Irvine Sellar’s £1bn “Shard of West London” skyscraper just lost 51 storeys – it’s now the Cube of West London July 15, 2016 Remember the so-called "Shard of West London", the £1bn, 65-storey tower in Paddington planned by Shard developer Irvine Sellar? That's just received a bit of a downgrade, after the company behind it unveiled new plans for an office block – which is 51 storeys smaller. The newly-styled, 14-storey Paddington Cube, on the site of a former Royal Mail [...]
Weak housebuilding caused the UK’s construction output to shrink for the fifth month in a row in May – and it could get worse July 15, 2016 As if they needed it, here's more bad news for housebuilders: the UK's construction output fell 2.1 per cent between April and May – driven largely by a drop in the number of new homes being built. Figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning showed output fell 1.9 per cent year-on-year [...]
UK should be building 300,000 homes a year to tackle housing crisis, according to House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee report July 15, 2016 Britain needs at least 300,000 new homes a year to fix its housing crisis, according to a House of Lords report published this morning. The report has called for a building boom, but courted controversy by arguing that the private sector “has neither the ability nor motivation” to satisfy demand. The cross-party Economic Affairs Committee [...]
This ex-army man’s new company is driving cowboy builders out of London with its focus on military precision July 14, 2016 We all love to moan about tradesmen – often with good reason. The famously flaky building industry means the cliches about people not turning up, or leaving a job half finished, are sadly too often still true. And consumers compound the problem by taking the lowest quote for a job. It was this apparent absence [...]
How British designers like Burberry, Paul Smith and Alexander McQueen influenced the design of stunning flats at One Tower Bridge July 14, 2016 July sunshine and the smell of newly mown grass hit me as I stepped out of the latest show apartment at One Tower Bridge on Monday morning. How evocative of a British summer at its best. Built by Squire and Partners for Berkeley Homes, it is this, the development’s iconic location on the south bank [...]
A street-sized art gallery, a library – and a building in Elephant & Castle. Are these the UK’s most beautiful new buildings? July 14, 2016 Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but that hasn't stopped the Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba to its friends) from shortlisting what it perceives to be the UK's most beautiful new buildings. Yep: the shortlist of the annual Stirling Prize has been unveiled – and while two of the buildings are in [...]
House prices were up in June despite Brexit worries July 14, 2016 UK house prices grew by 0.6 per cent in the three months to June, despite concerns around the EU referendum – but London house prices fell 1.4 per cent between May and last month. Prices across Britain were up by six per cent in June 2016 compared with June 2015, according to the Reeds Rains monthly house price index, [...]
How to get your children on the property ladder: Five of the best options for the Bank of Mum and Dad July 14, 2016 Buying a first home used to signal the start of a new era of independence, a turning point into adulthood. But the astronomical rise in London prices has put paid to that. Home ownership is at its lowest level for 25 years. Not only are people buying their first home later – the average age has [...]
Aberdeen property fund is open for business again July 13, 2016 Aberdeen has re-opened its property fund, after it suspended trading due to heavy outflows, draining the fund's cash reserves. The fund was one of six that closed after investors scrambled to get their cash back due to uncertainty about UK property after the Brexit vote. Read more: Property fund to sell Oxford Street property to meet [...]
Barratt shares fall despite assurances it’s confident in the face of Brexit July 13, 2016 That sad "wah, wah, waaah" trombone you heard this morning was coming from the general direction of housebuilder Barratt, which attempted to restore investor confidence with assurances over Brexit – only to have its shares drop anyway. In a statement this morning the company, whose shares have fallen almost 30 per cent since the result [...]