Getting ready to decorate this year? Well it’s time to get serious about your bauble game November 23, 2016 If you enjoy idly browsing the shelves of high street stores, you have American entrepreneur Frank Woolworth to thank. The 19th century dime-store magnate pioneered the practice of self-service shopping, whereby customers can handle goods without the assistance of a clerk. Woolworth also enforced the idea of fixed pricing, rather than haggling, as the common [...]
From Charles Rennie Mackintosh to Renzo Piano: how top architects have helped to reinvent the chair November 23, 2016 Architects have been adding chairs and other items of furniture to their design repertoire since the beginning of the 19th century. The relationships and similarities are often surprising, and raise some interesting questions. What is it that distinguishes a chair designed by an architect, rather than a furniture designer? Why would an architect want to [...]
Hammond says landlords should pay letting agents fees November 23, 2016 Landlords should pay letting agents fees, chancellor Philip Hammond said in his first Autumn Statement today. "We’ve seen these fees spiral despite our attempts to regulate them," Hammond said, confirming that the government will ban letting agents fees. Read more: Hammond pledges more than £1bn for broadband and 5G “I can announce today that we [...]
My House: Preston Fitzgerald, an art and antiques collector who’s turned his home into a pop-up exhibition space for young artists November 23, 2016 I’ve been living in London with my partner for 21 years now, having moved here from New York City. I had come from a sales background, but left that behind when I went back to school to get my postgraduate degree in art history. When I began working at Sotheby’s in furniture and contemporary design, [...]
Autumn Statement: London is getting £3.15bn of funding for 90,000 affordable homes November 23, 2016 London is getting £3.15bn of funding for 90,000 affordable homes by 2020-21, chancellor Philip Hammond announced in the Autumn Statement today. The chancellor said in his first Autumn Statement today that housing remains unaffordable for too many in the UK and that London will be getting its share of the affordable housing budget. Read more: [...]
New £2.3bn housing infrastructure fund announced in Autumn Statement November 23, 2016 A new £2.3bn housing infrastructure fund has been announced in the Autumn Statement to unlock new land for house building in high demand areas. The chancellor Philip Hammond also said there would be a £1.4bn fund to be spent on building 40,000 new homes. He announced a £3bn homebuilders' fund for 200,000 new homes and £2bn to build [...]
Hammerson goes on £502m European shopping spree November 23, 2016 Hammerson has been on a European shopping spree, buying up four shopping centres on the continent. The property investor has spent £502m on acquisitions in Germany, Portugal, Spain and Poland, acting with partners VIA Outlets, APG, Meyer Bergman and Value Retail. Its largest purchase was Germany's first established retail centre, a shopping centre in Zweibrucken, on the border between [...]
Landlords are already whining about the scrap to letting agents’ fees and say rents will go up November 23, 2016 People across the country will be cheered by the news that chancellor Philip Hammond will scrap letting agents' fees in the Autumn Statement today. The measure is designed to save renters from hundreds of pounds of upfront charges, but, unsurprisingly, landlords and letting agents are outraged by the change, and are threatening to push up [...]
Six ways to make sure your home sells this winter November 22, 2016 The nights might be drawing in and the mercury may be falling – but that doesn't mean you shouldn't put your house on the market. In fact, the concept that putting your house up for sale in winter is a bad idea is a popular misconception. By following some of our winter-specific tips, you can [...]
Property transactions fell eight per cent in October November 22, 2016 Property transactions fell eight per cent year-on-year in October, according to figures from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Read more: London's house prices won't rebound until 2020, according to JLL When accounting for seasonal changes in property sales, the number of residential property transactions in October came to 97,640, as compared to 106,120 in the [...]