and magically transported to the middle of the metropolis. “The most desirable place to bring up a middle class family,” was how the author and journalist Anne Scott-James, married to the cartoonist Sir Osbert Lancaster, put it. “Here small children made pram
friendships,” square-dwelling children being “the envy of their fellows, whom they could patronize with invitations to Sunday tea.” She was writing in 1977 but the same observations might have been made of the Edwardian period – or today. Squares remain “a very special part of London,” says Richard Gutteridge of Savills Sloane Street, who takes Eaton Square as an example. “The Grosvenor Estate looks after these private communal gardens with beautifully manicured lawns so well. They are a place to relax and enjoy. The south central garden has an allweather tennis court, while another is reserved for dog-walking. ” From the moment that they were built in the Georgian and Victorian periods, London’s squares enjoyed a greater prestige than neighbouring streets. They were generally built of a piece, with great architectural flair and were more imposing terraces than their surroundings. “The demand to live in them is phenomenal,” says Richard. “Flats and houses in garden squares command a significant premium.” The first square was the Duke of Bedford’s Covent Garden, designed by no less an architect than Inigo Jones in the early seventeenth century. He had been inspired by the Place des Vosges in Paris, displaying Covent Garden’s foreign roots
Green
LONDON LONDON IS ONE OF THE GREENEST CITIES IN THE WORLD. SEEN FROM ABOVE, MORE THAN HALF OF IT IS GREEN. THERE ARE ALLOTMENTS, PARKS AND GARDENS, MARSHES, ANCIENT WOODS AND, OF COURSE, THE THAMES FLOWING THROUGH THE CENTRE OF THE CITY. LONDON’S GREAT OUTDOORS IS A PROGRAMME INSTITUTED BY THE MAYOR TO PRESERVE THE OPEN SPACES OF THE CAPITAL. IT AIMS TO MAKE LONDON A MORE HEALTHY, PLEASANT PLACE FOR RESIDENTS AND VISITORS AND AN ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH BUSINESSES CAN THRIVE.
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LEAFY AND REPOSEFUL, THEY PROVIDE A REFUGE FROM THE BUSTLING CITY AROUND THEM
by describing it as a piazza. Once planted in English soil, this Continental seed produced a different kind of square. Other European cities might have been autocratically planned by absolutist monarchs or Popes. London, however, was developed by the various families who owned the land, on a speculative basis. They did not need to awe their countrymen, but they were anxious to please their leaseholders. Rather than urban spaces for everybody, they became gardens for the people who lived around them. They followed fashion, particularly, in the late eighteenth century, for the Picturesque Movement. Some were even laid out by Capability Brown. There are 300 or so squares across London. Most of them are, as the term implies, rectangular, being surrounded on four sides by straight rows of terraced houses. But plenty of nuances exist within this general specification. “If I had to list the top 10 communal square gardens,” observes Johnny Fuller of Savills Kensington, “Edwardes Square would have to be on the list. Being such a beautiful place for children makes it especially sought after by families.” Begun in 1811, this square might have been demolished in the Edwardian period
if its residents had not risen up against the threat, as a result of which an act to protect London squares was introduced in 1906 (strengthened in 1931). A wonderful book “London’s Hidden Jewel”* celebrates its 200 years of life. Nearby, Kensington Square, one of the earliest, having begun life in 1685, is loosely textured, with a Carmelite convent as well as houses. Charlie Bubear of Savills Chelsea describes Onslow Square as “a magnet for international buyers. It is very pretty, very quiet and some of the houses have both enormous terraces at the back and generous balconies at the front. The predominant freeholder is the Wellcome Trust, who maintain a high standard.” Notting Hill, meanwhile, offers the enchantment of communal gardens that are completely hidden from the outside world. It’s as though the square had been turned inside out, so that houses have their backs to the gardens, not their fronts. This is special to the area and, according to Oli Lurot of Savills Notting Hill, “hugely sought after by families. Several of these gardens have climbing frames, as well as tennis courts.” London’s squares offer the best of life in the capital.They are unique – and the envy of the world.
BEAUTIFUL SQUARES OPEN TO ALL ST JAMES’S SQUARE
Although built in the reign of Charles II, by 1700 its residents, anxious to be associated with the new regime, erected a statue of William III. A quarter of a century later, they petitioned Parliament to clean the “Great Square Place,” which was as filthy…as a common Dung hill.” This act provided the first framework for the management of a London square.
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WEST SQUARE
Near the Imperial War Museum, this elegant square dates from the 1790s. In 1812, the Admiralty built a telegraph tower that, during the Napoleonic Wars, was part of a system to transmit messages using shutters between Whitehall and the Kent coast. Charlie Chaplin lived on West Square as a young child, as did the chemist J.A.R. Newlands, who devised the Periodic Law for the chemical elements.
BERKELEY SQUARE
The Duke of Devonshire bought the land from Lord Berkeley in 1696 with the proviso that his view would never be blocked, so the square began life as two terraces, to east and west. The Victorian Plane, planted in 1789, has been valued as Britain’s most expensive tree, based on its size, health, history and how many people live nearby. It is worth £750,000 and has a circumference of 6ft.
RUSSELL SQUARE
Charles Fitzroy Doll designed the Hotel Russell, a piece of terracotta craziness amid the surviving Georgian terraces. If the architecture of the square has no unity, harmony is restored by the square garden, which has recently been enhanced, including the reinstatement of the railings, removed during the Second World War to build Spitfires (the metal proved to be wrong and was dumped at sea).
ST GEORGE’S SQUARE
Thomas Cubitt, the great master builder of Victorian London, was responsible for more squares than anyone. This one in Pimlico was probably built to bolster property values. Pimlico was regarded with suspicion when it was first built. “For heaven’s sake, my dear,” says a well-wisher in Trollope’s “The Small House of Allington”, “don’t let him take you anywhere beyond Eccleston Square!”
*For stockists of “London’s Hidden Jewel”, contact edwardessquarebook@gmail.com
London Squares
London Squares
THE GREAT OUTDOORS London’s communal garden squares provide a green sanctuary for residents
LANSDOWNE ROAD, W11
EATON SQUARE, SW1
Exceptional house with private garden and access to prestigious communal
Superb first floor 3 bedroom apartment on Belgravia’s most sought-after
garden. Price on application. Savills Kensington +44 (0)20 7535 3300
square. £9,500 per week. Savills Knightsbridge +44 (0)20 7584 8585
COLLINGHAM ROAD, SW5
ONSLOW SQUARE, SW7
Wonderfully spacious 4-5 bedroom apartment with 2 roof terraces and access
Immaculately presented 5 bedroom duplex with magnificent garden views.
to communal gardens. £4.5 million. Savills Chelsea +44 (0)20 7578 9000
Price on application. Savills Sloane Street +44 (0)20 7730 0822
GROSVENOR SQUARE, W1
EGERTON GARDENS, SW3
A lateral two bedroom apartment in a portered building in the heart of Mayfair.
Elegant 2 bedroom duplex overlooking beautiful communal garden.
£4.95 million. Savills Mayfair +44 (0)20 7578 5100
£1,995 per week. Savills Knightsbridge +44 (0)20 7584 8585
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tales from the
RIVER BANK Royal Albert Hall
WORDS J E N N Y C O A D
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he river made London. Its path informed the Romans’ decision to build the city 2,000 years ago. Since then, the Thames has been the capital’s main trade and supply route. It plays a continuing role in the city’s prosperity, and a symbolic role when it comes to pomp and ceremony. To mark the Queen’s Jubilee last summer the water came to life with craft from around the world, its banks lined with cheering crowds. The scene recreated the Venetian artist Canaletto’s famous depiction of Lord Mayor’s day, painted
Battersea Power Station
Richmond Park
The Thames is constantly changing and forever captivating – and now there are places to live along its banks to suit all budgets and tastes
over 260 years ago. Colourful river antics continued when David Beckham swished along the Thames by speedboat to deliver the torch to the Olympic Opening Ceremony. The river lends itself to special occasions, but there are regular sporting events too. The Boat Race pulls a crowd every year, representing amateur sport at its gruelling best. Lycra clad Londoners lope along its banks. Thousands pour across its famous bridges each day – some commute along it. Others journey beneath it, crossing via the Rotherhithe Tunnel, the world’s first tunnel under a navigable river. The Woolwich ferry still offers a free
On the waterfront St Paul's Cathedral Canary Wharf 02
Cutty Sark
Tower Bridge
London Eye service connecting Woolwich and North Woolwich, a route that has been in operation here since the fourteenth century. A river view on a sunny day, even a grey one, is enough to lift the spirits. Little wonder, then, that property overlooking this significant artery has become so immensely sought after. “Historically the London residential market turned its back on the Thames," says Dominic Grace, Savills Head of London Residential Development. “It was industrial and in places down at heel. Now, the picture couldn’t be more different – few riverside sites are undeveloped on either bank and river views command premium prices, up to 40 per cent or more.” Sarah Gretton of Savills Waterfront team agrees: “The variety of riverside property attracts every sort of buyer, from families and investors to international
THE VARIETY OF RIVERSIDE PROPERTY ATTRACTS EVERY SORT OF BUYER
buyers and tenants. From the high-rise glamour at Riverside One in Battersea to the elegant Grade II listed villa with its boathouses at Friars Lane, Richmond, the riverside offers a convenient yet tranquil lifestyle that will appeal to anyone. “Attention is currently focused on the new developments in Battersea and Vauxhall that offer a chic, lock-up-andleave lifestyle with 24 hour security, secure underground parking and convenient onsite facilities," Sarah says. “The ultimate riverside address is still
Cheyne Walk in Chelsea,” says Dominic. “Nowhere else has yet achieved that cachet. South of the river, in Battersea, the striking glass Montevetro, designed by renowned architect Richard Rogers, and Albion Riverside, designed by architect Sir Norman Foster, are still talked about in reverential tones. “Canary Wharf, which offers both river and dock side property, is something of a sleeping giant. It offers good value and with its buzzing retail offering and proximity to the City, represents twentyfirst century living for Londoners. “The River Thames is popular with every sort of buyer and tenant,” he says. “Everyone is captivated by its ethereal quality and the breathtaking river views across London.” For our range of properties to buy or rent, go to www.savills.co.uk/waterfront
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THE VILLAGES
ofLondon
Acres of space, proper butchers and bakers – you don’t have to leave town to experience quaint and quiet country-style living
B
eneath London’s sophisticated exterior lies a tapestry of intriguing villages, each with its own distinct character, where a community heart still beats. Swathes of open parkland, sparkling riverside, individual shops, old-fashioned butchers and bakers, capacious family houses with good schools nearby combine the best of city and village. The pull of some of these places on buyers, who want to both live and work in the capital, has been even stronger in recent years as international equity and new money has flowed into the capital – £19.5 billion
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WORDS C A R O L I N E M c G H I E
since 2007 – displacing domestic buyers from the prime central London boroughs. “Before 2010 we saw the Champagne Tower Effect, when wealth flowed out of London into the countryside as young families decided to move out of the capital,” says Yolande Barnes, Director of World Research at Savills. But as the Brits have sold to international buyers recently, they haven’t leaped straight to the country with its attendant commute to and from work. Instead they have chosen the convenience and accessibility of the best London villages, which also offers them quality of life for their families.
Popular
VILLAGES NORTH OF THE RIVER Crouch End, Muswell Hill, Highgate, Islington, Primrose Hill SOUTH OF THE RIVER Clapham, Wandsworth, Richmond, Blackheath, Dulwich
Country living
“People have been settling in the prime London suburbs,” says Yolande. “They are primarily families who are attracted by the good sized, period homes with spacious gardens.These areas offer an easy commute into central London, but with the benefit of a neighbourly ‘village feel’,” she adds. “Gentrification always starts with the British, even in Notting Hill. Then the savvy Europeans arrive, then the wealthy overseas buyers come. And that is how the priming of London happens.” The latest figures show the effect of this on prime property values in south west and north London, which, according to the Savills research report “The World in London”, are now 17-18 per cent above their high of 2007. Growth has been unprecedentedly steady over the last three years in these markets and is expected to remain so after a plateau in 2013. Savills forecasters predict property prices will rise by around 22 per cent by the end of 2017. “In the absence of a significant new City wealth generation, we expect these prime outer London locations to be increasingly reliant on the displacement of wealth from central London, as well as the new growing financial services of the West End and beyond,” says Yolande. Already in Fulham, for example, international buyers make up 44 per cent of the market, compared to just 20 per cent two years ago.
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Country living BARNES
Barnes sits beautifully in a loop of the Thames where weeping willows drape the banks and pubs spill over with drinkers at the weekends. “We sell family houses at £2m upwards,” says Sandra Carline of Savills Barnes. “Most people want to buy or rent by the duck pond, where mothers take their little ones when the sun shines.” Rental values for a family home range from £700 per week. There are fashion boutiques, grocers, delis, a bookshop, good restaurants and a new Electric Cinema is opening in the famous Olympic Sound Studios once used by
the Beatles. Nearby is the Wetland Centre, 100 acres of open lakes and reedbeds where Longhorn cattle graze the banks and thousands of birds stop on their migratory routes. Each year locals organise a summer fair on the village green and in the autumn a food fair, sponsored by Savills, brings the gourmets. Around 50 per cent of buyers come from Notting Hill and Kensington in search of more green space and good schools. St Paul’s for boys and The Harrodian top the independents, while the Swedish School brings Scandinavian buyers and the German School is not far away in Petersham.
Clockwise: a detached property in Castelnau on the market at £6.5m; popular Westmoreland Road has one for £3.25m, while The Crescent is £2,375pw to rent
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HAMPSTEAD
Hampstead Heath stretches over 800 acres with Kenwood House at its centre and the famous pond at the top of the village. The village itself is a tight knot of hilltop streets where the exteriors of the exquisite eighteenth century houses seem to have hardly changed since the likes of Keats, Galsworthy, Orwell and John Constable lived here. It has always attracted writers, artists, freethinkers and liberals. Good food and wine are easy to find. An exotic greengrocer (which sells out-of-season baby vegetables), Melrose & Morgan and coffee shops lurk in nooks and alleyways.
The Everyman Cinema puts on blockbusters and art films, the Freud Museum and Keats Library stage thoughtprovoking lectures. There are designer clothes shops for fashionistas, and celebrities are thick on the ground. “You need a budget of £500,000£850,000 for a two bedroom flat, and family houses start at £2.5m-£5m, which is our core market. But you can spend £7m-£15m on a mansion quite easily,” says Frank Townsend of Savills Hampstead. To rent a property here you would need a budget of £450£2,500 per week. Family buyers are attracted by the schools, especially the preps.
Clockwise: this elegant Georgian house on Church Row is on the market at £11m; Greenaway Gardens at £12.5m, and Cannon Lane costs £1,800pw to rent
Country living WIMBLEDON
“It has its own identity, separate from London, yet you can see the city skyline. The Common spills right onto the high street where there are lots of lovely boutiques, cafés, restaurants and an organic supermarket,” says Clive Moon of Savills Wimbledon. “In June, a week before the tennis tournament, we have the summer fair, which really kicks off the season.” Thousands of people come for the horse show, dog show, knick-knack stalls and inflatables. “Buyers, both domestic and international, are people who want to have a family life in London,” says Clive. “Many move from
Fulham for more space, a bigger garden and somewhere to park the car. London stops here and that gives it a magic, but you can get to Waterloo in 15 minutes on the overground, or to Canary Wharf in 45 minutes.”Village property ranges from pretty little cottages to handsome villas and impressive mansions. Four and five bedroom houses cost from £1.5m-£4m, although super-prime properties on Wimbledon Parkside can soar to £15m.To rent a family house you would need a budget of £1,000-£3,750 per week. High-flying secondary schools include Kings College for boys, Wimbledon High for girls and excellent preps.
BETWEEN THE COMMONS Perfect mix of city style and country living
The Battersea, Clapham, Wandsworth corridor has become hugely aspirational. All three areas wrap themselves around large green parks where families take their baby buggies on Sundays and children can play with their balls and bikes. When both American and Dutch embassies move to Nine Elms on the south bank, it is likely to add a certain gloss to these already successful areas. “This year a lot more European buyers have moved in for the schools or because they are priced out of central London,” says Robin Chatwin who heads up all four offices. “People find they can get twice as much space for the same money as they could in Chelsea.” Classic Victorian houses and good nursery and primary schools keep parents happy. Each area has its own bustling high street with good butchers and delicatessens, cinemas and restaurants. Househunters need a budget of around £750,000 for a three bedroom house, £900,000-£1m for four bedrooms and £1.2m upwards for five or more. “Such is the demand for homes in the area that we have just opened a new office on Northcote Road,” says Robin.
MARKET
DAYS
Maltby Street, SE1 If you find Borough Market too crowded, head round the corner to the railway arches of Maltby Street. It’s a gastronomic delight. There’s tapas, coffee, cheese, Little Bird Gin, and much more. Columbia Road, E2 Diminutive Columbia Road is transformed on Sunday mornings into a frenzy of flowers and foliage. Pick a bunch, stock up on household plants or simply enjoy the atmosphere. Greenwich Market SE10 Catch the clipper boat and you’ll find fruit and veg on Weds, antiques on Thurs and a mix of craft and fashion by new designers at the weekend. Partridges Duke of York Square, SW1 Wonderful range of farm-reared meats, artisan goods and international specialist dishes from small producers keen to share
their passion. Clockwise: this magnif icent property on Church Road is POA; Wool Road, overlooking Royal Wimbledon Golf, is £3.9m, and Lampton House Close costs £1,875pw to rent
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rent REVIEW Everyone wants to own where they live. Londoners certainly don‘t want to rent, right? Wrong. Renting has become a fashionable way of life
PROPORTION OF THE POPULATION IN THE
OWNER-OCCUPIED SECTOR
FRANCE 63%
DENMARK 67%
UK 70%
ITALY 73%
GERMANY 53%
SPAIN 83%
WORDS CHRISTOPHER MIDDLETON
The figures tell the story. Not only does it feel like London is becoming even more popular, but the official census statistics also confirm it. The total population in 2001 was 7.3 million, and today it’s 8.2 million. So that sneaking sensation we may have had about the buses and trains getting fuller, the taxi queues getting longer, turns out in fact to be correct What happens to be less grounded is the notion that the capital is a place where most people are owner-occupiers, rather than tenants. Maybe it’s something to do with that old adage about an Englishman’s home being his castle. Either way, figures from the Eurostat organisation show that while the proportion of the population in the owner-occupied sector in the UK (now 70 per cent) is similar to Denmark (67 per cent), it is well below Spain (83 per cent) and Italy (73 per cent). “Britons are rapidly returning to renting their homes, in a phenomenon that has been dubbed ‘generation rent’,” says Lucian Cook, Director of Residential
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Research at Savills, and co-author of the report “Rental Britain”. “Between 2006 and 2011, the number of private rented households in England rose from 3.4 million to an estimated 4.8 million, and by 2016 we estimate that 5.9 million households will be renting in the private sector.” And nowhere will demand for rental accommodation be fiercer than in London, not just from young professionals but from a growing number of overseas residents. “The market has fundamentally shifted,” agrees Jane Ingram, Head of Savills Residential Lettings. “Renting in the UK is now falling in line with what we have always thought in the past was the European model, where ironically the rental sector is now becoming less important. This is good news for UK landlords and those keen to enter the buy-to-let market.” Admittedly, from an investor’s point of view, the average rental yield may be lower in London than in New York (5.2 per cent, as against 6.4 per cent), but it’s higher than in other Old World cities
total population
IN LONDON
2001
7.3 MILLION
2013
8.2 MILLION
The case for letting
£63 £28
MAYFAIR, KNIGHTSBRIDGE
PER SQ FT
SOUTH WEST LONDON
PER SQ FT
1
2
3
4
5
6
ZONES
Wandsworth CURRENT AVERAGE RENT (2 BED) £420 PER WEEK/£21,850 PER YEAR
VS Kensington & Chelsea
CURRENT AVERAGE RENT (2 BED) £860 PER WEEK/ £44,700 PER YEAR
such as Sydney (4.9 per cent) and Paris (4.8 per cent) and it significantly outperforms New World cities like Singapore (4.1 per cent), Mumbai (3.6 per cent) and Shanghai (2.4 per cent). “This means that if you are sitting in Asia and want to get a good rental yield, London looks good value,” says Yolande Barnes, Director of World Research at Savills. There is a slight caveat in superprime properties where average rents are higher (£63 per sq ft) than in, say, south west London (£28 per sq ft), but yields are lower (4.4 per cent). So where will the tenants come from? The answer is largely the financial services sector, which accounts for 67 per cent of all renters of prime properties in south west London and 68 per cent in the centre of town (43 per cent of properties in Westminster are rented). “In the prime central areas, the majority of lets in the past have been corporate, which means rental growth has been closely linked to the FTSE index,” says Yolande. When the economy booms, the rental sector booms, but when stocks and shares go down, so do rental values. “Broadly speaking, then, investors need to look at properties in Zone 2 and beyond, where purchase costs are more modest, but rental demand from resident Londoners is strong – thus allowing for higher yields.” “Many renter households in these areas are made up of sharers, pooling their purchasing power,”Lucian says.“Over the next 10 years, we expect let residential property to deliver, on average, a total net return of just under 7 per cent, but this will reach 8.2 per cent in London, on the basis that demand will continue to outstrip supply, pushing up both rents and values.” London has an enormously broad range of rental values and property pricing. While the amount of rental income won’t be that big for an average two-bedoom property in, for example, Bexley on the south east edge of town (current average
rent £208 per week/£10,800 per year), it will be substantially bigger if you are renting out a similar-sized property in Kensington and Chelsea (current average £860 per week/ £44,700 per year). Buy an even bigger property, though, and the sums get even larger. The current average rent for a four-bedroom property in Westminster is £2,150 per week and £2,450 per week in Kensington and
HOW MUCH
per month
What a typical chief executive would pay in rent, for a high-spec modern home, with staff accommodation, in:
Paris
£4,708 PER WEEK
London
£4,535 PER WEEK
Mumbai
£1,050 PER WEEK
Shanghai
£1,027 PER WEEK Source: Savills World Cities Review
Chelsea. “But if you want to attract a premium rent, then the first step is to look carefully at the product you are offering,” advises Jane. “And you might need to think about added extras, such as a cleaner. “Tenants at the top of the market are renting because it suits them, so they want everything to be in order. If a rental property is the best in class, then it will earn the landlord a premium.”
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HIGH SOCIETY
Once upon a time skyscrapers belonged elsewhere but the rules have changed and suddenly London is going up in the world WORDS J E N N Y G O A D
Tall storeys
T
here’s high living and then there’s genuine high living. London is better known for the former than the latter. Elegant Georgian townhouses and Victorian terraces, yes, but towering edifices to modernity, less so. As a result, developments that have become conspicuous on the city’s protected skyline are unusually desirable, particularly among buyers more used to lofty living. “High rise living attracts international buyers who like impressive skylines, and for local buyers, it offers something different to the traditional range of property on offer in the capital,” says Ned Baring of Savills Margaret Street. In Asia, residing amid the clouds is a sign of status and in New York up high is the place to be. But in London, strict planning laws put in place during Queen Victoria’s reign were a disincentive to building vertically. And in any event the British are more accustomed to living with fences, gardens and porches. But change is on the horizon and a new style
is coming to the city, which is attracting great interest from local buyers too. Developments south of the river are leading the upward charge – Battersea Power Station, Embassy Gardens, The Shard and The Tower, One St George Wharf, which at 181m will be the tallest residential-only building in Britain. Indeed, at 310m, The Shard will house the highest living quarters in Europe. The Tower, One St George Wharf, in Vauxhall is at the centre of London’s changing cityscape. It will be accessible via a new pier, opposite The Tower, as well as convenient for Vauxhall tube, rail and bus stations. Uninterrupted 360 degree views of the city are promised from its extraordinary Platinum Collection apartments on floors 32-44. Peer over the river,
HIGHEST places to live
to Westminster, Buckingham Palace and beyond from the comfort of your supremely well-appointed home. The hotly anticipated development at Embassy Gardens, situated between Battersea Power Station and Vauxhall Bridge, will include 1,982 homes within a self-contained community beside the Thames. Properties don’t just come with gardens – the development will sit astride a green stretch, similar to New York’s popular High Line. Amenities include valet parking, a boulevard of shops, a spa, a private club and access to the extended Northern Line. Prices start from £349,000 rising to £3.15million for an apartment with a roof garden. Further east, and on the north side of the river, is The Heron. Located in the heart of the City, the development was launched late last year and, with 36 floors, it more than makes its presence felt. It offers two bedroom apartments from £3.6 million with penthouses costing £10-£15 million.These have stupendous panoramic views and amenities include a private club with cinema, games room and gym,
IN OUR 10 WORLD CITIES
HONG KONG
Cullinan Tower 265m/76 floors Prime location with sweeping views over Victoria Harbour
NEW YORK
8 Spruce Street 256m/61 floors Designed by acclaimed architect Frank Gehry
LONDON
The Shard 310m/72 floors Boasts the most spectacular views over the capital
PARIS
Tour Defense 200 136m/46 floors The Eiffel Tower, built 1889, is still the tallest building at 324m
TOKYO
Midtown World Tower 230m/75 floors Home to renowned Ritz Carlton Hotel
MOSCOW
Mercury City 339m/75 floors A towering beacon made of shimmering pink mirrored glass
SINGAPORE
The Sail 245m/70 floors Luxurious waterfront living in downtown Singapore
SYDNEY
Meriton World Tower 230m/75 floors This is part of the World Square complex
SHANGHAI
Jin Mao Tower 420m/88 floors Means Golden Prosperity Building
MUMBAI
The Imperial Towers 25m/61 floors The twin towers are located on the sea front
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Tall storeys “HIGH RISE LIVING IS THE SUM OF ALL ITS PARTS”
plus valet parking and 24 hour security. These new developments particularly appeal to Chinese and Asia Pacific buyers, who account for 31 per cent of all purchases in the prime new build market. “Buyers from this region are more familiar with newly built districts so buying activity is focused around East of City markets, which has a large amount of new product,” says Yolande Barnes,
Director of World Research at Savills. “The point about high rise living is that it is the sum of all its parts,” says Ben Morris of Savills Knightsbridge. “Yes, you have the views, but you are have a certain type of lifestyle.Take The Knightsbridge in SW7: while it can’t compete with the lofty heights of The Tower, it has become one of the most expensive developments as it offers sophisticated 24 hour concierge
services, high levels of security, valet parking, plus an indoor pool, spa and business suite, all of which are important for buyers at this level.” Historically, high rise flats have achieved a premium. Indeed, One Hyde Park, in Knightsbridge, remains the only tall development in SW1 and it has achieved record prices. Add to that the services provided by the Mandarin Oriental hotel next door, plus Heston Blumenthal’s food for private dinner parties and you can combine high living with, well, high living. With London’s skyline pierced with such pizazz, it is safe to say that things are resolutely looking up.
TOP OF THE WORLD
Change your view by investing in one of these fantastic flats
SOUTH BANK TOWER, SE1
THE HERON, EC2
RIVERWALK, MILLBANK, SW1
RIVERSIDE QUARTER, SW18
The newest addition to London’s Southbank is South Bank Tower, which has 173 apartments with panoramic views. Services include 24 hour concierge, pool, gym, screening room and a magnificent roof garden. Coming soon. Adele Foley, Savills Margaret Street, +44 (0)20 7016 3714 afoley@savills.com
The stunning Panoramic Collection has apartments on the 31st to 34th floors. Services include concierge, valet parking, 24 hour security and membership of The Heron’s private club. Coming soon. Heather Markham Savills Margaret Street +44 (0)20 7409 8756 hmarkham@savills.com
Set in the heart of Westminster, this exclusive development on the north bank has a collection of 113 apartments and penthouses with exceptional views across the river. The shape of the buildings echoes the curvature of the Thames. Coming soon. Mary Foreman, Savills Margaret Street, +44 (0)20 7409 8756 mforeman@savills.com
Next to the open space of Wandsworth Park, residents here will benefit from an exclusive on-site swimming pool, fully equipped gym, concierge service, plus a residents shuttle and a Thames Clipper service. Coming soon. Trisha Russell, Savills Margaret Street, +44 (0)20 7409 8756 trussell@savills.com
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LORDS OF THE MANOR They are in a league of their own, responsible for vast swathes of the capital, and no one can accuse the great estates of being absentee landlords WORDS M A X D A V I D S O N
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Great estates
L
ook at London from the air and it might seem like an unplanned city, laid out higgledy-piggledy style over centuries. But if one thing has brought order out of chaos and averted a building free-for-all, it’s the vast swathes of central London that are owned by a comparatively small number of estates, aristocratic family fiefdoms dating back to the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and still holding their own in our more egalitarian age. Grosvenor, Cadogan, Portman, Howard de Walden... The names are as intrinsic to an understanding of London and its architecture as John Nash and Sir Christopher Wren. From buzzing Kensington High Street, the jewel in the crown of the Phillimore Estate, to Marylebone High Street, which has been transformed in the last decade, to hot-and-happening Duke of York Square in Chelsea, the capital boasts must-visit enclaves that owe their success, not to new money, but to old money, wisely invested. “The great estates always take the longterm view,” says Richard Dalton of Savills Sloane Street. “They see themselves as custodians or, if you like, family trustees. And the result is a network of mixed-use
urban villages in which people can live, work, shop and eat, and which are meticulously planned. Nothing happens by accident.” Guy Bradshaw of Savills Mayfair believes that it is because of this on-going contribution to the “public realm” that the estates have prospered. “In Mayfair, the Grosvenor Estate has been the driving force behind the regeneration of Mount Street and North Audley Street,” he says. “From new pavements to a greatly improved retail offering, the Grosvenor Estate has looked at the area as a whole and, in consultation with residents, identified which enhancements are needed.” For example, the recent multi-million pound refurbishment programme carried out by the Grosvenor Estate on its older properties has substantially increased their rental value while giving a boost to
THEY SEE THEMSELVES AS CUSTODIANS OR, IF YOU LIKE, FAMILY TRUSTEES
WHO owns what THE CADOGAN ESTATE COVERS MORE THAN 90 ACRES OF CHELSEA AND KNIGHTSBRIDGE. THE GROSVENOR ESTATE HAS OWNED 300 ACRES OF MAYFAIR AND BELGRAVIA SINCE 1677. THE HOWARD DE WALDEN ESTATE IS CENTRED ON MARYLEBONE HIGH STREET AND EXTENDS OVER SOME 100 ACRES. THE PORTMAN ESTATE IN MARYLEBONE COVERS 110 ACRES BETWEEN OXFORD STREET AND EDGWARE ROAD. THE CROWN ESTATE OWNS LAND AND PROPERTY THROUGHOUT THE UK. ITS BEST-KNOWN LONDON HOLDINGS ARE REGENT STREET AND THE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES IN REGENT’S PARK. SMALLER BUT SIGNIFICANT LONDON ESTATES INCLUDE THE NEWINGTON TRUST, THE LLOYD BAKER ESTATE, THE HAMPSTEAD GARDEN SUBURB TRUST, THE PEABODY TRUST, BROADGATE, ILCHESTER ESTATES, GUNTER ESTATES AND THE PHILLIMORE ESTATE.
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Great estates the whole Mayfair area. Streets once known for their stolid mansion blocks now boast busy cafés, top designer shops and Michelin-starred restaurants. A wellmanaged urban estate has become a destination in its own right. Many of the ancient family estates started life as green fields. Certainly, they have adapted to changing times but they have remained true to their roots and traditions, while introducing the reforms necessary to prosper in a modern commercial environment. The Crown Estate, for example, used to sell its properties in Regent’s Park on short leases only. But since it started offering leases of up to 150 years, property prices have soared.
exclusive that even flats on short leases fetch £5 million. As residential landlords, the great estates tend, on the whole, to be conservative, preferring continuity to profit. But it is conservatism of the hardheaded, not the hidebound, variety. “The estates want first-class tenants and they offer a first-class service in return,” says Amelia Greene of Savills Sloane Street, which handles letting for Grosvenor and Cadogan properties. “They have professional property managers, favour long rather than short lets and always redecorate a property between each letting. The result is a loyal clientele. “We often get tenants keen to stay on the same estate when considering a move,
Did you KNOW? A key figure in the emergence of the Cadogan Estate was Sir Hans Sloane, whose daughter married a Cadogan and whose bequests laid the foundation of the British Museum. The Grosvenor family bought Mayfair in the late seventeenth century. It was known as the Five Fields and consisted of swamps, pasture, orchards and a few scattered houses.
“We recently sold two houses in Park Square East for around £10 million each,” says Stephen Lindsay of Savills St John’s Wood. “This is the only park where you can own property, so it is not surprising that there is high demand.” The great estates own some of the most desirable property in London – from the elegant side streets off Chelsea’s King’s Road to the grand terraces of white stucco houses in Belgravia to the great mansion blocks of Mayfair. The tag “best address in London” is still enjoyed by Kensington Palace Gardens, in W8, which is owned by the Crown Estate. The magnificent tree-lined road is so
and many international tenants returning to the UK for business reasons feel the same way.” The survival of the great London estates may be an affront to some, but they are far more than colourful anachronisms. Indeed, they are among the staunchest champions of an urban environment of which everyone can be proud. It’s worth considering how different London would look without the estates. The simple uniformity would be lost and the link with the past woud be broken. Continuity should never be undervalued. Indeed, in London’s case, it’s the continuity that brings added value to the capital.
The best place in London to fall ill is the Howard de Walden Estate, which is bisected by Harley Street and houses well over 1,000 doctors, dentists and surgeons. The Portman Estate in Marylebone occupies land originally bought by a Somerset landowner who reputedly needed somewhere to rest his cattle en route to market. The first houses built on the Phillimore Estate in Kensington in the early nineteenth century were so unattractive that King George III used to pull down the blinds of his carriage window to avoid looking at them. savills.co.uk
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BOLTING ON A
BOLT HOLE London is a 24-hour city, but that doesn’t mean you have to be there round the clock. A second home out of town – or even out of the country – is essential
D
ictionaries have varying definitions for the word bolt hole. One of the clearest describes it as: “a hole through which an animal may bolt when pursued into its burrow or den.” Quite how the term has metamorphosed into a property catchword is unclear. After all, few of us can honestly claim that a day at work is like being chased by a hostile predator. But we get the sentiment. And what is increasingly clear is that people who live in a big city need to escape from time to time. Retuning is easier achieved to the sound of birds singing than sirens shrieking. For decades, escaping London has become a military operation for many families. Mothers with young children head for the M4 or M40 after picking up their charges from school on a
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WORDS M A R K P A L M E R
Friday afternoon, their husbands following a few hours later by train or in their own vehicles. Relative calm descends for 48 hours before then heading back into town. There are bolt hole hotspots. Counties such as Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, Sussex, Kent and Suffolk traditionally have offered ideal respite from the rigours of the capital, but today bolt holes entice people further afield. Northamptonshire, Dorset, Norfolk and even Cornwall are all popular, helped in part by better roads and much improved train links. But there’s no reason why a bolt hole should be confined to Britain. And no reason why bolt holes should only be used at weekends. “We have found that having a network of offices in the South of France has been extremely useful for our clients,” says
From top left: impressive Grade II house in Cornwall, £2m; villa in Nice with panoramic views over the Baie des Anges, price on application; magnificient ski in-ski out chalet in sought-after Courcheval, price on application; an enchanting Goucestershire mill house with waterside garden, £1.625m
Break for the border
SECOND HOMES OFFER RESPITE FROM THE RIGOURS OF LIVING IN THE CAPITAL
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Break for the border
BOLT HOLES CAN, OF COURSE, BE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD Lindsay Cuthill, Savills Head of region for south west London. “Because people have more flexibility in their working lives now,they can easily extend their weekends, which makes having a bolt hole further afield much more practical.” Noel de Keyzer, from Savills Sloane Street, heads for his bolthole most weekends, but it’s in Lisbon, Portugal. “I get a plane from Heathrow on Friday evening and I can be there in time for dinner,” says Noel. “It takes friends of mine longer to get to their UK bolt holes than for me to get to Lisbon. “The pace of life is so relaxing there and the climate is perfect. Winters are short and by April the temperature can reach 26 degrees. What’s amazing is that I can be on the beach within 15 minutes of where I live. What’s more, the cost of eating out in restaurants is almost half what it is in many other European cities.” Noel says it is possible to buy a two or three bedroom flat in the historic centre of Lisbon for around €500,000, complete with underground parking, a terrace and air-conditioning. But why stop at Europe. A bolt hole is
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where you feel the bolts loosening on your life. For Gordon Lewis, who lives mainly in London, that means owning a home in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which is more than 10 hours away by air, with a three-hour time difference. “We live in a place called Quinta Rosa in the old part of town – but wherever you are in Rio you are near the sea,” says Gordon. “The city is moving forward all the time, with the World Cup next year and the Olympics two years after that.The weather is great all year round – but it’s Above: this superb modern 5 bedroom penthouse in Portugal’s Lagos Marina is on the market at £811,395. Right: for something closer to home, this stylish Grade II house with tennis court and paddocks in Toys Hill, Kent is yours for £1.595m
the people who make Rio so special. So special in fact, that we have just invested in building a new boutique hotel, Quinta Azul, so other people can escape to Rio too [londonrio.com]. ” A bolt hole implies a house or cottage that is smaller than someone’s property in London. But that, too, need not be the case. Many Savills clients have an apartment or mews house in London, where they live during the week, and then they bolt from it on Friday evening to their family homes in the country. Indeed there has never been a better time for London buyers to find their dream home in the country. “Country properties are looking very good value at the moment, with London money stretching much further in some locations than in others,” says Crispin Holborow, Head of the Country Department at Savills. “Areas that are within commuting distance of the capital are obviously convenient but more expensive, while those further afield offer both idyllic rural surroundings and classic country houses. But most importantly they also offer an opportunity to find exceptional value,” he says.
GAZETTEER THE
YOUR GUIDE TO LONDON’S KEY RESIDENTIAL AREAS FROM OUR EXPERTS
The Gazetteer
P R I M E C EN T R AL L OND O N
Belgravia
ARCHITECTURE Elegant Nash stucco
fronted properties and private garden squares, many of which are owned by the Grosvenor Estate. PRICE TO BUY From £1m-£100m+ PRICE TO RENT From £600pw for a one bedroom apartment to £15,000pw for a spacious family home SHOPS Cobbled Motcomb Street is home to high-end fashion, beauty and hair salons, as well as Michelin-starred restaurants, while Pimlico Road is the design district – David Linley, Jane Churchill, as well as art and antique shops. Hat-maker Philip Treacy and jeweller Erickson Beamon are on Elizabeth Street.
SALES, FLATS
Richard Dalton +44 (0)20 7730 0822 rdalton@savills.com LETTINGS
Amelia Greene, MARLA +44 (0)20 7730 0822 agreene@savills.com
Chelsea ARCHITECTURE Fine Georgian and
Victorian garden squares, stucco fronted houses and striking riverside properties. Large areas owned by the Wellcome Trust, Grosvenor and Cadogan Estates. PRICE TO BUY From £1m-£50m PRICE TO LET From studios at £400pw to family houses at £6,500pw SHOPS Shopping mecca on the King’s Road and Fulham Road, from the Conran Shop, Stella McCartney and Ralph Lauren to independent boutiques such as Blue Velvet Shoes and John Sandoe’s bookshop. Foodies love La Cave à Fromage and Rococo Chocolate.
Kensington ARCHITECTURE Stucco fronted Victorian
houses on the Phillimore Estate and Holland Park and red brick mansion blocks around Kensington High Street. PRICE TO BUY £2m-£30m PRICE TO RENT Flats £400-£6,500pw; Houses £1,100-£15,000pw SHOPS Quieter than Oxford Street, but comprehensive in its offering. Whole Foods is the biggest and smartest organic food shop in London and for antiques and art visit Church Street.
CULTURE The Royal Albert Hall for music
CULTURE Blue Plaques to noted figures
CULTURE Cadogan Hall, home to the Royal
Philharmonic, for the Proms, jazz, folk, contemporary and world music events; St Peter’s Church, Eaton Square for highly acclaimed classical concerts, and The Royal Court, Sloane Square for sharp new British plays.
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abound here. The Saatchi Gallery for contemporary art, the V&A, the world’s largest museum of decorative arts and design, and Chelsea Physic Garden for its unique collection of plants.
and cultural events and the Royal College of Music, Holland Park for its highly acclaimed annual opera festival, and The Gate Cinema with its ornate auditorium for art and mainstream films. SALES, HOUSES
Johnny Fuller +44 (0)20 7535 3300 jlfuller@savills.com
SALES
SALES, FLATS
Charlie Bubear +44 (0)20 7578 9001 cbubear@savills.com
Thomas Holcroft +44 (0)20 7535 3300 tholcroft@savills.com
SALES, HOUSES
LETTINGS
LETTINGS
Noel De Keyzer +44 (0)20 7730 0822 ndekeyzer@savills.com
Danielle Fearnon, MARLA +44 (0)20 7578 9020 dfearnon@savills.com
Matthew Hobbs, FARLA +44 (0)20 7535 3333 mhobbs@savills.com
savills.co.uk
The Gazetteer
Knightsbridge
Mayfair & Marylebone
ARCHITECTURE Stucco fronted elegant
ARCHITECTURE From red brick period buildings, high-ceilinged Georgian properties and contemporary new developments, plus the world-famous medical practices around Harley Street. PRICE TO BUY Flats and houses from £500,000-£100m
terraces, classic Georgian garden squares, Dutch-style red brick mansions and cutting-edge new developments such as One Hyde Park. PRICE TO BUY From £2.5m-£50m for a house; £850,000-£45m for a flat PRICE TO RENT From £1,500-£12,000pw for a house; £400-£20,000pw for a flat
PRICES TO BUY £500k-£30m PRICE TO RENT £500-£12,000pw SHOPS Westbourne Grove and Ledbury
Road for chic boutiques and restaurants and Portobello Road for more eclectic shops and its bustling antiques market. CULTURE The Gate and Electric Cinemas for art and mainstream films, the tiny Print Room fringe theatre and gallery on Hereford Road, and the world-famous Notting Hill Carnival. SALES PRICE TO RENT From £500-£50,000pw
Oliver Lurot +44 (0)20 7727 5750 olurot@savills.com
SHOPS Bond Street for its elegant
SHOPS Harrods and Harvey Nichols,
together with the designer stores on Sloane Street, and the boutiques along Walton Street. CULTURE The Natural History Museum, the V&A Museum and the Albert Hall are all on the doorstep.
designer stores, Mount Street for its boutiques, Marylebone High Street for its village atmosphere, weekly farmers market and annual summer fair. CULTURE The Royal Academy of Arts for inspiring exhibitions, The Wallace Collection for its stunning collection of art, and Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre for a memorable experience.
SALES, HOUSES
SALES
Barbara Allen +44 (0)20 7590 5064 ballen@savills.com
Charles Lloyd +44 (0)20 7587 5100 clloyd@savills.com
LETTINGS
Nik Dennis, MARLA +44 (0)20 7727 5751 ndennis@savills.com
SOUTH WEST LONDON
Barnes
SALES, FLATS
LETTINGS
ARCHITECTURE Fine Georgian houses
Ben Morris +44 (0)20 7590 5065 bmorris@savills.com
Guy Bradshaw, MARLA +44 (0)20 7578 5101 gbradshaw@savills.com
along the river, elegant early Victorian villas on Castelnau, family houses around the duck pond and green. PRICE TO BUY From £1m-£7.5m PRICE TO RENT From £1,800pcm to £15,000pcm SHOPS Two Peas in a Pod for fruit and veg, Totally Swedish for caviar, crispbread and cloudberry jam, Orange Pekoe for tea and delicious cakes, and Tobias and The Angel for inspiring interiors and furniture.
SUPER PRIME LETTINGS
Mark Tunstall +44 (0)20 7590 5066 mtunstall@savills.com
Notting Hill
LETTINGS
ARCHITECTURE Large Victorian properties, many with direct access onto communal gardens, and the colourful cottages of Hillgate Village.
Jennifer Reid, MARLA +44 (0)20 7584 8585 jcreid@savills.com
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The Gazetteer
CULTURE Battersea Affordable Arts Fair once a year in Battersea Park, Battersea Arts Centre for plays throughout the year, and for new writing the flagship fringe Theatre503 at the Latchmere. SALES
Mayow Short +44 (0)20 3402 1900 mshort@savills.com LETTINGS CULTURE The Olympic recording studios
used by artists such as The Beatles, Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Queen and Madonna, now converted into a cinema that shows both art house films and current releases.
Clare Neville, MARLA +44 (0)20 3402 1905 cneville@savills.com
Chiswick
SALES
ARCHITECTURE From Grade II listed
Sandra Carline +44 (0)20 8939 6911 scarline@savills.com
houses along the river to contemporary apartments, Edwardian and Victorian houses and Norman Shaw designed, houses of Bedford Park.
LETTINGS
SALES
Christopher Bramwell +44 (0)20 8987 5550 cbramwell@savills.com LETTINGS
Hannah Woodley, MARLA +44 (0)20 8987 5557 hwoodley@savills.com NEW HOMES
Simon Walker +44 (0)20 8987 5570 sjwalker@savills.com
Clapham & Balham ARCHITECTURE Predominantly Victorian
with a handful of Queen Anne and Georgian houses around the Clapham Common area.
Paul Zammit, MARLA +44 (0)20 8939 6911 pzammit@savills.com
Battersea ARCHITECTURE Georgian and Victorian
houses and cottages, beautiful period mansion blocks around the park, modern riverside developments. PRICE TO BUY From £350,000-£20m PRICE TO RENT From £350-£2,000pw
PRICE TO BUY From £310,000-£12m PRICE TO LET From £300-£2,000pw SHOPS Delis, cafés, variety of bars and
PRICE TO BUY From £400,000-£10m+ PRICE TO RENT From £280-£3,000pw
SHOPS Boutiques and antique shops on Battersea Park Road, Caffetino for homemade bread, and Bar and Grill deli/butcher for delicious food and a reputable butcher.
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restaurants, organic/health food shops, good choice of supermarkets, bookshops and boutiques. CULTURE Clapham Picture House, Venn Street Market, Battersea Art Centre.
SHOPS For foodies, there’s Macken
SALES
Brothers butchers, Gails for bread, Patisserie Valerie for delicious cakes, and Mortimer and Bennett’s deli. CULTURE Village charm with green spaces and the river location. Primarily familyorientated, with bars and restaurants for young professionals.
Christopher Lewis +44 (0)20 8673 4111 cblewis@savills.com LETTINGS
Nathan Yendle, MARLA +44 (0)20 8772 6989 nyendle@savills.com
The Gazetteer
Fulham
SALES - Bishops Park
LETTINGS
ARCHITECTURE Victorian and Edwardian
Glynn Gibb +44 (0)20 7578 9050 ggibb@savills.com
Richard Hole, MARLA +44 (0)20 8780 6115 rhole@savills.com
houses, with stunning modern developments along the river. PRICE TO BUY From £500,000-£5m+ PRICE TO RENT From £300-£3,000pw
Kate Rotheram, MARLA +44 (0)20 7578 9051 krotheram@savills.com
LETTINGS
Richmond ARCHITECTURE From Tudor to highly
Putney
contemporary - the predominant style, however, is Victorian.
ARCHITECTURE Elegant Victorian and
SHOPS Parsons Nose Butcher for meat,
Emelia’s for all things deli, Friarwood for fine wine, not forgetting the outstanding River Cafe in Thames Wharf. There’s Katie & Jo clothes boutique, Deuxieme for pre-loved designer goodies, Emma Bridgewater’s flagship shop, and all manner of design and interior shops on the New King’s Road. CULTURE Polo in the Park, Queens Tennis tournament, Fulham Football Club and Stamford Bridge for Chelsea FC, and The Curtains Up for theatre. There’s also Fulham Palace and its stunning gardens and the unique Riverside Studios for cutting edge theatre and a cinema with a different double bill every night.
Edwardian terraces, striking mansion blocks, large detached double-fronted houses, and stylish new builds along the riverfront. PRICE TO BUY From £250,000- £12m PRICE TO RENT From £1,250pcm£18,000pcm SHOPS Busy high street anchored by Putney Exchange shopping mall, while Putney Bridge Road is home to smaller boutiques and delis. Vibrant bar and restaurant scene, especially along the riverfront on both sides of the bridge.
CULTURE The Boat Race starts at Putney
Bridge and for entertainment, there’s the Putney Arts Theatre and the Half Moon is an excellent music venue. Green space is never far away with plenty of parks, gardens and the Heath.
PRICES TO BUY From £300,000-£25m PRICE TO RENT From £300-£9,000pw SHOPS Richmond Hill Bakery for pastries
and coffee, Teddington Cheese for an extensive selection of the world’s finest cheeses; Philglas and Swiggot for wine, the paved lanes for eclectic boutiques and George Street for major retailers. CULTURE The Richmond Theatre for more mainstream plays, The Orange Tree Theatre for new upcoming plays and The Curzon Cinema for art house films. Petersham Nurseries is a unique experience and then there’s Richmond Park, the largest of the capital’s eight Royal Parks and home to the beautiful Isabella Plantation and herds of red and fallow deer.
SALES - Parsons Green
SALES
SALES
Emma Stead +44 (0)20 7731 9400 estead@savills.com
Caroline Bell +44 (0)20 8780 9900 cbell@savills.com
Patrick Glynn-Jones +44 (0)20 8614 9111 pglynn-jones@saills.com
LETTINGS
SALES
LETTINGS
Sophie Curtis, MARLA +44 (0)20 7731 2692 scurtis@savils.com
Alex Howard Baker +44 (0)20 8780 6112 ahowardbaker@savills.com
Catherine Hanley, MARLA +44 (0)20 8614 9106 chanley@savills.com
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The Gazetteer
Wandsworth
Wimbledon & Coombe
ARCHITECTURE Victorian terrace houses in
ARCHITECTURE Victorian and Edwardian
the sought-after Tonsleys, larger semi-detached houses in nearby East Hill, while the cream of Wandsworth property is to be found in the Toast Rack, a grid of streets jutting into Wandsworth Common.
houses, Arts & Crafts detached houses and private gated estates. PRICE TO BUY From £350,000-£10m PRICE TO RENT From £1,000-£20,000pcm SHOPS Wimbledon Village has a wide collection of boutiques, cafés and restaurants, while the town centre offers a range of popular high street names.
Bakery & Patisserie, Hampstead Butcher & Providore, Hampstead Seafood & Fishmongers, as well as Fawkes bookshop and Hampstead Antique & Craft Emporium.
CULTURE Home to many of the country’s
CULTURE: Wimbledon Common has 1,000
acres of fabulous open space with three popular golf clubs and is ideal for walking, riding or cycling. For entertainment, there’s the Wimbledon Theatre and for art house films there’s HMV Curzon. PRICE TO BUY From £250,000-£10m PRICE TO RENT From £300-£3,000pw SHOPS Enclaves of smart shops and boutiques along Bellevue Road and Old York Road, the Barmouth Kitchen café, run jointly by local families, the Southside Centre for a selection of high street names as well as a Waitrose and a multi-screen cinema. CULTURE Wandsworth Common is the area’s green heart, with its tennis courts, lake and play area set in 175 acres of open parkland and there’s also Wandsworth Museum in the town. SALES
Emma Seaton +44 (0)20 8877 1222 eseaton@savills.com LETTINGS
Emily Hayward, MARLA +44 (0)20 8877 4820 ehayward@savills.com
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best-known writers, actors, artists and musicians, it also boasts London’s largest park, the 800 acres of Hampstead Heath. Sporting facilities include golf and tennis and an open-air lido. You can watch a picnic concert in the garden of Kenwood House or a play in the celebrated Hampstead Theatre.
SALES
SALES
Clive Moon +44 (0)20 8971 8111 cmoon@savills.com
Frank Townsend +44 (0)20 7472 5000 ftownsend@savills.com
LETTINGS
LETTINGS
Andrew Clements, MARLA +44 (0)20 8971 8100 aclements@savills.com
Arron Bart, FARLA +44 (0)20 7472 5030 abart@savills.com
NORTH LONDON
Hampstead
ARCHITECTURE Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian and ultra modern. PRICE TO BUY From £450,000-£20m PRICE TO RENT From £450-£22,500pw SHOPS Hampstead Village has a mix of wonderful bohemian boutiques and restaurants. Specialist food shops include Melrose & Morgan, Ginger & White, Paul
St John’s Wood ARCHITECTURE Predominantly Georgian
and Victorian with fine Nash Regency terraces surrounding Regent’s Park and Little Venice. PRICE TO BUY £1m+ PRICE TO RENT £500-£40,000pw SHOPS Larizia for designer shoes and handbags, women’s boutiques, Panzers for British, American and other foreign delicacies, Brown’s fishmonger for fresh fish and seafood, Kent Butchers for
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free-range and organic meats, Oxfam for a good selection of second-hand books. CULTURE Everyman Cinema in Maida Vale for art and mainstream films, the award-winning Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre for cultural summer evenings, Puppet Theatre Barge for children’s marionette shows and London Zoo. Primrose Hill offers one of the best free views over London. SALES
Stephen Lindsay +44 (0)20 3043 3600 slindsay@savills.com LETTINGS
Alexandra Fleck +44 (0)20 3043 3616 afleck@savills.com
Barclays, Citigroup, Clifford Chance, Credit Suisse, HSBC, J P Morgan, KPMG, Morgan Stanley, State Street and Thomson Reuters. The Docks offers an array of waterside restaurants and bars. SALES
Lauren Ireland +44 (0)20 7531 2500 lireland@savills.com LETTINGS
Dawn Shepperson, FARLA +44 (0)20 7456 6809 dshepperson@savils.com RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
Matt Leitch +44 (0)20 7531 2561 mleitch@savills.com
Islington & Highbury EAST LONDON
Canary Wharf
ARCHITECTURE Renowned for high rise
contemporary style developments with luxury facilities. However, also has some very important, historic warehouse conversions. PRICE TO BUY From £250,000-£4m PRICE TO RENT From £250-£3,500pw SHOPS Several interlinked malls offering everything from high street fashion to luxury boutiques and mainstream supermarkets.
CULTURE Fast-paced business
environment that is home to numerous major banks, professional services firms and media organisations, including
performances. Screen on the Green, overlooking Islington Green, is one of the oldest cinemas in London. SALES
Paul Williams +44 (0)20 7226 1313 pwilliams@savills.com LETTINGS
Daniel Parker, FARLA +44 (0)20 7354 6701 dparker@savills.com
Wapping ARCHITECTURE Fine riverside warehouse
conversions and high spec, glass-fronted developments. PRICE TO BUY From £300,000-£4m PRICE TO RENT From £350-£3,000pw
ARCHITECTURE Fine Georgian and early Victorian garden squares and terraces in Islington and later Victorian family houses in Highbury. A mixture of warehouse conversions and new builds close to the Regent’s Canal.
SHOPS A small local high street with an
PRICE TO BUY From £350,000 for a one
bedroom flat to £6.5m for the largest Georgian house PRICE TO RENT From £300-£2,500pw SHOPS Upper Street for its mix of high-end boutiques, high street favourites and pavement cafés, and cobbled Camden Passage, which has the feel of a street market, for vintage clothing and antiques. CULTURE The Almeida Theatre (Savills is the local corporate sponsor), Sadlers Wells and the Kings Head are all in the area and offer an array of excellent
old-fashioned butcher, baker, dry cleaner and convenience store, and St Katharine Docks Marina with its abundance of cafés, bars, boutiques, fine restaurants, and a weekly food market. CULTURE A mixed local community where City people live alongside locals who have lived there for generations. LETTINGS
Dawn Shepperson, FARLA +44 (0)20 7456 6800 dshepperson@savills.com SALES
Lauren Ireland +44 (0)20 7531 2509 lireland@savills.com
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Directory
OUR SERVICES
Q&As
Yes, we sell and let out properties for our clients, but we provide a whole lot more too. Here are some of the other services we offer AUCTIONS We hold a large number of auctions each year. Our success rates are one of the highest across the industry.
PROPERTY MANAGEMENT We ensure your property is cared for and looked after just as you would.
CORPORATE SERVICES We are a letting service, acting as a hub between corporate companies, relocation agents and the Savills global network.
PRIME PURCHASE We find and acquire both London and country residential properties for our clients.
COUNTRY HOUSE CONSULTANCY We advise on project management, staffing, land use and tenancies. INSURANCE We protect our clients’ lifestyle, valued possessions, private and investment properties. LEISURE PROPERTY We deal with the sale, purchase, valuation, and letting of your leisure property.
GLOBAL REACH With a network of 25 offices in London, 90 across the UK and 500 offices and associates worldwide, Savills is perfectly located to help you make the most of the opportunities in the property market. 50
savills.co.uk
Q A
Can I still get an interest only mortgage?
Much has been written about their demise, but they remain available for those borrowers with irregular incomes and particularly those borrowing in excess of £1m. They are generally arranged on a 5 year reviewable basis. Over half of the 80 lenders we used during 2012 will consider offering an interest only facility.
SAVILLS INTERIOR SERVICES We help you to achieve the full potential of your property, from extensions and conversions to simply dressing it.
Q
SPF PRIVATE CLIENTS We manage mortgage requirements from start to finish with a range of competitive, often exclusive, products. There’s a lot we haven’t mentioned, but whatever you need, we’ll make it happen.
A
With interest rates so low, is now a good time to fix?
Fixed rates can offer certainty and currently appear very good value with some 2 year rates below 2% and 5 year rates below 3%. The downside to a fixed rate is the lack of flexibility to
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Directory
A
How can I attract the highest quality Corporate Tenants for my property?
Q
They come in all shapes and sizes - there isn’t a one-sizefits-all, or a particular style of property that appeals to all corporate tenants. Here at Savills we are dealing with both young single professionals in the early stages of their career and CEOs with their families. The main advice we offer is that tenants are looking for clean, functional properties with modern kitchens and bathrooms. The younger professionals prefer properties to be fully
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UNITED K
Yes, at Prime Purchase we will take a detailed brief from you on the type of property and location you’re looking for, and then we will source suitable options – some of which won’t even make it onto the open market, such is the competition for prime real estate in London. We carry out a tremendous amount of due diligence and research to hone down the number of
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properties we recommend into a finely tuned shortlist. We can also help you with appointing lawyers and sourcing finance, if required, so that when you arrive in the UK your time is focused on looking at the properties we have selected for you.
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Sometimes negotiations and the conveyancing on a property can take a while, what happens if I run out of time on this?
Essentially, we become your representative so we will manage the transaction with your lawyer, set up surveys and agree terms on fixtures and fittings while keeping you fully informed at all times. Our role is to make your life as easy as possible by gathering together all the information needed and being bold enough to know when to make a decision on your behalf. If you wish to discuss any further points about our property services, please contact Prime Purchase on +44 (0)20 7881 2388.
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I’m based overseas and am keen to purchase a property in London, but find the time difference and my workload make this difficult. Can you help?
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furnished so that they can move in and settle quickly. Families looking for larger properties will often want to move their own furniture in and so would rather it be completely unfurnished. If you wish to discuss any further points about corporate tenants and relocation, please contact the Corporate Services Team on +44 (0)20 7016 3750
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repay early or change the mortgage to a different product. With interest rates predicted to stay at this level for a number of years many clients are opting for variable rate mortgages that track the Bank of England base rate. If you wish to discuss any further points about mortgages, contact SPF Private Clients on +44 (0)870 900 7762