On March 6 a three-week consultation by Westminster Council will allow people in the borough to comment and debate the plans to ease congestion and improve safety for scooter and motorcycle riders. The council will also establish an oversight group, including representatives from the cycling and motorbike communities.
Westminster council pioneered the scheme back in 2005. Transport for London followed with a pilot of its own in 2009, where motorcyclists could use lanes on its major route network (Red Route) – that has now been made permanent by the Mayor of London.
So far, statistics from the Transport for London pilot studies have shown a 20 per cent improvement in traffic flow for motorbikes, whereas bus travel was completely unchanged including at stops.
Central London Transport News
Monday, 19 March 2012
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
Knight Frank Prime Central London Index - February 2012
Knight Franks Prime Central London Index supports the image of London property market as safe and sustainable;
The sustainability of central London's property market has been questioned continually since the current revival began in 2009. Rising sales volumes should provide some comfort according to Liam Bailey, Knight Frank's Head of Residential Research:
“Another month and another rise in central London house prices.
“With the odd blip, I have written pretty much the same story for nearly three years now. The longer prime house prices continue to rise, the obvious question continues to emerge - will these rises eventually be replaced by falls?
“We forecast last October that prime central London prices would rise by 5% in 2012. At the current time the evidence from the market appears to underpin this view.”
London Property News
- Average prices for prime central London property rose by 0.7% in February
- Prices for prime central London property are up 11.6% over the past 12 months
- Prices have risen 43% from their post-Lehman collapse low-point in March 2009, and are 8.9% higher than their previous peak in March 2008
- Volume of sales has risen 85% in the year to February
- Italians have accounted for 8% of purchases since January, beating Russians to the top spot
The sustainability of central London's property market has been questioned continually since the current revival began in 2009. Rising sales volumes should provide some comfort according to Liam Bailey, Knight Frank's Head of Residential Research:
“Another month and another rise in central London house prices.
“With the odd blip, I have written pretty much the same story for nearly three years now. The longer prime house prices continue to rise, the obvious question continues to emerge - will these rises eventually be replaced by falls?
“We forecast last October that prime central London prices would rise by 5% in 2012. At the current time the evidence from the market appears to underpin this view.”
London Property News
Monday, 20 February 2012
Luxury Super Sized Apartments are the Choice for Foreign Investors
Property investors in London are switching their attention from traditional townhouses to luxury super-sized apartments, it has been claimed.
According to Stephen Dyer, managing director of Ideal Property, cash rich buyers from overseas are shying away from the giant houses of Chelsea and Kensington are instead looking to move into spacious new developments.
And as a result of this, professional investors are following the trend and restructuring the types of properties in their portfolios.A number of new developments are already under construction and the market is set to grow considerably this year. A recent study from Hampton International’s found that biggest number of overseas buyers last year came from Russia.
London Property Investment
According to Stephen Dyer, managing director of Ideal Property, cash rich buyers from overseas are shying away from the giant houses of Chelsea and Kensington are instead looking to move into spacious new developments.
And as a result of this, professional investors are following the trend and restructuring the types of properties in their portfolios.A number of new developments are already under construction and the market is set to grow considerably this year. A recent study from Hampton International’s found that biggest number of overseas buyers last year came from Russia.
London Property Investment
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
“Benchmark set” as central London’s public toilets, used by thousands, will remain open for at least next 10 years
Vital public loos across the centre of London will remain open for at least the next ten years as Westminster City Council is set to protect services and save money under innovative new proposals.
Plans are being finalised which will see the council’s 20 permanent facilities being leased out to a private provider and, as a result, safeguarded from any threat of closure. The contract will involve at least 50 per cent of the sites being free for all users with the remainder charging a maximum of 50p, set to be introduced in April.
Currently Westminster has one of the most extensive networks of public loos in the country, but that comes at a cost of £2.1m a year to the taxpayer to run the 20 sites. Even though local authorities have no statutory duty to provide public conveniences, Westminster has for many years ensured that these facilities remain open.
This is against a national back drop of a significant decline in the number of public conveniences with the problem particularly acute in London. In fact the capital has seen the biggest decline in the number of local-authority run public toilets – a closure rate twice that of the country as a whole.
Westminster is bucking the trend by providing a high quality and extensive network of public conveniences throughout which are visited more than 8 million times a year.
Plans are being finalised which will see the council’s 20 permanent facilities being leased out to a private provider and, as a result, safeguarded from any threat of closure. The contract will involve at least 50 per cent of the sites being free for all users with the remainder charging a maximum of 50p, set to be introduced in April.
Currently Westminster has one of the most extensive networks of public loos in the country, but that comes at a cost of £2.1m a year to the taxpayer to run the 20 sites. Even though local authorities have no statutory duty to provide public conveniences, Westminster has for many years ensured that these facilities remain open.
This is against a national back drop of a significant decline in the number of public conveniences with the problem particularly acute in London. In fact the capital has seen the biggest decline in the number of local-authority run public toilets – a closure rate twice that of the country as a whole.
Westminster is bucking the trend by providing a high quality and extensive network of public conveniences throughout which are visited more than 8 million times a year.
Tuesday, 24 January 2012
Foreign Investment in Central London Property Market
Investment from overseas is continuing to drive the housing market in the heart of London.
This is according to Naomi Heaton, chief executive of London Central Portfolio, who believes that the financial security of homes in the capital appeals to cash-rich foreign investors more than in other European cities.
"Inevitably, foreign buyers will dominate by virtue of the fact that there are far more wealthy people globally, than there are located in the UK," she said.
"London Central is increasingly seen as a safe haven market which offers capital preservation with long-term upside potential."
And it seems the figures back up her claims.
Recent statistics released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) show that nationally property values have seen a slight decrease. But London has continued to buck the trend.
There's also good news for landlords in London as HomeLet's Rental Index for November showed that in some parts of the capital, rental values are 80 per cent greater than the national average.
London Property Market News
This is according to Naomi Heaton, chief executive of London Central Portfolio, who believes that the financial security of homes in the capital appeals to cash-rich foreign investors more than in other European cities.
"Inevitably, foreign buyers will dominate by virtue of the fact that there are far more wealthy people globally, than there are located in the UK," she said.
"London Central is increasingly seen as a safe haven market which offers capital preservation with long-term upside potential."
And it seems the figures back up her claims.
Recent statistics released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) show that nationally property values have seen a slight decrease. But London has continued to buck the trend.
There's also good news for landlords in London as HomeLet's Rental Index for November showed that in some parts of the capital, rental values are 80 per cent greater than the national average.
London Property Market News
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
London Rental Property News: London rents are 80 per higher than the UK average
Rental values in London are 80 per cent higher on average than the rest of the UK, new figures show.
HomeLet’s Rental Index for November found that the average rental amount in the capital stands at £1,177 compared to £653 per month nationally.
Rents in London have risen by 13 per cent in the past 12 months. This is in contrast to other UK regions where rents are on average just 1.6 per cent higher than they were in at the end of 2010.
John Boyle, managing director of HomeLet, said: “The soaring cost of renting a home in the capital, compared to the rest of the UK, reflects how demand for rental properties is increasing due to people’s continuing struggle to get on to the property ladder.”
He added that London has also bucked the trend of rent values dropping in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
This goes against what property analyst Samantha Baden of Find a Property said earlier this month.
London Rental Property News
HomeLet’s Rental Index for November found that the average rental amount in the capital stands at £1,177 compared to £653 per month nationally.
Rents in London have risen by 13 per cent in the past 12 months. This is in contrast to other UK regions where rents are on average just 1.6 per cent higher than they were in at the end of 2010.
John Boyle, managing director of HomeLet, said: “The soaring cost of renting a home in the capital, compared to the rest of the UK, reflects how demand for rental properties is increasing due to people’s continuing struggle to get on to the property ladder.”
He added that London has also bucked the trend of rent values dropping in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
This goes against what property analyst Samantha Baden of Find a Property said earlier this month.
London Rental Property News
Sunday, 18 December 2011
North West London's Paramount Property Maintenance
Paramount Maintenance Services are based in West End Lane, West Hampstead, North West London, providing a complete in-house letting, property maintenance and property management service to accidental landlords, investment companies, property developers, buy to let investors and corporate property portfolio owners.
Paramount Maintenance take on all sorts of renovations like kitchens, bathrooms, plumbing, electrical, handyman work, tiling, painting, plastering, carpentry, landscape gardening and roofing. They also specialise in the upgrading, renovating, refurbishing and repair of tired or run down rental properties to obtain the maximum benefit to the landlord, property owner or investor in the most cost effective manner.
'Running a professional property management business for professional landlords and professional tenants is a 24-hour a day responsibility, 365 days a year. Once a property is let it is only the beginning of the story and the obligations of a landlord must be executed in the most efficient way possible. Although good professional tenants are hard to find they are often quite demanding. They are looking for trouble free occupation in return for their hard earned cash.' explained Spencer Lawrence of Paramount Lettings based in West Hampstead.
Spencer continued, 'Breakdowns and breakages don’t happen nine to five and so Paramount’s management team doesn’t just happen nine to five either. Central heating boilers tend not to break down in the summer. They wait until the middle of the coldest night of the year. Window locks don’t just break. they wait until their owner or tenant is about to leave for a long weekend in Prague.'
'We not only value our tenants but also our landlords. We provide a property maintenance service second to none in North West London, ensuring that our landlords properties are maintained to the highest standard by arranging independent check-in and check-out. We also ensure rents are collected efficiently and on time and provide monthly statements confirming all income and expenditure. '
Here’s what some of our tenants say:
“Could you please forward my gratitude to your plumber who arrived at m y my property at 10am on Christmas day and fixed my boiler and saved the day as l had a house full with twelve for dinner.”
“Thank you for your swift response, l look forward to coming home to a warm flat.It has been a real pleasure dealing with Paramount. The professionalism they have show during and on completion of my tenancy has been superb, l look forward to renting from you again on my return from Australia.”
Follow the link for more on Paramount's managed property maintenance services in Brondesbury, Cricklewood, Hampstead, Little Venice, Kensal Rise, Kilburn, Maida Vale, Mapesbury Estate, Queens Park, St Johns Wood, South Hampstead, West Hampstead and Willesden Green.
Paramount Maintenance take on all sorts of renovations like kitchens, bathrooms, plumbing, electrical, handyman work, tiling, painting, plastering, carpentry, landscape gardening and roofing. They also specialise in the upgrading, renovating, refurbishing and repair of tired or run down rental properties to obtain the maximum benefit to the landlord, property owner or investor in the most cost effective manner.
'Running a professional property management business for professional landlords and professional tenants is a 24-hour a day responsibility, 365 days a year. Once a property is let it is only the beginning of the story and the obligations of a landlord must be executed in the most efficient way possible. Although good professional tenants are hard to find they are often quite demanding. They are looking for trouble free occupation in return for their hard earned cash.' explained Spencer Lawrence of Paramount Lettings based in West Hampstead.
Spencer continued, 'Breakdowns and breakages don’t happen nine to five and so Paramount’s management team doesn’t just happen nine to five either. Central heating boilers tend not to break down in the summer. They wait until the middle of the coldest night of the year. Window locks don’t just break. they wait until their owner or tenant is about to leave for a long weekend in Prague.'
'We not only value our tenants but also our landlords. We provide a property maintenance service second to none in North West London, ensuring that our landlords properties are maintained to the highest standard by arranging independent check-in and check-out. We also ensure rents are collected efficiently and on time and provide monthly statements confirming all income and expenditure. '
Here’s what some of our tenants say:
“Could you please forward my gratitude to your plumber who arrived at m y my property at 10am on Christmas day and fixed my boiler and saved the day as l had a house full with twelve for dinner.”
“Thank you for your swift response, l look forward to coming home to a warm flat.It has been a real pleasure dealing with Paramount. The professionalism they have show during and on completion of my tenancy has been superb, l look forward to renting from you again on my return from Australia.”
Follow the link for more on Paramount's managed property maintenance services in Brondesbury, Cricklewood, Hampstead, Little Venice, Kensal Rise, Kilburn, Maida Vale, Mapesbury Estate, Queens Park, St Johns Wood, South Hampstead, West Hampstead and Willesden Green.
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