Buying, selling and letting - December, 2007

by Andrew Boff
    
In what used to be known as a deprived and neglected area close to the
borders of the City, a change has been going on. At the centre of that
change is a simple shopping street that has found its role again as the
centre of a community which feels good about itself.

Broadway Market's contribution to the renaissance of this part of East
London is unchallengeable. It was a simple idea by a number of residents
and shopkeepers that they needed a proper Saturday market to bring back
life to the area. The market started in May 2004 with a handful of
stalls of fresh fruit and veg, bread and other essentials. The
organisers hoped that it would gradually grow and, after a few years,
establish itself as a regular feature of the area. Its success was
beyond the residents' most ambitious dreams. Within months it was packed
with local residents doing their weekly shopping, browsing the many arts
and crafts or just to catching up with friends. The local residents
continue to manage it and strive to make it ever better.
Broadway's Saturday Market adds another dimension to an area that is
packed with potential. The unique social and cultural mix, the many
quiet and attractive streets and its closeness to the City make this one
of the most interesting places in London to live.

Whilst the attractive Regent's Canal marks the southern part of the
area, the Northern part includes the jewel in the crown and the most
often quoted reason for people loving the area they live in - London
Fields. London Fields is a peculiarly shaped stretch of parkland which
is busy with sports, dog walkers, cyclists and  people who just want to
take in the air. An active local management group ensures that the
Fields gets ever better. Their most notable recent success is the newly
re-opened London Fields Lido -  A modern, heated, open air pool. Some
describe swimming in it on a cold morning as an almost religious experience!

Whilst the Market is the most popular attraction on the street with some
3,000 people visiting it every Saturday, the street is also now busy
during the week. The local restaurants and cafe's, small independent
shops and good value local stores, where you can get everything from
handbags to hammers, explains why people who live here love it.

When it comes to dressing up your houses this year with lights, decorations and all the festive trimmings, take a minute to consider the impact on the environment.

A HotProperty.co.uk survey found that 64 percent of Brits think houses dripping in Christmas decorations are ‘fun and festive’, suggesting there could be a lot of brightly lit houses this festive season.

We all love the festive season, but in this day and age you have to consider the impact on the environment in everything you do. Although decorated houses bring Christmas cheer to a neighbourhood, it also wastes a lot of energy.

Just one house decorated with Christmas fairy lights and other electric decorations could use an extra 1,000 kWh over the Christmas period. The average UK home uses just 3,300 kWh of electricity annually.

Which is why HotProperty.co.uk is encouraging people to think about energy-efficient ways of expressing Christmas spirit instead.

Maybe you could use decorations that aren’t electrically illuminated or invest in energy-saving Christmas lights instead of regular ones. There are many options, and if just one home in ten tries to cut down this year we can make a real difference.

Some tips for a ‘green Christmas’:

•    Recycle Christmas cards and wrapping paper. This year almost 1 billion cards will be thrown away rather than recycled. The Woodland Trust run a Xmas card recycling scheme - check it out here Woodland-trust.org.uk/cards.

•    Choose charity cards and wrapping paper which have some recycled paper content. Check out the selection at Naturalcollection.com

•    Ordinary light bulbs and outdoor lights use more energy then indoor strings of lights. Consider replacing them with energy-saving versions or decreasing the amount of time they are on. There are a lot of options available at Green and Easy Greenandeasy.co.uk

•    Find out if your local council can recycle your Christmas tree

•    Check out Recyclenow.com for gift ideas that are also eco-friendly

However, the survey also found that there are still some scrooges among us who won’t be wasting energy on festive decorating this year. Thirty four percent of you say that houses decorated for Christmas are ‘tasteless and showy’.

Over the last month there have been many predications made about the property market, with house price indexes, economic forecasts and industry experts all telling a different story.

As a property portal, we’re in a unique position to analyse the market. November was a strong month for HotProperty.co.uk despite the general market slow down experienced in September and October.

What we are seeing on our site is that demand is still strong and house prices are not diving just yet.

The HotProperty consolidated house price index tracks the Rightmove, Financial Times, Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and Land Registry indices.

The most recent figures show that house prices righted themselves in October after a minor fall in September. The average UK house price in October was £214,511, a growth of 0.79 percent.

Although there is a lot of fear in the market about a decline in house prices, growth is actually slowing down currently, not entering into decline. We expect to see growth continue to stall over the Christmas and New Year period as the market stabilises.  

While the market is definitely slowing down, the reality of the current market is that it is largely a self-perpetuating phenomena.

The more the media give credence to the imminent ‘crash’, the more this affects confidence levels.  Lower confidence levels in turn have a negative impact on the market, further perpetuating the myth that a crash is nigh.

The market is simply self-correcting. Despite some doomsayers’ theories, this is to be expected after the exaggerated growth we have experienced in the last decade.

However, there are some options out there though so don’t despair.

Key London Alliance

Inspace Homes has joined forces with Notting Hill Housing Group, Circle Anglia and Barratt Homes, under the joint venture consortium called the Key London Alliance (KLA). The KLA was chosen as one of English Partnerships’ development management partners to deliver the London-Wide Initiative (LWI) aimed at fast-tracking affordable homes for key workers in the capital.

The aim is to provide 2,200 new homes across London. Of these 500 will be allocated for shared ownership or rental accommodation.

Inspacehomes.co.uk

Derwent Living

In Bletchley, Derwent Living has 11 apartments at Waterside in Stoke Road for sale on a part-buy, part-rent basis. The development, built by Lovell Homes, is close to local amenities and has excellent links to Milton Keynes.

The ten two-bedroom and one one-bedroom apartments will be available through the government’s New Build HomeBuy initiative and will be sold on a part-buy, part-rent basis under Derwent Living’s Easy Living brand.

Easy Living aims to help first-time buyers and people keen to get on the property ladder.

Prices start at £75,000 for a 50 per cent share of a one-bedroom property, with rent and a service
charge payable on the rest.

Derwentliving.com

New Build HomeBuy scheme

The New Build HomeBuy scheme operates through Notting Hill Housing Group. It offers opportunities for first-time buyers to get on to the property ladder through a shared ownership scheme.

Applicants for the scheme must have a salary of £23,000 or more, or for joint applicants the minimum salary is £27,000.

Find out more about the criteria at nottinghillhousing.org.

Government assistance

The government has launched a new equity loan scheme designed to help the many caught in the renting trap. In this scheme, first-timers are being offered an equity loan of up to 17.5 per cent of the purchase price of a property that which can be used in conjunction with a conventional mortgage.

The new option, part of the government’s multi-million-pound Open Market HomeBuy scheme, allows people to buy a home on the open market and receive an equity loan for up to 17.5 per cent of the purchase price.

There will never be any charge for interest on the equity loan provided, and the loan can be used in conjunction with a conventional mortgage from any qualified lender regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). The loan is repaid when the property is sold, and is calculated at the equivalent percentage of the market value of the property at the time of repayment.

Homebuy.co.uk