Squatters recently took up residence in a $6.5 million mansion in Belgravia. The government-owned home was once the residence of David Blunkett, a former cabinet minister and member of parliament.
Once he climbed through a window to gain entrance to the home, Guard put up a "legal warning" notice on a window, ensuring him rights that makes it extremely difficult to get the squatters out of the house.
After establishing the residence as his, Guard then invited several others to join him including a nurse, a fireman, a musician and a man in a wheelchair.
Squatters have reportedly occupied various vacant properties worth nearly $100 million in Belgravia.
Mark Guard, the self-appointed leader of a group of squatters said "It's a disgrace. Why the hell do they leave a place like this empty? It has lost about 2 million [$3.2 million] in value since Blunkett went and there are more like this in the ownership of Gordon Brown's government. In Belgravia alone there are 312 properties left empty by offshore companies and more that are just being left to rot."
Monday, 14 December 2009
Tuesday, 8 December 2009
Chinese Rich Move In Despite Tax hikes
The fear that established clients will flee rising UK taxes might be giving London's private bankers sleepless nights, but a Chinese remedy is at hand, in the shape of a growing colony of super-rich clients from Asia.
Traders on London's Bond Street, a shopping strip of exclusive jewellers, art dealers and fashion retailers that bisects the elite Mayfair district report Chinese shoppers now outspend their Russian and Arab counterparts.
Chinese shoppers spent more than 3 million pounds ($4.93 million) on Bond Street during the six months to September, more than double the previous period, according to figures from the Bond Street Association of traders on the street.
London's upmarket estate agents also report a surge in interest from Asian, particularly Chinese, buyers of properties in the prime districts of Mayfair and Belgravia, where little sells for less than 1 million pounds.
Immigration lawyers servicing rich visa applicants also report growing demand, with no noticeable drop in enquiries since the government revealed plans to hike tax. rates.
Traders on London's Bond Street, a shopping strip of exclusive jewellers, art dealers and fashion retailers that bisects the elite Mayfair district report Chinese shoppers now outspend their Russian and Arab counterparts.
Chinese shoppers spent more than 3 million pounds ($4.93 million) on Bond Street during the six months to September, more than double the previous period, according to figures from the Bond Street Association of traders on the street.
London's upmarket estate agents also report a surge in interest from Asian, particularly Chinese, buyers of properties in the prime districts of Mayfair and Belgravia, where little sells for less than 1 million pounds.
Immigration lawyers servicing rich visa applicants also report growing demand, with no noticeable drop in enquiries since the government revealed plans to hike tax. rates.
Monday, 23 November 2009
Lottery for Luxury House in Belgravia
When you think about playing the lottery you often think of the lavish property you could buy with your huge jackpot windfall, if you ever won it. However a couple in London have effectively cut out the middle man by putting their home up as a prize in their very own lottery. They are offering people the chance to buy tickets in a lottery for a luxury house in Belgravia, one of the most exclusive areas in London.
Michael and Kathleen Forster have made lottery news headlines by wanting to give their house away to somebody, who otherwise couldn’t afford to spend £5 million on a Belgravia home. They are selling lottery tickets for a chance to win their home for £50 each and players can buy as many tickets as they like. Imagine the thrill of becoming the new owner of one of only three freehold properties in one of the most sought-after streets in London.
The property, which is being given away in this unusual lottery draw, has five bedrooms and even a staff flat. As we said this is an unusual lottery but not unique. In 2003 a woman in a small town in Austria gave away her home in a lottery and in March 2009 an IT manager won a £400,000 London flat from buying two £50 tickets. However not all of these home lotteries have been plain sailing. Last year a couple from Devon operated a lottery to give away their £1.15m estate but the Gaming Commission intervened, stating that the competition was illegal because the questions were too easy, making it a lottery, rather than a game of skill.
This latest ‘house lottery’ for the luxury Belgravia home meets all requirements of the Gaming Commission and if the target amount of tickets isn’t reached, the winner will received 60% of the prize fund, meaning that somebody could still walk away with over £1.5 million.
Michael and Kathleen Forster have made lottery news headlines by wanting to give their house away to somebody, who otherwise couldn’t afford to spend £5 million on a Belgravia home. They are selling lottery tickets for a chance to win their home for £50 each and players can buy as many tickets as they like. Imagine the thrill of becoming the new owner of one of only three freehold properties in one of the most sought-after streets in London.
The property, which is being given away in this unusual lottery draw, has five bedrooms and even a staff flat. As we said this is an unusual lottery but not unique. In 2003 a woman in a small town in Austria gave away her home in a lottery and in March 2009 an IT manager won a £400,000 London flat from buying two £50 tickets. However not all of these home lotteries have been plain sailing. Last year a couple from Devon operated a lottery to give away their £1.15m estate but the Gaming Commission intervened, stating that the competition was illegal because the questions were too easy, making it a lottery, rather than a game of skill.
This latest ‘house lottery’ for the luxury Belgravia home meets all requirements of the Gaming Commission and if the target amount of tickets isn’t reached, the winner will received 60% of the prize fund, meaning that somebody could still walk away with over £1.5 million.
Tuesday, 20 October 2009
Thursday, 18 June 2009
English heritage Survey Of conservation Areas
England has some 9,300 Conservation Areas, historic parts of cities, towns, suburbs and villages designated by local authorities to protect their special character. But what condition are they in? Are they cherished through a close partnership of council and residents? Or are they at risk from neglect, decay and inappropriate development?
Conservation Areas vary enormously. They include, for example, the Belgravia Conservation Area in central London, the industrial heritage of Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, the fishing village of Clovelly in North Devon and the Victorian People’s Park Conservation Area in Halifax. The heart of a historic town might be a Conservation Area. So too might be a street of well-preserved 1930s semi-detached houses or an isolated group of farm buildings. Details of local Conservation Areas are held by councils and can usually be found on their websites.
English Heritage has asked every Local Authority in the country to fill in a questionnaire for each of their Conservation Areas as part of the first nationwide census of the condition of this important element of our heritage. The results will be announced and a campaign will be launched on 23rd June to help councils, communities and individual residents to care for these special places.
Conservation Areas vary enormously. They include, for example, the Belgravia Conservation Area in central London, the industrial heritage of Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, the fishing village of Clovelly in North Devon and the Victorian People’s Park Conservation Area in Halifax. The heart of a historic town might be a Conservation Area. So too might be a street of well-preserved 1930s semi-detached houses or an isolated group of farm buildings. Details of local Conservation Areas are held by councils and can usually be found on their websites.
English Heritage has asked every Local Authority in the country to fill in a questionnaire for each of their Conservation Areas as part of the first nationwide census of the condition of this important element of our heritage. The results will be announced and a campaign will be launched on 23rd June to help councils, communities and individual residents to care for these special places.
Wednesday, 3 June 2009
Guide to Gazumping and Gazundering
Gazundering and Gazumping Rates Reveal Property Market Revival
Gazumping has returned to the property market as confidence among estate agents reaches its highest level since the credit crunch began. Gazumping last hit its peak with buoyant property prices in the residential property market of the late 1980s and early 1990s when gazumping became commonplace (in England and Wales)Gazumping is possible here because a buyer's offer is not legally binding even after acceptance of the offer by the vendor. This is because, by s.2 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 and in order to prevent dishonesty, a contract for the sale of land must be in writing (a requirement of English law that dates back to the Statute of Frauds of 1677)
What Is Gazumping?
When the owner accepts the offer on a property, the buyer will usually not yet have commissioned a building survey nor will the buyer have yet had the opportunity to perform recommended legal checks. The offer to purchase is made "subject to contract" and thus, until written contracts are exchanged either party can pull out at any time. It can take as long as 10-12 weeks for formalities to be completed, and if the seller is tempted by a higher offer during this period it leaves the buyer disappointed and out-of-pocket.
Gazumping is hitting popular parts of London for the first time in months and it is now likely to strike other towns and cities where prospective buyers outnumber properties.
So is it farewell to Gazundering?
We hope so.When property prices are in decline the practice of gazumping becomes rare. The term gazundering has been coined for the opposite practice whereby the buyer waits until everybody is poised to exchange contracts before lowering the offer on the property, threatening the collapse of a whole chain of house sales waiting for the deal to go through.
Gazumping has returned to the property market as confidence among estate agents reaches its highest level since the credit crunch began. Gazumping last hit its peak with buoyant property prices in the residential property market of the late 1980s and early 1990s when gazumping became commonplace (in England and Wales)Gazumping is possible here because a buyer's offer is not legally binding even after acceptance of the offer by the vendor. This is because, by s.2 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 and in order to prevent dishonesty, a contract for the sale of land must be in writing (a requirement of English law that dates back to the Statute of Frauds of 1677)
What Is Gazumping?
When the owner accepts the offer on a property, the buyer will usually not yet have commissioned a building survey nor will the buyer have yet had the opportunity to perform recommended legal checks. The offer to purchase is made "subject to contract" and thus, until written contracts are exchanged either party can pull out at any time. It can take as long as 10-12 weeks for formalities to be completed, and if the seller is tempted by a higher offer during this period it leaves the buyer disappointed and out-of-pocket.
Gazumping is hitting popular parts of London for the first time in months and it is now likely to strike other towns and cities where prospective buyers outnumber properties.
So is it farewell to Gazundering?
We hope so.When property prices are in decline the practice of gazumping becomes rare. The term gazundering has been coined for the opposite practice whereby the buyer waits until everybody is poised to exchange contracts before lowering the offer on the property, threatening the collapse of a whole chain of house sales waiting for the deal to go through.
Thursday, 19 February 2009
Belgravia View
Situated between Knightsbridge and Chelsea, beautiful Belgravia is the salubrious and wealthy area which houses many of the capital's most eligible figures! Belgrave Square and its surrounding streets is also the location of many embassies. However, there can be few squares that can equal Eaton Square in providing accommodation for no less than three James Bonds!
Like Mayfair, Belgravia is almost entirely owned by the Duke of Westminster, Britain's richest man. Row upon row of glorious period houses and pristine squares make up the majority of the area, but there are also a number of extremely exclusive shops, restaurants and attractive pubs. Sandwiched between many of the grand houses you can find charming cobbled mews containing smaller residences.
Belgravia is, on the whole, fairly quiet and not the sort of place you'd undertake a raucous pub crawl but is a delight to stroll around on a sunny afternoon.
Nearest Underground: Sloane Square, Victoria, Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge.
Like Mayfair, Belgravia is almost entirely owned by the Duke of Westminster, Britain's richest man. Row upon row of glorious period houses and pristine squares make up the majority of the area, but there are also a number of extremely exclusive shops, restaurants and attractive pubs. Sandwiched between many of the grand houses you can find charming cobbled mews containing smaller residences.
Belgravia is, on the whole, fairly quiet and not the sort of place you'd undertake a raucous pub crawl but is a delight to stroll around on a sunny afternoon.
Nearest Underground: Sloane Square, Victoria, Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge.
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