Edition 20 Global Property Scene

GLOBAL

PROPERTY NO. SCENE ISSUE 020

The Number One Buy-to-Let Magazine | www.globalpropertyscene.com

This issue: Green startups, changing the way we think about technology | Are conglomerates too powerful?

The growth of woodern architecture | Investing in Craft Beer

FOCUS ON : NETHERLANDS

DUBAI AIRSHOW REVIEW

LATIN AMERICA’S MOST COMPETITIVE ECONOMY

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BUY-TO-LET IN A UK POWERHOUSE APARTMENTS FROM

£90,000

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INSIDE Features

20 The growth of wooden architecture

33 Investing in green startups

49 The power of global corporations

56 Choosing a life off the grid

Wood is one of the oldest construction materials available, dating back thousands of years and being most commonly used in Asia for ancient temples and Buddhist monuments, many which have withstood extreme weather conditions and still exist today. This is a testament to the strength and durability of the material.

As the demand for green technology increases, businesses have shifted their focus onto providing global leaders, enterprises and consumers with innovative and sustainable solutions.

This has been obvious in the last few years with the number of green startups growing at an unprecedented rate.

The growing influence of corporations over our global society is not really in dispute. Every aspect of our lives involves the corporate world in one way or another, whether that is choosing what food to eat that day, getting medicine from your doctor or using Google Maps to find your way around.

The pressure that is being put on public services, transport infrastructure and housing is constantly building, and leaves many people feeling overwhelmed with urban life. There is no denying that as modern day life becomes more complicated many of us find ourselves smothered under the weight of a materialistic society.

Regular Articles

Listings (sponsored)

09 Market in Focus: Netherlands

90 UK

WELCOME TO CHILE

The median house price in the Netherlands grew by more than 80% between 1996 and 2001.

86 Should I move to Glasgow?

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Translated from the ancient Gaelic meaning for ‘Green Hollow’, Glasgow, Scotland’s biggest city sits on the River Clyde in Scotland’s western Lowlands.

Home of the Industrial Revolution, the UK has long been established as a major commercial centre, benefiting from strong trade links with companies on every continent.

With a long history in international cooperation, the country is an attractive place for investors both foreign and domestic.

Knight Knox has sold thousands of properties. We have experts on the ground that can help to find your perfect property. Why purchase with anybody else?

ISSUE 020 GLOBAL

PROPERTY NO. SCENE ISSUE 020

The Number One Buy-to-Let Magazine | www.globalpropertyscene.com

This issue: Green startups, changing the way we think about technology | Are conglomerates too powerful?

The growth of woodern architecture | Investing in Craft Beer

FOCUS ON : NETHERLANDS

DUBAI AIRSHOW REVIEW

LATIN AMERICA’S MOST COMPETITIVE ECONOMY

EDITOR’S NOTE It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the years seem to be passing by. I feel like I’m just about getting on top of everything and it’s Christmas. Could it be because the run-up to the holiday period seems to commence at an ever-earlier point? It won’t be long before I find myself clambering into the loft in search of tinsel the morning after Halloween. I’m also acutely aware it could well be an age thing, but I choose to remain remiss on that particular topic.

Catalonia is certainly not a place feeling remiss, having grabbed the headlines for the latter part of 2017. Catalonia’s unwavering drive for independence has plunged Spain into one of the most serious political crises in its history and it is unclear how the complex situation will ever be resolved. With passions running high, and many comparisons being drawn on the similarities between this situation and the growing troubles surrounding the UK’s plans to leave the EU, we take a look at how Catalonia could look in 2018.

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Cover image by Skreidzeleu

Contact +44(0)161 772 1394 info@globalpropertyscene.com www.globalpropertyscene.com

Credits Individual Samantha Edwards, Alex Timperley, Will Leyland, Emma Martin, Andrea Wong, Richard Ellis, Alistair McGovern, Suzanne Todd, Callum Whiteley, John Power, Martin Copeland, Michael Vickers, Mark Williams, Marica Bruschi Commercial Knight Knox, X1, Fortis Developments, Forshaw Land & Property Group, INTUS Lettings, Gold Key Media, Shutterstock, Unsplash, Property Investor, Crossbow Investments CODA Studios Ltd, Dubai Airshow

Despite the US pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement, 2017 has proved to be a very positive year for environmental development. More and more businesses are adapting to the growing need to go green. As the demand for green technology increases, businesses have shifted their focus onto providing global leaders, enterprises and consumers with innovative and sustainable solutions. With hopes running high for 2018 we give a rundown on some of the best performing green tech firms operating today.

Sticking with a green theme, wood is one of the oldest construction materials available, dating back thousands of years and being most commonly used in Asia for ancient temples and Buddhist monuments, many which have withstood extreme weather conditions and still exist today.

This is a testament to the strength and durability of this material, and also begs the question should we be building more with it? In this edition of GPS we discuss the future possibilities of wooden architecture.

And finally, we look at how the all-encompassing reach of corporate power raises the question: has it gone too far?

That’s it for 2017, we hope you enjoy edition 20.

Have a great Christmas and happy new year.

Editor-in-chief Michael Smith

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CATALAN INDEPENDENCE VOTE ...

Andrea Wong

Catalonia’s unwavering drive for independence has plunged Spain into one of the most serious political crises in its history and it is unclear how the complex situation will ever be resolved. Catalonia’s pro-independence supporters have been fighting for centralised powers for the ultimate right of self-rule for many centuries, tracing back to before Francisco Franco’s repressive regime.

Today, standing as the distinctive north eastern region of Spain, Catalan has a population of around 7.5 million people, equating to about 16% of Spain’s overall population. The capital of the region, Barcelona, is a hugely popular destination in Europe and attracts people from all over the world. In addition, the region is highly industrialised and contains world-class pharmaceutical and chemical facilities.

As the most productive and wealthiest region in the country, many pro-independence campaigners have argued that Catalonians have given more to the central Government than they have received in return, hence its popular secessionist slogan “Madrid nos roba” which translates as “Madrid is robbing us”. The ongoing economic crisis in Spain has exposed the country’s reliance on Barcelona’s wealth to support the poorer parts of the country.

Another significant issue that Catalonia is facing is that many people living in the region have identified themselves as Catalonians their entire lives and have been conforming to the culture and traditions in the region rather than those in the rest of Spain.

has led to the independence campaign growing significantly.

Towards the end of 2014, an informal vote took place in the region where over 80% of people voted yes to independence, however, only around 2 million of the 5.4 eligible voters in Catalonia cast their ballots. Many Spanish unionists said that the ballot did not reflect what the region wants as it was organised by pro-independence groups and the central government disregarded the result, declaring the vote illegal.

This brings us up to date with the most recent events which stem from another controversial referendum held on 1st October this year, which has been described as ‘one of the most significant tests of Spain’s democracy since Franco’s era’.

Ahead of the referendum, the Spanish government ordered police officers to prevent people from voting and to seize ballot papers and boxes at polling stations. The occasion which represented freedom was marred by violence, with police clashing with Catalonians and using batons on crowds, injuring hundreds of people. In response to critics, the Spanish Government said that they were ‘acting proportionately’.

Despite the violence and intervention by the police, around 2.3 million people turned out to vote out of the 6 million eligible voters, of which 90% voted for independence. Many Catalonians took to the streets to celebrate when the votes were being counted but the government disregarded the referendum vote, once again calling it illegal.

How did it all begin?

Catalonia was once an independent region of the Iberian Peninsula containing its own language, laws and traditions.

The War of the Spanish Succession which occurred during 1705-14 saw Phillip V of Spain capture Barcelona, resulting in the suppression of its parliament and traditional values and the birth of modern day Spain.

Throughout history, Spanish Kings attempted to force the national language and laws upon Catalonia up until the restoration of Generalitat (the National Catalan Government) in 1931 when the region was granted a degree of autonomy.

General Franco set out to put an end to the Catalan separatism once and for all with his victory at the Battle of Ebro in 1938 marking the beginning of his repressive political regime, which prevented all efforts toward Catalan nationalism. In the years under Franco’s dictatorship, Catalan institutions and language were stamped out and thousands of Catalonians were executed in purges for ‘rebelling’ against the constitution.

This era scarred many Catalan families who have been identifying as Catalan rather than Spanish throughout their whole lives, and this has in turn caused more resentment towards the Spanish constitution.

Growing support for independence Certain events in the last two decades have created more support for secession but there was one particular incident which caused outrage in Catalonia and increased tensions further. In the summer of 2010, the Constitutional Court in Madrid overruled the statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006 by rewriting and reinterpreting parts of the law.

The central government rescinded Catalonia’s ‘nation’ status which allowed them greater powers and financial control over the region, claiming that although Catalan is a nationality, Catalonia is not a nation. This caused outrage in Catalonia and

The Government responded immediately to the vote by invoking article 155 and firing Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, and his secessionist government. Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, argued that imposing direct rule on the region was necessary to ‘recover normality’. Carles Puigdemont was issued a European arrest warrant on charges of rebellion, as well as the misuse of public funds and has since handed himself in to the police in Brussels where he awaits a decision on extradition to Spain.

Other political leaders have had their say on the matter with Theresa May standing by Spain and choosing not to recognise Catalonia’s declaration of independence.

However, political leaders such as Nicola Sturgeon who has led Scottish self-determination has expressed her concern over the way that the Spanish government has reacted and has condemned the violence from the police.

There is uncertainty over what will happen in the deeply divided region of Catalonia and whether it will ever become an independent state. It is worth mentioning that although there are many Catalonians who do want to gain complete power and are more vocal about their intentions, there are many more who are against the independence movement and do not see a future outside of Spain.

If Catalonia does become independent there will be severe consequences for Spain going forward, and even the European Union. Many analysts fear that this is the greatest threat to the (EU) since the UK voted to leave, as it could fuel other separatist movements in Scotland and the Basque country, and consequently destabilise the EU. What will happen next? It seems unclear, however, there will certainly be questions over Spain’s ‘democratic’ system with Rajoy’s determination to block Catalonia’s attempts to become independent. With the crisis deepening and driving forward the separatist movement, how much more can the Spanish Government take?

MARKET IN FOCUS Netherlands

Words : Alex Timperley | View : Olena Z

The housing market in the Netherlands is much like that in many other European Union states. The general rule is that it is a strong market, and it is a good bet that the political and economic situation will remain largely stable in the long term. This sort of stability is the key to a strong housing market and is one of the main things that many investors look at before making a significant investment.

This is not to say that there haven’t been ups and downs, of course; every housing market experiences peaks and troughs. The last two decades have seen some impressive highs and equally notable lows. The median house price in the Netherlands grew by more than 80% between 1996 and 2001, which works out at average annual growth of approximately 11%.

This period of consistent growth was clearly a good time to own property in the Netherlands, and specifically in Amsterdam which experienced even higher levels of growth, with house prices increasing by 111% over this period.

Looking back, this was clearly a boom and the reasons for it occurring are much as you might expect. The national economy was growing at just under 4% annually and private sector wages grew by a similar amount every year. This steadily increasing purchasing power predictably fed into the housing market. People could afford to pay more, and asking prices rose accordingly.

The market then slowed slightly between 2001 and 2007 thanks to a slowing in the rate of economic growth to around 1%. Annual rises settled at approximately 4% over this time, and picked up to almost 5% towards the latter half of 2007 despite a political crisis which threatened to overspill into the market. It is worth noting at this stage that Amsterdam seemed relatively immune to slowing prices, registering annual growth of more than 12.5% between Q3 2006 and Q4 2007 and putting it up there with other leading capital cities around the world such as London and Paris in terms of house price growth.

Unfortunately, the good times would not last forever. Much like everywhere else in the world, the Netherlands suffered greatly following the financial crisis of 2008 when the banks’ greed almost pushed the global economy over the edge of a cliff. The consequences of rampant, irresponsible financial speculation on Wall Street cascaded around the world, and a lot of people lost a lot of money through no fault of their own.

The Netherlands was no exception as house prices fell by more than 5% in 2008 and a further 1.5% in 2009. Gross Domestic Product GDP growth slowed to 2% in 2008 and then contracted by more than 3% the following year as the ramifications of the crisis began to unfold. In a reverse of how things were before the crash, wages began to stagnate and then decline, which in turn meant that fewer people ended up moving house.

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As is often the case in these situations, modest GDP recovery did not immediately translate to the housing market. Despite a modest economic recovery in 2011, house prices in the Netherlands continued to fall until 2013 when they began slowly rising once again. Conditions in 2013 were so bad that the number of dwellings sold in the Netherlands over the year was only half as many as the average in 2007.

This pervasive inactivity in the market turned out to be the nadir, and the beginning of a recovery was just around the corner. Economic conditions finally began to improve and the housing market rose alongside GDP, with recorded growth in house prices of more than 11.5% between Q1 2014 and Q4 2016. The market has continued to improve ever since and Dutch house price growth is expected to accelerate again over the coming years as the final effects of the financial crisis are shaken off once and for all.

In 2016, Amsterdam once again led the way with growth of more than 17% recorded over the year to Q1 2017. The national average did not increase quite that substantially, but growth of 8.75% over 2016 was recorded by Statistics Netherlands which is seriously impressive, and beat other more internationally renowned markets such as the UK. Statistics Netherlands also recorded economic growth of 2% over 2016 which is a healthy rate. The European Commission has predicted that this state of affairs will continue into the future, forecasting growth of 2.1% for 2017 and a further 1.8% in 2018. Year on year growth of 3.2% for Q1 2017 was a fantastic start and contributed nicely to a record of 14 consecutive quarters of growth and the highest level of prosperity since 2008.

Demand for property in the Netherlands remains extremely high and is far outstripping both the available supply and the projected supply for the future. The number of property transactions rose by 20.5% year on year in 2016, and the first five months of 2017 saw property transactions leap by almost 25%. This obviously pushes up house prices in the country and is likely to have far reaching effects. It is no surprise that Rabobank has predicted a minimum of 5% average growth for the year.

Mirroring trends seen elsewhere in the world, the biggest rises are likely to be found in the major cities of the Netherlands such as Amsterdam, Groningen, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. All of these cities recorded growth far above the average in 2016 and are well on course to repeat that in 2017 which is turning out to be a record breaking year.

What is driving all of these purchases?

According to the Dutch Housing Market Quarterly, the number of Dutch house sales has been rising by approximately 25% a year since the latter half of 2013, and there are no signs that this trend is slowing down at all.

Consequently, there is an ever more severe shortage of homes which are actually available for sale – but why are more and more people buying?

Firstly, confidence in housing is extremely high. As discussed previously, the last cobwebs from the 2008 financial crisis have been swept away and a real sense of vigour has returned to the market. According to Rabobank analysis, the Netherlands is heading towards a historically high scarcity of available homes. Towards the end of 2016, the Dutch Homeowners Association reported that confidence amongst buyers is soaring, a factor which is surely fuelling the annual number of purchases.

The second factor to consider is that mortgage interest rates in the Netherlands reached historic lows. Low rates are good for people looking to take a mortgage out to purchase a home as the overall cost ends up being lower. Hence, when interest rates are low, the competition for homes picks up. Prices thereby increase and the total number of transactions grows, putting more pressure on supply. In places like the Netherlands where there are not enough homes being built to start with, this then becomes a self-perpetuating cycle.

Mortgage approvals in the Netherlands rose by 35% year on year in 2016 and have continued on this upwards trajectory in 2017. This was caused by the European Central bank introducing official low interest rates as well as a debt purchase programme. In addition, banks were pressured to lower their rates and to loosen lending criteria to encourage people into the market. Interest rates for 10 or more years mortgages now average out at approximately 3%, and available variable rates are as low as 2%. The total mortgage debt in the Netherlands is more than â‚Ź665bn, a number that is growing in spite of the low interest rates which often tempt people into paying back their debt earlier whilst the going is good.

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Traditional Dutch windmills in Zaanse Schans, Netherlands

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Church of Saint Nicholas in Amsterdam city, Netherlands

NETHERLANDS FACTS --Area: 41,543 km2 Population: 17,164,800 (estimate) Per capita: $53,139 Figure correct December 2017

A consequence of the dwindling supply allied with the relative ease of getting a mortgage is causing many to bid above the asking price for homes, especially in the big cities. This is yet another factor pushing prices up as people are willing to pay more with confidence that the market will continue to grow. Everything has linked together nicely to make the Netherlands’ property market extremely tempting.

So, should you invest?

It is undeniable that buy-to-let is starting to catch on in the Netherlands.

The sector has been big business in the UK for a long time, but investors in the Netherlands are increasing looking at rental property as a way to secure their financial future.

Dutch News reports that, whilst buy-to-let was out of favour in the Netherlands until as recently as 2015, it is now becoming more and more

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common. It is especially popular amongst Dutch expats who want to invest their money securely back home with something that isn’t a bank.

This is a trend repeated across the world – the economic scars from the financial crisis have largely been erased, but it is not a surprise that many people are still reluctant to invest with the biggest banks.

The aforementioned low interest mortgage rates are proving to be incredibly tempting, and they are offering greater returns than a traditional savings account. In addition, Dutch News reports that there are tax benefits with buy-to-let property. Rental income from one or two properties is completely tax free, and the size of your mortgage is deducted from your tax liability. It is possible to get a buy-to-let mortgage with a loan-to-value as high as 85% with interest rates of around 3% from lenders such as NIBC and others. To qualify for such loans you need to either have Dutch nationality or be registered in the Netherlands as well as being able to prove your financial position – which is a standard

Dancing houses over the River Amstel, Netherlands

mortgage criteria everywhere, so it is not particularly onerous.

The Dutch buy-to-let sector is obviously becoming more attractive over time, but it is worth noting that some are calling for more caution.

Rabobank is the main voice urging some restraint in this arena, with a 2017 quarterly report speculating that a housing bubble might be forming.

To Rabobank, the very fact that investors are becoming interested in Dutch buy-to-let is in itself a sign that the market is overtaxed. The growing number of people who are overbidding for homes is another reason that Rabobank believes there may be a bubble forming.

The bank believes that the huge growth in house prices is creating a state of equity inequality, where people who cannot afford to buy right now are falling ever further behind and may end up never being able to escape the rental sector. For anyone who follows the UK housing market this will be a familiar concern. Creating a housing market which shuts out a

significant percentage of the population in the long term is not a viable one, and Rabobank believes that there will inevitably be a correction in the future which will be bad for everyone.

The suggested solution is for the government and private developers to urgently concentrate on building more homes as soon as possible as well as improving the rights available to renters. This seems like a fair warning as the signs of a bubble are definitely there in the medium to longer term, and investors should always be aware of such concerns. In the meantime, house prices are predicted to continue growing in the shorter term and the buy-to-let sector looks like it will carry on growing. The Netherlands offers an interesting opportunity for investors and is worth paying attention to.

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X1 Chatham Waters - Chatham, UK

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OFF THE SITE Did you know that Global Property Scene produces daily updates on our website? Here is a collection of our favourite pieces produced over the last two months.

Want to read more? www.globalpropertyscene.com

October 5th 2017 Renewables starting to snowball

The Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) provides yearly updates as to the state of our energy markets which show our progress in decarbonising our power supply. Removing fossil fuels from our lives as soon as possible is, of course, a vital goal, and a good report from the IEA can go a long way to dispel the general doom and gloom which often surrounds climate change news.

Thankfully, the latest IEA report on the year 2016 contains a pretty much unbroken litany of good news. The banner headline statistic is that renewable energy accounted for two thirds of all new energy added to the global grid over 2016. The total of 165GW of renewable energy installed is a huge achievement.

Out of that two thirds, not only was solar power the biggest grower, the amount of new solar power laid down also exceeded the output of new coal plants for the first time ever. Not only was solar power the overall winner in 2016, the total of 74GW laid down was also 50% higher than the total amount in 2015.

At this rate it is predicted that a further 920GW of renewable energy will be installed by 2020, of which approximately 740GW will be brand new solar power. For context, that is more than the total power use of India and Japan today, so these numbers are not trivial.

These forecasts have been driven upwards by the improved renewable energy policies which are being pursued by China and India.

Both countries are investing very heavily into renewable energy

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technology in recognition of the environmental damage that the fossil fuel power causes. For instance, in one month in the summer of 2017 China laid down more solar panels than had existed in the world in 2001.

A perhaps unsurprising consequence of this is that price of renewable energy has hit an all-time low of around US$30 per megawatt hour, which makes it probably the cheapest source of energy available in most places in the world. A great example from earlier this year is that wind power in the UK is now significantly cheaper than nuclear energy, which is a little awkward considering that the UK is currently spending billions of pounds on the Hinkley Point C plant and de-incentivising on-shore wind power.

However, trends like these in countries like the UK are not the global norm. With the growth in renewable power set to grow twice as fast as that of renewable energy over the next five years, renewable energy will provide 30% of total global demand by 2022 according to the IEA. This may sound underwhelming, but it is a huge improvement.

In addition to that, these things tend to snowball; one of the defining aspects of our species is that we can accelerate the pace of our own progress. It would not be at all surprising that these ambitious growth targets are seen as cautious by the time we get to 2022. Once everyone sees the benefits – both to the planet and economy – the whole world will pile in.

October 16th Should investors be wary of Hyperloop?

The idea of a Hyperloop system is quite captivating: super-fast transport which is based on vacuum tubes and little capsules which can theoretically contain people or cargo. Unlike most new transport innovations, Hyperloop is a completely new idea rather than an improvement on an existing system, and the perception of it being clean and out of the way has made people very excited.

The idea originally came from Elon Musk, but the Tesla and SpaceX boss didn’t have the time to pursue it himself so opened it up for teams of engineers and inventors to push the concept on. Many have been involved in different Hyperloop systems since, and whispers of the imminence of a completed line have been constantly cropping up for years. Indeed, it seems that the main virtue of Hyperloop so far has been its ability to generate press.

The latest to get involved in the scheme is Richard Branson, who announced last week that the Virgin investment group has taken a large stake in Hyperloop One, perhaps the most advanced of the many Hyperloop hopefuls out there. The goal for Hyperloop One is for its magnetic levitation electric propulsion system to propel the pods up to speeds of 650mph, though the technology is still a very long way from being viable.

The investment from Virgin is interesting because the company has a history of getting involved with high speed transport, and also into brand new technology such as its glorified space taxi service Virgin Galactic which aims to take rich people into the lower earth atmosphere in exchange for a lot of money. The Virgin brand brings lots of money and experience to the table and it can be hoped that this will help Hyperloop become something a bit more real. In addition, Branson can potentially bring the sort of leadership which has been sadly lacking so far.

However, there are many issues which are likely to crop up in the future which look from a distance to be almost insurmountable barriers to Hyperloop ever becoming widespread. The major problem so far is that the system will need vast tracts of flat land, and there is still no real consensus over where it would potentially go. Would it be suspended by pylons or put in tunnels underground? Both methods are unproven and extremely expensive.

That is on top of all the human problems such as safety, design, regulations and demand. None of these have so far been even approached in a meaningful way, but they will need to be dealt with way ahead of time.

Fundamentally, investing in Hyperloop at this early stage is almost certainly folly. Richard Branson himself is in a good position to see how these brand new transport systems can end up costly and overrun – Virgin Galactic is a good decade behind schedule and there is little light at the end of the tunnel there. The smart bet is that Hyperloop will go through the same painful process, and the idea that the world will be criss-crossed by Hyperloops in the future is something which remains firmly in the realm of science fiction.

Caution is advised. This is certainly one of those cases where you should not believe the hype created by superstar billionaires.

October 23rd Facial recognition: A threat to privacy?

Facial recognition technology is growing at a rapid pace and is being used on a larger scale than ever before, with many tech giants using it as a tool for advertising purposes. It enables marketers to improve their understanding of consumers and create content that responds to real-time factors.

Piccadilly Circus is one of the most populous squares in the UK with approximately 100 million people passing through the large commercial space every month. It is now on the cusp of trialling facial recognition cameras which will be installed behind the huge advertising billboards in the square.

The billboards have been out of action in the last few months but will be revamped with the hidden cameras in place which will have the ability to detect faces, genders and the current moods of the people who pass through the area with 90% accuracy. The aim of the cameras is to tailor brand messages and optimise marketing campaigns by taking in the surroundings and characteristics of people.

In addition to this, the billboards will be able to register the make and model of passing vehicles and offer Wi-Fi to people so that they can interact with the iconic advertising screens. Many researchers have warned that the technology has the potential to track every move that you make online.

The innovative cameras have caused a lot of concern amongst privacy campaigners who claim that the facial recognition technology behind the billboards are ‘incredibly intrusive’ and that installing the cameras represent another step towards a surveillance state.

Many privacy issues have arisen since the cameras were announced. They include questions over the type of information that the cameras will detect, whether the data will be stored somewhere and if the cameras are at risk of being hacked.

In response to the backlash by campaigners, the company behind the Piccadilly Lights screen, Ocean Outlook, claim that although the cameras can detect behaviours and characteristics, the information will not be collected or stored anywhere.

There is no doubt that the facial recognition revolution has huge potential in consumer advertising and security, but could it be a threat to our privacy and will we eventually be identified wherever we go?

November 7th Green climate funds mapped The 15th UN climate conference met in Copenhagen in 2009 and started to get serious about helping the developing world deal with climate change. The agreement made at the conference stated that developing countries would spend US$100bn a year by 2020 tackling climate change around the world.

This finance was designed to be distributed as loans and grants by multilateral climate funds which target specific projects.

India has received the most funding so far, which makes sense considering that it will soon be the most populous country on earth and is developing at a rapid pace. It has been argued that whether India can be developed in a climate friendly way is the single most important factor in determining whether we can collectively save our environment. To that end, it is encouraging to see green climate funds in India for projects like a renewable energy transmission investment programme, a solar rooftop investment programme and projects promoting green growth.

Likewise, countries such as Ukraine, Chile, Indonesia, Turkey and Vietnam have all received hundreds of millions of dollars of funding to develop district heating systems and sustainable urban water developments which are designed to both improve quality of life and assuage the stress we put on the environment at the same time.

The principle that developed countries should help less developed countries to adapt is a worthy one, and certainly something that should continue to be supported. It is equally important that developed countries provide incentives for still-developing countries to stay away from building new coal plants and such like. It is vital to provide a sustainable pathway, and the green climate funds go a long way to helping with this.

For more information on where the money is being spent, Carbon Brief has a full map online.

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OLD BECOMES THE NEW Wooden architecture Words : Andrea Wong | View : Alberto Masnovo

Wood is one of the oldest construction materials available, dating back thousands of years and being most commonly used in Asia for ancient temples and Buddhist monuments, many which have withstood extreme weather conditions and still exist today. This is a testament to the strength and durability of the material.

An example of ancient wooden architecture is Hōryū-ji, which is famously known as the Temple of the Flourishing Law. It is one of the last remaining wooden structures from ancient times and is registered as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, attracting many tourists from around the world.

The original structure burnt down in 670AD and was rebuilt, but this time the pagoda managed to survive, enduring fire, wind, rain and even earthquakes for thousands of years, in the process discarding claims of wood being a weaker material susceptible to adverse weather conditions.

The material became widely used in cities across the world until the late 19th century when the wooden age came to an end, as a result of a series of fires which tore through major cities in the US, forcing architects to explore new materials to build with.

Materials such as steel and concrete began to dominate the architectural scene with many analysts claiming over the years that they were the most practical materials to build with. Steel and concrete have been often combined to create a stronger structure, but the reintroduction of wood may just take modern high rises to the next level.

Why wood?

With sustainability now firmly at the heart of the agenda for many governments there have been signs that we are entering the age of

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timber construction, with many innovative architects admiring the material for its sustainability and how quickly you can build with it.

Wood is an outstanding construction material as it is aesthetically pleasing and adds character and warmth to a building. It also offers remarkable value for money compared to other high-quality construction materials and has unique sustainable credentials as a natural and renewable material.

Timber is almost certainly the world’s foremost environmentally friendly construction material. It is a readily available material which is grown in sustainable and well-managed forests which have a positive impact on carbon emissions thanks to the natural photosynthetic qualities of trees.

In addition to this, timber construction materials act as a natural long-term prison for carbon emissions; they suck carbon out of the air during their lifecycles and then hold that carbon hostage for as long as the building stands.

Compare that to concrete production which has a detrimental effect on the environment both when the raw materials are extracted from the earth and then also during production. The concrete production industry is a globally significant emitter of greenhouse gases, and a key challenge for the future is curbing its impact on our planet – timber is a big part of this effort.

Once built, a timber building has many advantages for tenants such as its excellent insulation potential which makes it particularly suitable for buildings in countries with colder climates. It also contains excellent acoustic properties which means that it can absorb sounds and echoes, ideal for large music venues.

However, most impressive of all is the strength of wood, especially when

Modern wooden architecture

you consider how light the material is. Materials such as steel can expand or even collapse in intense heat, whereas wood experiences the opposite effect as it naturally dries out and becomes stronger as heat increases.

The process known as lamination – where thin layers of timber are stacked and glued together in a mesh-type manner – gives timber an extreme level of tensile strength and resilience.

In addition to this, technology is developing rapidly which means that the types of engineered wood on the market today are much stronger and more stable compared to regular wood. Some architects even claim that wood is now more fire resistant than concrete and steel and that after calculating all the costs, it is likely to be the cheaper option.

In the last few years we have seen architects competing against each other in an attempt to build the tallest wooden high rise. Here are some of the exciting concepts which have got the world talking.

Dalston Works London was constructed largely from wood until 1666 when the Great Fire broke out. Timber-framed buildings were tightly packed in the streets, enabling the fire to spread and sweep through the city incredibly fast. The city was rebuilt using other materials such as brick and stone to prevent another fire from breaking out and causing mass destruction once again.

However, the timber trend is back, and London is certainly embracing it.

The ever-growing timber trend across the world has been driven forward by the development of highly engineered timber products, in particular cross-laminated timber. It is an engineered wood which contains laminated timber sections and allows wood to be used for much larger and taller structures.

Dalston Works is one of the most significant timber projects of the 21st century and currently uses more timber than any other scheme in the world. Work has just been completed on a ten-storey, 121 unit development which has been completely made from CLT and weighs a fifth of what a concrete structure of the same size would, scaling back the number of deliveries by 80%. The architects, Waugh Thistleton, claim that it is currently the largest CLT building in the world.

The layers of softwood are glued together and created into panels which are up to 50cm thick, enabling multi-storey residential buildings to be built from wood. Alex de Rijke, director of London-based dRMM architects said back in 2014: “It has undergone a renaissance in terms of processing and manufacturing of engineered timber… It’s now a whole family of very sophisticated, high-performance engineered products. CLT is the ‘new concrete’. It’s a whole new ball game”.

The vision of the wider project is to tackle the issue in the capital: the lack of high-quality homes. Greater London’s population is currently at 8.8 million and has a growth rate twice that of the UK average, which means that the amount of available housing is going to continue to fall, especially with many people looking to live as close to central London as possible.

Architects are now looking at how to build homes without causing damage to the environment as we look towards a more sustainable future.

Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT)

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Wooden facade on modern wooden building

This engineered material will bring its residents closer to nature and provide them with a much healthier living environment. Furthermore, its advanced timber technology will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the building when considering the production of the material, the time spent on-site and energy consumption.

Japanese architecture is traditionally associated with terms such as simplicity and minimalism, with elements of the natural world incorporated into design. Many Japanese architects are now trying to capitalise on the growing demand for innovative architecture, with Shigeru Ban in particular making waves with his ground-breaking designs in Europe and North America.

Portland Tower The 12-storey Portland Tower is the first timber high-rise to gain planning consent in the US. When completed, it will be a mixed-use building containing 5 storeys of offices and the ground floor occupying retail space. Across the other storeys, there will be a total of 60 residential units with a selection of studio, one and two bedroom apartments.

Construction on this wooden high-rise is set to begin towards the end of this year and is expected to complete in winter 2018.

It was approved by the State of Oregon and the City of Portland earlier this year and will exceed the previous US codes which prevented wooden structures over 85 feet to be built. The timber frame had to undergo rigorous testing to meet the safety requirements by the US, taking into account fire, acoustic and seismic issues.

This is a huge development in wooden architecture, with countries now looking to change their codes to adapt to the revival of the material.

Receiving the go-head for this multi-storey building will unlock the demand for CLT products and clear the path for wooden skyscrapers to branch out across the world.

Shigeru Ban’s Terrace House

The architect revealed his design of the Terrace House earlier this year which is another boost to the wooden era. The project, in partnership with PortLiving, will see the construction of a hybrid timber high rise which will be built from a combination of timber, glass and concrete. The image unveiled an impressive structure which had a concrete and steel core with a timber frame clad in glass.

The aim is for the 19-storey building to become the world’s tallest hybrid timber building, reaching 71 metres in height. Shigeru Ban will look to integrate triangular shapes, natural materials and greenery to complete the design.

The hybrid timber building demonstrates Vancouver’s vision to sustainable architecture and advanced timber engineering with more and more wooden skyscrapers popping up in the city.

Although there remains uncertainty over whether some of these innovative designs will be built or even approved, there are many existing wooden skyscrapers in the major cities in Europe and North America which confirm that wooden architecture is growing. Here are some of the most spectacular wooden skyscrapers that are driving this architectural trend forward.

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The Tree The Tree or “Treet” in Norwegian is amongst the tallest timber towers in the world stretching to 160 feet and is located along the waterfront in central Bergen, Norway. Completed back in 2015, the 14-storey modular building set the standard for urban, sustainable living.

The property developers, Bergen and Omegn Building Society (BOB), overcame the challenge of preventing the high timber building from swaying in strong winds by installing concrete elements to several floors to add weight and reduce movement. BOB used prefabricated wooden building modules to build with as it provided a solution to a low-carbon future. In total, the building saved around 2,432 tonnes of carbon dioxide compared to other materials such as concrete. Managing Director of the University of British Columbia, John Metras, added that it was a good choice of material because “it was quick, it was quiet, and there wasn’t a mess”.

When it was built, it was briefly the tallest wooden residential building in the world, however, this was quickly surpassed by the construction of Brock Commons Tallwood House, a student residence building at the University of British Colombia in Vancouver.

Brock Commons Tallwood House This residential building opened in July 2017 and currently holds the title for the tallest mass timber tower. According to Reuters, the wooden frame of the high-rise took fewer than 10 weeks to build after the prefabricated components were delivered onsite, around two months quicker than any other project of this size.

As a mass timber hybrid building, Tallwood House contains 17 storeys of cross laminated timber floors above a concrete podium and a roof which is created with prefabricated sections of steel beams and metal decking.

This showcases how mass timber is an exceptional building material even for high-rise buildings and that it can be combined well with the more well-known construction materials such as steel and concrete for a high-performing structure.

Brock Commons Tallwood House is only a small part of the wider mass timber programme that the Government has launched this year. The initiative that has been put into place will encourage the use of wooden high-rises in the long-term future to put Canada in contention of becoming a leader in the global low-carbon economy.

The future of wooden architecture Looking ahead, there is no doubt that the growing number of wooden high rises will continue to gain the attention of innovative architects worldwide. Wooden structures are more than just architectural statements, they have the potential to cut global emissions by 31% and will provide a sustainable and cost-effective solution to both climate change and the swelling urban population. However, there are a few things that could threaten wooden architecture’s expansion on a large scale.

Currently, there are many multi-storey mass timber projects which are still at the conceptual stage and may never receive permission to build due to the strict construction codes in some countries.

Building codes ensure that buildings will provide a safe environment for future tenants by regulating all areas of design, construction and maintenance. Codes are specifically adapted to each individual location and its geographical challenges with stricter regulations put in place for places which are at a higher risk of hurricanes and earthquakes.

However, strict codes are unlikely to stop architects from driving these sustainable buildings forward. In addition, building codes are already changing and timber high rises are being approved as we take our first steps into the world of sustainable housing. The trend is not limited to just North America as countries in Europe such as Norway, Sweden and France are already in the process of transforming their skylines.

Reverting back to the oldest construction material in the industry can make buildings carbon neutral and could be integral part of plans ahead of the fight against climate change. If building codes permit and the governments embrace this era of wooden architecture, we could be moving into a greener and more breathable future.

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Architectural details of Welsh Assembly building

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GPS ATTENDS Global Property Scene attends some of the most exclusive events on the international calendar. To find out more visit our website. www.globalpropertyscene.com

F22 Raptor, Dubai Air Show

DUBAI AIRSHOW 2017 Words : Michael Smith | View : Dubai AIr Show

Static pitch, Dubai Air Show

The Middle East has fast become one of the largest growing markets for new aircraft, with Dubai Air Show often hitting the aviation headlines with record orders from an assortment of Middle Eastern carriers. Taking place at the newly finished Al Maktoum International Airport, Dubai Air Show delivers far more than just commercial aircraft. A whole host of logistical, servicing and financial organisations are on hand to cover every element of the aviation industry.

Also representing a large proportion of both the static display and the internal exhibition space is military aircraft and equipment. Forces from the UAE and the USA are on hand to give you a guided tour of some of the most potent equipment currently in service. It proved quite an experience sitting inside some of the battle scared aircraft, many with exposed avionics to allow ease of access for quick turn-around. As we’re guided through the back of a Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion, a helicopter with almost the same capacity as a C-130, we are warned to watch for dripping hydraulic fluid. The crew point out that once the dripping subsides this “safety feature” will let them know when to top up, an approach you would certainly recoil from if we were sat aboard an A380 at 30,000ft.

On the topic of the Airbus A380, there had been great expectation this

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event would give the struggling super jumbo a much-needed boost, with new business for the aircraft having all but dried up. Airbus have had real difficulty generating orders for their flagship aircraft, and have had little choice but to slow manufacturing in order to keep the production lines open. With airspace growing increasingly congested the latest super jumbo was designed to help boost passenger numbers along some of the busiest routes. The battle to obtain the most lucrative airport slots continues to worsen with airlines bidding to get hold of defunct and bankrupt airlines vacated places. Yet despite having the ability to carry almost double the number of passengers (depending on specification) twin-engine wide-bodied aircraft continue to be the most popular choice.

There had been a lot of chatter before the event signalling the possibility of a new order from the A380’s most crucial operator, Emirates, who represent half of the A380’s total order book. The aircrafts key defender Sir Tim Clark, president of Emirates Airline has stated in the media he sees a real future for the aircraft: “It gives us huge flows across the hub to feed multiple city pairs, that’s where the essence of our profitability remains.”

With diminishing available airspace across the gulf growing increasingly apparent, the A380 could secure Emirates future growth.

And the verdict?

talking points from this year’s event.

Emirates committed to buy 40 Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, worth $US15.1bn.With Airbus unwilling to guarantee the aircrafts production in the future, Emirates weren’t willing to make another order. This further setback for the A380 may well be its last, with Airbus keen to stem any further losses on the program.

And that brings a close to 2017 event. I think Al Maktoum International Airport deserves a special mention as the hosting venue. As you walk out to the static exhibition you a greeted by a large model of the airport and the future surrounding area. The airport will stand as the centre piece of Dubai World Central, a planned residential, commercial and logistics complex. Aiming to boost Dubai’s commercial and tourist credentials, the area is a major part of Dubai’s plans for expo 2020. For the moment, the airport feels quite isolated, with journey times from Jebel Ali and Dubai Marina of around 30 to 40 minutes respectively. The cranes are starting to spring up and it won’t be long until you see Dubai’s trademark skyscrapers rising out of the desert. I look forward to returning in 2018 to see how the area has progressed.

Yet despite the A380’s failings, Airbus are unlikely to see the event as anything other than a success. In just one order, said to be the largest in aviation history, US private-equity group IndiGo Partners agreed to buy 430 aircraft from Airbus worth $US49.5bn at list price. All the aircraft purchased were single-aisle short-haul variants and will almost certainly have garnered a significant discount from Airbus. With stakes in some of fastest-growing low-cost carriers across three continents, IndiGo now boast an order book that stretches well into 2026.

Over the page you can see four standout moments for the events aerial displays.

Boeing too will consider the event a major success, with orders from Flydubai for up to 225 of its 737 Max aircraft. This large order coupled with Emirates orders for 787-10 Dreamliners will certainly be the major

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4 GREAT DISPLAYS

1 Aermacchi MB-339 UAE Air force

--The Al Fursan (The Knights) display team paint the sky whilst performing an amazing close air display.

2 SUKHOI SU-30SM Russian Air Force

--The Russian Knights aerobatic team demonstrated impressive close air maneuvers.

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3 F22 RAPTOR United States Air Force

--The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation, single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force.

4 EMIRATES UAE

--Emirates perform flyby with it’s main aircraft; AIrbus A380 and Boeing 777.

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A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION Green startups, changing the way we think about technology Words : Andrea Wong | View : Lucid Motors

As the demand for green technology increases, businesses have shifted their focus onto providing global leaders, enterprises and consumers with innovative and sustainable solutions. This has been obvious in the last few years with the number of green startups growing at an unprecedented rate and ultimately changing the way we think about technology.

In the modern world today, consumers are becoming more concerned about how products are being made and businesses are adapting to this change by creating eco-friendly solutions. Green technology has become increasingly more popular with governments working together to tackle global warming and looking to reverse the negative impact that humans have had on the environment. In addition to this, consumers are becoming more aware of energy, where it goes and the impact that it has on the environment.

Green startups are without doubt gaining momentum around the world and their ambitious efforts could have the potential to change the direction that the world is going in as we fight against climate change. The push for green technology by startups has even encouraged existing and high-profile businesses to move towards more sustainable solutions.

Here are some of the most interesting green startups that are making huge strides towards a greener future: Grow Bristol Bristol is considered to be one of the most eco-friendly cities in the UK

and this is no surprise with the number of businesses with a green agenda in the city continuing to increase. Award-winning start up Grow Bristol is an innovative urban farming enterprise which aims to grow food in the city by adopting sustainable methods.

Grow Bristol does not operate as a traditional farm. It is run from recycled shipping containers and uses sustainable methods to farm fish and vegetables. Engaging with the local community and focussing on their needs, the British firm grows food in city spaces as an alternative to rural areas.

It uses sustainable methods to grow food which is believed to be much fresher than produce found on the market. According to the website, lettuce travels approximately 1,800 miles before it lands on our dinner plates, which questions just how fresh supermarket-bought fruit and vegetables really are.

One of the company’s founders, Dermot O’Regan, said: “Things like salad and herbs lose their nutritional benefits as soon as they’re harvested.

Even if they’re grown in greenhouses in the UK, they travel a long way.

What we’re offering is harvest the same day as it’s on your table”.

The firm believes that urban farming is the solution to other issues threatening the UK such as our reliance on other countries for fresh produce. According to the start-up, approximately 60% of UK produce is imported into the country. In addition, around 95% of our produce is now at risk due to climate change and increased food security, which means

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One of the most eco-friendly cities in the UK Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol

that discovering innovative methods of producing fresh food is crucial to ensure that food does not become scarce and so that we move towards a more sustainable future.

air-filtering mosses with cutting-edge Internet of Things technology and are described on the website as ‘a mobile and intelligent biological air filter for insides and outsides’. It is claimed that each CityTree has the air purifying power of around 275 trees.

Green City Solutions As governments across the world are implementing legislation to prevent people from polluting, startups are coming up with better ways to clean up the air in the world’s most overpopulated urban areas.

German start-up Green City Solutions has found a solution for the many cities suffering from toxic air pollution. Four people founded the start-up in 2014 with support from the German Government as well as a private bank loan.

Co-founder of Green City Solutions, Zhengliang Wu, was born in Shanghai and was motivated to find a solution to the high levels of air pollution in cities after seeing several family members fall ill from the fumes. An established way of reducing air pollutants is to plant more trees which capture and absorb the toxic particulates.

Looking at one of the most alarming issues threatening humans today, the co-founders came up with a simple solution which involved bringing more trees to cities. These thirteen feet tall CityTrees combine natural

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Green City Solutions use plants such as mosses and lichens which are particularly good at purifying air due to their larger leaf surfaces. This allows the plant to absorb a large amount of pollution without clogging up the surface. The CityTrees can be installed into public spaces easily and can even add built-in seating by connecting it to the base. Most impressive of all is that the installation is autonomous and requires very little maintenance as the CityTrees are powered by solar panels and the rainwater is pumped into the soil from a reservoir.

Over the last few years, Green City Solutions has overseen the installation of their plant-based air filters in many cities across the world, including Brussels, Hong Kong, Paris and Oslo. There are currently around 20 CityTrees installed worldwide costing around $25,000 each to build and install.

Around 90% of the urban population is breathing in polluted air every day causing key cities around the world to trigger their emergency warning for dangerous levels of air pollution.

London is the latest city to issue an emergency air quality alert with signs displayed in public spaces such as bus stops and on the underground to warn people of the toxic air. So, could these CityTrees really be a solution for large cities attempting to reduce air pollution?

Some believe that although the concept is a good idea, it may not be as effective as the startup suggests. An expert on air pollution, Gary Fuller of King’s College London believes that it may be too ambitious because ‘even if you had a perfect air cleaner, getting the ambient air in contact with it is really hard’.

However, Green City Solutions says they’re still in the earlier stages of achieving their ultimate goal, which is integrating the technology from the CityTree into buildings. Although critics have expressed their doubts about the CityTrees, they are starting to appear in many key cities around the world, showing that governments are confident that the technology is a viable solution.

response to this shortfall of affordable, sustainable housing, CPH Village has come up with a plan to create villages of temporary homes in natural surroundings close to the ocean, urban farms and green, open spaces.

The project will begin in Copenhagen, Denmark with the vision to expand beyond the city to countries such as Sweden, Germany and the US by 2020, delivering 2,500 container homes. The concept was driven forward by co-owners Frederik Noltenius Busck and Michael Plesner who were in search of a solution for the lack of affordable student homes in the city.

Although it has been repeatedly ranked as one of the most livable cities, Copenhagen has been unable to deliver sufficient housing at the right cost.

CPH Shelter

Transforming shipping containers into homes puts CPH Village in a unique position as it offers students a desirable plug-and-play housing solution.

This means that their homes can be transferred to other sites and installed there relatively easily. If the firm is able to branch out to other destinations worldwide, it will become a very attractive opportunity for the carefree students who want to travel.

Over the years, there have been many ideas around eco-friendly homes but CPH Village has its own masterplan which it comes to sustainable housing. Young people are struggling to find a home in over-crowded cities with the urban population growing at an unprecedented rate. In

The shipping containers are created with materials such as wood fibre and paper wool insulation which ensure that the students are living in a comfortable environment – the fact that they are surrounded by nature is also a huge benefit. However, undoubtedly, the main selling point is

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the modular design of each shipping container, which ensures that each individual unit can be integrated into a larger housing structure.

Lucid Motors When we think of electric cars, Elon Musk’s luxury car manufacturer, Tesla, automatically comes to mind. However, Lucid Motors, an electric carmaker based in California, is gaining recognition around the world and will certainly be a fierce competitor of Tesla in the years to come.

Although Lucid Motors started out back in 2007, it came under the name Atrieva and had a completely different focus which involved developing electric car battery technology. Gradually, the company shifted its attention towards building electric cars and changed its name to Lucid Motors last year.

In December 2016, the startup unveiled its first luxury car, The Air, which will be capable of covering up to 400 miles on a single charge and is predicted to hit 60mph in 2.5 seconds with a top speed of 235mph.

Currently there are only five other cars that are faster and only one of them is an electric car (Tesla S P100D w/Ludicrous+ Update), however, there is no certainty over whether The Air will actually reach the predicted speed.

The dimensions mirror those of a BMW 7 Series but is more spacious due to the electric powertrain and the way the battery is installed. Back-seat passengers will have impressive reclining seats with tablets that can be turned over to become tray tables.

The Lucid Air is estimated to cost around £130,000 which means that it will not be something that everyone will be able to afford. However, it shows that more startups are looking to a future where electric cars will dominate the roads. Tesla has set the bar for electric cars, but it is expected that there will be many others that will join them in the field in our global shift towards more eco-friendly vehicles.

2017 has been an extremely significant year for the car industry with governments in several countries announcing plans to ban the sale of petrol and diesel cars. The UK government has confirmed that this will happen in the UK from 2040, with the plan to eliminate all these vehicles from the roads altogether by 2050 and replace them with hybrid and electric cars, which are predicted to be as cheap as petrol and diesel models by 2025.

The UK Government estimated that air pollution is the cause of around 50,000 early deaths nationally with 9,000 recorded in London every year.

A spokesman said: “Poor air quality is the biggest environmental risk to public health in the UK and this government is determined to take strong action in the shortest time possible.” Councils will be provided with extra funding to expand their development of local plans as part of the ambitious £3bn programme to clean up the polluted air on UK roads.

With governments looking to remove diesel and petrol cars from the roads, many well-known car firms such as Volvo have already revealed their intentions to create hybrid and electric cars in the next few years.

This will create more opportunities for new startups to join the competitive market and compete against electric car giants like Tesla.

What is next for green startups?

As we move towards a more sustainable future, green startups will play an integral role in developing new technology and coming up with new concepts that work in line with government initiatives which aim to tackle climate change. Whether or not these startups will take flight, they will certainly spark the rise of similar businesses which aim to create eco-friendly homes, farming, transport and cities, which means that green technology will only become more advanced as time goes on.

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Lucid Air ©Lucid motors, Inc.

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LATIN AMERICA’S MOST COMPETITIVE ECONOMY Chile Words : Will Leyland | View : By EQ.Roy

South America has one of the most fascinating modern day stories due to its rich and tumultuous history and often traumatic changes. A continent that is made up of nearly 18 million square kilometres and 422.5 million people has a hugely variable economic outlook. Not just that though, climate and culture vary massively across borders and across the continent.

If we consider that South America is home to some of the richest developing economies in the world, but also some of the poorest, we can get a good idea of some of the fundamental differences between the countries of South America.

Historically, too, borders and state lines across the continent have been fluid or at least changing, with many of the countries that exist on the continent we know today, different to those that existed in the 16th century before Spanish intervention by the conquistadors.

Indeed, Chile didn’t even exist as a modern day sovereign state until the mid-16th century when the Spanish invaded and conquered the old Inca Empire.

Chile wasn’t the only colonised Southern American area though, so why the disparity in fortunes between the Chileans and, say, Guatemala or Peru? The GDP per capita of Chile, or the Gross Domestic Product per person, is US$13,792 as of the most recent World Bank data. This has

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grown from US$4589 in 1990, a meteoric rise in just 16 years.

Guatemala, for comparison, has a GDP per capita of just US$7,946, up only relatively slightly from US$3,296 in 1990. Paraguay sits at just US$9,576, up from $2,901, whilst Peru is US$13,022 from US$3,433.

Whilst no country in South America currently sits within the global top 30, Chile currently ranks as the 58th richest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita. Funnily enough, the developing economy that many expected great things from, Brazil, sits at a lowly 84th in comparison.

Guatemala ranks 119th whilst Bolivia is 122nd.

Considering that there isn’t anything radically different about Chile in terms of geography or culture, how might we explain that disparity? It would be useful to go back to just before the 16th century to investigate where Chile has come from and where it’s going.

Chile has been home to indigenous populations for thousands of years.

Sat in-between the South American west coast and the Andes Mountains, the ground in and around the country is fertile and ripe for agriculture.

Settlements and old societies have been discovered in the area dating back as far as 2000BC. For thousands of years up until the expansion of the Inca empire, dozens of nomadic tribes and societies settled around the coastal area of modern Chile, hunting and gathering as well as producing early handicrafts and,

View of Valparaiso, a port city on the Pacific Ocean, Chile

thanks to the extremely dry climate, left some of the most well preserved archaeological artefacts ever found.

It wasn’t until the mid 15th century that the practice of, or attempt of, colonisation found Chile. In 1460 the Incas attempted to exert control and colonise Chile but were met with fierce resistance from the local tribes and villages and, ultimately, failed in their endeavour before trying again in 1491, managing this time to establish forts in the Central Valley of Chile, but failing to colonise the region entirely. After a series of bloody battles against the indigenous Mapuche people, known as the Battle of the Maule, the Incas settled on conquering Chile up to the Maule River, and no further.

Things settled down across the region for a short time, or 29 years to be exact, before Diego de Almagro arrived in the area in 1520, only to organise an expedition of colonists in 1537 back towards Chile.

Upon arrival Almagro was bitterly disappointed to discover that, unlike the other lands the Spanish had successfully plundered previously having enslaved their populations, Chile didn’t have anything of value to steal.

Whereas the likes of Peru had mountains of gold and silver to take, Chile had barely any precious materials. With an impression that the inhabitants of Chile were dirt poor, he left Chile and returned to Peru where he was later garrotted having been defeated in their civil war.

For a short period there was little interest from colonising powers in further exploring Chilean lands for riches, having been put off by the fruitless efforts of Almagro and his party of explorers. That was until Pedro de Valdiva, captain of the Spanish army, decided to have another go having realised the potential for expanding the Spanish empire into the south of the continent.

De Valdiva triumphed where those before him had failed and subdued the local people into servitude with just a few hundred armed soldiers and founded the present day capital of Chile, Santiago de Chile, formerly Santiago de Nueva Extremadura, in February 1541.

As with those who had tried and failed before him, De Valdiva never conquered the entire territory and never successfully took over the Mapuche territories, meaning that the Spanish never fully controlled the whole of Chile.

All of these themes of conquest and colonisation tie in quite nicely into the idea of why Chile may not have been somewhat doomed to the same fate as its other continental contemporaries, such as Peru or Guatemala, which were conquered in their entirety around the same time.

Following an uprising in 1598 by the Mapuche people, the Spanish were effectively kicked out of the southern part of Chile never to fully return. Indeed, the Mapuche people offered the fiercest resistance to

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Majestic peaks of Los Kuernos over Lake Pehoe.

Chile

CHILE FACTS --Area: 756,096 km2 Population: 18,006,407 (estimate) Per capita: US$13,663 Figure correct December 2017

Granite towers of Torres del Paine, Chile

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Spanish rule throughout Chilean history and opposed colonisation from its beginning all the way through to independence, which was eventually achieved in the 1880’s. It was given the name the Arauco War, a title for the resistance that the Mapuche provided over hundreds of years.

Thanks to its fertile planes, Chile became a key area of the Spanish empire, providing food and resources to Spanish interests across South America. Valdivia eventually became the first governor of the Captaincy General of Chile, where he reported to the viceroy of Peru, who reported to the King of Spain.

It was in the sixteenth century, too, when the Spanish conquerors introduced what were known as the encomiendas which were forms of forced labour. These were widely used across the Americas and were awarded to governors and rulers of particular provinces, such as Chile, as a monopolisation over the labour of the conquered subjects of the land.

In return for protection from warring tribes and pirates, indigenous people were expected to pay people such as the governor of Chile tributes in the form of metals, maize, wheat, pork or other agricultural goods. In many cases natives were forced to do hard labour and subjected to extreme punishment and death if they resisted.

In an excellent book entitled Why Nations Fail, written by James. A Robinson and Daron Acemoglu of MIT, they argue that the main reason why nations such as Chile fare so much better than somewhere like Peru isn’t anything to do with culture or geography, but in fact it’s to do with the history of political institutions.

For example, they say that “before 1492 it was the civilizations in the central valley of Mexico, Central America, and the Andes that had superior technology and living standards to North America or places such as Argentina and Chile. While the geography stayed the same, the institutions imposed by European colonists created a reversal of fortune”.

Addressing the issue of culture, they note that “Argentina and Chile have few indigenous people compared with Peru and Bolivia. Though this is true, indigenous culture as an explanation does not work either.

Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru have similar income levels, but Colombia has very few indigenous people today, while Ecuador and Peru have many”.

“In Latin America, it includes Brazil, Chile, and Mexico, which have not only achieved political centralization but also made significant strides toward nascent pluralism”.

It’s certainly a compelling theory when looking to explain the gulfs in fortunes and incomes between the South American nations, considering there aren’t any other convincing arguments to emerge to explain this disparity.

The authors of course note that Chile has now achieved political centralisation and pluralism, now being a democracy since the 90s, and indeed Chileans have a higher life expectancy, income and standard of living than almost anybody across the Americas bar the US and Canada, however this avoids the awful Pinochet regime which preceded it.

Prior to the military coup which installed General Pinochet as leader, there had been attempts made by Chileans to install democracy and, from 1891 to 1925, there was what historians refer to as the Parliamentary era. This appears to be a loose term applied in the sense that the system was messy and provided undue power to the landed elites. Congress wielded the most power and it was their prerogative who they appointed to senior positions, meaning that corruption was rife.

Up until 1925, the middle and working classes didn’t yet hold enough political power to elect a reformist as President, but that changed in the same year when Arturo Palma was elected. Campaigning on a promise of ‘evolution to avoid revolution’ was enough to win him power, but he was to find that attempting to address the corruption was near impossible, facing off regularly against the conservative congress.

Things came to a head with a double military coup, with right-wingers seizing power in 1924, setting off a period of great social unrest which lasted until 1932. During this time, however, young middle and working class military officers launched another coup, re-seizing power for the deposed President, who re-wrote the constitution in 1925, ratifying his proposed progressive changes.

This criss-crossing of political power continued much the same until the 1970 presidential election, in which Senator Salvador Allende Gossens won power by leading a grand coalition of the Socialist, Communist, Radical and Social-Democratic parties, named the UP or ‘Unidad Popular’.

Following a run-off vote between Gossens and the previous President, Gossens won a majority of the vote and immediately sought to introduce radical changes. Their platform included nationalisation of US interests in Chile’s major copper mines, increased workers rights, advancement of the Chilean land reform, a re-shuffling of the economy into socialised, mixed and private sectors as well as an international policy of international solidarity.

The USA, immensely displeased with the actions of the new government, sought to instruct the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to instigate a coup against the coalition to prevent it from taking power. The operations were nicknamed Track I and Track II. Despite good economic success in the first year of the coalition, increasing GDP by 8.6%, reducing employment to 3.8% and increasing industrial output by 12%, economic growth was not to last and in 1972 inflation hit 140%. An economic depression that had its roots in 1967 had peaked in 1972 and, along with capital flight and disappearing private investment the economy went into freefall.

The government came under almost constant political pressures from the Nixon administration in the United States and the CIA who were doing everything in their power to bring the government down, having cost US interests billions in lost revenue from expropriated copper mines. The CIA had funded opposition parties and media and, despite assistance from the Russians, they started to take effect once the international community refused to provide any further credit to the Chileans. The economy was officially in crisis and black markets in rice, sugar and other basic commodities was rife.

Events culminated in September of 1973, when the Chilean military, headed by General Augusto Pinochet, surrounded the presidential palace and bombed it until, eventually, the President shot himself in the head to avoid capture. The CIA’s preferred replacement, Pinochet, seized total power rather than handing back to governmental authority. Publicly available documents make it clear that the CIA assisted and funded Pinochet’s campaign, which is astonishing when you consider his record.

Moving back to Why Nations Fail, the authors point out that “the 1991 National Commission for Truth and Reconciliation Report in Chile determined that 2,279 persons were killed for political reasons during the Pinochet dictatorship between 1973 and 1990. Possibly 50,000 were imprisoned and tortured, and hundreds of thousands of people were fired from their jobs”.

The Pinochet regime marked some of the darkest days in Chile’s history, with political repression and torture commonplace. Hundreds of thousands were said to be in a state of trauma following the actions of the government.

Ruling for 15 years, in his time Pinochet abolished civil liberties, dissolved the national congress and banned unions, including strikes and collective bargaining. He also abolished many of the radical reforms introduced by the coalition, with mixed effects. He did, for example reduce inflation from 508% in 1973 to 20.7% in 1982, but this masked other economic issues culminating in wildly different rates of economic growth and reduction between the 70’s and 90’s. In 1982 and 1983 Chile also faced an economic crisis when unemployment exploded, and the financial sector went into freefall, with 16 of the 50 financial institutions in Chile facing bankruptcy. Many of these banks were subsequently nationalised and the central bank took over foreign debts.

Following this, Chile went through a radical reform programme after appointing a new finance minister. After privatising many of the national utilities providers and re-privatising previously nationalised institutions, the Chilean economy grew by an average 5.9% in the 6 years following the changes, leading up to 1990.

Sensing the changing tides of globalisation and a much more liberal society, Pinochet relaxed many of the repressive laws of the 70’s towards the end of his rule and, sensing that he was losing his grip on power,

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Santiago, Chile

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established the Chilean constitution in 1988 which decreed a plebiscite referendum to choose whether to continue with a military junta government, or move to a democratic system. Pinochet was defeated with 54.5% of the vote meaning that democracy was established.

The theory of Why Nations Fail is indeed compelling, and since the establishment of democracy, a centralised state and solid property rights, unlike much of Latin America, Chile has since flourished and is one of the best places to invest in South America.

Chile currently has a GDP of US$247bn as of 2016 as it continues to grow.

In a piece for Forbes, Nathan Parish Flannery outlines his expectations for the Chilean economy for 2017 where he investigates previous, current and future economic activity.

He notes two decades of impressive economic growth underpinned by the backbone of copper mining but recognises the country’s impressive solar energy sector and its growth. Companies such as FirstSolar and SunEdison have invested heavily in future technologies that could yet make them greater profits than current alternatives.

The country’s own central bank is estimating modest GDP growth of 1% this year, downgraded from a previous forecast of 2% on the back of labour unrest at some of Chile’s biggest mines. The author goes on to say that whilst 2% isn’t a bad result for a country as wealthy as Chile we’re not going to see a return to the days, during the commodities boom, of 7% growth.

Having said that, the likes of José Ignacio Zamorano, Head of Investment Banking at BTG Pactual Chile, writing in World Finance, think that the country could well be about to return to robust and healthy growth.

He goes on to say that in Latin America, Chile has historically been one of the most attractive countries for foreign investors. It has the highest sovereign rating, a stable regulatory framework and a market-friendly environment. Although the country’s growth prospects have somewhat dwindled over the last couple of years – in line with the rest of the region – the general consensus is that the economy will improve after the coming elections.

Chile’s successful property market is also seeing a strong recovery after facing a shaky period following the introduction of VAT rates of 19% for ‘habitual’ sellers such as real estate companies or anybody that sells their house on in under a year. This meant that in 2016 house prices in Greater Santiago fell 1.8% with home sales across the country dropping by 34.3% and construction fell by almost 36%.

Despite these awkward conditions the market is now bouncing back with sales in Greater Santiago in 2017 increasing by 46%. In Central Santiago, new apartment prices rose by 6.4% in the year to March 2017 and in Western and Southern Santiago by 3.4% and 2.8%.

This more measured property market growth is in stark contrast to the boom years between 2004 and 2016 with house prices increasing by 67% in just 12 years.

Chile, in the wider context of the continent of South America and also independently, offers a fascinating history lesson in terms of how to rebuild a country from tough and traumatic times. Certainly it can be argued rather convincingly that the country benefits from a certain amount of historical luck in that its indigenous ancestors, in fighting off Spanish invaders, managed to stop the introduction of extractive economic and political institutions that would have made it ripe for corruption and poor government like its contemporaries Guatemala and Peru.

It’s not just luck though. Chile in many ways leads the way for emerging economies like Brazil and, although it relies heavily on copper, the hard work and reorganisation of its economy following the democratisation of the country is a fine example for others to follow.

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THE REAL INFLUENCERS Are corporations too powerful?

Words : Alex Timperley | View : Junrong

The growing influence of corporations over our global society is not really in dispute. Every aspect of our lives involves the corporate world in one way or another, whether that is choosing what food to eat that day, getting medicine from your doctor or using Google Maps to find your way around.

However, the all-encompassing reach of corporate power raises the question: has it gone too far? What we are really talking about here is ‘globalisation’ which is the umbrella term for the increase of ‘free trade’ across international borders. This barrier-free international trade allows for the increasing interaction of people around the world, and supposedly the spread of wealth more evenly to all – but the spread of wealth across the world goes hand in hand with the increasing reach of corporations.

The theory behind globalisation is that our worldwide society and culture will improve as the world becomes more integrated and richer. This theory of economic, social and cultural mingling through globalisation has undeniably been very successful. If you go almost anywhere in the world you will find people who can speak the shared language of logos and brands. The majority of people on earth can recognise a Coca Cola logo or the golden arches of McDonalds. Likewise, most of the medicine and antibiotics prescribed around the world are made by a handful of multi-national pharmaceutical companies, and billions of people rely on a small number of giant banks for their financial services.

The four major aspects of globalisation were defined in the early 2000s by the International Monetary Fund, an organisation which has been the vanguard of the international free trade movement for many years. The processes by which developing countries are brought into the world economy are freedom for trade and transactions, the open movement of capital and investment, the movement of people, and the dissemination of knowledge and skills. By this mechanism the countries which missed out on the first wave of global industrialisation are brought into the international fold, hypothetically to the benefit of all.

In this way, the world shrinks and we are all brought a little closer together.

People on opposite sides of the world can talk and interact. The process is complete. However, that is only part of the promise of globalisation – what about the idea of wealth trickling down for the enrichment of all?

How successful has that been? For the answer to that question, we will go to Pope Francis, the leader of the Catholic Church: “Some people continue to defend trickle down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world.

This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naive trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system.

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China’s state grid hexigten huamugou substation, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, China

Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting.”

an enormous amount of influence over their national economies, and even in some cases over economies elsewhere in the world.

So who is winning?

In short, the largest corporations are the runaway winners in the globalisation race and it is clear that people around the world are starting to wake up to this reality. The largest corporations have become bloated with wealth at the expense of the many.

The world’s largest corporations have economies larger than those of many countries and they don’t only dominate their industries, their size actually distorts markets across the world. Reality bends to the whims of the largest corporations, whether that is a Chinese donkey gelatine manufacturer causing an international shortage of donkeys across Africa or the global beef industry which incentivises the destruction of rainforests in favour of growing feed for animals.

When trying to work out how much influence corporations have across the world, it is important to distinguish between the two broad categories which you find. The first is the giant state-owned industries which exercise

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For instance, the State Grid Corporation of China has total dominance over the energy needs of the more than 1.1 billion people who live in the country. It is the second largest energy company in the world in terms of revenue according to the Fortune 500 rankings and employs more than a million people. It was founded in 2002 when China restructured its internal energy grid and since then has been a permanent presence in the lives of everyone in China, as well as becoming a part of life in countries as far flung as Italy, Brazil and the Philippines thanks to huge investments in their respective power grids.

Another good example of an extremely large nationalised corporation is Indian Railways. With more than 75,000 miles of track and 7,000 stations, Indian Railways is the fourth largest railway company in the world and carries approximately 8 billion passengers and 1.1 billion tonnes of freight annually. With more than 1.3 million employees, Indian Railways is one of the largest employers in the world and is run purely for the benefit of the state.

The other type of corporation is in the news much more regularly and is a bit more interesting for our purposes. Whereas state-run corporations tend to operate largely within their own borders, private companies have no such necessity to operate within national restraints and can happily spread around the world. When people talk about the enormous power of the corporate world, it can generally be assumed that they mean these multi-national private entities rather than the likes of the UK’s National Health Service which has altruistic goals. Multi-national private corporations are generally run in the opposite way to this; rather than working on behalf of the many, private corporations tend to be run on behalf of a relatively small number of shareholders.

There is a good argument to say that the current global political and economic system has been constructed along lines which benefit corporations over people, and that the world is controlled in large part by corporate interests. This is known as the ‘corporatocracy’ and it is buttressed by the mind-boggling amount of money that corporations spend lobbying governments every year. In the USA alone, it is estimated that annual lobbying costs are more than US$2.6bn – and that is not including all of the so-called ‘dark money’ that goes into the political

system under the radar.

Large companies have entire lobbying divisions with dozens of employees who are dedicated to getting favourable laws passed by national governments and obstructing unfavourable ones. It is true that other organisations spend money on lobbying – charities and unions for example – but it is estimated that 95 out of every 100 lobbyists represent the interests of big business. Is it any wonder that business and politics have become so intertwined as to look inseparable?

The most obvious case study when considering the questions of whether corporate power has gone too far followed the 2008 banking crisis which caused a worldwide economic crash. This was by any measure the worst financial crisis in a century, possibly the worst one ever, and it was set off by a banking sector which had fought to strip away as much regulation of its activities as was possible for many years. The result was rampant, irresponsible speculation and suspected fraud at the highest levels which ended up sinking the global economy.

Given that we know what went wrong and have a fair idea who was

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responsible, it seems like common sense that the people responsible would have been sent to jail and regulations would have been put in place to stop something similar happening again. However, in reality the majority of the executives who let this happen on their watch escaped jail, and most of the paltry legislation put in place around the world to stop a repeat occurrence has either already been gutted by lobbyists or is in the process of being repealed. Needless to say, any fines levied on the banks have been subsumed by the profits made since.

Across the world money represents political influence, and this has become something of a self-perpetuating cycle as shown by the banks.

First regulations are stripped away via extensive lobbying, then the industry runs away with itself and collapses, then the political reaction which follows after is neutered thanks to lobbying – and so the cycle continues. For the avoidance of doubt, the banks are not the only ones who play this game. Oil companies, pharmaceutical companies, chemical companies and many others have rigged the game in their own favour to varying degrees. Every time there is an oil spill or a chemical disaster which seems to generate no actual consequences for those involved, it is fair to ask whether corporate power has gone too far.

Can extensive corporate power ever work?

Can corporate power ever be harnessed for the good of the many? South Korea offers a possible alternative; it is unlikely that there is any other country where corporations hold as much influence. The chaebols – a word which translates loosely as “wealth clan” – account for the majority of South Korea’s economy, with the five largest being worth more than half of the total national Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Companies like Samsung, LG, Hyundai and others have become household names across the world and wield an almost unbelievable amount of influence at home.

Despite their dominance, things were going rather well until recently when mass corruption and greed were uncovered.

However, before then there was quite an interesting business model that suggested a harmonious relationship between corporations and people.

South Korea was left devastated by the Korean War and poverty was both extreme and widespread. In 1963, General Park Chung-hee staged a military coup in South Korea and took power. He decided that if the country was to prosper then it needed a strong economy, and to that end he fostered a relationship between the government and the private sector that still defines national politics today.

A potent mixture of tax cuts and government loans on the one hand, and manipulation of markets and threats to industry on the other, boosted the economy and propelled the chaebols to untold levels of wealth. In return for all the money, the state would seize chaebol subsidiaries which were particularly successful or vital for the national interest; for example, Samsung was forced to cede a bank, a fertiliser manufacturer and a broadcaster to the government.

As mentioned previously, the chaebol system is by no means perfect as it is arguably too easy for corruption and greed to set in. The current arrests at the top of many large South Korean corporations and the forced resignation of President Park Guen-hye earlier this year speak to the dangers of this system. However, the benefits are also clear to see. When General Park came to power in 1963, the national GDP per capita stood at US$67; by 1996 it had reached US$10,315.

The above is only a rough outline of the chaebol model, and it is worth bearing in mind that the conditions which allowed the chaebols to grow were unique, but the lesson is still relevant – it is not impossible for corporations to grow and still contribute to the wellbeing of everyone if the will to do so exists.

Unfortunately, it is all too easy for the desire to work for the betterment of everyone to be subsumed by greed. A growing number of people around the world are looking at the current system and wondering where it all went wrong, and how we can fix it – the spread of populist politics around the world is a testament to that.

Where we go next is unclear, however it looks like we are at the beginning of a big correction and this time it might well be the corporations which lose out.

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New Delhi train station, India

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A NEW WAY OF LIFE Going ‘off-grid’ – the people that are turning their back on society

Words : Emma Martin | View : Damsea

The pressure that is being put on public services, transport infrastructure and housing is constantly building and leaving many people feeling overwhelmed with urban life. There is no denying that as modern day life becomes more complicated many of us find ourselves smothered under the weight of monthly bills, monotonous routines, a distant connection to nature and the burden of a materialistic society.

Research shows that the world’s urban population is on the rise, with more and more people cramming into our capital cities. Information from the United Nations shows that over half (54%) of the world’s population live in urban areas, and this is expected to increase to 66% by 2050.

The forecast indicates that increasing urbanisation coupled with global population growth could result in another 2.5 billion people joining urban populations by 2050.

As well as this, the new digital age is creating a generation that know little outside of a phone or computer screen, with US consumers now spending up to five hours each day on their mobile phone. There is no question that, for a large number of us, life is starting to feel artificial.

It is this mounting pressure that is leaving many feeling unfulfilled and strained by life in the modern day, and people are now searching for alternative ways to live, choosing to free themselves from the daily grind for good.

Off-grid in a traditional sense…

Unimaginable for the majority who live an ordinary life, living off-grid traditionally refers to those who live away from recognised power grids, operating a home without utilities, namely electricity, water, gas, heat, sewage and other public services.

The growth of ‘mega-cities’, namely those with 10 million inhabitants or more, is also on the up – having increased from just ten in 1990, to 28 in 2014. The growth of these cities, whilst pushing the world towards an increasingly modern and advanced future, brings up one key issue: sustainability.

There are numerous reasons why people choose to pursue this kind of lifestyle, ranging from concerns about the environment to dissatisfaction with modern day life.

You need only look at rush hour in the UK’s capital of London to see the intensifying stress being put on everyday services. Every morning bodies are squashed against one another on the London tube, which delivers up to 5 million passengers a day to their destinations.

Due to the very nature of living off-grid it’s hard to put an exact number on how many people are choosing to live life away from society, but in 2006 Home Power Magazine estimated that at least 180,000 families are living off-grid in the United States, and that the number of those choosing to is on the up. Globally the current estimate is that around 1.7 billion people live off-grid, a number boosted by the volume of people living in

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Off-grid coastal home on the Caribbean shore of Panama, Bocas del Toro, Central America

underdeveloped countries who are without the benefit of public utilities.

The popularity of life off-grid is booming so much that global management consultancy Accenture estimates that by 2035, 12% of households in North America will be off-grid compared to 11% in Europe.

Accenture’s Digitally Enabled Grid research illustrates that there is a shifting consumer sentiment towards living on-grid, which may well result in ‘demand disruption’ as the interest in renewable energy rises, causing people to move toward alternative power sources such as solar panels, wind power, and home battery systems.

Valentin de Miguel, Global managing director of Accenture Smart Grid Services commented: “Based on our research, Accenture believes that the most likely scenario in the next 10 years could lead to revenue losses at the lower end of our scale, $18 billion a year in the U.S. and €39 billion in Europe, caused by a moderate reduction in load on the grid network”.

He explains that “this is because adoption of energy efficiency and distributed generation will become possible without subsidies, which will lead to greater market penetration as a result of shifting consumer sentiment, falling technology costs and a moderate rise in electricity prices, especially across Europe”.

It is likely that in the future, as newer and more efficient ways to create energy are brought to market, consumers will shift towards greener ways of living, leaving large utility companies losing revenue. However the same research notes that a huge 79% of utilities executives think that it will not be possible for large numbers of people to live effectively off-grid until at least 2030, and those who choose to will still require subsidies from on-grid power.

How to go off-grid Nick Rosen, the author of ‘How to Live Off-Grid’, is a campaigner and award-winning documentary film-maker on the topic of off-grid living.

Rosen has discussed widely the ways in which you can go off-grid, and runs the leading website about off-grid life which receives 75,000 visitors a month, mainly from the US and UK. The website, led by Rosen is a one stop shop for all things off-grid, and even has a sister site to help people team up together to start their new lives. The website points out that going off-grid is an extremely difficult task, and will often require multiple skill sets. It explains that, “on Landbuddy you can find and team up with others in your area, or the area you are interested in – people who are also looking, whose skills match your own – they may have money, or land, or some other part of the jigsaw that will make sure you have a long and happy off-grid life”.

Rosen, who was inspired to pursue an off-grid lifestyle after purchasing a shepherd’s hut in Majorca as a holiday home which provided amazing views and a sustainable and cheap alternative to a traditional property, believes that it is possible to create a comfortable off-grid life for just £20,000.

There are three main things needed to successfully go off-grid: land, energy and water. Due to differing laws finding land can be easy or challenging depending on which country you are in. For example, buying a piece of land in the UK near a clean natural water source and preferably nearby (or in) woodland is next to impossible because of local authority.

Those choosing to live off-grid often go in search of sparsely populated areas with less restrictive laws.

With a raft of smart new ways to generate energy, off-grid living is slowly becoming more accessible even if many governments are troubled with the idea of people living independent of large energy corporations.

Home power batteries like the Telsa Powerwall are opening up the possibilities of sustainable power for homes and means that even those living off-grid in the future will be able to access electricity easily.

Explained by Telsa, the Powerwall “integrates with solar to harness the abundant power of the sun and reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. Store solar during the day and use it at night to self-power your home.” These kinds of inventions will mean that in the near future it will be possible to supply energy ourselves for homes, meaning more people can lead an off-grid life with the same kind of amenities we have today.

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Backpack solar charger, Africa

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Earthship home; a groundbreaking, solar powered home made of natural and recycled materials, New Mexico, USA

Off-grid and the housing crisis There is one clear advantage to off-grid living – a seemingly cheap alternative to house buying. Particularly in the UK there is an abundant housing crisis, with the number of those living homeless in England now at over 50,000 a year.

The issue with housing in the UK comes from a lack of affordable properties, and a market working very much in the favour of the wealthy.

With more and more landlords buying property for the purpose of buy-to-let, first time buyers are struggling more than ever to get onto the housing ladder, resulting in a generation dubbed ‘generation rent’.

Whilst large swathes of young adults choosing to rent as a long term alternative to buying means excellent prospects for buy-to-let investors, it is leaving many young people feeling downhearted with the current system and wondering if owning a property will ever be more than just a distant pipe dream.

For this reason, off-grid living’ could remedy many of the issues surrounding housing, giving a generation the ability to own land, a house and even the capacity to be self-sufficient without relying on the system they ultimately feel has failed them.

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Unfortunately, within the UK, planning councils and local government are more often than not obstructive to the off-grid lifestyle, with laws making buying rural land to live on a difficult task.

A paradise away from people…

Whilst the term ‘off-grid’ generally conjures images of nomads living in wooden huts and living entirely off the land, this is not always the case.

There are lots of different ways that people choose to escape the routine of daily life in the modern world.

It seems like the connecting factor for everyone that chooses today to leave the ‘rat-race’ is the overwhelming need to get away from society.

There is an overpowering feeling, particularly in built up cities, that life is becoming more and more stressful. This is particularly the case for high-profile business workers and managers of large companies. The burdens that the super affluent face, whilst entirely different to the issues of the less wealthy, can leave the top ten percent needing a way to escape.

A growing trend emerging within the richest proportion of the population is the buying of private islands. Across the globe pockets of land are being snapped up by people eager to own not just their own piece of

land or house – but an entire island.

The buying of an island is, perhaps, the ultimate show of going off-grid and a full departure from society.

The question of whether going off-grid will become a popular choice for the masses in the future is unclear. Whilst the concept of living off-grid is not a new one, there are increased numbers of people choosing this type of life.

Distrust in the current system Aside from the common reasons for moving off the national grid, (for example to live more sustainably or to get closer to nature) there is a growing motive for people moving away from social order – a distrust of the system.

There is a quietly emergent feeling amongst sceptics that the world is headed towards some sort of global failure and that in order to safeguard personal and family futures, moving off-grid is the answer. Concerns that energy corporations will take over, that the government is conspiring against us and fears of global tensions rising to a point of civil war have all led to more and more people prepping for some kind of doomsday.

It is important to note, though, that this feeling has existed throughout every era of human history. There are always people who think the world is going to end, but the modern age is unique, as these people have been able to group together by the power of the internet to cultivate feelings of paranoia.

Will it catch on?

Realistically it seems unlikely that we will see a departure from life on-grid within the next 50, or even 100 years. The infrastructure available to people in order to live in a fully self-sufficient life is not yet where it needs to be for the off-grid lifestyle to be rolled out on a major scale.

Along with major obstructions from planning and government in countries including the UK, it is increasingly difficult for people to take up this way of life. So, despite larger numbers wanting to live a simpler life, at the moment this remains a reality for few.

But with a constantly changing political and social landscape there is always the chance (however small) that society might return to life before the power grid someday.

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A BREACH OF CONFIDENCE Equifax – privacy in the modern day Words : Emma Martin | View : Dennizn

In September 2017, consumer credit firm Equifax Inc announced that a breach of its database had occurred, affecting 143 million Americans.

One of the ‘big three’ credit agencies along with Experian and TransUnion, Equifax Inc is a huge player in the finance sector, is worth billions of dollars and employs over 9,500 people; so naturally the news that 143 million people’s sensitive data had been breached came as a shock, with many left wondering whether their personal information had been leaked.

Large corporations like Equifax that are responsible for such a great amount of private information should generally employ an experienced team of IT Security Engineers, along with taking the advice of third party specialists to ensure that consumer data is protected adequately.

The fact that Equifax failed to sufficiently protect their system challenges the trust of their clients, tarnishing their reputation and calling for answers as to how a business of their magnitude became vulnerable to such an attack.

As modern day life becomes more complex, more digital and more multifaceted, it also becomes more dangerous. The threat of cyber terrorism and hacking is a modern day anxiety and we are all at risk. The 2017 Identity Fraud Study from Javelin Strategy & Research indicates a rise in the number of people being targeted by identity theft.

Who are the victims of the Equifax breach?

The study shows that, in 2016, 15.4 million Americans had their identities stolen, amounting to total damage worth US$16bn. The number of offenses relating to identity theft increased by 17.56% from 2015 to 2016, signifying that this type of crime is on the rise.

The data breached involved the loss of sensitive information including full names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and driver license numbers.

The amount of information we all carry within devices, apps, and websites is mind boggling, and means that most of us are vulnerable to sensitive data breaches through hacking, identity theft and computer viruses.

However, when it comes to trusted custodians of information (for example a credit bureau), there is an expectation that private data will be safeguarded.

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In its initial statement made on September 7th 2017 Equifax Inc stated that hackers accessed the personal details of more than 143 million US consumers in the months ranging from mid-May to July 2017.

In an even more shocking announcement, Equifax admitted that the credit card numbers of 209,000 customers were compromised along with the personal documents of another 182,000 – leaving many concerned that they may become the victims of fraud and identity theft.

In later statements the true extent of the breach was understood, with Equifax admitting that alongside affecting almost half of the population of

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the United States the breach also extended to 15.2 million UK customer records, along with the personal information of approximately 8,000 Canadian clients.

Even more troublingly experts have pointed out a large amount of people affected by the hack were not actually customers or clients of Equifax, and may have never received a product from the company. As one of three major credit bureau’s Equifax holds the data of most adults who have received any kind of loan or credit account – meaning that everyone should be concerned about the attack.

How were Equifax hacked?

We now know that the hack was caused by vulnerability in the Apache Struts tool, a system used by many large corporations as a framework for Java web applications. In the case of Equifax, Apache Struts is used as “an open-source application framework that supports the Equifax online dispute portal web application.”

In a second statement released on September 15th, Equifax explained that that on July 29th 2017 its security team recognised suspicious behaviour on their dispute web portal, and the team proceeded to block ‘suspicious traffic’. The next day the team continued to detect suspicious behaviour, and as such decided to take the application offline and investigate further.

The clear problem here is not with the actions of the security team on detecting the hack, but instead with the weakness in the Apache Struts tool, and how this vulnerability wasn’t dealt with. Equifax itself admitted that “the particular vulnerability in Apache Struts was identified and disclosed

by U.S. CERT in early March 2017”. This shocking piece of news from Equifax meant that a patch was given to Equifax back in March that would have eliminated any potential flaw in its security.

Product manager and researcher at analytics security firm Semmle, Bas van Schaik, explained: “This vulnerability was disclosed back in March. There were clear and simple instructions of how to remedy the situation. The responsibility is then on companies to have procedures in place to follow such advice promptly. The fact that Equifax was subsequently attacked in May means that Equifax did not follow that advice. Had they done so this breach would not have occurred”.

This shows a distinct lack of care towards the sensitive data of Equifax’s own customers, and a lax attitude towards cybercrime, which in today’s world is a serious weakness for any company. Further to this there have been suggestions that the hack was related to the fact that an employee of Equifax based in Argentina had used ‘admin’ as their username and password, meaning that any hacker could easily gain access to the system.

Equifax’s response to the data breach The awkwardness for Equifax did not end at the admittance that the breach of its system occurred as a result of staff error, but the company has continued to suffer embarrassment after embarrassment in dealing with the attack.

On discovering the hack Equifax announced that it would be employing a cybersecurity firm to run a full report and investigation into the breach, as well as having set up a website, equifaxsecurity2017.com “to help consumers determine if their information has been potentially impacted and to sign up for credit file monitoring and identity theft protection.”

But, in a further show of inadequacy from Equifax, the website set up to try and help consumers find out if they were a victim of the hack was a weak WordPress set-up, meaning the company became the victims of a phishing scandal.

Nick Sweeting, a software developer concerned with raising awareness about phishing, decided to use this opportunity to prove how weak the Equifax Security website was and decided to set up securityequifax2017. com, changing the URL ever so slightly in order to draw people to his fake website.

Both Equifax’s website and Sweeting’s asks consumers to enter personal information, showing just how dangerous real phishing attack on Equifax’s simplistic website could have been.

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Sweeting said of the imitation website: “It’s in everyone’s interest to get Equifax to change this site to a reputable domain; I knew it would only cost me $10 to set up a site that would get people to notice, so I just did it.” He goes on, “It only took me 20 minutes to build my clone. I can guarantee there are real malicious phishing versions already out there”.

Even more worryingly Equifax actually directed its customers to the fake version of the website on multiple occasions on Twitter. Had Sweeting been a criminal actually looking to collate more personal data, Equifax would have once again become victims of cybercrime.

A further reason for consumer anger comes down to the fact that prior to the leak being announced Equifax’s chief financial officer, John Gamble, sold shares in the company to the value of $946,374. In addition Equifax’s president of US information solutions, Joseph Loughran, also sold his stocks worth $584,099 and president of workforce solutions, Rodolfo Ploder, let go shares valued at $250,458.

The issue with this is twofold; the first being that that bosses at Equifax knew about the breach prior to informing the public. In fact, details now known highlight that Equifax knew about the lost data for five weeks before announcing it to the public.

The second issue with the sale of shares by Equifax managers is that many believe they decided to sell their stocks for personal financial gain, with some arguing that there are issues of fraud to be answered. The fact that Equifax stocks dropped more than 13% in the first hours of trading after the announcement illustrates the sharp decline in the value of the company, leading many to believe that bosses at Equifax knew stocks would drop, and decided to get out before this happened – safeguarding their own personal finances before trying to help the victims of the attack.

The head of corporate communications at Equifax, Ines Gutzmer, commented on the topic of the shares: “The three executives who sold a small percentage of their Equifax shares on Tuesday, August 1, and Wednesday, August 2, had no knowledge that an intrusion had occurred at the time they sold their shares”, denying that the managers in question knew about the hack before choosing to sell.

Lawsuits and investigations…

Just hours after the data breach was announced, two women in America filed the first lawsuits against the company, claiming that negligence from Equifax led to their personal data being compromised.

The claimants, Mary McHill and Brook Reinhard filed the complaint at

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federal court and directly blamed Equifax for the loss of their personal information. “Equifax knew and should have known that failure to maintain adequate technological safeguards would eventually result in a massive data breach. Equifax could have and should have substantially increased the amount of money it spent to protect against cyber-attacks but chose not to.” The lawyers working on behalf of McHill and Reinhard claim that they plan to pursue up to US$70bn in damages.

Not only are Equifax coming under scrutiny from the millions of people affected, but are now also being investigated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for the loss of data of its UK customers as well as the US Department of Justice.

Going forward There are many lessons to be learnt from the unfortunate events of the Equifax hack. Namely for large businesses to make sure that they take full responsibility for network security by enlisting the help of IT security specialists, and by taking the advice given to them in order to try and protect their systems against the growing threat of cyber-attacks.

by many to be the worst in history for the sheer amount of personal data accessed by hackers, it is not the largest breach to date. In 2013 Yahoo had a breach of three billion user accounts, showing the extent of data that can be retrieved by experienced hackers.

Whether or not Equifax will be able to come back from the reputational damage incurred from the events of 2017 is uncertain, but the company are keen to inform the public that they are working closely with authorities and wish to learn from what has happened, saying that “Equifax Ltd is already working closely with the FCA and other authorities: we welcome this opportunity to learn the lessons from this criminal cyber-attack in order for all businesses to better protect consumers in the future”.

We must hope that this is the case, and that large corporations learn from the raft of issues faced by Equifax to better protect our information in the future. As cybercrime becomes a mounting issue for us all, it is in the public interest that large corporations, government authorities and cyber security experts work hand in hand to fight the upsurge of this new form of corruption.

However whether or not the issues surrounding the hack will be used as a lesson learning tool is to be seen. While the Equifax hack is considered

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IMPROVING GLOBAL COMMUNICATION Bringing internet to the world

Words : Alex Timperley | View : Anton Balazh

By our best estimates, more than four billion people around the world still live without internet access from day to day. It is hard to be precise with this number because the majority of people who don’t have internet access live in the developing world where population data is often inaccurate. However, it is safe to say that more than half of the world is still waiting to be connected.

The disparate nature of global internet access is highlighted by the fact that just 20 countries are home to approximately three quarters of those without internet access, according to the World Economic Forum.

Universal and high quality internet access for all is one of the United Nations’ (UN) Sustainable Development Goals, the organisation’s plan to ensure a future for people, the planet, and our shared prosperity through pursuit of a common good and universal peace. Access to the World Wide Web is considered to be on a level with eliminating hunger and making sure that every child gets a quality modern education, and it is not hard to see why.

The UN went so far as to say in 2016 that unimpeded internet access was a human right, and passed a Resolution that any government or corporation standing in the way was acting against the flow of human

progress. The internet has become an intrinsic part of modern life and it is quite correct that everyone should have access to it.

In the developed world, it has become impossible to live without the internet. Everything from job applications, to credit card payments, to social interaction is now carried out online. That is not to mention the fact that a huge majority of people now get their daily news from online sources, meaning that access to the internet has become an essential cornerstone of the various systems of democracy which govern the lives of billions.

In the developing world, the internet is an important tool to spread education and inclusivity, helping to bridge the economic divide. The digital world is a peerless way to accomplish this because, in a relatively simple way, children in far flung countries can be connected to the web and benefit from the sum total of human knowledge.

All of this combined means that universal internet access is the key to accelerating human progress. This is not to mention the fact that the internet has become the enabler of successful organisation, protest and dissent against repressive governments and regimes.

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Rapid adoption The speed at which new technology achieves widespread adoption around the world has been decreasing notably over the last few centuries.

Steam powered ships took approximately 120 years to spread around the world fully, electricity took 60 years, computers took just under 20 years, and modern mobile phones and tablets have taken less than a decade to be a feature of life across the globe.

We have now developed the technology to easily provide high-speed, universal broadband technology, and all the signs point to this technology spreading around the world even more quickly than mobile phones and tablets. The main reason for this is the same as the reason previous era-defining technologies spread so quickly – it is in everybody’s interest to provide high-speed internet to every person in the world.

It is the single best tool ever devised to allow a developing nation to harness the combined collective intelligence and inventiveness of its citizenry. This is the most proven path to sustainable development for all, and allows poorer nations to close the gap to richer nations more quickly and efficiently. No more does a developing nation have to rely on a single cash cow such as diamonds, rice or oil wells – today, an economically small country can tap into the talents of everyone at its disposable and mix them with the expertise of everyone else on the planet.

Having access to the internet enables data to be aggregated in enormous quantities in record time, in a way which would previously have been impossible. This wealth of data and information allows for the development of the sort of economic and social insights which can catapult a nation towards sustainability. There is no more scrambling around in the dark, relying on instinct and informed guess work.

Once a nation has that sort of data, what can they do with it? The obvious answer is to use the insights gained to trade with the world, and the internet is the dominant platform for international trade. To engage on a global scale, internet access is both vital and an overriding priority as it is causally linked to increased exports.

Another area in which internet access has proven benefits for developing nations is education. UNICEF argues convincingly that young people the world over are natural adopters of technology for learning purposes. A high percentage of children in even the most rural areas of countries such as Vietnam and Zambia have become experts at using the internet for learning.

Indeed, despite the try-hard arguments of many older, professionally scared newspaper columnists across the world, the rise of technology in education has encouraged global literacy. Young people today read and write more, and more regularly, than any other generation in history, and the stats back this up. The global literacy rate among young people is now 91% by the most recent UNICEF measures, a rise from 83% only a decade ago. To put it into numbers, there are now estimated to be 115 million illiterate young people, whereas 10 years ago there were estimated to be 170 million.

The least developed countries in the world currently suffer from the lowest rates of literacy on the whole, but digital technology is creating a revolution, and the collective power of mobile internet devices is creating a generation of readers and writers that we have never seen the likes of before. Initiatives like Text to Change in Africa are leading the way by getting 150,000 young people from across the continent to text in their ideas for the future of their countries. Text to Change is the perfect example of why proliferating internet access is a human right - education and engagement for the betterment of the collective, through mobile technology. It is no coincidence that Mozambique, for example, is spending 5% of its entire national budget on advancing the adoption of telecommunications technology.

What’s the hold up?

The World Economic Forum cites four main things which have contributed to holding up the spread of universal internet access to every corner of the world.

The first and most important factor is infrastructure. Approximately 30% of the world’s population lives in areas with no 3G coverage and a further 15% still do not have electricity. Without these, widespread and consistent

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internet access is impossible. A good example of this is Sub-Saharan Africa, an area with lots of potential but limited infrastructure.

Affordability is the second factor which holds large parts of the world back. 13% of the world’s population lives below the poverty line. The UN is working to eradicate poverty through its Sustainable Development Goals, and has enjoyed much success, but for now there are many who simply cannot afford the internet. Whether that is because of the cost of the device or that of the connection itself, it is a sad fact that there are only 29 countries in the world where everyone can afford broadband.

The World Economic Forum’s third factor is skills, awareness and cultural acceptance. More than 15% of adults worldwide are functionally illiterate which is a huge barrier to making effective use of the internet – however, as mentioned earlier, only 7% of children are currently illiterate, a fact which demonstrates the transformative power of technology. More troublingly, women around the world are on average 50% less likely to use the internet than men, which manages to be both scarcely believable and a disgrace at the same time. Attitudes are changing, but they should be changing a lot faster than they are.

Finally, there are issues surrounding local adoption and use. The vast majority of online content – approximately 80% – is written in 10 languages. Out of the 7.4 billion people currently believed to be alive on the planet, only 3 billion speak one of these 10 languages as a first language. That is without considering other issues, such as how the internet doesn’t really cater to the blind by definition. It can be easy to

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forget how lucky we are living in an English-speaking country, for instance, or in one where we can afford extra technology to help us around disabilities. It bears remembering that the majority are not so fortunate.

The solution?

There are plenty of organisations which are working hard to expand access to equipment and literacy. The UN, UNICEF, national governments, charities and many others are working hard, but it is all for naught in the long term if there is no available internet access. This sort of global infrastructure is extremely difficult to build, not to mention expensive, and therefore can be slow to appear.

Into this void have stepped some of our largest tech companies who are looking to cover the globe with the internet. At this point it is important to remember that these companies are not doing this for humanitarian reasons; there is simply a lot of money to be made in this area and they want all of it. After all, the company which manages to provide internet to the world will get hundreds of millions of new customers.

The three main contenders are looking to utilise drones, hot air balloons and satellites respectively.

The first company in the ring is Facebook which is developing a drone programme. These Aquila drones – ‘aquila’ being the Latin world for ‘eagle’ – are designed to glide over far flung places and provide internet access. The drones are solar powered, have the wingspan of a Boeing

737 and will eventually fly at 60,000 feet if all goes to plan, moving at a leisurely pace of 10-15 mph and running on the power of three hairdryers.

The initial tests featured one crash landing and one successful flight at a reduced altitude, but this technology is still firmly in the ‘experimental’ stage. Facebook is particularly looking to target Africa, but we shouldn’t expect to see a whole fleet of drones over the continent anytime soon.

Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is the second main contender in the arena and is developing a network of internet-providing hot air balloons via Project Loon. The plan is for a network of high-altitude balloons spread out at gaps of up to 100km which will relay high-speed internet between them and bounce it down to people on the ground.

Project Loon is far more advanced than Facebook’s Aquila drone programme and is at present a much more realistic option. The Alphabet balloon system already has more than 25 million km of recorded flight and has even been utilised successfully in the field. Following a successful deployment in Peru following a natural disaster, Project Loon has recently begun floating balloons over Puerto Rico. The island lost 95% of its communication network during Hurricane Maria and is in desperate need of help. Project Loon’s balloons are currently serving as floating communication towers in the sky until a more permanent solution can be found. Perhaps these balloons will end up being the lasting solution for the people of Puerto Rico?

The final contender is the proposed satellite network from SpaceX which will circle the earth in a low orbit. The system will be launched and maintained by the rocket company and the full network is slated to be

online by 2024, with prototype launches planned for 2018. There are currently around 1,500 active satellites in orbit and the SpaceX network, codenamed ‘Starlight’, plans to launch 4,425 more into orbit – a figure which should illustrate the scale of the task they have set themselves.

Unlike both Facebook and Google, SpaceX is more or less betting its financial future on this satellite network becoming the world’s dominant internet access provider. The company aims to get humans to Mars, an expensive endeavour. The hundreds of millions, or even billions, of potential customers for a quality internet connection which ignores national boundaries and has no service blackouts are the big pot of money which could finance the trip to the red planet.

Bringing internet to the world It is clear that the internet is the defining technology of our time. Phones and tablets may come and go, but the internet will remain. It is the platform which governs the day to day running of the world and it is the repository for all of human knowledge. It defines the modern economies of the developed world and it provides a unique opportunity for less developed countries to escape poverty and hardship in a sustainable fashion. Providing internet access for everyone is a human right to go alongside the right to not be hungry, and we finally have both the technology and the will to see it happen and accelerate our own progress as a species. The next decade is likely to be the last one where you can go to the remote corners of the world and not be able to access the internet – a brave new world, indeed.

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WORLD MARKET VIEW The global financial crisis plunged property markets into a downward spiral. Nine years on, Global Property Scene takes a look at how the international markets are developing.

London, UK • Median sales price: $788,214* • Average price per sqft: $647

Note - Figures correct as of stated dates: *December 2017 --> Prices based on city centre accommodation > Global average house size currently stands at: 1,250m2 > Source: Numbeo

Los Angeles, USA • Median sales price: $611,620* • Average price per sqft: $457

New York, USA • Median sales price: $788,549* • Average price per sqft: $636

Best cities to live in 2017 Source: Telegraph

1 2 3

Sao Paulo, Brazil

4 5

• Median sales price: $388,760* • Average price per sqft: $319

Cape Town, South Africa • Median sales price: $274,010* • Average price per sqft: $223 Vienna, Austria

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Zurich, Switzerland

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Auckland, New Zealand

Munich, Germany

Vancouver, Canada

Singapore Moscow, Russia • Median sales price: $633,759* • Average price per sqft: $535

Dubai, UAE • Median sales price: $588,386* • Average price per sqft: $488

• Median sales price: $2,216,252* • Average price per sqft: $1,775

Sydney, Australia • Median sales price: $1,342,880* • Average price per sqft: $1,079

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WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE? Craft Beer Words : Emma Martin | View : Eviaphoto

When looking for an alternative investment opportunity many might opt to put their money in things they know. For example, an art buff might want to invest in a credible artist, and a wine connoisseur may stockpile fine bottles of wine to age and accumulate value. Whilst traditionally recognised global passion assets include wine, classic cars, jewellery and fine art, one emerging asset that is quickly asserting itself as a serious investment class is craft beer.

Popularity in craft beer investment has spiked in the last couple of years in line with the growing status of the drink. The market for craft beer is currently growing significantly with the retail value in the USA sitting at US$23.5bn, a 10% rise on 2015. This equates to craft beer holding a 21.9% stake of the overall U.S beer market which is worth a colossal US$107.6bn in its entirety.

However craft beer isn’t just popular in the USA. In England, craft beer has become so in demand that 130 breweries are launched each year to deal with the rise in popularity. There are now over 2,000 breweries in the UK according to research from the accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young – the highest number since the 1930s. This equates to an 18% rise between 2015 and 2016, up a massive 64% in the last five years alone.

James Simmonds, a partner at UHY Hacker Young, commented on the flourishing market: “The craft beer boom has reversed around 70 years of

consolidation in the brewing industry and there is plenty of growth still to come”.

The growth of craft beer as an export is now huge business, particularly in the UK where figures reveal one billion pints were shipped around the world last year, bringing a £600m boost to the economy. According to the UK government the total exports of beer in the country grew by almost £100m in the last year.

Whilst the definition of what makes a beer a craft beer can be seen as fairly ambiguous, industry experts believe strongly that defining what makes a craft beer just that is integrally important to the survival of the emerging industry.

Greg Koch from Stone Brewing explains: “[Craft Beer] is a revolution against the insult of the industrialised notion of beer that has been preying on the populace for decades. And yet with the success of the resulting backlash of craft beer which has brought real choice back to the people, the mega-beer-industrial-complex wants to co-opt craft beer now too”.

“We cannot allow this to happen or it will erode the very progress we have all worked so hard to achieve. And they know this. A strong craft beer definition, which has admittedly proved to be a daunting task, is critical in shoring up the defences for this thing that is so very dear to beer

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Craft beer

enthusiasts.”

Where the American Brewers’ Association describes a craft brewery as being small, traditional and independent, Scottish brewery and pub chain BrewDog believe that the definition, in Europe at least, needs further clarification.

BrewDog owners James Watt and Martin Dickie suggest that a European Craft Brewery should be: small – brewing less than 500,000 HL annually; authentic – brewing all their beers at original gravity and not using rice, corn or any other adjuncts to lessen flavour and reduce costs; honest – all ingredients and location of craft brewery clearly listed on the label of all beers and, finally; independent – not more than 20% owned by a brewing company which operates any brewery which is not a craft brewery.

Watt and Dickie wish for such a definition to be recognised by the Campaign for Real Ale and the Society of Independent Brewers as well as at a European level by the Brewers of Europe Association – they believe it is with this that craft beer can continue on its current upward trajectory and quash the threat from global brewers looking to get a slice of the craft market.

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You might want to ask what gives BrewDog the right to input on what craft beer should be defined as, but to date BrewDog is one of the most famous and successful examples of craft beer investment globally.

Earlier this year BrewDog announced that investors who supported its early crowd-funding work in 2010 have now secured a return of almost 2,800%.

The announcement came after the company publicised a huge investment from American private equity company TSG Consumer Partners. TSG, who are well versed in the private backing of startup companies also hold shares in companies such as vitaminwater, thinkThin and popchips.

The statement from BrewDog contained details of the deal which stated TSG had “acquired approximately 23% of the company, in a £213million transaction involving £100million to fund BrewDog’s continued global expansion, and the balance of proceeds to provide for early shareholder liquidity. The transaction values BrewDog plc at approximately £1bn enterprise value, and is designed to deliver long-term capital with a 10-year time horizon”.

This valuation means that even those who invested in BrewDog’s 2016 crowdfund wave have seen their share value rise by 177% in just a year.

BrewDog, despite having come up against some resistance due to their conflicting image versus business model, are an excellent example of how craft beer can work as an investment. Now looking to raise an additional £10m, with a long-sight goal of £50m BrewDog have opened another wave of investment, Equity for Punks V, which will add to the already existing 53,242 so named ‘equity punks’ currently invested in the brewery.

It’s not just BrewDog that have used equity crowdfunding in the UK to boost revenue and kick-start growth. Other brewers who have followed in the same vein include Chapel Down, Camden Tower Brewery, Innis & Gunn and The Wild Beer Co. The raft of investment that has come in for breweries has led to some dubbing it ‘fanboy’ investment. Investment advisory firm OFF3R has conducted research which backs up the idea that the majority of investment received by breweries comes from their target market. 85% of crowd funders for craft beer are male, with an average age of 41. This has resulted in an overall investment of more than £50m, through over 65,000 individual investments.

There is no question that crowdfunding is currently enjoying a massive boom, with the success of ‘unicorn’ start-ups enticing the many, but the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warn against equity crowdfunding dubbing it a ‘high-risk investment activity’. They note that “it is very likely that you will lose all your money. Most investments are in shares or debt securities in start-up companies and will often result in a 100% loss of capital as most start-up businesses fail”.

However it must be recognised that investment in craft beer can be done in varying ways. Whilst the most exciting, and potentially most rewarding way to invest comes in the form of getting on board with a new local brewery in the form of equity crowdfunding or as a venture capitalist, this is not the only avenue to explore.

With no question as to the burgeoning popularity of the market it might be worth other kinds of investment, for example, buying stocks and shares in already respected craft beer companies like the Craft Brew Alliance.

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Architecture Planning Structures Urban Design

Q&A It’s time for GPS to answer some of our readers’ most pressing questions

Words : Samantha Edwards

Q.

Q.

I’ve heard that Japanese knotweed is bad. If it is found in the property should I continue with the purchase?

The Bank of England Base Rate has doubled from 0.25% to 0.5%, what impact will this have on my mortgage?

A.

A.

Japanese knotweed has fast become a taboo word in the property industry. Extremely hardy, it is one of the most difficult plants to eradicate and can have a devastating impact on buildings if not treated properly.

However, as long as you are prepared, it doesn’t mean that your hopes of owning your dream home need to be dashed. So, what do you need to know?

This will depend on whether you have a fixed rate, tracker or other variable rate mortgage, the term of the mortgage and whether your mortgage is on Interest Only or Capital Repayment. If you have a mortgage that tracks the Bank of England Base Rate (BOEBR), your mortgage repayments will increase in line with the 0.25% rise, but if you have a fixed rate product, the interest rate change will not have any impact on you, at least until your current product comes to an end.

> If you are buying a property, the seller and the estate agent are both obliged to disclose the presence of knotweed. If they do not and it shows up on your survey, the valuation surveyor will recommend ‘not to lend’. > You do not have to pull out of a sale if knotweed is identified, but you should make sure that the price you are paying is reflective of the costs you will have to pay out to have it removed. > Always ensure that if you do buy a property with Japanese knotweed, that you undertake the removal of it yourself, and do not rely on the seller to do it, in exchange for not dropping the price. You are the one that will be liable if it has not been destroyed completely. If you do

agree for the seller to undertake the work, ensure that they use a reputable company that you trust, and that you have access to all the relevant paperwork and reports.

*These questions and answers are provided for general information only and may not be completely accurate in every circumstance.

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As an example, you have a £100,000 interest only mortgage at a current interest rate of 2.50%. Your monthly mortgage repayments would currently be £208.33. If that interest rate were to increase by 0.25% in line with the BOEBR to 2.75%, the new repayments would be £229.17.

Using the same example, if you have a fixed rate mortgage at 2.50%, your repayments will stay the same until the product period comes to an end. Banks and building societies have started to increase their new products meaning when current mortgage product periods comes to an end, the options available are likely to be higher than what was previously available.

It is imperative that you always take advice from an experienced mortgage broker who will have in depth knowledge of the mortgage market and products available. Your bank can only offer their products, whereas a mortgage broker can offer products from a wide variety of lenders. Whether you are buying an investment property, moving home or you want to secure a new product, a good mortgage broker will find the best product available designed to suit your needs.

For more information and details about products contact Tel: +44 (0)161 772 1394 Web: www.forshawland.com

SHOULD I MOVE TO? Glasgow Words : Will Leyland | View : Targn Pleiades

Translated from the ancient Gaelic meaning for ‘Green Hollow’, Glasgow, Scotland’s biggest city and the UK’s third, sits on the River Clyde in Scotland’s western Lowlands.

Peace, founder and Chairman, Steve Killelea, said: “It’s not all bad news for Glasgow. If you look over the last decade it’s actually more peaceful.

Homicide rates are down 40%, while violent crime is down roughly 30%.”

Its etymology suggests a sleepy rural origin that bears little resemblance to its modern day incarnation; a bustling cultural hub that has done as well as any in shaking off misconceptions about quality of life within its bounds.

It’s not just from a crime point of view that Glasgow has been changing people’s minds either. If you asked the average person on the street across the UK where they may consider the most culturally diverse areas of the country they may be forgiven for putting Glasgow low on their list, but they’d be wrong. Let’s take a look at the biggest factors in helping you to decide whether to move to the ‘Dear Green Place’.

Perceptions of Glasgow have not always been good; whether it be the football violence that has marred the world famous Old Firm rivalry between Rangers and Celtic, or the chronic violent crime that blighted the city in the late 90’s and early 00’s.

In 2007, the homicide rate in the city had reached an average of 4.5 per 100,000 people, one of the worst in Europe. It was revealed by UN statistics around the same time that Scotland had the worst rates of assault of anywhere in the world.

These are not easy shackles to shake off in the eyes of potential investors and young professionals looking to move to the city, but Glasgow has come a long way in changing people’s views.

In a report by the BBC, speaking to the Institute for Economics and

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Culture Home to the world famous Glasgow International Festival, the city has become a European hub of culture and art. Perhaps often feeling in the shadow of its contemporary Edinburgh’s festival, the city has put enormous resources into making their own festival of arts into a jewel to be proud of.

In an article for the Independent, Hettie Judah noted the shift from industrial heritage into a cradle of creativity, with the city’s artists some of the best in the world at taking old or derelict industrial spaces and turning them into thought provoking and inspiring installations.

Glasgow, Scotland

Interviewed by Judah for the article, festival director Sarah McCrory said of the city: “If I were an artist, I’d move here in a hot minute,” When asked to expand on the reasons for her love for Glasgow, she cited available studio space, affordability, and a pace of life that allows “more time to develop ideas”. It’s also noted the sense of interconnectivity that many of the artistic spaces and projects feel with each other across the city, with many collaborating and working together to push Glasgow to the forefront of the art scene.

Cinema, art and theatre are all thriving in the city and having come from a position where not many even knew about this burgeoning scene, Glasgow has burst on to the modern day scene somewhat under the radar.

In terms of whether we can recommend Glasgow to you on the basis of culture? Based on the evidence presented by those currently working within the city’s art scene, absolutely. The city seems on an upward curve of late and we’d certainly encourage anybody who enjoys cultural outings to make the most of it.

put in his review for nightlife around the city, and it was roundly positive.

When looking at specific destinations around the city for new residents or those simply enjoying a few days in Glasgow, he said: “Music is the food of love and good times in Glasgow pubs, but the high-octane weekend bar and club scene on Sauchiehall Street is not for everyone. Alternative venues abound in the West End around Byres Road and Ashton Lane, in the Merchant City, and on Argyle Street in the upcoming Finnieston district. Roots of a cultural renaissance are also springing up in the south side of the city”.

He also talks of a vibrant music scene with local acts and smaller bands finding ample opportunity to showcase their talents in the city’s many small independent venues. His tips? The Teutchers Triangle, a trio of pubs dedicated to music and whiskey lovers. Blackfriars also makes his list, a real ale gastropub and live music venue in the merchant city.

Nightlife

Will Coldwell of The Guardian weighed in on this subject too, after reviewing a night out there, saying:“Glasgow’s nightlife - and the city in general - may have a raucous reputation, fuelled by a heady mix of cold air, fried food and tonic wine, but it’s also one of the most creative, friendly and witty scenes in the country.”

In a piece for The Telegraph back in May, their resident expert Gavin Bell

Much of this ties into the highly thought of arts and culture scene and they

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share many similar characteristics. A city that has a hedonistic reputation always has the potential to deliver for those looking for it but, perhaps under the radar, it can certainly deliver to those more hipster desires for locally brewed ales, quirky venues and quieter surroundings that the likes of London and Manchester are considered more fit to host.

Glasgow seems to have an extensive and quality range of night life options for just about anybody. Is it worth recommending? We certainly think so.

With an average salary of £27,553 Glasgow is behind only London, Cambridge and Bristol in terms of average earnings and ranks higher than Manchester, Birmingham and Edinburgh in those league tables.

Prominent sectors in the city that are attracting high salaries, according to Payscale.com, are Software Engineering (£30,000), Civil Engineering (£28,000), Software Development (£27,000) and Operations Managers (£33,000). Software, IT and digital development are all blossoming industries finding their feet in a city that really is beginning to look like it could be the whole package, if not now then certainly in the near future.

Jobs and earnings We know that it has the culture and we’ve found it’s got the nightlife, but unless you’re going for a holiday or a city break then these two qualities won’t be any good in isolation. What we really need to find out is whether this city can provide a good living standard and, similarly, cost of living.

According to the Scottish government’s latest population survey, the employment rate in Glasgow is 67.1%, in comparison to the UK’s national average of 74.2%, so slightly down in national terms, but still significantly higher than ten years ago, when it was hovering closer to 50%.

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The jobs market, whilst not as robust as the likes of London or Manchester, is certainly well paid and offers careers in a variety of sectors and industries. It begs the question, if the salaries are high and the job market is good, can we count affordable property as the missing piece of the puzzle?

Property The average property price in Glasgow currently sits at slightly over £120,000 which is extremely reasonable if we consider this vs earnings

Clyde Arc Bridge, Glasgow

and also against the average London price of £494,000.

In fact, not just comparing it to London, but to most other places Glasgow property prices are extremely reasonable. Of the twenty major cities ranked by HomeTrack, only Liverpool represents better value for money than the Scottish city.

In terms of growth over the last three months only 3 other cities, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Manchester, outperform Glasgow, with price growth of 5.9% in the last twelve months alone. Glasgow has grown, variably, every year for the past 12 years.

The average rental price in Scotland is £772, however the average rent in Glasgow for a two bedroom property is just £743 which ranks very reasonably amongst the other major cities in the UK.

Through investment, growth and sensible management by successful governments and councils the city has a blossoming cultural community full of inspiration and support. Further to this the nightlife has diversified and offered new residents and tourists a variety of opportunities to enjoy the wealth the city has to offer.

Finally, Glasgow offers a good quality of life at a cost tthat won’t mean you need to work 15 jobs just to afford to eat. The housing is within budget and offers a good investment for the future.

All in all whilst it may not yet be the finished article or in the same stages of development as the likes of Manchester or Bristol, Glasgow is certainly as close to that stage as it could be and, ultimately, those who have the confidence to make the move now may well find themselves getting in ahead of the curve.

Summary Glasgow has done an utterly superb job in moving away from the days where it was perceived as a dark, violent and dangerous city without the same types of artistic or cultural scenes of the other major UK cities.

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From conception to completion Knight Knox has an established portfolio of off-plan premium investment opportunities ranging in price from ÂŁ89,995 - ÂŁ519,995.

Contact us today to speak to one of our experienced property consultants. +44 (0)161 772 1394 info@knightknox.com www.knightknox.com

Top: Left cgi image: X1 Manchester Waters - available. Middle cgi image: X1 The Gateway - sold out and in construction. Right image: X1 Media City Tower 1 - completed and occupied.

Middle: Left image: Bridgewater Gate - completed and occupied. Middle cgi image: X1 Chatham Waters - available. Right image: The Queen’s Brewery - completed and occupied.

Bottom: Knight Knox Investor Seminars

GREAT CENTRAL Sheffield PRICES FROM :

£90,000 31 modern apartments Next big UK market Short walk to city centre Great transport links Lettings and management company in place

​ reat Central is the latest new development from Knight G Knox in Sheffield, one of the UK’s fastest-growing cities which is set to be the next big national property market.

Comprised of 131 stunning apartments spread over eight storeys, Great Central is set to be an extremely popular addition to the busy Sheffield residential market.

With both rents and house prices in the city predicted to rise significantly over the next 5 years, this is the perfect time to get ahead of the game and invest in Sheffield.

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BRIDGEWATER WHARF Greater Manchester PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ118,495 Local rental market is growing strongly Superb public transport links Lettings and management company in place Within walking distance of MediaCityUK Perfectly placed between Mancehster and Salford

Bridgewater Wharf is the new development from Fortis Developments and Knight Knox in Greater Manchester, close to both Manchester and Salford city centres. Comprising 376 apartments spread over eight storeys, the development is a premium opportunity for investors looking for their next property.

The studio, one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom residential apartments at Bridgewater Wharf are sure to prove popular in Salford which is suffering from a ongoing shortage of high quality rental accommodation.

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NORTHILL APARTMENTS Salford Quays PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ109,995 269 luxury apartments Excellent transport links Within walking distance of MediaCityUK High rental demand in the area Easy access to Manchester city centre

Northill Apartments is the latest addition to the flagship development, Fortis Quay and is sure to be popular amongst the thousands of young professionals looking to live and work in Salford Quays.

There will be a range of luxury apartments from studios to 3 beds, which will raise the bar in modern living. All apartments will be designed to the highest possible standard with state-of-the-art fixtures and fittings, making it the perfect addition to any property portfolio.

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PALATINE GARDENS PHASE 2 Sheffield PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ94,500 Phase 1 in construction Close to city centre Public transport nearby High rental demand in local area Fully let and managed by an experienced letting agent

​ alatine Gardens Phase 2 is the latest luxury residential P development to arrive on the oversubscribed Sheffield rental market. Situated in the Shalemoor area of Sheffield, Palatine Gardens Phase 2 is within walking distance of both the city centre and the trendy Kelham Island district.

These large luxury apartments will provide residents with high-end fixtures and furnishings, as well as a stunning enclosed garden and secure bicycle storage.

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X1 MANCHESTER WATERS Manchester PRICES FROM :

£109,995 5 minutes to Manchester city centre Waterfront location Good local transport and amenities Private tenant amenities Managed by award winning X1 Lettings

X1 Manchester Waters is the 28th joint venture development from Knight Knox and X1 and will deliver luxury waterfront apartments to the thriving buy-to-let market.

Located just 5 minutes away from Manchester City centre the location of this development is unrivalled, giving tenants the tranquillity of waterside living as well as everything that the UK’s ‘second city’ has to offer on the doorstep.

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X1 MEDIA CITY TOWER 4 Salford Quays PRICES FROM :

£124,950 Studios, 1 and 2-bedroom apartments Lettings and management company in place Private communal facilities Great transport links and shopping All 3 previous phases sold out

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The fourth and final tower in X1 Media City will follow in the footsteps of its predecessors, offering high-end residential living in a highly sought-after area.

This development’s stunning glass-fronted exterior perfectly epitomises the luxury within, and is just a stone’s throw away from the iconic MediaCityUK site on the picturesque Salford Quays waterfront.

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X1 THE LANDMARK Salford PRICES FROM :

£130,000 Private communal facilities Beautiful balconies with dynamic city views Prime city centre location Within walking distance of local amenities Experienced management company in place

The newest addition to the Greater Manchester skyline, X1 The Landmark will provide 191 stunning apartments to the thriving Salford rental market.

Situated in a prime location between two thriving cities, X1 The Landmark will offer residents the best of both worlds—able to enjoy the picturesque waterfront destination found in Salford’s MediaCityUK, yet just a stone’s throw away from Manchester’s dynamic city centre.

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X1 THE CAMPUS Salford PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ89,995 Built by experienced developer X1 Close to excellent public transport links Close to local shops, bars and restaurants On-site gymnasium Private student accommodation is a booming investment class

X1 The Campus is the latest student development from the award-winning X1. This newly-built development is well located on the university campus, and will offer students great on-site ammenities and facilities.

Salford plays host to everything which a modern student could possibly want from a university city – not just a fantastic university which is a leader in its field, but also a range of pubs, restaurants and shops in the local area.

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THE TOWER AT X1 THE QUARTER Liverpool PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ89,995 Highly sought-after location Lettings and management company in place Private communal facilities Great transport links and close to shopping Built by experienced developer

The Tower is the fifth and final phase of X1 The Quarter, X1’s award-winning development near the beautiful Liverpool waterfront, with all previous phases sold out and fully tenanted.

The success of the previous phases demonstrates the huge demand for prime residential accommodation in Liverpool, and The Tower at X1 The Quarter is sure to prove popular with both investors and future tenants.

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DE VELOPMENT

««««« BEST RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT MERSEYSIDE X1 The Quarter

by X1 Developments

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BARREL YARD Manchester PRICES FROM :

SOLD OUT 1, 2, 3 & 4-bed apartments and townhouses Lettings and management company in place Short distance to Manchester city centre Built by an experienced developer Great transport links

Barrel Yard is located in South Manchester, just minutes away from the exciting city centre. The development benefits from local public transport as well as being a short drive from the city centre, where residents can enjoy all the retail, recreation and cultural amenities that Manchester has to offer.

Furthermore, trendy local areas such as Chorlton and Didsbury are only a short drive away from Barrel Yard.

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BRIDGEWATER GATE Salford PRICES FROM :

SOLD OUT Local rental market is booming Private rooftop terrace Great transport links Built by an experienced developer On-site lettings and management company

Bridgewater Gate is enviably located on the edge of Manchester city centre in the thriving area of Castlefield.

This luxurious development will have all the advantages of being a short walk away from the local parks and independent shops of suburbia, but also the vibrant bars and restaurants of the city.

It also sits within walking distance of MediaCityUK, home of the BBC and ITV.

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NOW SOLD OUT

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X1 AIRE Leeds PRICES FROM :

SOLD OUT 1 and 2-bedroom apartments Lettings and management company in place Private communal facilities State-of-the-art apartments Prime location in the heart of Leeds

X1 Aire is Knight Knox’s latest development in the heart of the thriving city of Leeds. This newly-built development provides state-of-the-art living for a vastly undersupplied Leeds rental market, containing a stunning array of apartments ranging from bespoke studios to 2-bed penthouses.

X1 Aire will take boutique city centre living to the next level, providing state-of-the-art apartments to the private rental market.

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COMPLETED & TENANTED

SPECTRUM Manchester PRICES FROM :

ÂŁ172,950 Completed and tenanted development Private landscaped gardens Great central location Finance options availlable High quality fixtures and fittings

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Spectrum delivers the best of both worlds, combining chic, urban living with the tranquility of private landscaped gardens.

These studio, one, two and three-bed apartments are finished to the highest specification, with floor-to-ceiling windows and full-length balconies in most apartments.

Light floods into the living space and views across the city are a constant reminder of how close you are to all conviniences and amenities.

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MULBERRY PLACE Salford PRICES FROM :

SOLD OUT Highly sought-after location Lettings and management company in place Close to Salford and Manchester City Centres Excellent local transport links Sold prices in Salford up 22% on previous year - July 2017

Located in the heart of Salford, Mulberry Place brings 38 chic apartments to the city’s thriving buy-to-let market in the form of spacious one and two bedroom apartments.

Residents of Mulberry Place will also benefit from excellent on-site facilities such as a beautifully landscaped communal courtyard, bicycle storage and off-street car parking spaces provided for selected apartments. Some apartments will also enjoy the benefit of having their own balcony.

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COMPLETED & TENANTED

BELLS COURT Sheffield PRICES FROM :

SOLD OUT Assured 7% rental income for 1 year Fully-furnished Excellent city centre location Luxury studio apartments High rental demand in Sheffield

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Located in the heart of the city centre Bells Court is a high-end residential conversion, bringing 29 luxury studio apartments to the ever growing rental market in Sheffield.

Ideal for both students and young professionals Bells Court answers the growing need for premium rental accommodation, and is perfectly located for tenants to enjoy all that the city has to offer.

LOOKING FOR PROPERTY TO BUY? BE SURE TO VISIT THE

The UK’s largest and longest running property investment event is presented at ExCeL London every April and October.

The major names in UK and international property will be out in force with plenty of ‘off-market’ bargain deals and show exclusives to choose from.

E FREW

SHO Y ENTR

REGISTER ONLINE AT www.propertyinvestor.co.uk NOTE: Seminar booking opens approximately 6 weeks before show opening day

Contact us today to speak to one of our experienced property consultants. +44 (0)161 772 1394 info@knightknox.com www.knightknox.com

Top: Left cgi image: X1 Manchester Waters - available. Middle cgi image: X1 The Gateway - sold out and in construction. Right image: X1 Media City Tower 1 - completed and occupied.

Middle: Left image: Bridgewater Gate - completed and occupied. Middle cgi image: X1 Chatham Waters - available. Right image: The Queen’s Brewery - completed and occupied.

Bottom: Knight Knox Investor Seminars