Capstone Property Recruitment's Blog: May 2014

Saturday, 31 May 2014

How to get the infrastructure spending show on the road

Construction industry | The Guardian

How to get the infrastructure spending show on the road

The government needs to take a new look at getting the private sector behind the railways and bridges of the future

Neither David Cameron nor George Osborne needs much encouragement to appear in a safety suit and a hard hat. In a rare double act in April the prime minister and chancellor visited a building site on the M1 to promise that more than 200 rail, road, broadband and water projects would be heading for completion this year. It was part of a bigger national infrastructure plan, a wish list of almost 650 schemes, from HS2 to better drainage on the M3.

The momentum will continue in this week's Queen's speech, which is expected to contain an infrastructure bill attempting to fast-track contentious projects, including fracking.

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Friday, 30 May 2014

Property Triathlon: mastering transition

EGI NEWS

Property Triathlon: mastering transition

Helen Jenkins shares her tips on the fourth discipline of triathlon – the transition – and GB triathlete and coach Will Usher of Precision Coaching provides a detailed training plan...

Boris adds to pressure for HS2 changes

Pressure is piling up on HS2 after Boris Johnson, Transport for London and a new wave of key property companies petitioned against the line, some accusing the project of “fundamental failings”.

News & Publications

Alder King appointed as asset manager to Unite Students' commercial portfolio

Property consultancy Alder King, which has acted as property manager to Unite Students' commercial property portfolio since 2009, has had its role expanded to include asset management services.

Opportunity to claim back overpaid business rates on refurbished properties

Business rates experts at Alder King say property owners who have paid Empty Rates on a property while it underwent refurbishment over the past four years can now make a backdated claim for a refund.

New Appointment at Alder King Swindon

Property consultancy Alder King has appointed Martin Baker as a senior surveyor in its award-winning Swindon agency team.

Strutt & Parker highly commended at RESI Awards 2014

Development news from Strutt & Parker

Strutt & Parker highly commended at RESI Awards 2014

Strutt & Parker’s National and London Residential Development Teams have been highly commended in the Residential Consultancy Practice of the Year category at the prestigious RESI awards 2014, held on 14 May at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

The RESI Awards, run by Property Week, are a key event in the property industry calendar - celebrating the residential sector and bringing together all of the key players in the market. The awards ceremony was attended by 1,500 developers, investors, advisors and agents.

The judges felt that "Strutt & Parker acquitted themselves admirably against larger rivals, and was a team full of leaders and individuals."

Simon Kibblewhite, National Head of Development & Planning, said: "We are delighted to be recognised by such a high profile judging panel. It’s a real testament to our team to be acknowledged by our peers in such a competitive arena.“

Mark Dorman, Head of London Residential Development & Investment, said: "This is a fantastic accolade and reflects all of the hard work that the development teams have put in throughout the last year. We look forward to keeping up the good work."

Self-build 'to ease residential property shortfall'

Families searching for cheaper residential property have been urged by the government to consider building their own home.

Speaking at Grand Designs Live, Planning Minister Nick Boles told potential self-builders it can be a more affordable - not to mention rewarding - way to obtain a family home.

He said there is "huge potential" for lots more people to opt for self building or custom building, which is where people work with a specialist developer in constructing their home.

With large numbers of people still embarking on a traditional property search as they strive to get their foot on the housing ladder, Mr Boles said he wants to see many more take advantage of custom-build options at a time when more homes are needed.

In comparison to the number of properties constructed by regular developers, the UK is considerably behind other countries when it comes to its volume of self built and custom built homes.

The government has pledged to make it easier for people to build their own and add to the number being constructed in this way, which currently stands at around 10,000 homes a year.

Various measures were announced in the Chancellor's last Budget, including a consultation on a new Right to Build process whereby custom builders would gain a right to a plot of council land.

The government also said it will create a £150 million repayable fund to contribute towards up to 10,000 plots for custom build properties.

It also laid out plans to extend the Help to Buy mortgage scheme to cover custom build property.

Nick Boles said: "There is huge potential for many more people to take up the opportunity to build their own home as a cost effective way into home ownership. The reality is that custom building a house can be a cheaper way to provide a home for you and your family and I want to see many more people making use of it.

"We all know we need more homes and this could be a very good option for many more people wanting to get onto the property ladder."

Conrad Payne from Strutt & Parker’s National Development and Planning division comments: “In theory the Right to Build scheme sounds very positive, but I am sceptical about how it will work practically from a planning perspective.

"Councils are already finding it difficult to process the applications they receive from professional housebuilders – and it will be far more difficult to cope with hundreds of individual planning applications encouraged through the new scheme.

"Whilst we are very supportive of councils releasing more land for building, I would suggest that the Government would be better off spending its £150m educating Councillors and supplying more trained planners to join our currently under-resourced council planning departments.

"This would have much faster and tangible benefits in terms of creating new homes for Britain. It seems doubtful that we will see tens of thousands of newly self-built homes materialising across the country in the near future because of these measures.”

Alder King appointed as asset manager to Unite Student’s commercial portfolio

News & Publications

Alder King appointed as asset manager to Unite Student’s commercial portfolio

Property consultancy Alder King, which has acted as property manager to Unite Students' commercial property portfolio since 2009, has had its role expanded to include asset management services.

Thursday, 29 May 2014

Mini-Whitehalls plan hatched

EGI NEWS

Mini-Whitehalls plan hatched

A new plan to deal with Whitehall’s £370bn of property will see the creation of a select group of civil service hubs across the country

Construction and Property

First-time buyers boom as Help To Buy mortgages snowball

More than 7,300 home loans were completed during the first six months of Help To Buy mortgage guarantees, with four fifths of those given to people taking their first steps onto the property ladder

Cushman & Wakefield’s John Strachan appointed Trustee of ICSC

View all news - Cushman & Wakefield

Cushman & Wakefield’s John Strachan appointed Trustee of ICSC

Cushman & Wakefield has announced that John Strachan, head of Global Retail has been appointed to the Board of Trustees of the International Council of Shopping Centers.

International Firms Seek U.S. Flagship Office at Iconic One World Trade Center

International firms, hailing from a wide range of countries, continue to seek out prime, tower-floor office space at One World Trade Center in New York City.

Sager Group in major London land deal – From mail bags to shoppings bags

Sager Group has completed its transaction with Royal Mail to relocate their Islington delivery office to Eagle Wharf Road and absorb the remaining buildings of the Former North London Sorting Centre into Sager’s Islington Square retail and leisure development, which has an estimated gross development value in excess of £370 million.

Opportunity to claim back overpaid business rates on refurbished properties

News & Publications

Opportunity to claim back overpaid business rates on refurbished properties

Business rates experts at Alder King say property owners who have paid Empty Rates on a property while it underwent refurbishment over the past four years can now make a backdated claim for a refund.

Wednesday, 28 May 2014

Lending to first-time buyers in London jumps 50pc

Construction and Property

Lending to first-time buyers in London jumps 50pc

Young Londoners are borrowing nearly four times their salary to get on the property ladder

Rightmove chairman sells £7m of shares to buy a house

Scott Forbes has halved his stake in the property website group

Interview: Maxwell James, Quintain chief executive

Boss of FTSE 250 property developer says London prices are being driven by the economic recovery and renewed confidence, not the super-rich

Interview: Rob Noel, boss of Land Securities

The boss of Britain's biggest commercial property firm talks to Andrew Cave about the housing problem and laying the foundations for recovery

Questor share tip: Great Portland Estates to benefit from office property boom

Great Portland's portfolio is on the rise and set to continue doing so. Questor says hold

Lending to first time buyers in London jumps 50pc

Construction and Property

Lending to first time buyers in London jumps 50pc

Young londoners are borrowing nearly four times their salary to get on the property ladder

Matthews & Goodman buys City agency Chapman Bates

EGI NEWS

Matthews & Goodman buys City agency Chapman Bates

Property advisory firm Matthews & Goodman has acquired a niche City agent, Chapman Bates, that Cluttons had also been in talks to buy.

London property developer Telford Homes sees profits double

Construction industry | The Guardian

London property developer Telford Homes sees profits double

Homebuilder's announcement follows spectacular results for Barratt, Bovis and Persimmon

The London property developer Telford Homes has seen its profits more than double in the latest sign of surging demand for bricks and mortar in the capital.

Telford Homes is the latest homebuilder to benefit from the mismatch between demand and supply in London, with Wednesday's announcement of bumper profits following spectacular results from Barratt, Bovis and Persimmon earlier in the year.

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London property developer Telford Homes sees profits double

Construction industry | The Guardian

London property developer Telford Homes sees profits double

Homebuilder's announcement follows spectacular results for Barratt, Bovis and Persimmon

The London property developer Telford Homes has seen its profits more than double in the latest sign of surging demand for bricks and mortar in the capital.

Telford Homes is the latest homebuilder to benefit from the mismatch between demand and supply in London, with Wednesday's announcement of bumper profits following spectacular results from Barratt, Bovis and Persimmon earlier in the year.

Continue reading...

Tuesday, 27 May 2014

Rightmove chairman sells £7m of shares to buy a house

Construction and Property

Rightmove chairman sells £7m of shares to buy a house

Scott Forbes has halved his stake in the property website group

AECOM projects in the industry spotlight across Canada

News + Media - News + Media

AECOM projects in the industry spotlight across Canada

Earning three awards in Manitoba alone, AECOM won a total of eight engineering awards in four Canadian provinces, as technical innovation and professional expertise were celebrated across the country.

Valuation Advisory

Capstone Recruitment - Jobs

Valuation Advisory

Working for a leading multi disciplinary property firm the role
will include:
Role Summary
To be part of the South East Advisory Team providing valuation
advice on a wide range of properties including offices, industrial,
retail and mixed use investments and developments, many of whom are
core clients of the firm. You will be required to undertake
valuations for a wide variety of clients primarily for loan
security purposes.
Responsibilities
Undertaking valuations and...

Location: London, City of London
Work Type: Permanent
Salary: £30000 - £45000 per annum + car allowance + bonus

Surveyor - Property and Asset Management

Role SummaryWorking in a team of four, this role will provide a full property management support on a leading national institutional portfolio. This role will report to a Senior Surveyor and Director within the teamResponsibilitiesManaging a portfolio of about 20 estates, mainly industrial, based predominantly in Greater London and the South East.The maintenance and upkeep of our management database of all tenancy records and liaison with our Accounts Department on rent raising,...

Location: London
Work Type: Permanent
Salary: £30000 - £40000 per annum + car allowance and discretionary bonus

Office Administrator

Capstone have been instructed to find an Office Administrator to join a West End property consultancy to work within their property management division. This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced administrator to join a growing business and progress their career.The ideal candidate will have excellent organisational and communication skills and have the ability to prioritise work loads while working autonomously. Previous experience working within the property industry is advantageous...

Location: London, City of London
Work Type: Permanent
Salary: £0.00 per annum

New investment to boost housing

Development news from Strutt & Parker

New investment to boost housing

More than half a billion pounds is to be invested in smaller housing schemes in a bid to get Britain building.

The Builders Finance Fund, recently announced by Housing Minister Kris Hopkins, will help build a total of 15,000 homes nationwide.

Each new residential property will also support 15,000 jobs in the construction industry and sustain hundreds of businesses that supply building materials to developers.

All of the £525 million fund has been earmarked for ‘shovel-ready’ sites, housing between 15 and 250 homes, which already have their plans in place and the backing of people in the local area but need a bit of help to get development moving.

The government wants smaller housing schemes to play a bigger role in boosting the supply of new homes.

Mr Hopkins claims the collapse of the unsustainable housing boom in 2008 had devastated the construction industry, leading to the loss of 250,000 jobs and a falling market share for smaller builders.

But the sector is now beginning to enjoy a revival, and the Builders Finance Fund is one way of ensuring the recovery sticks.

All developers can apply for a slice of the cash, although the focus on smaller schemes will benefit smaller companies who sometimes struggle financially when it comes to getting projects off the ground.

Funding will be awarded on the basis that it will be repaid, with the cash being released over two years from 2015 to 2016 through to 2016 to 2017.

Simon Kibblewhite, National Head of Development and Planning at Strutt & Parker, comments: “This new fund is a good idea as smaller builders and developers haven’t been able to contribute much to housing growth in the last few years due to lack of credit.

"If we are going to get anywhere need the Government’s target 200,000 new homes a year, there will need to be a huge increase in the number built by SMEs, bearing in mind the top three major housebuilders currently produce around 35,000 per year between them.”

Support through the Builders Finance Fund will be on top of £1 billion that has been made available to unlock 250,000 homes on large-scale developments with over 1,500 units.

A £50 million Local Growth Fund is also being targeted at kick-starting stalled housing projects of between 250 and 1,499 homes.

Bidding for the Builders Finance Fund will begin on May 14. Both of the other schemes are currently open for the bids.

Green light for affordable residential developments

A three-year plan to build up to 165,000 new affordable homes has been announced by the Government this week.

Housing minister Kris Hopkins said the £23 billion scheme, announced on Monday, is a key component of the coalition’s long-term economic plan.

The residential development scheme will see the quickest rate of affordable house construction for two decades, support 165,000 housing jobs and sustain thousands of British companies, ministers say.

As from Monday, housing associations, councils, and house builders can now bid for state funding that, when combined with private investment, will deliver the ambitious programme between 2015-2018.

Mr Hopkins explained the reason behind putting in more private sector finance than in earlier programmes, saying this will help the scheme achieve a better deal for taxpayers and every home built under the programme will support a person’s job.

That means 165,000 job opportunities over a three-year period throughout the country, many of them for young people.

In addition, the construction initiative will offer a boost to thousands of small businesses that supply building materials to developers, from timber traders to tile makers.

Nearly a million independent companies are involved in the construction sector, representing one in five (20%) all small and medium-sized firms.

Companies that supply building products have an annual turnover of over £50 billion, which contributes 4.5% to the UK’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Mr Hopkins also pointed out that home building is enjoying its greatest growth rate for seven years.

The minister added that construction orders are growing at the quickest level for a decade.

But he stressed that it is now vital that local authorities provided additional land for new properties, as the surge of home building continues to grow.

Mr Hopkins said that home construction is an “essential part” of the Coalition government’s long-term economic plan.

He said: “That’s why we have designed an ambitious new scheme to build affordable homes at the fastest rate for 20 years.”

The programme will support 165,000 jobs in construction, sustain thousands of small businesses and provide properties where tomorrow's generations can live and raise families of their own, Mr Hopkins added.

Ed Miliband: 200,000 new homes by 2020

The Labour party wants to see 200,000 new homes built every year by the end of the decade, Ed Miliband said.

He said the "worst housing shortage for a generation" was making it hard for people to get onto the property ladder, and that more must be done to ensure Britain has affordable homes.

The Labour leader added that his party will give new powers to councils if they win the next general election, including the power to override "home-blocking" neighbouring councils and "land-hoarding developers", in a bid to drive up the number of new residential developments.

Mr Miliband said: "A Labour government would give a 'right to grow' to councils so that they can't simply be blocked all the time by neighbouring councils, but can actually expand.

"A Labour government is determined to reach the objective of building 200,000 homes a year by 2020 so that we can meet the needs of so many people across the country who find they can't afford a home to rent or to buy."

A Housing Commission is due to examine the Labour party's plans in detail. The commission, led by former BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons, was announced at Labour's conference in September.

Four Labour-controlled local authorities - Stevenage, Oxford, Luton and York - are earmarked to become the first 'Right to Grow' councils, with the potential to build 40,000 new homes in each area.

The Housing Commission will focus on the details of the scheme but also try to identify sites for new developments that might be underwritten by Government guarantees.

It has also been tasked with finding a way to simplify the rules relating to the Housing Revenue Account. This could give councils more powers to decide how to spend public money, and might improve the way communities profit from the granting of planning permissions.

Mr Miliband would not be drawn on whether Labour plans to make any changes to home buying taxation. However, he argued that properties would become cheaper if there was a rise in the supply of homes.

He also criticised the “profits for our four biggest housing developers [which] are going through the roof. But there are large amounts of land - enough to build more than a million homes - earmarked for houses which have not been built.”

Read more about Strutt & Parker's residential development services.

Planning approvals rise prompts talk of house building boom

A significant annual increase in planning approvals has prompted talk of a potential house building boom in Britain.

Planning approvals for new homes in England in the second quarter were 49% higher than a year ago, according to the latest House Builders Federation (HBF) Housing Pipeline report.

There was a decline between the first and second quarters of this year, but a total of 77,686 permissions granted in the first six months of the year represents a 26% year-on-year increase.

The moving annual total reached a low point of 117,067 in the 12 months to quarter three of 2011, with the current total some 34% higher at 156,608.

Amid various reports of renewed activity in the residential property market, observers may be taking encouragement from the suggestion that more new houses will be built as increasing numbers of people embark on a property search.

HBF executive chairman Stewart Baseley describes the overall trend in planning permissions for residential property as "very positive".

He believes the improving figures are due to both improving sentiment among house builders and the positive aspects of the new planning system.

"With Help to Buy forging ahead strongly and developers looking to increase output, we need to see the increase sustained," he commented.

But despite the warm welcome for the latest planning figures, some industry insiders have expressed concern about the planning conditions attached to many permissions that act as an obstacle to construction work getting underway.

When they grant planning permission, local authorities set "planning conditions", which can include "pre-commencement" conditions that need to be met before work starts.

There have been increasing reports from builders of such conditions being put in place – in some cases these conditions can amount to 100 separate items – meaning it can take several years after permission is granted to actually start work on site.

Mr Baseley said the HBF is "increasingly concerned" about this state of affairs, coming at a time when developers are wanting to build what are much-needed new homes.

“Local Authorities must ensure planning conditions are not overly onerous or unrealistic otherwise, despite the success of Help to Buy, the much-needed increase in housing supply will be held back."

For more information, contact one of our planning experts.

Strutt & Parker completes disposal of The Frythe, Welwyn

Strutt & Parker acted as joint sales agents on behalf of Lands Improvement Holdings on the disposal of the Frythe, a residential development site in prime Hertfordshire.

A joint venture of Linden Homes and Wates Developments has bought the site, a former research and development facility in Welwyn for a figure in the region of £39m. Strutt & Parker advised on a formal tender sales strategy.

Land Improvement Holdings acquired the 47 acre site in 2011 from Glaxo Smith Kline. Twenty nine acres had previously contained vacant research and development facilities totaling 439,000 sq ft. The unused buildings have now been demolished, the site remediated and new infrastructure built, and the site is now primed and ready for up to 196 consented new homes to be built alongside the historic 1846 country house that is the site’s focal point.

Agents picked for £100m HCA panel

EGI NEWS

Agents picked for £100m HCA panel

Knight Frank, Colliers International and Gerald Eve are set to lose their places on the Homes & Communities Agency’s prestigious property panel.

Sunday, 25 May 2014

Interview: Maxwell James, Quintain chief executive

Construction and Property

Interview: Maxwell James, Quintain chief executive

Boss of FTSE 250 property developer says London prices are being driven by the economic recovery and renewed confidence, not the super-rich

Saturday, 24 May 2014

Interview: Rob Noel, boss of Land Securities

Construction and Property

Interview: Rob Noel, boss of Land Securities

The boss of Britain's biggest commercial property firm talks to Andrew Cave about the housing problem and laying the foundations for recovery

Questor share tip: Great Portland Estates to benefit from office property boom

Great Portland's portfolio is on the rise and set to continue doing so. Questor says hold

Friday, 23 May 2014

CBRE brings gavel down on auctions

EGI NEWS

CBRE brings gavel down on auctions

CBRE will no longer hold commercial property auctions in the UK. The agent launched its commercial property auctions service in 2011, as revealed by EG...

Dutch embassy in London for sale – C&W advises

View all news

Dutch embassy in London for sale – C&W advises

Cushman & Wakefield, the world’s largest privately-held real estate services firm, is advising the Kingdom of the Netherlands on the sale of its London embassy.

GVA wins strategic property management mandate

Press Office

GVA wins strategic property management mandate

VA has won a three-year contract to provide estate management services to Westminster City Council for their investment portfolio.

JLL Property Tri: six-week training plan

EGI NEWS

JLL Property Tri: six-week training plan

Hands up if you haven’t quite started training for the JLL Property Triathlon just yet? Fear not...

London's property boom is losing its fizz

Construction and Property

London's property boom is losing its fizz

Even the super-rich are baulking at rising prices in the capital and would-be buyers are wary of a rise in interest rates, says Jeremy Warner

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