Global Property Scene Edition 26

GLOBAL

PROPERTY NO. SCENE ISSUE 026

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This issue: The rise of the influencer | Style over function, architecture that doesn't deliver Paris Motor Show | Should I move to Dublin?

MARKET IN FOCUS: QATAR

A GUIDE TO INVESTING IN POLAND

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INSIDE / ISSUE 026 FEATURES

53 23 Architecture that doesn't Global travel trends for 2019 deliver A building is not just an empty shell that exists purely to protect us from the weather. Four walls and a roof may be the basic principle, but surely a building must offer more. Its form is developed through its purpose. What is the building to be used for and how can I make that experience the best it can be?

Despite a changing economy forcing many to tighten their purse-strings, holidaying appears to remain a priority for most, with the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) Holiday Habits Report 2018 showing that in the last 12 months over half (60%) of the UK population went on an overseas holiday, the highest number since 2011.

INVESTING IN POLAND | 42

66 79 Booking sites are asked The rise of the to tighten up influencer Few would argue that online marketplaces and booking sites aren’t handy. Never has it been simpler to book a trip, often in a couple of clicks.

On the surface booking websites provide a simple and efficient list of options, sortable by price, distance and rating to help you make – what you think is – an informed choice.

With almost 13 million sponsored posts on Instagram in 2017 alone, influencer marketing is a powerful vehicle for business. Anticipated to grow at an exponential rate from an estimated industry worth of US$2bn to US$10bn by 2020, the future of the industry looks bright, but is it really as harmless as it might seem on the surface?

REGULAR ARTICLES

LISTINGS

11 Market in Focus: Qatar

94 UK residential and student buy-to-let

Qatar is a peninsula that consists of mainly desert and ultra-modern concrete jungles, not dissimilar to its wealthy neighbours in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia.

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.

89 Should I move to Dublin?

Knight Knox has sold thousands of properties. We have experts on the Famous for its European vibe, colourful ground that can help to find your perfect property. Why purchase with buildings, cobbled streets and cosy anybody else? pubs, Dublin is a favourite for many.

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NOV/DEC 2018

GLOBAL

EDITOR’S NOTE

PROPERTY NO. SCENE ISSUE 026

I do find it staggering how quickly this year seems to have passed, is it really time again for one to engage in the pursuance of the perfect tree? We only just dispensed with its predecessor, which bafflingly we’re still finding needles from. I will reiterate my stance from last year in which I admit time's increasing scarcity could well be an age thing, but in defiance I will continue remain remiss on that particular topic.

The Investment Publication | www.globalpropertyscene.com

This issue: The rise of the influencer | Style over function, architecture that doesn't deliver Paris Motor Show | Should I move to Dublin?

MARKET IN FOCUS: QATAR

A GUIDE TO INVESTING IN POLAND

Something that should never be remiss is architecture, as we as a society rely on the creativity of design to improve our everyday life.

What is the building to be used for and how can I make that experience the best it can be are both important questions. I’m sure that all designers set out with this in mind, but the results won’t always align. In this edition of Global Property Scene, we take a look at some of the world’s most ambitious designs which may well have underdelivered.

Another popular topic currently falling short is our global governments approach to tackling ever increasing levels of carbon in our atmosphere.

Following three years of intensive research, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have warned that the window to make real change to rising global temperatures is closer than we think. With just 12 years remaining to make real change we discuss what may be holding up proceedings.

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When it comes to controversy, the Middle East has its fair share of provocateurs. It’s probably fair to say that Qatar is in the running for top spot.

Either through design or accident - it’s never far from a headline. Keen to deliver on its successful application to host the next World Cup in 2022, we thought it was time to look how the country is dealing with a host of tight sanctions and restrictions.

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CREDITS Individual Samantha Jones, Alex Timperley, Will Leyland, Emma Martin, Sam Taylor, Alistair McGovern, Michael Vickers, Mark Williams, Richard Ellis, John Power, Martin Copeland Commercial Knight Knox, X1, Fortis Developments, Forshaw Land & Property Group, INTUS Lettings, Gold Key Media, Shutterstock, Unsplash, Property Investor, Qualis Developments, yieldit, Paris Motor Show, Spectrum Digital, COS Printers, Depositphoto

And finally, we look at how influencers are changing the face of global commerce. With almost 13 million sponsored posts on Instagram in 2017 alone, influencer marketing is a powerful vehicle for business. Anticipated to grow at an exponential rate from an estimated industry worth of US$2bn to US$10bn by 2020, the future of the industry looks bright, but is it really as harmless as it might seem on the surface?

That’s it for 2018, we hope you enjoy edition 26.

Have a great Christmas and happy new year from all of us here at GPS.

Editor-in-chief Michael Smith

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THE CHANGING FACE OF BANKING Will Leyland

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f you’re with a high street bank, one of the traditional big boys, and you don’t live in a city centre then I’d like you to open your banking app. One thing you might notice; where there was once a quite prominent feature that allowed you to locate your nearest branch or cashpoint, there is probably something else in its place. If, like me, you bank with Natwest you’ll notice its been hidden about half way down the help section and if you open it you might notice something a little disconcerting – there probably isn’t a branch or cashpoint on that map for miles.

There’s a reason for that. According to Office for National Statistics (ONS) research 6,000 bank branches have closed since 2010 which represents a third of all bank branches. According to BBC research, about 13 million adults in the UK live in areas where at least half of the local banks and building societies have closed. The ONS also reported in August that more than two thirds of people now use the internet to access banking services.

According to UK Finance, the body that represents banks, the number of debit card payments in 2017 made by consumers, was for the first time greater than the number of cash payments.

“According to BBC research, about 13 million adults in the UK live in areas where at least half of the local banks and building societies have closed.”

Not only this, but free-to-use cash machines are also closing at a record rate as the country moves further away from traditional banking and towards a cash free, digital age of banking. The fact that banks see fit to close such a concerningly high number of local branches indicates, at the very least, that the financial incentive to do so is real.

Simply enough, they don’t attract enough customers who want to physically bank in branch and the cost of keeping them open is too great.

So too is the confidence of such banks that the backlash from customers won’t be significant enough to cause them any real reputational damage or lose them enough business to reconsider. The figures back them up too according to data from the British Bankers Association and EY cited by Finextra.

According to Business Insider, three of the UK’s largest banks have continued to see adoption of their mobile

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banking offerings — Lloyds Group, Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland added millions of mobile users in 2016, reaching 8 million, 5.7 million, and 4.2 million mobile banking customers respectively. This has resulted in skyrocketing usage — from 2012 to 2017, consumer use of banking apps increased 356%.

Not just this, but the rise of digital only banks such as Monzo, now worth millions, are fuelled by a consumer base that realistically has very little use for physical, branch based banking. Use of cheques is practically non-existent, cash usage remains at a paltry 9% of GDP in most G8 economies and branches simply cost too much to run.

This, however, ignores the real social impact of closures on local communities that have older populations and a concentration of small businesses that deal mainly in cash.

Many older customers and business owners report having to travel for hours to do their banking and paying in, and in tourist areas the problem is highlighted further. In coastal tourist towns where branches have shut, this is usually followed by cash machine closures and there are some that have just three cash machines per 10,000 residents.

“Use of cheques is practically non-existent, cash usage remains at a paltry 9% of GDP in most G8 economies and branches simply cost too much to run.”

It’s reasonable to assume that as traditional banks move further away from physical banking in order to compete with challengers like Monzo that somebody will have to step in to fill the void, and it appears that the Post Office see this as their opportunity to recruit these customers.

With a huge new advertising campaign based around physical branch-based banking, the Post Office is now offering current account and every day banking to these customers who have been failed by the fast paced nature of modern capitalism.

The hope is that, in the long term, this shift will find the right balance between providing younger customers cutting edge technology whilst older customers and businesses are provided the services they need by a more traditional provider.

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MARKET IN FOCUS QATAR Words : Will Leyland | View : Chen Min Chun

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autonomous Qatari government terminated the 1916 agreement and became an independent sovereign nation.

An odd country in purely geographical terms it juts out into the Persian Gulf as a peninsula that consists of mainly desert and ultra-modern concrete jungles, not dissimilar to its wealthy neighbours in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia.

Qatar played a significant part in the Gulf War, providing tank support to the Saudis in their battles with the Iraqis, and the country is today ruled by the Al Thani dynasty, which has ruled, in differing ways, since 1825. The country has Sharia Law as its main legal framework and plays a fairly influential role in world affairs, given its wealth.

hen it comes to controversy, the Middle East has its fair share of provocateurs. It’s probably fair to say that Qatar is in the running for top spot. Either through design or accident, it’s never far from the headlines.

The very modern etymology of neighbourhood conjures ideas of “nearby inhabitants” and a “community of people who live close together”, perhaps suggesting that Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia live in relative harmony and mutual support. That may have once been the case but recently things have escalated quickly, resembling a warring family rather than a peaceful community.

Qatar’s GDP was $167.6bn in 2017, making it the 56th richest country in the world by output, however, when these figures are changed to reflect GDP per capita, or the wealth of individual citizens and their spending power, Qatar shoots straight to the number one richest country in the world.

The country has no income tax and corporate law states that any business in the Emirate must be majority owned (51%) by a Qatari legal citizen. The country remains the largest exporter of liquidised natural gas in the world.

Historically part of the British Empire from 1916 to 1971, the peninsula had become a headache for the Sheikh of the time, Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani, who signed a treaty with the British in exchange for protection from aggression from neighbours via sea. The British ruled by proxy for nearly 60 years, taking a good income from the vast oil reserves that were discovered in 1939, with extraction being delayed by World War 2. British influence had been waning since the end of the war and by the time the 70’s rolled around the

Sports investment & controversy Middle Eastern investment into prominent European sports became something of a trend, or even a phenomena, back in the late

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2000’s with Abu Dhabi’s investment arm first acquiring a majority stake in Manchester City during 2008. The was followed by Qatari sports investments who acquiring the complete ownership of Paris Saint Germain F.C in 2012 following the sale of the remaining shares

by US investment fund Colony Capital. Both clubs have since become two of the biggest clubs in Europe by silverware won and transfer fees paid.

More recently there have been rumours that the sovereign investment arm of Saudi Arabia has made enquiries for Manchester United, who are currently the richest club in the world.

The purchase of both clubs has been seen as a prudent PR move from both the UAE and Qatar rather than any type of realistic profit-turning investment. With both countries keen to promote themselves on the world stage, backing two well established football clubs looks like a natural choice, and on the surface, it appears to be working well.

Qatar Airways, the national airline of the country, appears to have benefitted significantly from their Paris Saint Germain investment.

Total revenues since the acquisition of club have almost doubled from 24bn Qatar Riyals to 42bn ($11.46bn). They have also expanded their operation and had sponsored Barcelona CF until recently.

There is also, of course, the small matter of the World Cup, due to be staged in 2022. Plagued by allegations of corruption and human rights abuses, as well as the farcical prospect of the tournament being held in the winter, the entire process so far has been something of a PR disaster for the country, counter to its other sports interests.

The bidding process for the FIFA World Cup, which began in 2009 and was completed in 2010, became an international joke as the tiny Middle Eastern nation fought off competition from the US, South Korea, Japan and Australia to take the winning bid, only to be mired in allegations of bribery and corruption.

The country’s workforce is currently made of over 95% foreign workers, and workers’ rights are almost unheard of. The construction of the stadia required for the tournament has, so far, caused the deaths of thousands of migrant workers according to trade unions. Although the death toll is hard to put a concrete number on, Hans-Christian Gabrielsen, Leader of Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions has suggested that the number may be as high as 4,000.

Asked about the deaths, he said: “If we were to hold a minute of silence for every estimated death of a migrant worker due to the constructions of the Qatar World Cup, the first 44 matches of the tournament would be played in silence" .

Spat with Abu Dhabi Almost two years ago, there was a pretty spectacular falling out between Qatar and four of its most economically prominent neighbours amid claims and counter-claims of state-sponsored hacking, the promotion of fake news and support for terrorism.

The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt all severed economic ties completely, effectively cutting Qatar out of the region as a lone state, with trade embargos implemented almost immediately. The Qatari national airline had to cope with cutting its international flight routes in the area from 18 to two overnight, adding to flight times and costs.

It coped, though, and other areas of the Qatari economy have actually improved. As stated by Forbes, an IMF review of the Qatari economy in March stated new trade routes were quickly established – with Oman, Turkey and Iran among others – and the banking system also adjusted, in part through a rise in government deposits.

“The diplomatic rift has acted as a catalyst for enhancing domestic food production and reducing reliance on a small group of countries,” said the IMF in March. Additionally, Alastair Wilson,

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The Pearl-Qatar, Doha, Qatar

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"Qatar is a fascinating story, and one that marks elegantly the shift in financial muscle away from Western influence after the discovery of vast oil reserves across the middle east that has caused war, famine and diplomatic crisis."

managing director for global sovereign ratings at Moody’s Investors Service, a credit ratings agency said: “At least from what we've seen so far, the impact is nowhere near as severe on the Qatar economy as we might have thought.”

Whilst there is no reliable data for yields for Qatari property, according to International Global Property Guide “the nationwide real estate price index dropped 16.91% during the year to Q2 2018, from y-o-y declines of 9.65% in Q1 2018, 10.42% in Q4 2017, 3.47% in Q3 2017, and 4.52% in Q2 2017. Property prices fell by 6.62% q-o-q during the latest quarter.”

Qatar is a fascinating story, and one that marks elegantly the shift in financial muscle away from Western influence after the discovery of vast oil reserves across the middle east that has caused war, famine and diplomatic crisis.

Qatar, depending on who you speak to, can be legitimately described as both an inspiring economic success story of a small former British colony that made the most of its natural resources, and a brutal dictatorship state that funnels wealth to a small minority whilst the 95% of the workforce that are foreign born are treated like dirt and made to work for peanuts. Both can be simultaneously true at the same time without being mutually exclusive.

What to make of Qatar as an investment opportunity? If you’re looking to move there to open a business or be employed in contract work then the message very much appears to be “you’re welcome and we won’t make you pay tax”. Investing in actual assets remains something of a risk however, in the midst of a diplomatic crisis that is seeing the Qatari economy begin to resemble a rollercoaster. For those with an appetite for risk then perhaps this is for you, given the potential rewards, but for those who prefer a little more stability then the advice would probably be to seek alternatives.

Traditional dhow fishing boat in Doha Marina, Qatar

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Doha Marina, Qatar

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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.

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October 3rd Plant PreFab secures multi-million pound backing Californian based start-up Plant PreFab has announced that its secured a US$6.7m investment in its recent Series A funding round, namely from Obvious Ventures and Amazon led venture capital funder the Alexa Fund.

Plant PreFab, which creates and builds sustainable single and multifamily prefabricated homes, aims to construct homes faster and typically with less costs and construction waste – making it an innovative player in the construction industry, which is crippled by rising costs and mounting demand for homes.

The company says it can reduce construction time by as much as half and slash building costs by 10-25%.

It is notable that Amazon has chosen to back such a company, with the move solidifying Amazon Alexa’s place in the home. By investing in Plant PreFab Amazon is safeguarding the future of the voice technology by working with home providers to bring to the market a new era of smart homes fitted out with Alexa controlled devices.

Director of the Alexa Fund, Paul Bernard, commented: "Voice has emerged as a delightful technology in the home, and there are now more than 20,000 Alexa-compatible smart home devices from 3,500 different brands. We're thrilled to support [Plant Prefab] as they make sustainable, connected homes more accessible to customers and developers."

Steve Glenn, Plant Prefab's CEO added: "We aspire to make the process of building a home far easier, faster, and less expensive in major cities and part of this effort involves making sure our homes meet our clients’ lifestyle needs, and having greater and more effective smart home technology and integration is part of that. Amazon is certainly a leader in this domain and we hope and expect to learn much from them."

The move is a strategic one from Amazon and follows the release of a number of Alexa-powered smart-home devices over the last few weeks.

Although not its first attempt to integrate Alexa on a national level – it already has a deal in place with US construction firm Lennar Corporation – the investment is just one more way that we can expect to see Amazon ruling the smart-home sector.

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October 17th Facebook's negative implications From its origins as a social media network, Facebook has turned itself into one of the most powerful and richest media companies in the world. It wields an incredible amount of power and its mistakes have outsized negative implications for the world.

Consider the recent ongoing mess regarding fake news and accounts, which is known to have played a part in the US presidential election, is suspected to have influenced many other elections across Europe, and even helped to incite a genocide in Myanmar; whilst no-one at Facebook was personally responsible for any of these events, the distinct lack of action gives the impression that the issues with the platform aren’t being taken seriously even when the fallout is so impactful and severe.

This impression of carelessness has not been aided by the most recent accusations that Facebook has been misleading brands over how much time people spend watching videos on the platform. By inflating its figures Facebook is alleged to have purposefully given the impression that it was a much more impressive video platform than it actually was, thereby implying to advertisers that the product was more valuable and earning Facebook more money at the expense of their customers.

Facebook admitted in September 2016 that it falsely increased reported viewing times by 60-80%, inspiring fraud lawsuits from advertisers, but the latest complaints are of a different order of magnitude.

Following review of 80,000 internal Facebook documents it appears that the initial complaint may have drastically underestimated the issue, with the video viewing figures actually being inflated by

anywhere up to 900%. In addition, the documents reveal that Facebook was aware of this as early as 2015 despite earlier denials that it tried to hide pertinent information from its customers.

As mentioned previously, this is bad news for advertisers if true. Companies will have been pouring their money into video advertising on Facebook for many years based on mistaken reporting from the company.

The second group to lose out are the thousands of writers who lost their jobs partially as a consequence of how much Facebook overstated the value of video.

Major media outlets around the world decided to ‘pivot to video’ and drastically reduce the amount of written content produced in the belief that this is what people wanted. However it turns out that they did not want this, with Digiday reporting that publishers which pivoted to video saw a 60% drop in traffic over a year.

Unsurprisingly, a strategy which focussed on producing expensive, time consuming video content for uploading to other platforms such as Facebook did not magically increase profits. Most people do not want to get all their information from videos, but the numbers coming out of Facebook – numbers which look like they might be seriously wrong – ended up with lots of careers being ruined for no reason.

All in all this is another blow to the credibility of a company which is simultaneously dealing with fake news, privacy and other issues. As yet another ‘mistake’ seems to have worked in favour of Facebook and against the interests of everyone else, trust is hard to come by. We don’t know how this latest episode will end but it is becoming increasingly hard to recommend Facebook to investors as faith in the firm continues to dissipate.

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October 22nd Scottish Power switches to 100% wind power

Scottish Power, one of the UK’s ‘Big Six’ energy firms, has made a bold move into a 100% renewable energy future by selling its remaining gas power stations to Drax in a deal worth £702m.

The total deal includes four gas power stations in England, two hydropower schemes and a pump storage station in Scotland, leaving Scottish Power with a 100% wind power portfolio.

The company’s customers will be supplied with a mixture of green and brown energy as the transition takes place, but the provider will eventually replace all fossil fuel energy with renewable alternatives. Key to this will be the East Anglia One offshore wind farm which will be the world’s largest when it opens in 2020.

Scottish Power’s parent company Iberdrola stated that the move was part of a long term strategy to tackle climate change and it would now be freer to invest further into renewable technologies and energy generation.

Keith Anderson, the chief executive of Scottish Power, said of the move: “We are leaving carbon generation behind for a renewable future powered by cheaper green energy.”

Whilst it is important to bear in mind that the gas plants sold by Scottish Power will continue to operate and produce emissions under another company’s flag, rather than being decommissioned completely, the move to sell is certainly a positive one.

It has been known for a long time that the fossil fuel industry is aware the future is renewable and green but has chosen to delay that transition for monetary gain. However, if a giant like Scottish Power has decided to make the transition then it is likely that others will follow. The wind of change is blowing in only one direction and the writing is on the wall for fossil fuels.

And in fact it appears that Scottish Power is so excited by its renewable future that it has decided to move into solar energy for the very first time to supplement its commitment to wind.

Anderson said of solar power: “The solar market has had difficulties over the last wee while. But you look at where the technology cost is getting to and the possibilities of integrating it with wind … how it balances from season to season wind and solar output, and we see a good opportunity there for further investment.”

This is potentially game changing news for the UK solar energy market. The sector has stalled thanks to government subsidies being removed for no real reason and badly needs a shot in the arm. Up to now the solar market has been the preserve of smaller firms, and it can be hoped that the entrance of a ‘Big Six’ energy company will push prices down and proliferate the technology at a rate which has so far been beyond us.

Anderson continued: “We need to invest in the cheapest forms of energy – that’s onshore wind, offshore wind, it’s going to be solar – and that will help drive down the cost of energy.

“Look at the IPCC report last week. My absolute belief is that organisations need to be at the forefront of that change. We can’t be part of the problem, we have to be part of the solution.”

It is encouraging to hear words like this combined with actual action from a person in a position to make a difference, and Scottish Power has confirmed that it will be bidding in the next round of government subsidies for offshore wind farms which will total £557m in 2019 on top of beginning its investment into solar power.

Plans are in place to develop further capacity off the coast of East Anglia which will dwarf even the largest currently operational offshore farms and further cement the UK’s leadership in this market; Scottish Power’s proposed East Anglia Three will be almost twice as large at 1,200 MW as the current leader off the Cumbrian coast which has a capacity of 659MW. East Anglia Three will be able to power 900,000 homes on completion.

Every month seems to bring new confirmation that renewable energy is arriving at a speed we perhaps don’t appreciate.

Scottish Power is rightfully earning plaudits for being among the first big movers but the time is coming when every energy company will have to make a similar move. The time to back renewable energy is now.

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November 5th Can Jaguar turn it around?

Jaguar Land Rover, one of the world’s premier car makers, has been experiencing some troubles of late.

Issues such as the falling popularity of diesel cars, a fall in Chinese demand and general uncertainty thanks to the ongoing Brexit issue all contributed to a loss of £90m in Q3 2018. More worryingly, this marked the first six months of consecutive losses since 2008 when Tata Motors took the company over.

As generally happens, the consequences have so far fallen on the shoulders of the workforce which has endured severe job losses and a reduction in working hours. 1,000 jobs were lost at the flagship Solihull plant, which produces Range Rovers, earlier this year in addition to a two week total shutdown of operations to allow sales to catch up with production. The Castle Bromwich plant, which produces Jaguars, has been moved to a three-day working week thanks to similarly poor sales.

Chinese sales have slumped by half thanks to the market slowing; sales in the USA, Jaguar Land Rover’s largest market, fell by almost 5%; sales in Europe fell by just under 12% because of a new vehicle testing regime; sales in the UK fell by 0.6%.

Altogether it is not a pretty picture and it has inspired the launch of a £2.5bn turnaround programme which aims to save the company. The main planks of this plan are £1bn in “savings” which likely means further job losses, a further £1bn reduction in investment plans, and £500m taken out of inventory and working capital.

Further details have not been forthcoming so far but it seems that the board of Jaguar Land Rover is taking the threat of changing markets seriously. The issue of what happens to the UK market in the event of a destructive Brexit is unclear, but it is possible that Jaguar Land Rover is acting as the canary in the coalmine in this case.

If a relatively minor change can cause the UK’s biggest automaker to put a £2.5bn turnaround plan into action then what drastic measures might be required to save other less proactive companies in the future? Similarly, if a company as established and well-known around the world is beginning to suffer already, what does the future hold for other less renowned companies which perform equally vital roles in the economy?

It is to be hoped that this big plan turns Jaguar Land Rover’s fortunes around and it is likely that other companies will be watching closely and learning what they can.

November 14th Should we be worried about unstable oil prices?

The announcement of fresh US sanctions against Iran has triggered a new wave of uncertainty in global oil prices. But what are people specifically worried about, and why are prices changing so rapidly?

As you might expect, the main concerns seem to be around supply. The initial announcement caused prices to balloon as the market assumed that there would be a shortage; Brent crude oil rose to more than US$86 a barrel in response, its highest level for four years.

However the market has settled since then for a few reasons. Probably the most important calming measure was the USA issuing waivers to a limited number of companies to continue trading with Iranian oil firms. Countries including China, India, South Korea, Japan and Turkey are among those allowed to purchase from Iran, and whilst production has slowed to 1.8 million barrels a day there is still a significant amount of oil coming out of the country.

In addition, American oil production has increased at a faster rate than expected, Saudi Arabia has upped its production to near-historic levels and Russia continues to pump oil at extremely high rates. These factors have mitigated concerns about supply for many.

However, this heightened production comes with issues of its own; if the balance tilts too far the

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other way and there is too much supply then prices are likely to fall. Planning ahead for this possibility, Opec and Russia have agreed to maintain supplies at the current levels to avoid the risk of economic uncertainty in the sector. They are expected to act proactively in this regard.

The final factor which is playing on the minds of oil traders is a bit further in the future. When production is ramped up to meet demand in unusual times it must necessarily come from somewhere else. For instance, Saudi Arabia keeps a spare capacity of oil aside as a buffer to avoid disruptions to supply in emergencies.

Unfortunately there is no guarantee that this buffer is large enough to replace Iranian supply in the long term as well as deal with any other market shocks which occur. It might be a case of one or the other, and that makes oil traders jittery. It has been estimated that the available spare capacity currently stands at 1% of world demand, meaning that we may have a big problem if the USA unilaterally manages to push Iranian oil production to anything close to zero.

And it’s not just Iran that might be an issue; other unstable markets such as Venezuela, Nigeria and Libya could also play their part in unhinging the global oil market in the future.

For now things are stable, but it is worth keeping an eye on not just current oil production but also on the global political situation. As the USA is currently proving, ill thought through moves from one superpower could potentially have damaging effects for everybody else down the line, and nowhere is that more apparent than in the world of oil.

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ARCHITECTURE THAT DOESN'T DELIVER Words : Will Leyland | View : Chen Min Chun

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he Global Property Scene office isn’t based that far from Stockport, Greater Manchester, and there’s a good chance that most from around this area have, at some point, driven past the new ‘Redrock’ development recently built in the town centre just off the motorway.

completely, or rank style above any type of functionality whatsoever.

Burj Khalifa, Dubai The world’s tallest building; the Burj Khalifa is undeniably a breath-taking structure. Impressive and mind blowing, it’s actually a beautiful looking tower. That being said, aside from the country’s government attempting to win a metaphorical waving competition, what really was the point of it?

Designed something like a warehouse, it more resembles a post-modernist nightmarish simulacra of a cinema complex.

Simulacra in the sense that this feels like the Mr Hyde type creation of years of hideous designs that demand attention rather than appreciation - copied from the previous ugly but commercially successful version until the original point of designing such a structure is entirely lost amidst cheap material and eye-bleeding angles.

The tower itself stands as a monument to the practice of flaunting wealth, power and influence in such an obscene way as to ensure you cannot fail to ignore it. Standing at a staggering 2,717 feet (828 metres) it is, of course, the tallest building and tallest free-standing structure in the world.

You only need to Google it to understand that it’s not only a breathtakingly ugly building; its also apparently just been plonked in the only available space without much thought for anything else.

At the height of construction there were a reported 1,200 international migrant workers building the project, with varying reports of death count. Such was the secrecy in which the actual height of the building was held, it is reported that only a handful of people knew and that the shadow of the building was extremely well guarded as there was genuine fear that foreign agents may be able to measure it from the shadow length.

It received the attention it craved in the form of the 2018 Carbunkle Cup, an annual award recognising "architectural sins".

It was designed by British architecture firm, BDP, and the complex cost a reported £45m, only to hit international headlines for the sheer horror of the view.

Opened in 2010, the building holds much of the same function as Redrock; that is to provide commercial space to those who may be able to afford it. The 9th to 16th floors house the ‘Armani residences’.

To address a wider point, however, the complex is a neat motif for some of the recent architectural disasters which either discard style

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The Aon Centre, Chicago

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From the 19th to 108th floor are the residences and the Burj Club, which is a health spa. On the 76th floor is the world’s highest swimming pool, whilst on the 122nd floor is a fine dining restaurant.

On the 124th, 125th and 148th floor are the world’s highest observation decks.

It’s perhaps harsh to brand the Burj as “style over function” as it technically has both. Architecture is subjective and, depending on your tastes, you’re likely to either love it or loathe it. Does it have functionality? Sure, it has apartments, shops, restaurants and viewing platforms as well as a swimming pool.

Does all of that sound particularly inspiring? Not really. In the same way that £45m will only buy you a grotesque cinema complex next to the M62 in Stockport, it feels like a missed opportunity for one of mankind’s greatest achievements to simply act as a monument to modern capitalism.

Compare that to, say the botanical gardens opened in Singapore in 2012, and we perhaps get to the heart of why the Burj has never really captured the hearts of many.

The Aon Centre, Chicago One of the most notable and striking buildings in Chicago, a city famous for skyscrapers that told the story of American capitalism and hard work, the Aon Centre opened in the New East Side in 1974.

A visual wonder, the building was designed by architect firms Edward Durell Stone and The Perkins and Will partnership. With 83 floors and a height of 1,136 feet it stands to this day as the third tallest building in Chicago.

Designed in what you might consider a ‘classic’ skyscraper style, it dominates the skyline around it and has some of the best views in the city. Unfortunately for its designers, however, it will be remembered as one of the biggest architectural disasters of modern history.

One of the things that made the building so originally impressive was the decision to clad the entire building in Carrara marble, an Italian material that looked spectacular. The biggest issue with using such a flashy material became apparent not long after the building opened, as just months later an enormous slab of the marble detached itself from the side of the Aon Centre and crashed through the roof of the neighbouring Prudential Centre.

There were no fatalities or injuries but a lengthy investigation into the accident revealed that the material was much thinner than the normal types of cladding used and therefore was entirely unsuitable for the exterior of a skyscraper. Following the investigation the building had to be completely refaced with granite at an enormous cost of US$80m.

The John Hancock Tower, Boston Much like the Aon Centre in Chicago, the John Hancock tower in Boston was a beautiful looking building and a monument to American culture. At 60 stories high the building was opened in 1976, just two years after the Aon Centre in Chicago.

The building won acclaim and awards for its minimalist design, with the architectural community lavishing praise on the designers I.M.

Burj Khalifa, Dubai

Pei & Partners. Nestled in the Bay Village amongst older and contemporary buildings and churches, the tower stands tallest with its eye capturing windows that make it an enormous reflection in the sky.

Whilst a construction of beauty, the tower also suffered from famous issues and even featured in the 1992 book “Why Buildings Fall Down”. Shortly after it opened the building’s most striking feature became its biggest problem. The windows all around the structure began falling out and crashing down on to the pavement hundreds of feet below, causing public panic.

As it turns out, "Why Buildings Fall Down," authors Matthys Levy and Mario Salvadori explained that this was due to unanticipated, repeated thermal stresses to the panels. In the end every single window, a total of 10,000, had to be replaced at a cost of US$5m.

That wasn’t the only problem though as the building was also making people on the top floors suffer from motion sickness.

All modern skyscrapers constructed around the time featured an ability to absorb strong winds and weather by being able to gently sway with the wind. The Hancock Building, however, was designed with this feature too prominent in the mind and the building swung so wildly that anybody near the top was left feeling sick.

“Shortly after it opened the building’s most striking feature became its biggest problem. The windows all around the structure began falling out and crashing down on to the pavement hundreds of feet below, causing public panic.”

The building still stands today and is still regarded as one of the most iconic in the city, but functionality certainly took a back seat for aesthetics in the design process.

Essentially, however, most buildings that we see today are designed with functionality and technology that couldn’t have been conceived without the mistakes of the past. Whilst we may now look back and laugh at some of the seemingly obvious mistakes made when designing some of the world’s most iconic, or ironically bad, buildings, they’ve served the ultimate purpose in educating future designers in what not to do.

Aside from the miserable and somewhat nihilistic take on modern structures, it has to be accepted that in any capitalist society architecture will exist primarily for function over beauty and apartment blocks or cinemas will always outnumber botanical gardens or opera houses.

Steven Holl, designer at the Institute for Contemporary Art on the campus of Richmond’s Virginia Commonwealth University, says of modern architecture: “It’s not about creating an icon, but shaping public space”.

To an extent he’s probably right. The function of a new building, as well as the overall aesthetic, may well be secondary to its ability to shape and influence public spaces. Certainly it seems that community spaces, socialising and influence now rank highly in the minds of modern architects and communities, and this may well be the long term vision with sustainability and the environment in mind.

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The John Hancock Tower, Boston

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

PARIS MOTOR SHOW 2018 Words : Michael Smith View : Paris Motor show

Peugeot e-LEGEND Concept 28

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ocated in the famous Versailles exhibition centre, Paris Motor Show represents one of the most significant events on the automotive calendar. Its history is of real significance, standing as the world’s first motor show. Launched in 1898 by industry pioneer, Albert de Dion the event moved around Paris until 1910 when it finally found a home for a sustained period in the Grand Palais on the Champs-Élysées.

The event has traditionally been one in which many of the main manufacturers launch significant concepts and models for the coming production year. It would be fair to say that the event has had some difficulty this year, with over a dozen car makers missing from the roster. Volvo, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Vauxhall, Volkswagen, Ford and McLaren to name a few were all missing causing some commentators to suggest that maybe the end of the modern motor show is coming to a close.

Paris Motor Show isn’t the only event that has faced difficulty with brand uptake. Only a few months ago the Swatch Group announced its withdrawal from Baselworld, one of the world’s most significant watch events. This decision sees brands such as Blancpain, Breguet, Harry Winston, Glashütte Original, Omega and Jaquet Droz disappear leaving a vast space to fill. Many brands are finding that other social outlets can offer similar exposure to tradeshows without the significant outlay needed to build and staff large stands.

Despite difficult conditions, Paris didn’t fail to deliver on its promise of new launches with the large French brands of Renault and PSA (Peugeot, DS and Citroën) taking centre stage. All offered a range of new 2019 models along with some very striking concepts (more of that later).

“Paris Motor Show represents one of the most significant events on the automotive calendar. Its history is of real significance, standing as the world’s first motor show.”

Probably one of the most significant launches of the event was the arrival of the all-new BMW 3-series. Using the new lightweight CLAR platform, this new model will allow a host of alternative powertrains that will help BMW electrify the range moving forward. BMW will begin taking orders in March with prices starting from £33,610 for an entry-level 320d.

Just around the corner from BMW was Mercedes who treated us to a host of new launches across the range. The new A-Class can now be purchased in a saloon variant, along with the new AMG A35 powertrain which will sit below the A45 on the A-Class line up.

Reaching 0-62mph in around 4.7 seconds, this new A35 will offer

Porsche Macan

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BMW 3-Series

Audi R8 LMS GT3

Renault Kadjar

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better efficiency with good all-round performance. Prices for this version will start from around £35,580.

Mercedes also launched the new GLE, with a host of diesel and petrol hybrid options. Set to rival the BMW X5 and Audi Q7 prices start from £55,685 with an AMG version to be realised in 2020.

Deliveries for new models will start in spring next year.

Sharing its engine with the Volkswagen Golf R, the all new SQ2 will offer SUV comfort with Hot hatch performance. Hitting 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds the SQ2’s main rival will be the Mercedes GLA which offers similar performance in the same size package.

A new e-tron SUV was also launched in Paris, giving customers an idea of the stylistic future of the Audi range. Next to this was the Audi R8 LMS GT3 race car which gives some idea what the new facelifted R8 may look like when it’s launched next year.

Porsche’s facelifted Macan SUV made its debut, showing slight style tweaks along with an updated interior and infotainment system.

The model has been a real success for the brand, with orders still pouring in for this miniature SUV. No diesel option will be present in the line-up anymore, with the brand taking steps to clean up its engine range. Two new six-cylinder petrol engines will now be on offer to new orders.

One of my favourite launches at the event was the 911 Speedster concept, which takes its inspiration from the 356 Speedster of the late 1940’s. The wide body shape is derived from the 911 Carrera 4 Cabriolet, with a lower roof and windscreen. Despite being described as a concept the model will enter production with 356 models to be produced. Prices aren’t clear and as a Porsche special addition I suspect all will have already been allocated.

Ferrari offered up a pair of amazing racing special editions at this year’s event. SP1 and SP2 are both limited edition cars designed to kick off a new Ferrari line-up called 'Icona'. They will be some of the brands most exclusive models, all of which taking inspiration from the marks long racing history. In this instance the two on display take design cues from the 750 and 850 Monza racing Barchettas of the 1950s. Utilising the 812 Superfast’s 789bhp v12 engine, both have already found homes for over £3m each.

Porsche 911 Speedster Concept

Renault had a packed stand throughout this year’s event, with the brand celebrating its 120th anniversary. Despite having a bunch of eye-catching concepts all eyes were on the facelifted Renault Kadjar. This model has been a success for the brand, having taken the platform from the well-established Nissan Qashqai. The model has received a series of tweaks inside and out, including tech upgrades and new engines.

Peugeot certainly managed to grab the spotlight with its retro-futuristic concept car called e-LEGEND. That wasn’t the only model catching attention with the new 508 which will also be available as the 508 SW. You can also expect the arrival of plug-in hybrid versions of the firm's flagship model next year.

Citroen too made a splash with a host of plug-in hybrid models.

The soon to be launched range topping C5 Aircross SUV will offer strong efficiency in the small SUV sector and will utilise Citroens new EMP2 platform. Expect this model to go on sale next year with prices to be confirmed.

Paris Motor Show may have taken a hit from this year’s missing brands, but having witnessed a host of exciting launches I still have plenty to praise for this years event.

That’s it for this year’s coverage, if you’d like to see more turn the page to see four of our standout concepts from Paris Motor Show 2018.

Ferrari SP1

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Audi e-tron

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STANDOUT CONCEPTS

1. Mercedes EQ Silver Arrow This stunning concept takes its inspiration from the legendary W 125 Grand Prix racing car, which also made its debut at the Paris Motor Show back in 1937. Utilising a 740bhp all-electric drivetrain, this EV gives a glimpse of Mercedes future racing models.

2. DS X E-TENSE DS X E-TENSE is DS Automobiles’ concept of automotive luxury in the year 2035. Fitted with an electric drivetrain developed by DS Performance, this vehicle will offer exquisite craftsmanship through DS master upholsterers who will use the best woven leather and inlaid feather work produced in the workshops of Maison Lemarié.

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3. Renault EZ-Ultimo Certainly, one of the most far-out concepts at this year’s event, the EZ-Ultimo shows the future of autonomous vehicles from Renault. Measuring a whopping 5.8 metres this moving apartment boasts marble inlays, internal walnut wood with a herringbone cabinets and deep luxurious dark green leather upholstery.

4. Peugeot E-Legend What has been referred to as the star of this year’s event, the Peugeot E-Legend takes its style from the iconic 1960’s 504 Coupe. A modern interpretation by designer Gilles Vidal, this all electric concept gives an exciting insight into possible future Peugeot models, with CEO Jean-Phillipe Imparato hinting at its possible production after 2020.

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PEOPLE PLACE IDEA What we build shows what we value, how we think and what we are trying to achieve at a specific point in time. It is how we take the world of thoughts, ideas, fears and dreams and make it real – a time capsule by which future generations can know us, or by which we can look backwards and understand those who came before.

In this series, Global Property Scene examines the midpoint between architecture, history, culture and society in order to explore what the built environment can tell us about our past, present and future.

THE JOY OF PUBLIC SPACE Words : Alex Timperley | View : Rodrigo Kugnharski

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t is estimated that people in the UK make 2.5 billion visits to urban green spaces every year – and that doesn’t count the billions more visits to libraries, squares, beaches, markets and all the rest.

Public spaces are vital for communities, providing social, cultural and personal benefits for everyone. The built environment has a direct impact on people’s lives and the way they feel from day to day, and nowhere is that more true than when discussing public spaces. It is no wonder we get so attached to them; everyone has fond memories of days spent on a beach or with friends in a park.

Historically, public spaces were central to our way of life. Whether it was taking children to a playground, meeting people in a pub or going to an open market to get food, the public space was at the heart of everything we did. They were the starting point for community, healthy living, commerce and democracy.

Everything changed in the 20th century. Cars took over the streets and made them dangerous; suburbs were invented and brought big, private gardens with them; supermarkets slowly but surely took retail out of towns and into soulless, impersonal shopping centres.

Slivers of pavement in Los Angeles are sold to advertisers and open spaces in London are sold to investment firms which go ahead and ban people from taking pictures or lingering too long.

In the 21st century can we take a step forward by looking backwards? As our cities become larger and more hectic it can be

Arc de Triomphe & Champs-Élysées, Paris

“Cultures and climates differ all over the world, but people are the same. They will gather in public if you give them a good place to do it.” – Jan Gehl.

all too easy to forget the value that public space brings to a place and take what we have for granted. In turn, we neglect to build more of them. Buildings get taller and populations grow. People get crammed into increasingly small spaces and everything becomes more privatised. Communal public spaces get closed down or gated off and we all suffer for it.

In this article, we will look at the joy of public spaces, the benefits they bring and make the case for a massive expansion of free places for people in our busiest urban environments.

The great cities of the world are, in part, defined by their public space. Can you imagine Paris without the Champs-Élysées, Rio de Janeiro without the Copacabana, New York without Central Park or Marrakech without its markets? A good public space acts as a stage for the rest of our lives and we need more of them.

Public spaces are good for your health Keeping people fit and healthy is one of the defining challenges for any society. You can judge a place on how it takes care of its people, and public space offers one of the best ways to manage health and improve peoples’ lives. It is an easy part of the solution to a complex problem.

Physical inactivity is classed by the World Health Organization as a global public health problem which causes more than three million deaths every year. The organisation estimates that up to half of women and 40% of men are not getting enough exercise in the worst cases.

As you would expect with a complex health issue there is no one cause for this, but we can state with confidence some of the factors which, at the very least, have not helped. The first and most obvious cause is a general lack of participation in physical activities during leisure time which leads to a more sedentary lifestyle for many.

There are simply fewer places to exercise and do sport in cities.

Secondly, increased urbanisation has led to several environmental factors which discourage people from physical activity. These include fear of a perceived increase in crime, increasing traffic density and low quality air thanks to thickening pollution. Figures from Public Health England show that six million middle-aged English adults do fewer than 10 minutes’ brisk exercise a week, and that this pattern of behaviour is established at a very young age. A simple way to invest in the health of future generations would be to provide high quality, accessible public spaces where children can play.

But public space is not just good for young people and children.

The benefits for adults and older people are also impressive, so much so that doctors in the UK often prescribe a walk in the park as a medical solution. Various studies over the years have shown that a daily walk can reduce the risk of a heart attack by 50%, diabetes by

Central Park, New York

Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro

50%, colon cancer by 30%, and by increasing the amount walked per day to two miles we can prevent one death per year of men aged 61-80.

In a similar vein, public spaces can help with mental health. It is a sad irony of modern life that many people feel lonelier than ever before at a time when communications technology means that it has never been easier to talk to other people – but however convenient online communication is, it is not so good at providing real connections. It can even be argued that instant messaging actively discourages people from seeking out meaningful face-to-face interactions with others because, on the surface, you may not feel the need so sharply.

The rate of loneliness has doubled in America over the past 50 years and the rise crosses all boundaries of age, gender, ethnicity and location. The Office for National Statistics states that 2.4 million adults in Britain suffer from chronic loneliness, where the state is pervasive and persistent, and it is on course to be classed as the UK’s most dangerous health issue. It has been linked to heart problems, premature death, a reduction in reasoning and creativity, and myriad mental health problems.

In most cases it is not possible to establish a causal link, but it seems an unlikely coincidence that chronic loneliness has risen sharply in many parts of the world over the same time period as public spaces, and an emphasis on society and community, have been in decline.

One wide-ranging study from Japan which managed to link the probability of living for five years longer to the ability to take a stroll in parks and tree-lined avenues hints at the possibilities.

Improving and expanding public spaces would help solve both of these problems by providing a venue which encourages people to exercise and socialise and, crucially, is free to use. When you take physical and mental health into account it is clear that we need more well-maintained public places to fight the negative effects of urban life. As more and more of us leave the countryside for good these problems are only going to get worse; the longer it takes us to act the harder they will be to mitigate.

Public spaces are good for democracy The most basic form of democracy was established in Greek city states approximately 2,500 years ago and featured open public forums where citizens could speak their minds and vote on matters and laws which were put before them. Obviously ancient democracy was far from perfect – you were only a “citizen” if you were a man with a certain amount of land – but the role played by public places remains to this day. When enough people disagree with something they will gather together and make their point, more or less forcefully, in public.

In the modern world there are two schools of thought regarding the participation of the masses in the running of society. The first is promoted by Clay Shirky in his book ‘Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations’. Shirky argues that modern communication tools allow people to mobilise in previously unknown numbers and at speed by removing barriers to entry. This ‘amateurisation’ of protest enabled by social media would theoretically lead to a newly democratic world where the masses exert the pressure and win out.

The other point of view is provided by Evgeny Morozov in two

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and removal of public space begins to look rather sinister. Democracy is a public performance more than anything, and without a stage the show gets cancelled.

books – ‘The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom’ and ‘To Save Everything, Click Here: The Folly of Technological Solutionism’. Morozov contends that so-called cyber-utopianism is ineffective and that in actual fact modern communication tools benefit the people currently in power as protestors and dissenters can be more easily monitored. In other words, taking democracy online and out of the physical world is to doom it.

Public spaces make money Unfortunately we live in a world where everything must have an economic value or it is seen as somehow not worth bothering with. It is a wrongheaded approach but, fortunately for us, the benefits of increasing and improving public spaces can also be measured financially in order to satisfy those who think price is all that matters.

The latter argument seems to be more rooted in reality given that, at the end of the day, the internet can be turned off. A crowd gathering in a square cannot – a fact that governments around the world, of varying levels of authoritarianism, find out on a regular basis to their detriment. The Egyptian Revolution, the ‘Arab Spring’, of 2011 may have been organised on social media, but would have been safely ignored if not for the ability of thousands of people to protest in Tahrir Square. That mobilisation would shake the Middle East to its foundations and change history.

Data from around the world backs up the economic bonuses that public spaces bring to a town or city. In fact, the impact of a high quality public space is so large that it must surely be included as a vital part of any urban regeneration strategy. The best parks, squares, markets and gardens are an invaluable marketing tool. They attract businesses to high streets and people to homes. If you design an attractive place then people will want to be there. It really is very simple.

Given that the rapid spread of urbanisation often comes at the expense of public space, and the growth of “privately owned public spaces” such as Canary Wharf in London where gathering is prohibited by private security firms, we should perhaps worry about the future of popular democracy if we continue to lose public space. A good example of this is the Occupy London protestors who set up camp in the city’s financial district to protest against the neoliberal order and the banks which almost tanked the world economy.

Ironically, the protestors were forced to set up an illegal camp as there were no ‘legal’ protest spaces available as everywhere is owned by private companies – rather proving their point, and proving the value of public spaces to a city.

The most obvious economic benefit of public space concerns property. For example a study in the Landscape and Urban Planning journal of three towns in the Netherlands showed that a view of a park raised house prices by 8%.

Conversely, if the view is nothing but apartment blocks then the value of a home actually falls by 7%. According to Landscape Design, proximity to a playground was found to increase land values by 16% and a high volume of street trees increased land values by 17% in Berlin.

Business is equally enthusiastic about high quality public space. Europe’s Association of Town Management has known for decades that well-planned public spaces can increase commercial trading by up to 40% and encourage further private sector investment in the future. For example, in Coventry, UK, pedestrianisation, a new civic square, clearer signage, alcohol free zones and better street furniture caused a 25% increase in city centre footfall on weekends – much to the delight of local retailers.

“A study in the Landscape and Urban Planning journal of three towns in the Netherlands showed that a view of a park raised house prices by 8%.

Conversely, if the view is nothing but apartment blocks then the value of a home actually falls by 7%.

All the world’s a stage By understanding the benefits of public space we can look forward to the future and plan a better society for all. We can see the reality of what is happening when private companies close off places which were once available for everyone and fight against such short-term, greedy behaviour.

We can consider the rapid growth of our cities and build an environment which makes life better for all.

In this way, the promotion of public space is the promotion of democracy and having a say in the new world that is appearing around us. Society is changing at a historically unprecedented pace and we should all be demanding a say in our future now before it is too late. To do that, we need to demand public space in the heart of our towns and cities, and not accept its removal or sale. Taking away the spaces where people can gather is by far the easiest way of controlling a crowd; looked at through that lens, the sale

Public space is not just an investment into people’s health and our society as a whole, it is also a financial investment and the towns and cities which get involved will reap the benefits. For those of us who care about living healthily in an open society with a strong economy, more public space is essential.

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Famous markets, Marrakech

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X1 X1 The P X1 The Gatewa

1 Media City • X1 Manchester Waters • X1 Chatham Waters • X1 The Exchange • X1 The Landmark Plaza • X1 Eastbank • X1 Aire • X1 Salford Quays • X1 Town Hall • X1 The Edge • X1 The Campus ay • X1 Chapel Street • X1 Liverpool One • X1 The Quarter • X1 Borden Court • X1 Arndale House

INVESTING IN POLAND Words : Michael Smith | View : Michal Ludwiczak

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tanding as one of Europe’s fast-growing economies, Poland has now become one of the most exciting places to do business. As with other post-communist countries, Poland suffered slumps in social and economic standards, but it became the first post-communist country to reach its pre-1989 GDP levels, which it achieved by 1995 off the back of its strong economic growth.

aspirations were navigated by the Soviet Union as economies across the Eastern Bloc and a number of communist states elsewhere in the world looked to work together.

This partnership had been established through the Soviet Union’s reservations regarding America’s post-war plans and contributions to Eastern Europe. The Marshall Plan was an initiative to aid Europe economies recover following the end of World War II. Over US$12bn dollars was granted to help rebuild cities and industries levelled by relentless bombing campaigns from all parties involved.

The plan required a lessening of interstate barriers, a dropping of many regulations, and encouraged an increase in productivity, as well as the adoption of modern business procedures.

As of the 1st of May 2004, Poland joined the European Union, solidifying its importance and more importantly opening the door to do more lucrative forms of commerce on an even playing field. Its membership allowed citizens to move freely in the European Union, with many opting to look for work outside. However, as Poland continues to grow, more former citizens are returning despite obtaining lucrative work across Europe.

The plan also indicated America’s intentions to try and limit the spread of communism, an obvious sticking point for the Soviet Union. At the time Europe was engaged in the European Recovery Programme as each country looked to choose the correct economic avenue. Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia were all open to the principles of the Marshall Plan, given its benefits through free European markets and convertible currencies. Joseph

What has been accredited to this shift is the country's high-income economy, now the sixth largest in the European Union. Even before membership the country’s GDP had grown by around 3% per year, an amazing feat given its hangover from former communist guidance. As a member of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) between 1949 to 1991 the country’s economic

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Mariacka Street in Gdansk, Poland

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Town centre, Warsaw, Poland

“What has been accredited to this shift is the country's high-income economy, now the sixth largest in the European Union. Even before member ship the country’s GDP had grown by around 3% per year, an amazing feat given its hangover from former communist guidance.”

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Tatra National Park, Poland In 1992, the Polish and Slovakian national parks in the Tatras were jointly designated a transboundary biosphere reserve by UNESCO

Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union saw the Marshall Plan as absolutely unacceptable, demanding that all communist-dominated governments pull out of discussions, with all settling with the COMECON membership as the right choice.

This is decision has been described by historians as "the moment of truth" in which Europe truly split apart creating tension for decades. It has been said that if more had been done to help agree a balanced European Recovery Programme then most other Eastern European economies would have thrived like the rest of Western Europe.

So where do we find Poland today?

At the end of 2017 the economy stood at around US$1.11tr, with much of its current focus on manufacturing machinery and transport equipment that it exports primarily to Germany. Despite the two countries having what could be described as a difficult history, both have now become reliant on the business each provide. Unlike most EU member states, Poland remains outside the Eurozone, utilising its own currency to function. As its value decreased during earlier regional conflict, more overseas investment flooded in helping stabilise and support future growth.

“The housing market too has been performing as strongly as the overall economy, with Polish central bank, Narodowy Bank Polski (NBP) indicating property prices have increased across the countries seven largest cities by on average 6.9% in 2017."

Poland also benefits from a strong employment market, with unemployment representing just 7.1%, much lower than the European average. It’s this result which is attracting many Polish people living across the European Union to return.

As with most economies Poland is keen to open up to further overseas investment, and in recent times the introduction of a whole host of incentives such as tax breaks and rate reductions have been instated to help ease concerns. The legal framework used by firms to settle disputes, ease of efficiency and clarity of courts is another area of concern that has recently also been addressed. It’s clear that Poland is open for business.

The housing market too has been performing as strongly as the overall economy, with Polish central bank, Narodowy Bank Polski indicating property prices have increased across the countries seven largest cities by on average 6.9% in 2017. By the end of 2018 they’re expected to rise by a further 2.2% with figures now delivering growth of around 2.7%.

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The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Wrocław The cathedral, located in the Ostrów Tumski district, is a Gothic church with Neo-Gothic additions. The current standing cathedral is the fourth church to have been built on the site.

Łazienki Park in Warsaw The park-and-palace complex lies in Warsaw's central district on Ujazdów Avenue, which is part of the "Royal Route" linking the Royal Castle with Wilanów Palace to the south.

Warsaw continues to experience undersupply, with demand continuing to grow year-on-year. REAS, a Polish-based consulting company who provide services related to the Polish housing market produced a report outlining how supply is decelerating, and what factors could be attributed to this.

Katarzyna Kuniewicz, a market analysis and research partner, stated: "The coming quarters of 2018 will definitely reveal whether the surplus of demand over supply is only a temporary impasse for developers, or a play to limit the units on offer, preparing demand for a distinct increase in prices."

Current returns are quite reasonable, with buy-to-let landlords expecting stable yields in Warsaw ranging from around 5.50% to 6.75%. Results for Krakow are similar with returns of 5.66% to 6.47%.

Much of this information stands as a good argument for investment into Poland, but like most economies there are risks involved.

Poland is undeniably over reliant on the German economy, with trade representing approximately 26% of its exports and 27% of its imports. Any difficulty felt there will inevitably have a major impact on how Poland performs.

Poland’s political climate has also become a major talking point, with the Law and Justice party coming into power back in 2015. They have control of the constitutional court and public broadcasters leaving some in the European Union concerned about Poland’s future trajectory.

“Current returns are quite reasonable, with buy-to-let landlords expecting stable yields in Warsaw ranging from around 5.50% to 6.75%. Results for Krakow are similar with returns of 5.66% to 6.47%."

Despite previously mentioned efforts to streamline business practices and legal frameworks, Poland continues to represent an immature business environment creating unintentional uncertainty for many companies operating within its borders. Residing at the bottom of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development rankings is an issue that if left unchecked, could slow the country's future development.

So, in conclusion there is a lot to like about Poland as a place to invest. With a strong employment market, demand for property is only going one way. Prices are growing at a healthy rate, and despite any political concerns you may have the country for now at least looks stable. Like anywhere there will always be some risks to investing that investors should carefully consider before buying property, but by doing your homework and buy through a recognised developer you too could benefit from Poland’s economic uplift.

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GLOBAL TRAVEL TRENDS FOR 2019 Words : Emma Martin | View : Norbert von Niman

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Mastercard's annual Global Destination Cities Index shows that Bangkok, London and Paris are the three most visited cities of 2018, benefiting from “robust infrastructure, both business and leisure attractions and strong local culture". The only change to the top ten from 2017 is the capital of South Korea, Seoul, which dropped from number seven to 10, part, in thanks, to its disagreements with neighbour North Korea over nuclear missiles – highlighting the political sensitivity in the travel market and subsequent domino effect on national economies.

he global tourism industry is worth billions and according to the World Travel & Tourism Council the sector contributed over US$8,272bn to global GDP in 2017, accounting for over 10% of total GDP and is expected to continue to grow year-on-year.

Despite a changing economy forcing many to tighten their purse-strings, holidaying appears to remain a priority for most, with the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) Holiday Habits Report 2018 showing that in the last 12 months over half (60%) of the UK population went on an overseas holiday, the highest number since 2011, with longer trips abroad as a category benefiting from the increase.

On the flipside there are locations which are pleading for a break in the constant stream of tourists. Notably 2018 saw the introduction of pedestrianised gates in Venice which restrict access to anyone without a special ‘locals’ pass during busy periods. Whilst the levels of tourism in Venice certainly prop up the city’s economy, it has led to anguish from those who live there with one local Urban Planner describing proposals to ticket entry to the city as “the last step to becoming Disneyland.”

Constantly changing, the travel and tourism sector is one of the most fast-moving and the success of professionals in the market relies on keeping on top of trends, constantly adapting and evolving products. From luxury to economic and grandiose to authentic, different types of travellers demand very different things from their holidays, often influenced by current events and politics.

Exciting and innovative, global travel trends can have a lasting impact on nations and are often great indicators of people’s desires and connections to the wider world. Whilst there is no exact science in predicting what will happen in the tourism industry next year, Global Property Scene has put together a list of the top trends that we expect to see emerge in 2019.

2018 has already witnessed major changes in travel and tourism, with some clear winners and losers. The rise of Instagram has propelled some destinations to the top of the ‘must-see’ list, while a desire to experience like the locals has led to a rise in the booking of non-traditional homes on Airbnb in the first half of the year, with the website noting a rise in bookings on nature lodges (700% growth), ryokans (600%) and yurts (155%). In addition 2018 saw a huge rise in the popularity of food related trips, with 29% of all Airbnb experience bookings being in the food and drink category.

Even the Royal Family has been influencing travel, with Royal Tours hitting the headlines and inspiring new destination choices!

Wellness and purpose Already an established market, wellness holidays have evolved in the last few years to become one of the most lucrative sectors within travel and tourism. Appealing to travellers who want a break from the everyday, wellness holidays often focus on disconnecting

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from the ‘noise’ of modern life, abandoning phones and computers and focusing on the mind. It is expected that once again yoga retreats, spas and holistic breaks will see a spike in popularity as a result of the mounting pressures of modern life.

Booking.com further predicts that the sector will transform once again in 2019, with a proportion of travellers using their annual holidays to fulfil goals and find purpose. In a study which looked at 163 million verified guest reviews and research from 21,500 travellers across 29 countries, Booking.com found that over half (56%) of global travellers say that traveling has taught them important life skills and as such it is expected that the next year will see a rise in travellers booking trips which will teach them something new.

The results of the survey revealed that 68% of holiday makers would consider partaking in cultural exchanges to learn a new skill, 54% would think about volunteering when away and 52% would be interested in international work placements. Booking.com adds that Generation Z is likely to make a significant contribution to the purpose and wellness sector as university degrees are put into a harsh light. Instead we can expect to see a rise in younger people using gap year travels and longer trips abroad to gain skills and a wider understanding of the world in place of costly university courses.

Leisure transport 2017 saw a record number of UK holiday makers hit the seas for a cruise, with almost two million passengers opting for this type of break. Recent data shows that there has been a significant rise in ‘exploration’ cruises to places such as the Antarctic, Arctic, the Galápagos, Greenland, Iceland and North Cape, which collectively received 22,000 passengers from the UK and Ireland, up 3% year-on-year.

Next year we anticipate that cruises will again enjoy record passengers, particularly long-haul ventures which saw the fastest growth in 2017 – South America and the Panama Canal, as well as Africa and the Middle East, saw almost a 25% increase in passengers across both regions. ABTA’s Holiday Habits Report 2018 backs up this prediction, showing that over half (53%) of 18-24 year olds are interested in taking a cruise (but have not done so previously), followed by 45% of 25-34 year olds. Traditionally dominated by older generations, we anticipate that cruise companies will open up their offering to appeal to a younger audience, shifting the ideas we have about cruises.

As well as cruises we expect that river boats and trains will also come into focus, with a renewed popularity for leisure transport.

Bharathi Ghanashyam, a freelance writer, explains her fascination with train travel to the Economic Times: “I write prose and take videos of the changing landscapes and people during a train journey. The chugging of wheels is calming to the senses. Travelling by train is an intimate experience.” By removing the stresses that often come with travelling to a destination, instead the travelling will become the focus of the trip.

Bucket-list and experiences Again, this trend is one that has already affirmed itself in the travel and tourism arena as one to stay, but you can expect travellers in 2019 to put even more emphasis on the bucket-list activity holiday.

What this means is that destinations are likely to be chosen based on the experiences they can offer rather than commodity offerings.

The research from Booking.com confirms this as being true, with 60% of travellers saying that they value experiences over possessions.

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As well as bucket-list activity destinations, Booking.com believes that there will be a rise in destinations which stir childhood memories. Its research highlighted an interesting trend of travellers wishing to be taken back to happy childhood destinations, with two fifths of travellers (42%) planning to visit a destination that makes them feel like a kid again – this is particularly true of Generation Z. Locations set to profit from the bucket-list and experiences trend is likely to include stand out experience destinations like Kenya and Namibia thanks to Safari opportunities; Norway and Finland because of the opportunity to see the Northern Lights; Australia with the Great Barrier Reef and China which is famous for its Great Wall – each of these factor in the top 10 of Livestrong’s The World's 20 Most Popular Bucket List Activities.

Sustainable holidays and travel safety One of the biggest global threats today, and probably one of 2018’s most talked about topics is the environment and sustainability and as such we can expect sustainable holidaying to be a key travel trend of 2019. As well as this, current political, social and environmental hazards have shown to hold important sway when it comes to choosing where to holiday. Research shows that almost half of all travels take into account social issues of travel destinations and 58% would not go to a destination if it would negatively impact the people who live there.

2018 also marked the start of the ban on single-use plastics, something that has been greatly supported by the younger generation who are expected to take environmental impacts of travel seriously in the coming year. This includes a focus on air-friendly travel, a reduction in plastics and food waste and itineraries which include activities which can give something back to the locals such as beach cleans. Data shows that a huge number of global travellers (86%) would be prepared to offset the environmental impact of their holiday.

WWF’s vice president of travel, tourism, and conservation Jim Sano comments how environmentally minded destinations can make for an even better trip: “Destinations that value their natural and cultural heritage elevate the quality of a traveller’s experience and support the livelihoods of those that work in the travel industry.”

Solo travel for all Although holidays have traditionally been considered a family affair, the ABTA Holiday Habits Report 2018 shows that solo travel is on the rise, with under one in six (15%) opting to go on holiday by themselves in the past 12 months, up 3% year-onyear. ABTA’s research delved into the reasons for this increase and found that the chief reason for people choosing to travel alone was to be able to do as they wished, not having to follow the plans of someone else. In fact, over three-quarters (76%) of people said this was why they travelled solo, again a 3% increase on last year.

Breaking the data down even further shows that the 35-44 year old age group had seen a particularly large increase in solo travelling, up 11% on 2017 – with almost all responders (92%) stating that being alone gave them the opportunity to do as they pleased. ABTA notes: “The use of smartphones and travel apps makes navigating the world alone less daunting.

As well as making the logistics of travelling easier, people are now able to keep in touch with friends and family back home, sharing holiday experiences via social media.”

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THE END OF THE ROAD FOR BOOKING SITES? Words : Emma Martin | View : Ruud Morijn

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ew would argue that online marketplaces and booking sites aren’t handy. Never has it been simpler to book a trip, often in a couple of clicks. On the surface booking websites provide a simple and efficient list of options, sortable by price, distance and rating to help you make – what you think is – an informed choice.

But if you’ve gone online to book a holiday, flight, hotel, or even concert tickets then you’ve likely fallen victim to pressurised sales techniques which have now resulted in several firms being investigated for breaking consumer protection law.

amount of commission paid by the hotelier. As well as this, visitors are frequently bombarded with speed warnings for example being told there are only two rooms left, that a particular hotel has been booked a certain amount of times that day, or that a ‘special offer’ is only valid for a set amount of time. All of this can result in consumers being coerced into booking a certain deal, often with the use of dishonest tactics.

As well as pressurising consumers into making a fast decision when booking, some sites have also been found to abuse discounts.

Examples of this according to Gov.uk include advertising a discount based on a higher price only available for a brief period and displaying a discount not relevant to the customer’s search criteria, for example comparing a higher weekend room rate with the weekday rate. To round off the issues found with hotel booking sites the CMA raised concerns about hidden charges which are not always displayed clearly. It found that in some cases customers were not always shown the total price, but that taxes or booking fees were added on the final booking page.

In June 2018 the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced that several key concerns had been raised following an investigation into the transparency of hotel booking sites. The watchdog highlighted several areas which could be in breach of consumer protection law including how hotels are ranked in search results, pressure selling, discount claims and hidden charges.

Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the CMA said of the investigation: “Booking sites can make it so much easier to choose your holiday, but only if people are able to trust them.”

“Holidaymakers must feel sure they’re getting the deal they expected, whether that’s securing the discount promised or receiving reliable information about availability of rooms. It’s also important that no one feels pressured by misleading statements into making a booking.” He added: “That’s why we’re now demanding that sites think again about how they’re presenting information to their customers and make sure they’re complying with the law. Our next step is to take any necessary action – including through the courts if needed – to ensure people get a fair deal.”

A study from consumer finance website MoneySavingExpert illustrates the extent of the problem in the sector. The website examined 55 search results across five hotels located in Amsterdam, Athens, Las Vegas, Orlando and Rome for a night stay for two people between August 2018 and March 2019. As part of the research nine leading brokers were surveyed and the outcome found that on 23 occasions the full booking cost wasn’t made clear on the booking page. In one particular case study a room was advertised for £137 a night, but this jumped to £174.50 once taxes and service charges were added on the payment page.

Whilst consumers are often led to believe that online booking results are presented based on factors like popularity and price, it was actually revealed that some sites rank hotels based on the

As well as the booking sites not always being clear MoneySavingExpert found that comparison sites had similar issues.

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“A story in the Guardian tells the tale of a student unintentionally being landed with a £1,772 charge for three tickets to BBC’s Biggest Weekend event which originally had a face value of just £18 per ticket. When asked for a refund she was refused and simply told to re-list the tickets for sale.”

It found instances where results showed listings where final prices omitted extra charges, but conversely others included them which resulted in skewed outcomes. Worryingly one site presented completely the wrong hotel as being the cheapest because of this problem, making redundant the whole process of comparing in the first place.

Guy Anker, deputy editor of MoneySavingExpert.com, said: "Our investigation shows that ridiculously you simply can't always trust the first figure you're shown. It's confusing for customers and makes doing a meaningful price comparison very hard. And as a result, many travellers may end up paying much more than they need to because they struggle to find the cheapest deal.”

He added: "Long-term, the solution's simple. The price you're first shown MUST be the total, including extra fees - even fees that have to be paid at the hotel. If that's not happening, the competition watchdog should act to make sure that it does. This doesn't mean you shouldn't use these hotel brokers and comparison sites when booking a room - they may still work out cheapest overall and can narrow down the search for you. But it's worth an extra click to be sure."

But it’s not just hotel booking sites and comparison sites that are coming under scrutiny. Secondary ticket sites have long been public enemy number one when it comes to booking online, with horror stories of consumers being duped into paying thousands of pounds for events. One such story was reported in the Guardian with a student unintentionally being landed with a £1,772 charge for three tickets to BBC’s Biggest Weekend event which originally had a face value of just £18 per ticket. When asked for a refund she was refused and simply told to re-list the tickets for sale.

Due to their prominence in the market, secondary ticketing sites often appear above general sale links on Google, resulting in some consumers buying resale tickets when tickets are still on general sale, and when you look at the prices of second hand tickets, it’s easy to see what the problem with this is.

Prices for in demand events have been forcefully inflated by professional ticket touters who buy tickets in bulk on release and then re-list them at sky-high prices on secondary ticketing sites. This practice, referred to as ‘harvesting’ by FanFair Alliance, is done by using computerised bots which can reserve tickets when they go on general release, or by creating multiple fake identities and using multiple credit cards.

Much like hotel booking sites, ticket resale sites use less than fair pressure selling tactics which can confuse consumers into

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spending more than expected. The main culprit is Viagogo which hurries customers into making a rapid purchase, leaving many consumers tricked into paying outrageous fees at the end of the booking process. A quick search of Viagogo’s site shows a prime example where one ticket to see Paul McCartney live at Liverpool Echo Arena has a ticket price of £9,016 (face value £134), but after VAT and booking fees of £3,237 are added the total cost comes to £12,253. That’s for one ticket, you read it right! In fairness to Viagogo they appear to have changed their website so that the full price with fees included is the first price you see, but that hardly excuses the exorbitant fees.

This must be illegal, right?

Well, whilst some areas of the market are protected by law, for instance the re-sale of UK football tickets which has been illegal since the mid 1990s, reselling music tickets in the UK is not an illegal practice. The law regarding ticket touting is fairly vague, for instance, it is illegal to use software to bulk buy tickets and using multiple identities and credit cards falls under the fraud bracket, but because the resale of tickets for profit is a legal practice laws are rarely implemented. This has resulted in exponential growth in the sector which is now a huge threat to UK consumer protection law.

The fight against the practice of reselling gig tickets is well documented and has the support of government, the Competition and Market Authority and campaign group FanFair Alliance – not to mention some pretty big names in music. Ed Sheeran has famously cracked down on secondary ticketing sites by refusing entry to those with tickets purchased from them. Instead of turning away his fans, Sheeran instead asked them to pay for a new ticket at face value, making the resold tickets void. Following the shows he is now in the process of supporting those who paid over the odds in getting refunds. This has resulted in Viagogo being chased down for refunds in the realm of £1.25m for Ed Sheeran shows alone.

“Whilst some areas of the market are protected by law, for instance the re-sale of UK football tickets which has been illegal since the mid 1990s, reselling music tickets in the UK is not an illegal practice.”

During the writing of this article it was announced that Ticketmaster is to close GET ME IN! and Seatwave, two large players in the secondary ticketing sector. In a statement the head of Ticketmaster UK, Andrew Parsons, said: ”We know that fans are tired of seeing others snap up tickets just to resell for a profit on secondary websites, so we have taken action," He added: “Closing down our secondary sites and creating a ticket exchange on Ticketmaster has always been our long-term plan. We’re excited to launch our redesigned website, which will make buying and selling tickets fast and simple, with all tickets in the same place.”

There is doubtless a huge issue when it comes to consumer protection law and booking sites. A sector that was first born out of trying to make things easier for the consumer has now become an industry lining its pockets through misleading customers and spreading misery. The closure of GET ME IN! and Seatwave indicates that public opinion is turning and it is crucial for companies to change their tune before it’s too late.

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CLIMATE CHANGE DEADLINE LOOMS Words : Michael Smith | View : Jesse Orrico

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limate change has been a significant talking point in 2018, with nations across the globe debating the right approach to this ever-pressing problem. What has often been the sticking point is our collective inability to agree on both a cause and solution. On the one hand we have scientists and politicians urging us to make real change in our habits to curb our carbon foot print. Then we have other scientists and politicians claiming that climate change has nothing to do with our personal input and is in fact just part of the planet’s natural cycles.

Returning to the subject of former Presidential candidate Gore, Lawson continued "It's the same old clap-trap. He's the sort of bloke who goes around saying the end of the world is nigh!

It is this level of disagreement that is preventing any real change occurring, and is leaving the global population with a difficult dilemma; who do we believe?

It’s not clear whether Lawson classes near total submergence under rising sea levels as a ‘real problem’ but it’s hard to envisage a scenario worthy of nuclear war if everybody has already been killed by a category 5 hurricane.

The BBC came under serious fire from the science community recently after it invited former chancellor Lord Lawson onto Radio 4 to discuss climate change. Lawson, who is a prominent climate change sceptic, was invited on to the Today programme to discuss his views about the subject, which invited significant backlash for the broadcaster.

Professor Brian Cox, who hosts television shows on the BBC, tweeted: "Irresponsible and highly misleading to give the impression that there is a meaningful debate about the science." Admittedly, that’s pretty difficult to argue with.

"We should be concentrating on real problems like North Korea and disease.

"To divert resources and energy to non-problems is really ridiculous."

After some dubious comments from President Trump regarding climate change, the subject is finding its way back into the headlines after the tragic destruction of entire communities across the Caribbean, Florida, Texas and California.

Lawson described Al Gore's worries about climate change as "clap trap" and said world leaders should be focussing on "real issues".

He also argued that Britain should not subsidise renewable energy, describing climate change as a "non-issue" and saying it "drives up energy prices", pointing out "we do have in this country one of the highest energy costs in the world which is very hard on the poor".

The Mail on Sunday too has recently been badly exposed over an article published by David Rose, which sought to assert that “world leaders were duped into investing billions over manipulated global warming data.”

Presumably ignoring the poor people in Florida, Texas and the British Virgin Islands who watched their homes literally lift into the sky, Lawson believes that storm weather which has broken all records for ferocity and frequency is ‘just one of those things’.

The article was published in February, but has come under scrutiny after the UK press regulator, the Independent Press Standards

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Storm cloud over Yemen, NASA

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“Scientists have stated a massive financial investment must be made now to help the effort, with around 2.5% of global gross domestic product (GDP) standing as a good estimate. This investment will pale in comparison to the cost of doing nothing.�

Hubbard Glacier Geological Area, United States

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Organization (Ipso), has now upheld a complaint submitted by Bob Ward of the London School of Economics. In a damning verdict from the regulator, it said that the Mail had “failed to take care over the accuracy of the article” and “had then failed to correct these significantly misleading statements,” Hilariously, the Mail on Sunday was required to publish the Ipso adjudication.

As reported by the Guardian, Bates had registered his displeasure at the way the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) climate scientists had been archiving their research and data.

What was, according to Bates, a very minor complaint was seized upon by the paper as evidence that the organisation was somehow making things up or seeking to supress evidence that climate change wasn’t real.

As covered in the Guardian piece, the article included a grossly misleading chart that Noaa Goddard director Gavin Schmidt described as a “hilarious screw up”, which confused headline and baseline data. Once adjusted correctly the chart vindicated the research entirely. In fact, the Noaa data and paper in question had already been independently verified by other researchers, and are in close agreement with global temperature data from other scientific groups.

Of course, further to this rigorous testing the paper has also undergone significant peer-review, meaning that the author’s claims of some kind of cover up were not just entirely untrue but downright mendacious. They can’t argue the science, about which there’s a 97% expert consensus, so they instead attack the scientists themselves.

Following three years of intensive research, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have warned that the window to make real change to rising global temperatures is closer than we think.

It focuses on the principle that global temperatures mustn’t exceed 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, and that the findings now indicate we are well on course to reach over 3C. Policymakers have for a long time been setting targets that would now seem futile, as most of the world continues to think only in the present rather than the future.

A statement from the report claims there are two significant points to adhere to: "The first is that limiting warming to 1.5C brings a lot of benefits compared with limiting it to two degrees. It really reduces the impacts of climate change in very important ways," said Prof Jim Skea, who co-chairs the IPCC. "The second is the unprecedented nature of the changes that are required if we are to limit warming to 1.5C - changes to energy systems, changes to the way we manage land, changes to the way we move around with transportation," he added.

Having studied the decline of ice, temperature rises and the increase in extreme weather the report has strong evidence to sway even the most hardened climate change denier. Major efforts are going to have to be made now, and if we’re to make a real difference then every country must play their role.

Scientist have stated a massive financial investment must be made now to help the effort, with around 2.5% of global gross domestic product (GDP) standing as a good estimate. This investment will pale in comparison to the cost of doing nothing. We could face massive upheaval, unrest and shortages of every kind that will see a decline in population and increase in global conflict. We can all do our part, and if governments take decisive action now we can avoid humanity’s biggest ever threat.

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THE RISE OF THE INFLUENCER Words : Emma Martin | View : Simon Launay

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Although it’s still a fairly new industry, influencer marketing has naturally developed from basic human psychology, primarily driven by millennials and Gen Z who have proven to be particularly malleable to influence by role models. The beauty and fashion market has spearheaded the growth of influencers, with data showing that 86% of women use social media for purchasing advice. Over half of women admitted to making purchases as a result of posts, particularly those on Facebook and Instagram. It’s unsurprising then that statistics show businesses earn US$6.50 for every dollar spent on influencer marketing, and because of this 39% of marketers said they were planning on increasing their budgets dedicated to influencer marketing next year.

ith almost 13 million sponsored posts on Instagram in 2017 alone, influencer marketing is a powerful vehicle for business and has evolved into a seemingly unstoppable force for consumer control. Anticipated to grow at an exponential rate from an estimated industry worth of US$2bn to US$10bn by 2020, the future of the industry looks bright, but is it really as harmless as it might seem on the surface?

You might not know it, but it’s likely that if you’re active on social media then you yourself have unconsciously been subject to influencer marketing. A new wave of digital marketing, influencer marketing orbits around social media users with thousands (or sometimes millions) of online followers. These users are admired and respected by their followers and hold enormous sway over large groups of people and as such are now being regularly paid by brands to sponsor content.

And it’s not just marketers who are benefitting. Kat Richardson, creative director of influencer marketing agency WaR, explains to the BBC that users with just 10,000 followers can start to earn money from their social media activity, with users at that level able to expect a payment of approximately £100 per post. Rohan Midha, the managing director of influencer agency PMYB, adds that some lower level influencers begin their career by receiving free products in exchange for blogging about them.

The concept of influencer marketing is not a new one, and it is an industry that has been born out of a long-established construct of popularity. Not dissimilar from playground politics, influencer marketing benefits the people who are able to make the most ‘friends’ (followers) and therefore drive online clicks. This means that there are influencers across all types of sectors, from beauty to travel. By identifying which influencers rule the roost in a certain industry means that businesses can push their products and ideas to the masses by paying influencers to parrot their message.

However the experts say that once you hit 10,000 followers the numbers can snowball quickly and so too does the return. Kat Richardson explains: "Once you get to 30,000 followers, for a fashion or beauty post, you could be looking at around £750.”

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Moving up the ladder, users with a million followers could be looking at £10,000 for a single post, whilst celebrities with a concrete following like Kylie Jenner, with her 116 million Instagram followers, could ask for a sum 'well into six figures'.

Kat goes on to explain the draw of influencer marketing and why it’s grown exponentially: "I think it's because you get a little bit more depth to the story. When you're looking at an advert for something, there's no personal story behind that but when you follow an influencer then there's already something you've decided about that person that you like.” She adds: "You've got an awareness of who they are and you've already bought into their lifestyle and when they post a product there's already a link there for you.”

Although it might sound straightforward, industry specialists point out that there is a fine balance to posting sponsored content, and that if influencers over-do it by posting too much their followers could lose interest or trust. Equally it’s important to stick to advertising products that suit the audience in mind. For example, if a fashion blogger began an advertising campaign for an investment opportunity or garden tools, this would be seen as forced advertising by followers who would then lose confidence and respect for the user. The main idea is to make the advert look as natural as possible.

“Celebrities with a concrete following like Kylie Jenner, with her 116 million Instagram followers, could ask for a sum 'well into six figures'. ”

One sector that has looked to influencer marketing to capitalise on growing success is the luxury watch industry, which has used influencer marketing to try and break the lucrative Chinese market.

Already a proven marketing technique in China – you need only to look at the case of Chinese blogger Tao Liang, or ‘Mr. Bags’ as he is otherwise known, who managed to sell 80 bags worth €148,580, in under 12 minutes thanks to his 1.2 million WeChat followers – studies indicate that Chinese shoppers are more likely to purchase merchandise if they have seen it showcased on a social media site.

Taking this on board, luxury watch brands are now ramping up their influencer activity. According to The Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) mainland China made up a quarter of all Swiss watch deliveries to the Far East last year, with the total value rising by 19%, the largest rise since 2015. As well as this the spring World Watch Report reveals that for the first time ever more Chinese consumers visited luxury watch brands’ websites than Americans, accounting for 21% of global traffic. Now brands are trying to keep up this success by working alongside key Chinese influencers. One example, as discussed by the FHH, is Cartier, the first luxury watch brand to promote its products on WeChat.

According to FHH Cartier worked alongside Taiwanese star Zhang Zhen for its ‘WeChat Moments’ campaign. Cartier paid Zhang Zhen to share a video in 2016 which garnered more than six million views.

Alongside this activity, Cartier employed Chinese celebrity Luhan to present its ‘Juste un Clou’ collection through a series of short videos and images. The video amassed over 65 million views and was well received on Chinese microblogging website Weibo, where it received more than 900,000 engagements. The result of this activity saw Cartier’s official social media channels balloon by more than 70,000 followers and the month after the campaign the previous sales record was smashed. According to FHH: “Cartier’s strategy worked because it was ahead of its time and because the brand chose celebrities with a high popularity rating among millennials.”

As with all new industries though, it’s not all smooth sailing in the world of influencer marketing, and the sector has some clear challenges which it will need to overcome if it is to continue to work as well as it has proven so far. One of the key issues for businesses looking to work with influencers is the scope for fraudulent accounts to trick companies into spending money with them. Although on the

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surface an account with thousands of followers, likes and comments would be a good vehicle for advertising, this is not always the case.

Because of the money to be made in influencer marketing many accounts have been fraudulently faking engagement. Ways this can be done include paying for fake (or bot) followers through an app, using like for like groups to boost engagement and even changing servers when posting so posts will appear as posted from a different location which artificially grows your post views.

Lauren Braun Diamont, director of content at Triller, explained on CMS Wire how businesses can check the authenticity of an accounts’ followers: “One way you can determine this is by taking a look at the total number of followers they have vs. total number of posts, as influencers with a large organic following they should have tons of posts that date back several years, not just a few months.

Consistent and engaging content is the key to organic growth.”

This leads on to the question of whether influencer marketing needs to be better regulated. For an industry worth billions of dollars there has been little to no regulation until recently. This year has seen the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) step in to give celebrity influencers a slap on the wrist for not being clear enough with their ads. Examples include Love Island star Olivia Buckland’s recent argument with the ASA over her portrayal of an advert for the company W7 of whom she is a paid brand ambassador. The reality TV star posted content of her applying makeup from a W7 product in a positive way without tagging it in what the ASA considers an appropriate way – that it was not clear enough it was an advert.

Buckland and W7 contested the claims from the ASA, saying that although she is a paid ambassador she was not specifically paid to post that particular piece of content. On this the ASA responded: "whilst the written contractual agreement did not make specific stipulations about the content published by Ms Buckland on her social media profiles, the contract required Ms Buckland to promote the brand and the products in a positive light at all times". It added, "In the absence of a clear identifier, such as “#ad”, we concluded that the post was not obviously identifiable as a marketing communication and that it breached the Code.”

Following this debate, the ASA published an 'Influencer Guide' in partnership with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) which says that adverts must be clearly labelled with ad, advert, advertising or advertisement in order to make it obvious to consumers that they are a target of influencer marketing. George Lusty, the Committee of Advertising Practice's senior director for consumer protection, said: "If celebrities or influencers are posting about a product on social media, they must make it clear if they've been paid to promote it, or have been gifted, loaned a product, or thanked in some other way by a brand. No one should be left thinking that a Tweet or Instagram post is just the person's opinion when it's not."

Whatever the future holds for influencer marketing, one thing is clear: the amount of targeted information that we are being subjected to only seems to be growing. From fake news, to targeted ads, to phony health trends and social pressures from platforms specifically designed to create fear of missing out and anxiety – we are more vulnerable than ever before to psychological manipulation.

With this in mind, regulation into these kinds of new industries are vital.

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WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE? CHOCOLATE Words : Alex Timperley | View : Charisse Kenion

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had a role in local religion and mythology as surviving texts and artworks feature the bean heavily. We even take the word “chocolate” from the Nahuatl Aztec word “xocolatl”, a combination of “xocolli” (bitter) and “atl” (water).

hocolate is something that almost everyone can agree on; it is delicious. 2019 will mark the 500 year anniversary of European invaders arriving in the Americas and seeing chocolate for the first time. Since then the humble cacao seed has been spread around the world and chocolate has become one of the most desired foods on earth.

But it seems that we might have been wrong the whole time. The latest evidence shows that the Aztecs and Mayans may in fact have inherited cacao from a South American culture in an area which covers parts of modern Ecuador and Peru. Research led by Michael Blake of the University of British Columbia found complex starch grains on ancient tools which were indicative of cacao. Following this, genetic testing found DNA strands which are unique to cacao and chemical testing showed theobromine, a bitter alkaloid which is only found in cultivated varieties of the bean.

The cacao tree is the source of chocolate. Its beans grow inside large pods on the tree which are harvested, left to ferment for several days and then dried out over the course of a week. Once dry, the beans are roasted and ground down, from which we get cocoa butter to make chocolate bars and a residue which is turned into cocoa powder. So far, so good; but the question of whether you should invest is slightly tougher to answer.

As Blake says: "This suggests that the use of cacao, probably as a drink, was something that caught on and very likely spread northwards by farmers growing cacao in what is now Colombia.”

From there it is not hard to see how traders and farmers could have spread it further into Central America.

An ancient history Along with global staples such as potatoes, tomatoes, peanuts and corn, we know that chocolate is indigenous to Central and South America and has been cultivated for thousands of years.

Altogether the picture seems clear and we can confidently say that humans have been farming cacao and producing chocolate food products for more than 5,000 years.

This is an ancient crop, but recent reports show that we may have underestimated quite how old it is. For a long time we thought that we owed the existence of chocolate to Central American Aztec and Mayan people who began cultivating cacao 4,000 years ago. It is hard to overstate how important chocolate was to these pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures. As well as using the cacao bean for food and drink there is indicative historical evidence to say that it was also used as a currency and that large plantations were established to meet this demand. On top of that it seems that cacao

The more things change...

Today the chocolate industry is very different. From small scale cultivation which evolved slowly over thousands of years we have created a US$100bn industry which spans the world. The humble

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origins of cacao seem an awfully long way away when you look at the multinational companies which control an empire of five million growers spread across the tropics. Mondelez, Mars, Hershey, Ferrero and Nestlé together control the vast majority of production, and then there are the cocoa processing giants such as Barry Callebaut, Cargill and Olam which also have a significant market presence.

In this way the “bitter water” drink has been transformed beyond recognition into a dizzying array of products. Whether you are looking for something made by Swiss or Belgian artisans, want a big slab of Cadbury’s Dairy Milk to yourself or desire something a bit more unusual flavoured with chilli, cheese, lime or bacon, there will be a type of chocolate out there for you.

As we can see, much has changed from the time when chocolate was a secret only known to a select group of South American farmers. However, some things about the chocolate industry haven’t changed for a long time and investors should be aware of the more unpleasant aspects of the business before putting money into it.

As previously mentioned, chocolate was spread around the world following the Spanish invasion of Mexico in 1519. Hernán Cortés, the Spanish leader, remains a divisive figure to this day due to the sheer scale of the killing, betrayal and theft which he undertook. Cortés tricked his way into the presence of Moctezuma, the Aztec ruler of the time, and promptly kidnapped him. Aztecs were slaughtered in their temples and killed in the streets. Their capital city, Tenochtitlán,

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was eventually destroyed and Moctezuma was killed. This is where chocolate comes from, and the modern day reality is, in many cases, just as bad.

Put simply, the main issue with the modern chocolate industry is the lingering shadow of exploitation which hangs over it. In particular, child exploitation. It has been estimated that somewhere between 40-50% of labour on large cocoa farms is performed by children who have no choice in the matter.

70% of the world’s cocoa comes from Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana and the Ivory Coast, of which the latter two produce more than half of global supply. With 90% of cocoa coming from small family farms rather than larger, more regulated estates it is almost impossible to understand or monitor the true extent of exploitation. When almost the entire income for a family comes from cocoa, and the margins are so small thanks to prices being continually pushed down, the pressure to involve children in the business to get more work done can be overwhelming.

For example, with four million children between them, the 900,000 cocoa farmers of the Ivory Coast struggle to earn enough money to stay above the poverty line. This often leaves small family farmers with no alternative but to employ their children on the farm to try and make ends meet – a situation which can ruin their lives.

A Nestlé report from 2017 highlighted the scale of the issue; it found that more than 40,000 children between the ages of 5 and 17 were

employed at almost 50,000 farms, and of those more than 7,000 were doing work that they should not have been doing. A separate report from the International Cocoa Initiative found that 49% of a representative sample of 1,056 children were found to be engaged in illegal child labour.

Furthermore, the environmental cost of cocoa farms in West Africa tends towards the extreme. The chocolate-industrial complex pursued by the big multinational corporations requires that prices are kept low and supply is constantly forced upwards. As well as impoverishing the people doing the actual farming, this approach requires the deployment of chemicals such as lindane and menthyl bromide which poison the earth and have been found to cause respiratory, reproductive and neurological complications for the workers. In reality there is no such thing as ‘cheap’ chocolate; the cost is steeper than we know.

So, should you invest?

Realistically we cannot recommend investing in the larger chocolate organisations as it is an ethical minefield. As discussed, the endless pressure on farmers to produce more and sell it for less money has harshly detrimental effects on the environment and thousands of children.

Instead, if you want to invest in chocolate then you should look at companies which promote Fairtrade or “slavery-free” chocolate.

Not only is it the more ethically sustainable option, but the market

is growing every year as more people around the world look more closely at what they are buying. By investing in companies which focus on providing the best products, rather than just the cheapest ones, everyone involved can win.

Whilst the high end chocolate market currently makes up approximately 0.5% of the global market according to the International Cocoa Organisation, it is growing rapidly. A good example of this comes from Lindt whose most recent figures show 7.4% growth in the sale of organic chocolate in Europe, including double digit growth in Germany and the UK, at a time when overall sales were declining. Similarly, Lindt reported growth in organic chocolate sales of 3.4% in North America at a time of overall market contraction.

The generally accepted theory is that growth in parts of the sector previously seen as niche is driven by the aforementioned ethical concerns as well as greater awareness of health issues associated with eating too much sugar. If you are committed to lowering your sugar intake then you are more likely to buy higher quality chocolate as rarer treat. A Technavio report agrees, stating that growth in the premium chocolate market will accelerate to 7% in the next four years.

Do the right thing and, if you must invest in chocolate, invest in something good rather than the evil bits. You’ll be helping yourself, helping others and helping the world, all at the same time.

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With over 45 years of experience, and a portfolio worth more than ÂŁ50m, The Heaton Group is a name you can trust which has a strong track record of delivering high quality homes across the North West. In addition, this past experience has allowed the company to develop and implement market-leading technologies which ensure everything they build is a cut above the competition, thereby appealing to both investors and the eventual tenants.

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SHOULD I MOVE TO? DUBLIN Words : Emma Martin | View : Mark Dalton

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He adds: “Dublin is the engine that drives the economy. Without a strong capital, the rest of this country is finished.”

amous for its European vibe, colourful buildings, cobbled streets and cosy pubs, Dublin is a favourite destination of tourists – having welcomed a record 10.65 million visitors in 2017 who spent €5.78bn – but what is it really like to live in this cosmopolitan Irish city?

And the point about economy is a strong one. The latest Facts about Ireland report from IDA Ireland states that the Irish economy is the fastest growing in the Eurozone and the 6th most competitive in the world – with a sizable chunk of Irish national GDP contributed from the capital.

A quick chat with the locals reveals that, like any capital city, whilst there are some amazing things about living in Dublin, there are certainly downsides too. Light hearted comments from residents make reference to seagulls, bad weather, the cost of a pint and the hordes of tourists shouting from the infamous Viking Tour motorised long-boats as popular qualms.

A multicultural city, Dublin is a respected nucleus for tech, with many non-Irish nationals moving to the city because of its advantageous career opportunities. The November 2018 edition of the Dublin Economic Monitor references the strength of the technology sector in particular, noting that in August Dublin was awarded 3rd place in the CBRE EMEA Tech Cities Index thanks to the government’s role in promoting the city to big and small tech companies, particularly from the US. CBRE Executive Director Paddy Conlon said of Dublin’s ranking: “More than 40% of overall office take-up in Dublin in the first half of 2018 was accounted for by tech occupiers, most of whom were expanding existing operations, which is indicative of their positive experience in the capital.”

Digging a little deeper shows that for some Irish the aversion for their capital city runs a little deeper. A 2016 article from the Irish Times delves into the national attitude to Dublin and goes as far to describe it as “a person stuck in a bad marriage”, inspired by a nationwide poll of 1,000 adults which showed that three out of four Irish people felt no emotional connection to Dublin. The article cites resentment with the past, an urban-rural split and a “lack of civic pride” for a city which (to some) isn’t entirely Irish in character, a lasting result of imperialism.

And the uptake from global tech companies is worth delving into deeper when it comes to the question of whether or not to move to Dublin. Experts have passed comment about the considerable uptake from companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook in the city, with these technology giants responsible for six out of the 10 top Dublin office deals in 2017. Each of these companies, and many others, have set up impressive headquarters in the city, not least Google, with its Dublin Campus masterplan

However, that being said there are many people who have a lot more love to give to Dublin, with the author of the Irish Times piece Trevor White stating: “Most of the time I love this place: the architecture, the sea, the mountains, the flea markets, the parks, the theatre, the pubs and the locals. Champion spoofers, I love their outsize conversation.” White also makes the point that without Dublin, Ireland would be lacking some serious economic clout.

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Samuel Beckett Bridge, Dublin

"More than 40% of overall office take-up in Dublin in the first half of 2018 was accounted for by tech occupiers, most of whom were expanding existing operations, which is indicative of their positive experience in the capital."

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" Recent data highlights just how popular Dublin has become with newcomers. The IDA’s latest report shows that there are 535,000 non-Irish nationals living in Ireland, making up just over 17% of the country’s entire population, with the UK, Romania, Poland and Brazil accounting for the most."

Temple Bar, Dublin

containing five restaurants and over 400 informal and formal meeting rooms as well as numerous leisure facilities.

Plans last year for Facebook to almost double its workforce in the city means that nearly 10,000 of Dublin’s industrial jobs will soon be provided by Facebook and Google. Facebook's Irish manager, Gareth Lambe, said to the Irish Independent: "Over the next number of years, if the business and platform continue to grow, we expect to continue to grow pretty substantially in Ireland. It's by far our largest footprint of any country in the world outside our Silicon Valley headquarters", and described their expansion to Dublin's inner north city as "a statement for the area”.

This is all noteworthy, as not only does it mean economic growth in the city, but also a rise in population as talented young professionals flock to the area in search of jobs that have previously been reserved for those living in tech hotpots like California. Declan O’Reilly of Knight Frank speaks about the growth of Dublin’s office sector: “This is an accelerating phenomenon that has come post-2010. With the quantum of space taken by the four largest TMT firms in Dublin increasing fourfold over the period. Interestingly, venture capital funding to tech in Dublin is trending upwards along with tech take-up, which is supportive of the view that the arrival of those established global firms is helping foster start-up activity in Dublin.”

Jeanie Johnston Tall Ship, Dublin

And all of this is having a knock on effect when it comes to the city centre population. Recent analysis shows that the amount of people employed in Dublin is at a 20 year peak – in Q2 2018 there were 697,900 people employed in the capital, an increase of 45,700 in the year, with some 200,000 jobs added since Q2 1998. The result?

No conversation about Dublin right now is complete without mention of its sky-high rental prices which are forcing locals out of the area and resulting in new arrivals living in unsatisfactory properties due to an ever unstable housing market plagued by a lack of affordable homes. In September it was reported that average monthly rents in Dublin hit almost €1,600, marking an increase of nearly €130 in a year – bad news for anyone looking to rent in the city.

Recent data highlights just how popular Dublin has become with newcomers. The IDA’s latest report shows that there are 535,000 non-Irish nationals living in Ireland, making up just over 17% of the country’s entire population, with the UK, Romania, Poland and Brazil accounting for the most. This fact makes Dublin in particular a thriving multicultural centre which many who live there cite as being central to the culture of the city. It is this inclusive ethos which continues to attract students and professionals from overseas to the city. It is no surprise then, that Dublin was ranked as the 31st best city in the world for international students, according to QS Best Student Cities 2017, placing at the same level as Madrid.

And there is much to attract students and graduates internationally and domestically to Dublin. It’s the youngest capital in Europe and allegedly home to more than 1,000 pubs according to Lonely Planet. The city was voted 41st in the Global Liveability Index by the Economist Intelligence Unit – an increase of two places on 2017 and ahead of London (48th), Rome (55th) and New York (57th). The index looked at a number of metrics including stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. Dublin’s ranking, according to the index, means that it has “few, if any challenges to living standards”.

Dublin is an innovative, forward-thinking and ambitious city that quite frankly feels exciting. The city is a playground for young professionals who are looking to chase a fast-paced and fun lifestyle in a cosmopolitan capital on the up. An incubator for start-ups and a haven for specially qualified techies, Dublin has much to offer. However the challenges to the local housing market create a significant barrier to the successful future of the city.

Without high-quality housing Dublin will struggle to keep on top of its rising population.

Should you move to Dublin? Maybe, but the advice would be not to wait around because the city is already packed to the rafters…

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From conception to completion

Knight Knox is an established property consultancy with a particular focus on city centre residential property markets. Our approach is unique in that we which are vital when developing outstanding homes.

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GREAT CENTRAL SHEFFIELD --FROM: £110,000

> 131 modern apartments > Next big UK market > Short walk to city centre > Great transport links > Lettings and management company in place

​Great Central is the latest new development from Knight 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 five years, this is the perfect time to get ahead of the game and invest in Sheffield.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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THE INTERCHANGE SALFORD --ÂŁ152,500

> Local rental market is booming > Lettings and management company in place > Modern furnishings and fixtures throughout > Built by an experienced developer > Great transport links

The Interchange is the first development from Qualis Developments in Greater Manchester.

Located in the heart of Salford, one of the UK’s most exciting and rapidly growing cities, only minutes from MediaCityUK and a short drive or Metrolink tram journey from Manchester city centre.

Each apartment is designed to maximise the potential of the available light and space to create large, bright living environments for residents.

Contemporary bathrooms and kitchens are complemented by modern furnishings and fixtures throughout, as well as parking on selected units and secure bicycle storage and a communal courtyard available for all.

NEW LAUNCH

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X1 CHATHAM WATERS KENT --ÂŁ205,000

> 1, 2 and 3-bedroom apartments available > Waterside views > Great transport links > Built by an experienced developer > On-site lettings and management company

Following the huge success of MediaCityUK, Manchester, Peel is delivering a ÂŁ650m destination waterfront in Kent. Already well underway with retail, leisure, and education phases delivered, and more to come including offices, and an events building, this will be a world class destination.

Award-winning developer X1 is proud to be working in partnership with Peel on this exciting new masterplan at Chatham Waters.

Commanding a prime waterfront location within the larger development, the high specification apartments at X1 Chatham Waters will boast outstanding views across both the marina and the Thames estuary.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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BRIDGEWATER WHARF GREATER MANCHESTER --FROM: ÂŁ139,995

> Local rental market is growing strongly > Superb public transport links > Lettings and management company in place > Within walking distance of MediaCityUK > Perfectly placed between Manchester 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.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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NORTHILL APARTMENTS SALFORD QUAYS --FROM: ÂŁ394,995

> 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 three 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.

LAST REMAINING UNITS

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X1 MANCHESTER WATERS MANCHESTER --FROM: £119,995

> Five 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 five 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.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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X1 MEDIA CITY TOWER 4 SALFORD QUAYS --FROM: £142,495

> Studios, one and two-bedroom apartments > Lettings and management company in place > Private communal facilities > Great transport links and shopping > All three previous phases sold out

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 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.

LAST REMAINING UNITS

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X1 THE LANDMARK SALFORD --FROM: £236,000

> 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.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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THE TOWER AT X1 THE QUARTER LIVERPOOL --SOLD OUT

> 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 occupied.

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.

IN CONSTRUCTION

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X1 THE CAMPUS SALFORD --SOLD OUT > 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.

COMPLETED & OCCUPIED

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BRIDGEWATER GATE SALFORD --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.

COMPLETED & OCCUPIED

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BELLS COURT SHEFFIELD --SOLD OUT

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

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.

COMPLETED & OCCUPIED

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At yieldit we sell tenanted buy to let properties which will start earning you Annual rent £00,000 income straight away. Whether you are a professional landlord looking to expand your portfolio or a first-time investor entering the market, we00.00% are NET yield sure to have the perfect investment property for you.

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