Marylebone Flats & Houses For Sale & Rent

Marble Arch Apartment for Rent

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:13:00 +0000

Kendal Street, Marble Arch, London, W2

We offer a beautiful one double bedroom first floor apartment within a period conversion set close to the West End. Benefits include a bright reception room, open plan fitted kitchen with some appliances, ensuite shower room with wc, available Now, unfurnished or part furnished.

Central London Property for Rent

Online Property Searches Give Hope to The Market

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:55:00 +0000

The number of people searching for a new property online has continued to grow and that can only be a positive sign for the housing market.

According to Rightmove, the number of people turning to the net to look for properties in the first ten days of this year was 27 per cent higher than in the same period in 2011.

Selwyn Lim, director of Mouseprice, believes that this is an encouraging indicator that the market will have a buoyant 2012, but also believes that it is a direct result of people switching from looking in newspapers to using their computer instead.

“It is definitely a positive indicator. I would water it down a little because of some elements. One is the shift in behaviour of more and more people searching online – it is a trend that has been going on,” he said.

“Since the internet began, more people have been searching online and that trend is continuing.”

Rightmove also reported that there was a 1.4 per cent rise in asking prices in the first week of the year.

London Housing Market News

How Long Can London Property Prices Defy Gravity?

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 10:01:00 +0000

How long can London's property market defy gravity asks the online Wall Street Journal? House prices in the capital rose in December, even as prices elsewhere stayed flat or fell, says the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Prices in prime central London are around 16% higher than their September 2007 precrisis peak. Some forecasters predict a further 25% jump by 2016, as foreign investors continue to seek havens for their cash. But downward pressures are likely to intensify this year.

Foreign buyers account for more than half of the sales of London's most desirable residences, helping shield the market from a domestic downturn. Many have large chunks of equity to invest, so are less affected by the mortgage-lending squeeze. Recent sterling weakness against many currencies—down 20% against the dollar since the start of the crisis—has added to London's allure, while ultralow interest rates have kept a lid on distressed sales.

So long as the economic uncertainty continues, the torrent of foreign cash flowing into London property—an estimated £6 billion, or roughly $9 billion, in the 18 months through mid-2011—will likely be sustained. But the top end of the market is sensitive to the global picture. If the euro crisis is resolved or the world economic outlook improves, overseas investors might turn to riskier, higher-return assets. A rise in sterling or a fall in commodity prices are other possible factors.

London property isn't cheap by any measure. Yields are low—at 3.9%, compared with 5% in the wider U.K. housing market and up to 7% for prime offices in most European capitals. Soaring prime central London rents, up 25% since mid-2009, have provided some support to valuations, but an estimated 55% of "prime" tenants work in financial services, where heavy job losses are on tap. Yields are likely to remain flat into 2016, estate agent Savills says.

Meanwhile, the average house price in London is equivalent to 7.8 times earnings for a typical first-time buyer, compared with an average of 4.8 times across the country, website Findaproperty.com estimates. Such a disparity looks unsustainable, and provides a strong incentive for capital-dwellers to relocate and investors to seek better value elsewhere.

Central London Office take up boosted by pre let activity

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 07:17:00 +0000

The Central London office market witnessed a surge in leasing activity as take-up jumped to 1.1m sq ft in November, an increase of 80% on last month and marking the highest level since December 2010, according to CBRE. As a result of Aon’s completion on the pre-let of 191,700 sq ft at British Land’s Leadenhall Building, the City was the strongest performing Central London market. Office availability also rose steadily to 15.6m sq ft, following a large quantity of second hand space coming back onto the Central London market – this represents an availability rate of 7.1%. Digby Flower, Executive Director, CBRE said: “The strong take-up in November was down to deals completing from earlier in the year. There is still a sizable amount of space under offer which should translate into leasing activity over the next six months. Beyond this, occupiers are likely to delay taking space until there is greater clarity on the macroeconomic picture.” Active requirements in the Central London market rose by 5 per cent in November to reach 13.1 million square feet. The West End saw the most significant leap in demand, rising by 15 per cent to 4.9 million square feet.

Estate Agents and QR Codes

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 10:38:00 +0000

ARLA reports on What is a QR code and as an Estate Agent, why should I care!?

So you've all got yourselves your mobile 'apps' and are frantically getting to grips with the wonderful world of 'social media', but what about the latest craze to hit the world of business? - The QR (Quick Response) code.

Put very simply, QR codes are a form of barcode that make the storing and retrieving of data very quick and simple, principally through use of an app on a mobile phone such as an iPhone or Android device. Simply open the app, point the camera at the QR code, and wait for the magic to happen.

Scanning a QR code can perform a number of different actions from displaying text, contact information, composing an email, or opening a web page in your mobile phones web browser. The later of these actions is probably what you will see most often - point your camera at a QR code and be taken to a web page with all the information the company using the code would like you to see.

The QR wave

QR Codes were created by Toyota subsidiary Denso Wave in 1994 to track vehicles during the manufacturing process, but have since burst onto the scene in 2011 with virtually all major global brands including Subway, Coca-Cola, and the BBC making use of them on a regular basis. The technology should not be ignored. The increasingly common use of so called 'smart phones' to access the internet means QR codes offers interesting opportunities for estate agents to direct people from offline media to online.

Take a simple scenario in the world of the property agent. A prospective client walks past a property you're marketing, scans the QR code you've added to the For Sale board and within 5 seconds is looking at a page on your website with all the information they need about the property. One more click and they're making a call to your office to arrange a viewing. Neat eh?

Here are some advantages to using QR codes:

Simple, fast, and inexpensive to create and distribute
Connects people with detailed product information
Smartphone's with QR code readers are becoming increasingly common
And here are some examples of what a QR code can include are:

URLs
Text
Phone numbers
Complete contact information
SMS text messages
Calendar events
An email address
A geographic map location

Sarkozy and Merkel Want you To Buy London Property

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:42:00 +0000

Forbes Magazine Reports; It’s true that President Sarkozy and Chancellor Merkel don’t in fact phrase it quite this way but that is indeed the implication of what they’re saying as they try to resolve this eurozone crisis. That you should go out and buy as much London property as you possibly can, as quickly as possible.

Germany and France said a City tax will be part of a new European treaty in an aggressive move that will force David Cameron to concede defeat or allow the eurozone to advance without Britain.

Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy defied the Prime Minister’s threats and announced a Financial Transactions Tax (FTT) will be part of the proposals for the EU treaty they want leaders to ratify on Thursday.

In an open letter to Herman Van Rompuy, Europe’s president, Ms Merkel and Mr Sarkozy said their demands should be “enshrined in the European Treaties” but warned without full EU support the eurozone “will have to go ahead”.

I’ve said before that the financial transactions tax is a dreadful idea: it will increase price volatility, the incidence will be on consumers and workers and we’ll all lose more than the tax will raise. Further, that it won’t even raise any money, for the losses from other taxes will mean a revenue loss overall.

However, what we’re seeing here is something really quite different. For what is now being said is that the FTT will come in: but that if Britain blocks it (or other non-eurozone states do) then it will be introduced in the eurozone alone.

Which would be absolutely fabulous for London as it would mean that the 20% of Europe’s wholesale finance which is not already in London would move to London. With all the implications that has for the price of decent property in the capital. Quite simply, the biggest obvious economic impact of such a scheme would be to boost London’s property prices.

And I, for one, if Sarkozy and Merkel are silly enough to do this, can only say “Bring it on!”.

Landlord and Tenant News: Overseas students driving luxury rental market

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:31:00 +0000

Cash rich students from overseas are increasingly looking at the more luxurious end of the rental market.

Jonathan Moore, director of EasyRoomMate.com, said that while student homes still often have the reputation of being far from grandiose, students are becoming more choosy and those from overseas in particular are looking for properties in more affluent districts.

"With the increase of demand from international students with bigger budgets, we are seeing a niche luxury lettings market emerge in many university towns, with investors targeting higher rents - albeit from a bigger investment," he said.He added that, despite this, changes in the HMO [house in multiple occupation] licensing requirements mean that all property let to students is now of a decent standard.

Research conducted last month by specialist mortgage provider Paragon found that student lets still offer a landlord the highest possible yield, with an average of 7.62 per cent.Properties let on a shared basis by professionals was the second best performer at 7.56 per cent.

Landlord and Tenant News

Westminster Residents to Save Money through Solar Panels.

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:51:00 +0000

Thousands of residents are set to benefit from cut-price electricity bills thanks to the installation of new solar panels by Westminster Council.The panels will be put on the most suitable council buildings in order to catch the sun’s heat and generate electricity.It is expected that 2,300 people will benefit in the cut to their communal bill as the electricity will power mechanisms such as lifts or lights in communal areas.

Every property will save about £5 a month at a time when many families are struggling with fuel poverty.Westminster Council’s cabinet member for housing and corporate property, Cllr Jonathan Glanz said: “This is an all round win. Not only do the residents who directly benefit from cash savings but the measures also play an important part in Westminster’s determination to create a cleaner, greener borough.”

The council had hoped to extent the scheme even further but a Government announcement that they will cut subsidies sooner than expected made this impractical at this stage.

The government said it would almost halve the subsidy, known as the Feed in Tariff (FiT), on 12 December rather than 31 March.This has meant that the current deal is worth £1million rather than the original £12 million.

Invest in London Buy to Let Property Now Say ARLA

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 08:48:00 +0000

Now is still a great time to invest in a buy to let property in London, says the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

Figures released by the body show that 60 per cent of its members have seen an increase in enquiries for rental properties in the past two years.

Additionally, the period in which properties are unoccupied between rental contracts has fallen sharply, with an average of just 2.7 weeks now.

"Three-quarters of our members are reporting that demand for rental property is outstripping supply and, with rental returns currently at five per cent, anyone thinking about investing a property to rent could be well-placed to consider their options in the coming months," said Ian Potter, operations manager at ARLA.

Mr Potter added that the services of a professional residential letting agent should be sought out by anyone moving into the buy to let market.

Earlier this week Malcolm Harrison of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme said that using a professional lettings agency is one of the best things both tenants and would-be landlords can do if they wish the rental period to be a successful one.

London Property Market News

Achievable Rent Levels on Residential Property Have Risen in the Last Six Months

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 09:37:00 +0000

Increased demand for rental property is sparking a renewed interest in the PRS from landlords in some parts of the UK.

Achievable rent levels on residential property have risen in the last six months, according to 60% of ARLA member agents, and have outperformed other investment classes consistently for the past two years.

The average period for which a rental property is empty in between lets is just 2.7 weeks per year, down from an average four weeks two years ago.

Ian Potter, Operations Manager at ARLA, said: "Three quarters of our members are reporting that demand for rental property is outstripping supply and, with rental returns currently at 5%, anyone thinking about investing a property to rent could be well-placed to consider their options in the coming months."

Our research shows that prudent landlords are moving quickly to expand their portfolios, with almost a quarter (23%) reporting that they have bought properties in the last year. The most popular regions for investment are the North West, Midlands and Central London. In contrast the Rest of London saw the fewest landlords buying property.

We advise anyone considering investing in a rental property or portfolio, to first seek advice from a professional, licensed lettings agent.

Mr Potter continued: "The rental market is, rightly, coming under increasing scrutiny to ensure that consumers are not mistreated. Currently, anyone can become a letting agent. To protect your rights either as a landlord or tenant, it is critical therefore to check that there are measures - like Client Money Protection - in place with your chosen agent should things go wrong."

Marylebone Residents Encouraged to Take Part in Free Leisure Activities

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:59:00 +0000

Leisure centres and sport venues across Westminster will host more than 220 hours of free activities this weekend (Nov 19/20).

Swimming, football, badminton, martial arts and table tennis are among the sports on offer across seven venues.

Visitors will be encouraged to try something new, from latin and ballroom dancing classes – to supervised climbing sessions and yoga.

They will also have the chance to have a 'mini' fitness MOT at the gym, try out activities such as street dance and cheerleading or take the opportunity to improve their swimming technique.

Cllr Steve Summers, Westminster Council’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and the Olympics, said:
“The Active weekend is a great opportunity for residents to get out into the local community and find out what leisure services are on offer.

"Westminster's gyms and leisure facilities provide excellent value for money, and we are proud to have some of the best facilities in the capital, within easy access of all our residents and visitors."

“I’d encourage residents to get involved this weekend, to see for themselves what’s on offer and maybe try something new.”

The 'Active Westminster Weekend' is being run in partnership with a range of organisations across the city including NHS Westminster.

For full listings Click Here

Great Portland Estates Delay Sky Scraper

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 09:48:00 +0000

London property developer Great Portland Estates said it is unlikely to secure a major letting to begin construction of its planned 100 Bishopsgate skyscraper in the City for at least six months.

The group has a joint venture with Canadian property firm Brookfield to build the proposed office tower in London’s financial district, but pre-lets have become harder to secure as firms remain reluctant to move due to the economic uncertainties.

Great Portland’s adjusted net asset value rose to 378p per share at the end of September, up 20 per cent from 316p a year ago.

The value of its portfolio has risen 3.9 per cent to £1.8bn since March, benefitting from the resilience in London’s West End property market in the first half of the year.

City office leasing levels were higher in the three months to the end of September but Great Portland said it expects the full year to be down on the high levels of 2010, the group said in a statement.

Nokia WiFi Hotspots Set Up

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 13:01:00 +0000

Nokia has set up 26 hotspots to support the service and these are largely concentrated around West End shopping areas. Victoria, Marylebone and Westminster will also get access points. The firm said people would not need to register or sign in to use the wi-fi.

From today until the end of 2011, the public will be able to use the high-speed service in certain parts of the city courtesy of the phone firm.If the two-month trial is deemed a success, the Finnish company plans to turn it into a fully fledged free wi-fi service early in 2012.

The initiative is one of many that will eventually see London dotted with hotspots offering free net browsing.

Free wi-fi is widely already widely available in London but it tends to be via solitary access points in shops and hotels. In addition some ISPs, such as BT, give their subscribers free wi-fi via their own-brand wireless services.

The fragmented nature of existing services has led the Greater London Council to encourage boroughs to set up free wi-fi along the busiest streets. Projects for wi-fi in Westminster, Kensington & Chelsea as well as Hammersmith & Fulham and other regions are believed to be in the closing stages of negotiation.

There are also ongoing talks to put wi-fi on London tube stations so passengers can browse the web while they wait for a train.

There is also a plan to provide free wi-fi in and around London for the 2012 Olympics to help visitors and tourists find their way around and to make it easier for the sights and sounds of the games to be shared.

BBC NEWS

Prime Central London Property Forecast Houseprice Increase

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:14:00 +0000

Reuters is reporting that the fall in house prices in England and Wales accelerated in October as consumers become increasingly worried about the outlook for the economy and shy away from buying homes, property data firm Hometrack said.

Property prices in prime central London are expected to continue rising next year, according to the latest forecast from estate agent Knight Frank.

Prime central London prices will increase by an average of 5% in 2012. The property consultancy expects to see longer term price appreciation of 24%, on average, by the end of 2016.

Liam Bailey, Knight Frank's head of research, said: "Prices in prime central London are currently at an all-time high, despite which we believe there is scope for further price gains over the next 12 months, averaging 5% across 2012."

Bailey added: "The reasons which have underpinned recent growth - a weak pound, renewed wealth-creation in emerging markets, the search for safe-haven assets and flight capital - all seem set to continue, at least in the short term, reinforcing our positive view for next year."

With residential property prices set for greater capital growth, new home developers are generally confident about the outlook for the market in 2012 and do not foresee an adverse impact from the sovereign debt crises, according to Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL).

JLL's latest survey found that 84% of new home developers thought that central London apartment prices in core locations would increase next year. In fact more than a quarter of respondents thought that prices would increase by over 5% in 2012. A further 37% thought that prices would move up by between 2 and 5%. Only 5% expected prices to depreciate in 2012.

Neil Chegwidden, residential research director at Jones Lang LaSalle, who undertook the research, said: "Our survey confirms that developers remain positive and confident about the outlook for the central London residential market despite the overhang of gloomy economic and financial market news.

"The vast majority believe that prices will increase next year with more than a quarter of developers confident that prices will rise by more than 5%. Strong appetite from overseas buyers is clearly key. Our research suggests that more than 75% of recent new apartment sales derive from overseas. The international dimension has also led to core central London locations outperforming the rest of the UK market and we expect this to continue next year."

Student Accommodation Investment Difficult to Secu...

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:58:00 +0000

Bloomsbury Flats & Houses For Sale & Rent: Student Accommodation Investment Difficult to Secu...: Banks are curbing lending to the UK's student housing property market as hikes in British university fees exacerbate grim conditions for rea...

West London Property Prices Pushed Up By International Investment

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:43:00 +0000

Buyers from the Middle East, North Africa, Eastern Europe and former Soviet Union are pushing prices in Knightsbridge and Belgravia to new records,said Lucian Cook, UK Estate agent Savills’s director of residential research. Values in the west London neighborhoods have risen 93 percent and 94 percent since 2006 compared with 87 percent across prime central London residential real estate, reports Bloomberg.

Four penthouse apartments at the Porchester Building near London’s Paddington Station are expected to sell at 1,200 pounds a square foot, property broker Hamptons International said by e- mail. The six-story Victorian site, which has 41,500 square feet of office space, was put on sale today at 28 million pounds.

Sales of homes above the 5 million-pound threshold totaled 3.2 billion pounds in the nine-month period compared with 2.1 billion pounds a year earlier, Savills said. About 60 percent of the buyers in the last three months were foreign

New York Top Property Investment Table, But London Is top for Overseas property Investment

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:32:00 +0000

New York overtook London as the No. 1 destination for real-estate investment for the first time since 2007 after improved access to financing spurred more U.S. deals, Cushman & Wakefield Inc. said in a report today.

Buyers are drawn to cities like New York and London because of a greater focus on the “biggest and best,” Cushman said in the report. The trend will continue in the next six months, it said.

Chicago, New York, Boston and Atlanta made up four of the five fastest growing property investment markets by volume, the report said. Frankfurt and Germany’s Rhine-Main area ranked fourth, with growth of 126 percent.

London kept its spot as the top city for overseas property investment with $14.2 billion. That was a drop of 9.6 percent. One in every two dollars spent on real estate investment in London during the period came from abroad. Kelly said there has been a “resurgence” in interest in London from U.S. investors

London was followed by Paris, New York, Singapore and Beijing as the favorite destinations for overseas buyers.

London Estate Agents News

Illegal Adverts a Threat During the Olympics

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 09:56:00 +0000

London risks being over-run with illegal adverts during the Olympics unless local authorities are given greater powers to tackle opportunistic product placement, it was warned today.

The call comes from Westminster council which this week has written to Bob Neil, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, as well as Lord Coe, urging for a shake-up of existing laws. It follows a spate of ambush advertisement campaigns in the city, and at major sporting events, in recent years.
Currently councils have limited powers for seeking the immediate removal of illegal adverts and councils are often left with no option other than to apply for an injunction from the High Court. This delays removal and incurs significant cost and wastes officer time.

While advertisers who flaunt planning rules can be fined, the maximum £2,500 fine is not sufficient as a deterrent, particularly when compared to the revenue generated by prominent adverts at global sporting events.

The council has called for an extension of new powers, introduced to tackle these issues in designated areas around Olympic venues, to be extended across all of London – this includes being able to immediately remove advertising that does not have the relevant consent.

Westminster has seen a number of incidents of ambush advertising in recent years, notably when Cricket Australia projected an image of two of their players onto Big Ben in the lead-up to the 2010 Ashes series. Other major sporting events have also been targeted by the trend, with two people being arrested at the 2010 Football World Cup after 36 women wore bright orange outfits to promote a Dutch brewery during a match between Holland and Denmark.

“We pride ourselves on London’s appearance. Never will this be as important than during the Olympics, when the eyes of the world will be on us. We must have real powers to prevent the city’s streets being daubed in product placement by opportunistic advertisers.”

Under existing laws public outdoor advertising must be granted consent by the local planning authority.The council recently had success in changing a legal loophole that means consent is now needed for adverts displayed inside phone kiosks located in conservation areas.

Paddington Property for Rent

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 14:56:00 +0000

Bathurst Street, Paddington, London, W2 £445 pw

A unique one bedroom apartment situated in a quiet residential cobbled mews, neighbouring the world famous Hyde Park with its numerous leisure facilities. The apartment is located on the first floor via its own private entrance leading to a spacious reception room with an open plan fitted kitchen. The apartment further benefits from having been newly redecorated, a large loft storage area, within easy access of Bayswater Tube Station and multiple bus links to the West End. Available Now. Furnished or Unfurnished.

West End Apartment for rent, Paddington

Paul Macartney to re- marry at Marylebone Register Office

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 12:33:00 +0000

The former Beatle and fiancee Nancy Shevell have posted a notice of intention to marry at London's Marylebone Register Office

Alison Cathcart, who has been Westminster City Council’s Superintendent Registrar for almost 20 years and has married celebrities including Sylvester Stallone, Joan Collins, Barbara Windsor and David Walliams said: “The best thing about being a registrar is the knowledge that in one moment you have changed people’s lives, and I’m delighted that Paul and Nancy have chosen Marylebone Town Hall for their special day.

“I am honoured to be conducting the ceremony and will get to see the look of joy on both their faces when I declare them husband and wife.

“Lots of couples get married here because of the venue’s reputation as a rock ‘n’ roll place to tie the knot and this ceremony will certainly continue that legacy.”

UK Rents Rise At Fastest Rate

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 13:16:00 +0000

The BBC report that cost of renting a home rose at its fastest rate in a year - with the average tenant paying £713 a month, a survey has said.

Tenants paid 1.2% more on average to rent a property in the UK in August than they did in July, according to LSL Property Services.

The cost rose quickest in Wales and the South East of England in the last month.

Tenant arrears increased for the first time since April, the survey added.

"We are in the thick of the busiest time of year for the rental market, and red-hot demand for properties is driving rents up at their fastest monthly pace in the last 12 months," said David Newnes, LSL's estate agency managing director.

"Recent graduates moving for their first jobs have further exaggerated the long-term and growing demand from frustrated buyers.

"In the last two years, average rents have risen by more than £50 a month."

Prospective Tenants Are Failing Credit Referencing Checks

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 11:57:00 +0000

Rising numbers of tenants in London are failing to pass their reference checks because they do not met the salary requirements being demanded as rents soar, reports the RLA.

Instead, they are having to use guarantors who do pass the checks or put down up to a year’s rent.

Most credit referencing companies now insist that a prospective tenant earns around 30 times the monthly rent, or two-and-a-half to three times the annual rent. A tenant’s savings are not taken into account.

Rents have risen by as much as 20% in parts of London, according to agents Ludlow Thompson.

Lynn Hilton, partner for residential lettings at Cluttons agents, said that one in five tenants is now failing a credit referencing test. Four years ago, fewer than one in 20 failed.

Of those who fail, around half are opting to fork out a bigger deposit instead – up to a year’s rent upfront – or produce a rent guarantor whose financial ability satisfies the referencing firm.

The problem of tenants failing the checks is even catching wealthier individuals because, for example, they do not have assets listed in this country for tax reasons, or while they have savings, they do not have jobs.

Marylebone car park gets green light for controversial housing development

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 08:42:00 +0000

Westminster Council last week controversially granted permission for the eight-storey residential development with health and fitness club and retail accommodation to be built on the site of the Chiltern Street car park.

Prior to the decision the Marylebone Association, three Marylebone ward councillors and a number of local residents had all objected to the plans.

Marylebone High Street Cllr Harvey Marshall says the councillors’ main concern is the impact the new development will have on the neighbouring Paddington Street Gardens.

“We thought the scheme was far too close to the park and was going to overshadow it,” he said.

“We have got very few green spaces in our ward and we want to preserve them. That was the principle reason for our objection but there were other concerns as well.”

The Marylebone Association submitted a detailed objection with 15 points including the loss of two trees, development on an old burial ground, and the lack of “genuinely” affordable housing. It also questioned the capacity for development to take place while retaining the Apollo pub which is not included in the plans.

Marylebone Association chairman Stephen Quinn said: “I’m quite surprised that it has got permission when there was such a long list of objections from so many people.

“The car park is very under-used and it’s right in the middle of Marylebone. It’s an extremely ugly building so we welcome some development, but we are very surprised this application has been accepted.”

Sixty new homes will be built including 16 affordable units, while a basement fitness centre will be constructed alongside 23 new parking spaces for residents. Two trees which will be lost on the site will be replaced.

Planning Approval for New Crossrail Entrance at Marylebone Lane

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 08:54:00 +0000

The face of one of the capital's busiest shopping areas will change after proposals for the over-station development of the new Bond Street Crossrail station were approved on September 1.

Westminster Council's planning committee gave consent to plans that will see the existing 1960s block at 354-358 Oxford Street demolished to make way for an entrance to the Crossrail station's new ticket office from the north side of Oxford Street. The new entrance in Marylebone Lane will replace one that leads to the existing Underground station in Stratford Place.

Shop space on the basement, ground and first floors of Oxford Street will be also be replaced as part of the re-development, with eleven new flats provided on the second to fifth floors.

The size of the building will remain broadly the same, with only some reductions to retail and residential floorspace, while traditional materials such as red brick and patinated metal will be used so the re-development compliments neighbouring buildings such as 360-366 Oxford Street.

Westminster Children’s Library reopens after £30,000 revamp

noreply@blogger.com (London Estate Agents) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 12:23:00 +0000

Paddington Children’s Library has reopened after a £30,000 revamp, council chiefs have announced.

As part of the three-week long revamp, new children’s self-service facilities have been fitted to enable children to check out their own books.

Eight new computer desks designed for children have also been installed to enhance computer skills and provide them with more online learning opportunities.

The library also now has a dedicated under-5s area fitted with children’s furniture and seating for parents.

The furniture can be removed which will enable the library to host children’s events throughout the year.

New shelving has also been fitted for the library’s extensive range of books and materials.
Over the past year more than 55,000 children have visited the library to borrow books and take part in special children’s events.

The library also holds regular sessions for the under-5s, a homework club, and hosts school and nursery visits and a Saturday afternoon reading club.

Cllr Melvyn Caplan, Westminster Council’s cabinet member for customer services, said: “The revamp of Paddington Children’s Library is a perfect example of how we are adapting to meet the changing needs of our residents.

“This library provides a wonderful service to the community and I hope that with the help of this new space and facilities, children and families will be able to enjoy it even more.