No more technology overload
‘Buyers do still want some tech,’ says Charles Thompson of the Thackeray Estate, but less of the ridiculously complicated wired-in speaker systems. Marc Schneiderman of Arlington Residential agrees, adding that ‘zoned mood lighting has fallen out of favour’.
Quality always stands out, though, asTim Hassell of Draker Lettings says" ‘It’s considered by many to be much more stylish to use a simple, good-quality light switch made out of a beautiful material, rather than a phone app that turns your lightbulbs pink.'
More and more people still want to buy in London, no matter what
Brexit be damned. Nothing can stop demand for London property. Knight Frank reports a 12.5% increase in prospective new buyers in the third quarter of 2018 compared to 2017 and a 31% rise in prime central and prime outer London since January 2016. However, they’re cautious; the number of viewings undertaken before an offer was made has risen to its highest level in more than five years.
More skyscrapers
The skyline is edging Manhattan-wards. Within the next decade a dense knot of skyscrapers will emerge, with 510 tall towers currently in the pipeline. This year, we can expect completion of the tallest residential building in Europe: the Landmark Pinnacle, E14. The 1,000ft Tulip, a viewing platform by Foster + Partners that's set to be the tallest building in the City, is awaiting approval.
Growth around the corner
Heightened uncertainty around Brexit will delay recovery in the prime central London housing market for up to two years, predicts Savills. But it won't last long: there will be a bounce back in 2021, the firm suggest, with a total growth of 12.4% over the next five years.
Fewer Saturday viewings
Why trek around when you can enjoy a virtual 3D tour? ‘This enables a buyer to walk around a property from anywhere in the world with a computer, tablet or phone,’ explains Will Watson of Middleton Advisors.
Vanessa Hale of Strutt & Parker goes even further, saying that called 'Holoportation' is the future, enabling ‘a walk through and a conversation with a virtual agent in real time. This technology will allow anyone to interact in a 3D computer-generated environment with a virtual-reality headset.’
Everyone will want a nanny flat
‘The most popular houses on the market in 2019 will be those with outbuildings, perfect for nannies, mothers-in-law, guests or au pairs,’ says Dominic Spencer Churchill of DS Churchill. ‘They even provide the opportunity for Airbnb income or a home office. Homes with this sort of extra space will sell fast.’
Life, health and property will go hand in hand
The trend for renovating properties with health and well-being at their core is on the rise, according to Maison Communications. Many London builders are calling in experts to achieve this, such as design consultancy Ekkist. The firm recently worked on Ori House, a blueprint focused on enhancing your wellbeing that can be built anywhere you like. It's the first in the UK to meet both the Passivhaus standard for low energy and low carbon footprint and the WELL Building Standard.
The startling gentrification of Nine Elms
15 years ago, this part of London was still dominated by railway arches and warehouses. Things are different now, and three exciting tenants are moving into one of the biggest new developments, Embassy Gardens – a gallery, beauty salon and Cyclebar.
Along with the Sky Pool (a glass-bottomed swimming pool 115ft up above the city), restaurants, boutiques and the US Embassy, this part of the city hardly really needs two new Tube stops to bring people in, but it’s getting them anyway in 2020. They’ll come in handy for the 1,400 Apple employees moving into Battersea Power Station. All this will have ‘significant impact on demand’ for the area, says Jackson-Stops’s Georgina Clarke.
50 best places to live near London
The indispensable guide for getting into the country without ending up out of touch with the town.
Credit: Strutt & Parker
A seven-bedroom townhouse that has everything – including the biggest price tag in Kensington
47 Phillimore Gardens has everything – one of the most incredible postcodes in England, 6,520 square feet of space and
Credit: Savills
Five delightful character homes inside the M25, and all under £725,000
Sometimes it can become easy to despair of finding a beautiful house with charm and outdoor space at an affordable
Credit: Strutt & Parker
Extravagant, nine bedroom family home, just a stone's throw from central London
Deepdene is a peaceful, palatial countryside dwelling within easy each of all the amenities London has to offer.
Credit: Alamy
Curious Questions: How did Notting Hill go from a rural hamlet to slum to London’s priciest suburb?
Notting Hill is full of house which, while very pleasant, boast astronomical price tags, even by London standards – you
-
Nature and nurture in the gardens of Bramham ParkTim Richardson looks at the innovative and superbly maintained 18th-century landscape garden of Bramham Park in West Yorkshire, home of Nick and Rachel Lane Fox. Photographs by Paul Highnam.
-
If the future of Ferrari is electric vehicles, then it is our future tooIt's widely believed that Ferrari will unveil its first electric car this year. It's the signal that the internal combustion era is coming to an end.
-
Gaze over Cap Ferrat in this four-bedroom French villaIgnore the wind and the rain. Imagine yourself in this hillside home with some of the best views the Mediterranean can offer.
-
Classical style meets fun and flair in a seven-bedroom manor in CornwallAt Polstrong Manor, the current owners have combined period charm and elegant modern interiors to create a flamboyant country home 10-minutes from the beach.
-
Two halves make a sublime four-bedroom home in Kent's North DownsA contemporary extension to a traditional clapboard house brings light and life to Lavington House.
-
The week in property statistics: Service charges reach record highPlus, how first-time buyers prop up the mortgage market, why you need to move north if you want to live by yourself, and house-price growth slows
-
A seven-bedroom oast house for sale in East Sussex, where your dreams can run riotUnlisted, yet full of character, this property in the High Weald National Landscape is an eccentrically furnished family home that screams fun.
-
Character, history and comfort combine in a four-bedroom farmhouse in NorfolkWillow Farm near Southburgh is that rarest of things — a perfect combination of period charm and modern elegance in some of England's best countryside.
-
A Grade I-listed Georgian townhouse that's part of the fabric of Bath's historyWith 5,500sq ft set over six floors in the centre of Britain's most architecturally rich city, there is much to love here.
-
17 delightful homes for sale, as seen in Country LifeOur round-up of some of the best houses to come to the market via Country Life this week includes a wonderful Cotswolds home and a happily affordable cottage in the West Country.
