October 2013

With a planned Chinese financial district in parts of London’s abandoned docklands, and the recent news that Chinese banks have received permission to open branches here, the relationship between the UK and China appears to be in good shape. 

The service that earlier Conservative governments refused to privatise, with Margaret Thatcher famously vowing not to privatise the Queen’s head, is now in the ownership of shareholders. Royal Mail, one of the most British of institutions, is the property of private investors for the first time in its 500-year history. 

Next year looks to be a positive one if research proves correct. As the global market takes stock of the current opportunities for investment, improving worldwide economies mean that the sums available for investment look to be 6% up from early 2013, according to DTZ.

In the modern world, the internet is the most obvious place to start searching for a new office. However, it’s not always that simple; if you are looking for an office space in Central London, the internet can be very deceiving. It can feel as though there is too much...

As we enter the final quarter of 2013, we can start to look back at the year and compare it with 2012. In terms of property market figures, the outlook for 2014 looks positive, if the differences recorded between this year and last are to continue. 

The first signs of luxury brands moving to Offices in Kings Cross emerged last week, as it is understood that Louis Vuitton UK are in advanced negotiations. Louis Vuitton UK are looking to acquire 7,000 square feet on the fifth floor of One St Pancras.

On 23rd September 2013 we reported on the potential need for the building known as Heron Tower, near Liverpool Street station, to be put into administration, in part because of its relatively low take-up of floor space since its construction. However, it would appear that the building’s future may be...

Mayfair is now the most expensive area to locate a business, beating Hong Kong which previously topped the charts. Offices in Mayfair, Soho and St James’s are not only highly priced but there is also a huge lack of stock on offer as well. 

Quarter one reported investment turnover for offices in Midtown of about £260 million, quarter two increased to about £980 million which is a substantial increase. The key reason behind this is that in quarter one the transactions were made up by considerably smaller lot sizes mainly driven by UK institutions.