Buyers are turning their backs on one and two-bedroom apartments, especially those in new, high-rise buildings...

[MAB]

From the Mail online...but maybe worth a read for any potential 'new high-rise flat' buyers?

 

"Buyers are turning their backs on one and two-bedroom apartments, especially those in new, high-rise buildings, and the fallout will be far-reaching for the economy. Competition is fierce as to which of the high-rise blocks of flats on the south side of the Thames is the ugliest. But what they all share – in a mile-and-a-half stretch from Vauxhall Cross to Battersea Power Station – is a sense of abandonment. Hundreds of plush apartments stand empty, while others have been languishing on the market for years, with viewings few and far between. Shoddy workmanship, fears about cladding, exorbitant service charges and the financial burden of stamp duty are just some of the reasons why apartments are empty or occupied by people desperate to sell – even at a loss. The outlook is particularly bleak for those who bought a flat in a new-build. People have begun to realise that many of these new blocks of flats are not built to last and so you’re being asked to buy a depreciating asset. And that applies to the top end of the market, too.
Residents of One Hyde Park in London, regarded as the most expensive tower block in the country, recently won a £35 million court case against the contractor that built their homes. The High Court ordered the construction company, Laing O’Rourke, to fix defective pipework that was discovered in 2014, only three years after the luxury development was completed.
Then, there’s the ongoing cladding issue, which began with the horrific Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, when 72 people lost their lives. Trust in high-rise apartment buildings was destroyed overnight. The wrangling over cladding has continued ever since. We’re also still seeing the fall-out from the pandemic when a lot of flat owners wanted more space and moved to the countryside. Flats lost some of their appeal during that time. For years, developers have been allowed to build sub-standard blocks of flats, cashing in on the need for more housing – and "laughing all the way to the bank..."

https://archive.ph/62KS7

[Nickfromwales]

1 hour ago, MAB said:

For years, developers have been allowed to build sub-standard blocks of flats, cashing in on the need for more housing – and laughing all the way to the bank..."

The brown envelope culture has been, is, and will continue to, rule the world. Personal greed is insatiable, ignorance is bliss (when they open the brown envelope and all is good....) and then these rats sleep incredibly well; the government just look the other way "b'cos they get paid" regardless.

[Big Jimbo]

I still think that we are still a nation of people who want to own property. So much of the rental market is expensive, and shite quality. I was on a newbuild site for about 1 hour last weekend. Two people selling, and i saw 4 appointments in that time. All 4 paid to reserve a property. These were not flats. They were small houses, and were not in London. However, in NW9 on the site of what used to be the Met Police training centre, Hendon. They have built a shed load of Tall Blocks of flats. I think the total is going to be about 5000 new homes. No sign of them not selling. The next door underground station. Colindale, has had a multi million pound refurb.

I just think that the shine has gone from London. I grew up in London in the 1960's, and it was a shitehole. There was no Notting Hill, or Islington. Well there was, but not in the same way that we think of those areas today. Islington property all had outside toilets, and was poor as. Notting Hill was a bit of a no go area if you were White. London came up in the 80's. Areas where you could easily have previously got stabbed, or shot, became trendy.  London had 30 BOOM years. During the last 10 people have just come to realise that, if you are single, London can be fun. If you want to start a family, and you are not rich. Time to get the Fudge out. The arse has fallen out of London. The young trendies who would have historically owned those flats, just don't have the money that used to slosh around London. So the younger trendies are not there to buy off the previous generation of young trendies. £7.20 for a coffee in Canary Wharf !

 

[marshian]

2 hours ago, Big Jimbo said:

During the last 10 people have just come to realise that, if you are single, London can be fun. If you want to start a family, and you are not rich. Time to get the Fudge out. The arse has fallen out of London. The young trendies who would have historically owned those flats, just don't have the money that used to slosh around London. So the younger trendies are not there to buy off the previous generation of young trendies. £7.20 for a coffee in Canary Wharf !

 

The pandemic resulted in a lot of people (who were located close to London office for an easy short commute) suddenly found they were WFH in pokey accomodation where they only normally just slept, so they upped and moved further out because if you've got to WFH you can work anywhere.