Mortgage lending up by 10% February 20, 2012 Gross mortgage lending hit £10.5bn in January, up 10 per cent compared to the same month last year, according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). Lending fell by 14 per cent from £12.2bn from December but was still substantially up on figures from January 2011. CML chief economist Bob Pannell said he [...]
Desert island dream in remotest Philippines February 19, 2012 AS the plane rumbles along from Manila to Busuanga in the Palawan peninsula in the Philippines, the smiling stewardess at the front starts playing a game of “Show and Tell” to an enraptured audience, in the absence of TVs to divert us. First person to hold up a… pen, wins a thermos flask. Next person [...]
TRAVEL NOTES February 19, 2012 Graydon Carter’s Monkey Bar Heading to New York? You really mustn’t miss out on the hottest new-old restaurant in town. Manhattan’s legendary Monkey Bar, with a list of regulars that has included Dorothy Parker, Tennessee Williams and Marlon Brando, has been given an overhaul by none other than Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter, the new [...]
How to avoid an Olympian hassle February 16, 2012 Q. How much can I expect to earn from letting out my property for the Olympics? A. The exact figure would need to be determined on evaluating the property and assessing both the local area and transport links to Olympic venues, however, due to the inflation of hotel prices (most charging up to three times [...]
LUCY MORTON, LETTINGS, WA ELLIS | OLYMPICS LETS ARE A BAD IDEA February 16, 2012 “We are now receiving enquiries in their droves about lettings over the Olympic period. Interestingly, 90 per cent of these enquiries are coming from landlords, which tells a story in itself. At the moment, there is very limited demand from tenants. “I offer a word of caution to investor landlords who are considering losing their [...]
RENT February 16, 2012 HEAD OF RENTALS AT AYLESFORD INTERNATIONAL Q. I’ve recently come into the market for a buy-to let property and noticed that there are quite a few new developments nearing completion in 2012 – should I look to purchase a flat in a modern development or consider a converted flat in an older building? A. Whether [...]
Scottish house price dip means good value buys February 16, 2012 SCOTLAND: land of hunting, shooting, fishing…and fortified castles set amid hundreds of acres selling for less than £3m, the cost of a mere flat in certain parts of London. As Jamie Macnab, of Savills’ Edinburgh office, says: “Someone said to me once that four square miles of London is worth more than the whole of [...]
FOCUS ON: PUTNEY February 16, 2012 Roehampton Lane Price: £2.5m Detached, gated six bedroom house with four bathrooms, three reception rooms, kitchen/breakfast room, two cloakrooms, two balconies, an extensive garden, off-street parking and garage. Contact [email protected] Enmore Road Price: £2m Semi-detached family house with a wealth of period features, a west facing garden and gated off-street parking. Features five bedrooms, drawing [...]
THE LONDON BAROMETER February 16, 2012 There’s little doubt the market has potential with the highest number of buyers registering for 12 months. It seems the domestic market is picking up quickest with lower/middle level flats selling at last. The higher end is proving a little stickier in early 2012 as foreign buyers, driving prices north, pause for breath. Perhaps the [...]
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Twee February 16, 2012 Film EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE Cert: 12A ** by Steve Dinneen Tragedy can have a powerful effect on popular culture, be it on a local scale (the Smiths singing about the Moors murders; Terrence Malick’s Badlands on the Starkweather-Fugate killing spree) or as a reaction to global events (Japanese Manga’s fixation on nuclear holocaust; [...]