New Column in London Homes and Property

I have been asked to write a monthly column in the new London Homes and Property Magazine. Over 60,000 copies will be distributed in and around Canary Wharf and the City. Please find below my first article published in October 2009.

Busy summer leads to shortage of property

What never fails to surprise me with the Canary Wharf property market is how quickly the tide can turn in your favour and against you. In early summer we were experiencing a glut of properties available for rent and a worryingly low number of tenants looking. In the space of a few weeks the tide had completely turned and we were experiencing a high number of new applicants and a fast diminishing supply of property. The summer came and we saw the completion of The Icon (now Ability Place) and the long awaited Pan Peninsula. The completion of these two major developments has failed to satisfy the still raging demand for good quality apartments within walking distance of Canary Wharf. The main problem is that despite the buildings being completed, the sale of many of the apartments has not been completed. Many investors have been caught out by the sudden fall in prices in 2008/09 combined with a similarly sudden tightening of finance available to buy to let investors. Many of the apartments have gone back to the developer to be resold or held until the market shows signs of a sustained recovery. By not releasing these apartments onto the rental market this has created pent up demand and helped maintain rental prices for prime canary wharf apartments.

Tenants now have to move very quickly to secure good quality apartments in Canary Wharf. We still have a few apartments available at Ability Place and Pan Peninsula but they are being snapped up very quickly. Ability Place is proving popular due to it’s superior gym and more spacious apartments. Being situated at 39 Millharbour Road it is a little further to walk to Canary Wharf than Pan Peninsula but prices also reflect this. Pan Peninsula is still “The Place to Live” at the moment with its’ Resident’s Cinema, Roof top bar, Six Senses Spa and close proximity to Canary Wharf. Hot on the heels of these new developments is The Landmark. Further down Marsh Wall and very close to the Riverside South Office complex, The Landmark is due to start completions next month. We already have some instructions here and are looking for more.

Corporate clients are also returning to the market. Tenants are more confident about their job prospects and are committing to new tenancies rather than letting their current tenancy go onto a monthly rolling contract. With a shortage of supply we are also seeing rents starting to increase. Traditionally we see tenants waiting until the winter to renew their contracts when they think they can negotiate the best rent. My advice to tenants is renew now while you can.

We have seen increased activity on the sales side, with many more viewings being booked compared to this time last year. Buyers are still finding it difficult to raise a sufficient deposit and lenders are still making it very difficult to get competitive finance. However, the signs are positive and we expect activity and prices to stabilise and improve over the coming months.

If you have a property to sell or rent, contact Movello Managing Director, Angus Edy for a free valuation on 020 7473 9530 or visit www.movello.com.