Views Opinions & musings from our contributors
The Tory leadership hopeful’s ‘innovative’ idea of sharing the SDLT burden between buyers and sellers could turn out to be a mixed blessing, says Trevor Abrahmsohn, but any genuine stimulus is more than welcome as the UK adjusts to the post-Brexit era…
Computer generated images and animation have become de rigueur in property marketing – and the stakes are high and rising, explains Mark Gleghorn of DBOX
Seasoned buying agent Simon Barnes reports on a worrying trend in the PCL market…
What with the looming Brexit deadline, George Monbiot’s radical proposals for the Labour Party, and a new starter at No.10, political interference will remain a major influence on London’s residential property market for the foreseeable future, say Richard & Sophie Rogerson…
After two decades in the corporate world, PCL agent Harry Wigram took the plunge and launched his own consultancy earlier this year – amid some seriously challenging market conditions. Here, he talks us through his first six months, explaining how some early goodwill helped dispel any anxieties about going it alone…
Academics weigh-in on the costs for property owners of not acting now on energy efficiency
Matt Gibberd of design-led estate agency The Modern House explains why four members of the team, including himself, are choosing to sell their homes now, and offers up eight nuggets of advice for ensuring the best chance of a smooth sale…
‘The difference in the cost of the top 1% of homes by region just might come as a surprise,’ says Savills’ research chief Lucian Cook
Unacceptable delays – sometimes lasting a year or more – are forcing individual building projects to be abandoned, slowing UK development, and putting small and medium-sized firms out of business, says Adam Hesse…
An awful lot of buyers who, having expected prices to fall like an anvil out of a window in a Tom and Jerry cartoon, are finding the choice of houses disappointing and prices far firmer than they had hoped, says Saul Empson…
Country buying agent Jess Simpson reports on an upsurge in demand for farms and land with the opportunity for diversification, and explains the impact of the Agricultural Bill’s new system to reward farmers and landowners for ‘public goods’ – including better air and water quality, improved soil health, higher animal welfare standards, and public access to the countryside…
Indoor air can be far more polluted than outdoor air and was responsible for 3.8 million premature deaths worldwide in 2016; Pierre Victoria looks at the lessons we can learn from a recent survey of city dwellers around the world, and explains why tackling this health challenge will require efforts – regulation, information and solutions – from all involved…