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French Riviera poised to benefit from demand from global wealthy buyers
Prime property prices in the world’s most expensive cities are cooling which means that wealthy property investors could look increasingly to other cities and leisure hotspots such as the French Riviera, new research suggests. While in France as a whole property prices and sales in the last three years have fallen the Riviera is still a magnet for wealthy buyers. Indeed, the area that stretches from St Tropez in the south west to the border of Italy is the third richest region in France. While prices in France overall were down 8.1% as of December 2014 compared their peak in the third quarter of 2011, the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) region consistently commands the country’s highest house prices and the second highest apartment prices behind the Paris region. The latest French Riviera residential market report from international real estate firm Savills also points out that it is an important global tourist market where some 17% of properties are second homes or occasional accommodation, compared to 11% nationally. The analysis points out that like the rest of France, prices have fallen in PACA and the market is a buyers’ one. Values in the region have tracked the national average closely, and are down 9.5% from a 2011 high. ‘The market did not see the same rally between 2009 and 2011 as that experienced in Paris, so values currently look better value than those in the French capital,’ the report says, adding that government rhetoric and negative media coverage around the taxation of wealth, coupled with a faltering domestic economy has slowed activity across the Riviera's prime markets. The number of €3 million plus deals fell by 44% across the region between 2007 and 2013. Cap Ferrat and St Tropez, home to the Riviera’s largest prime markets, saw the sharpest declines, down 69% and 54% respectively. ‘Although transaction numbers are down, purchasers of the region’s best properties tend to hold for long periods, with low gearing as these homes are viewed as a store of wealth, so forced sales are rare and, as a consequence, there is no mechanism for prices to fall substantially,’ the report explains. It also points out that property in the French Riviera for most is viewed as an asset with long term appeal and therefore a safe store of wealth and regional statistics disguise local market characteristics. ‘What sets the French Riviera apart is extremely limited supply in the most desirable spots. In Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, a peninsula of land east of Nice, there are around 500 properties and only a handful come onto the market in any single year. Supply is kept low and prices high by wealthy buyers who hold for long periods and are not generally forced to sell,’ the report says. ‘Cap-d’Ail, Beausoleil, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin adjoin Monaco and have benefited from the surge in activity that the Principality’s residential markets have experienced. Significantly cheaper prime property is available here, albeit without the tax benefits. The area has proved popular with… Continue reading
Four new housing zones for London to add 12,000 new homes
The Mayor of London has announced a further four Housing Zones across London, accelerating efforts to deliver the new housing that the rapidly expanding city needs. The new zones in the boroughs of Havering, Enfield, Redbridge and Tower Hamlets will together deliver over 12,000 new homes, nearly 3,500 of which will be affordable housing. This will bring the number of Housing Zones announced to 15 with a total of 45,109 homes created, 14,055 of them affordable. A total of £162 million in funding will be contributed by the Mayor to the new Housing Zones as are a collaborative effort between the Greater London Authority, the government and local boroughs to streamline approval processes and fast track development in areas where it may not otherwise happen. Included in the new Housing Zones will be two brand new rail stations, a large new park, new primary schools, and new retail and entertainment precincts. They will revitalise currently disused brownfield sites and turn them into neighbourhoods where Londoners will work, live and visit. ‘Housing Zones will provide the swift delivery of new homes for Londoners that is so desperately needed and create entirely new, highly connected urban districts for generations to come,’ said the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. ‘By freeing up empty brownfield sites from lengthy approval processes and providing a funding boost, we can ensure new housing capacity is created in areas where it might never otherwise have happened,’ he explained, adding that the four new zones brings the project within touching distance of the 50,000 new homes target. Rainham and Beam Park Housing Zone in the borough of Havering is one of the biggest development sites at 12 square kilometres, and will include the new Beam Park rail station with 20 minute access into the heart of London. The Housing Zone will include the Beam Park site recently released by the Mayor for development, the largest slab of land that had been in the Mayor's portfolio. The council plans on creating a new garden suburb from former industrial land with 3,457 new homes, 941 of them affordable. ‘This is incredibly exciting news for the residents in Rainham, and the Borough as a whole. The changes this funding will allow us to implement will have a lasting positive impact on their lives,’ said Havering council leader Roger Ramsey. Meridian Water Housing Zone in the borough of Enfield will build 3,650 new homes in a development designed to complement the riverside canal district it is situated on, of which 1,460 be affordable. The Housing Zone will contribute to the development of Meridian Water station, currently Angel Road station, which will have four trains an hour running into central London by March 2018 under the Stratford to Angel Road rail scheme. In early June a procurement process was launched to secure a master developer for the project. The Ilford Town Centre Housing Zone in the borough of Redbridge will capitalise on the arrival of Crossrail to the area by… Continue reading
British people aspire to build their own home with the very latest technology
There is still strong demand in the UK from people who want to build their own home with new research showing that 27% aspire to do so and many want the very latest technology. The most common reason for people building their own home is to have the freedom to design it how they want with 79% giving this reason, according to the research by price comparison website Confused. Some 33% would be fulfilling a life-long dream by building their own home and 33% want a property that is unique. But just 7% have actually fulfilled their dream. The research also shows that 34% say they would like to have more modern technologies in their home with 34% wanting to control appliance by smartphone, 21% wanting self flushing toilets and 20% voice activated lighting. Nearly half, 49%, say they would like to have a home security system, 46% would like to have underfloor heating and 40% would like to have a home cinema or entertainment system. Although many people want their homes to be more technologically advanced in the future, it’s clear that technology already plays an important part in today’s modern home. A third believe that modern technologies make running a home easier and 9% already control some household appliances with their phone. Of those who opt for mobile phone control, the majority, 62% use it to control their TV, 29% control their lighting and 13% use their phone to control their curtains. Some 25% say they prefer a more traditional home, 23% think modern technologies in the home encourages laziness and 17% think modern technologies in the home cause complications. Looking forward 10 years to 2025, it would seem that people expect innovative technologies designed to make our lives easier even more prevalent in the home. Some 44% say they think voice activated lighting will be commonplace in the home, with a further 43% predicting security systems with facial recognition will become a standard feature. Some 23% believe that in a decade homes will have remote controlled fridges, 22% foresee steam washing machines and 20% voice activated cookers. Other technological advances that people believe will be rolled out in homes across the country in years to come include sinks with built in dishwashers, smart kitchen surfaces that will identify what’s on them and have the ability to keep food at the right temperature and fridges which creates recipes for the food you have stored inside them. ‘We’re all individuals and it’s understandable that we’d want to reflect this within our homes. Building your own home is the ultimate step towards that goal whether you prefer a more traditional home or one with every gadget on the market,’ said Gareth Lane, head of home insurance at Confused. Continue reading
