The 16 London areas tipped for growth
Price ripples spreading from prime central London are driving up values in surrounding districts, so where should you buy? We reveal the 16 lower-priced areas with new homes and growth potential over the next 10 years.
Waterloo and London's South Bank: 2,000 new homes
The South Bank's residential population is about to get a significant boost with nearly 2,000 new homes underway on the doorstep of Waterloo station - including 877 flats with spectacular views next to the London Eye at the iconic Shell Centre.
Banbury spotlight
The small town of Banbury in Oxfordshire is a home-hunter's dream, with good-value elegant family houses and charming cottages surrounded by attractive countryside villages - all within an hour's commute to London.
Rochester spotlight
Rochester sits close to the river Medway in Kent, 30 miles south-east of London. The cobbled streets of this ancient city have set the scene for some of Dickens's most famous works, while its mix of period homes and riverside flats attract Londoners.
Home aboard the Mary Rose
Henry VIII's famous Tudor warship capsized more than 500 years ago. Now, the Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth is a time capsule that reveals the elegant simplicity of this astonishingly well-preserved early English oak furniture.
Find a rated tradesman
Want to add value to your property, make your house a home, or sell your place fast? With 1,000s of tradesmen nationwide, rated and recommended by previous customers, this is the smart way to find a reputable tradesman.
Buy of the week: Fulham, SW6
This smart Victorian garden flat in sought-after Sands End, Fulham, has two double bedrooms and an open-plan reception/dining space opening to a stylish walled garden.
Out of town: Lower Slaughter, Glos
This Cotswolds cutie is in Lower Slaughter - one of Gloucestershire’s prettiest villages. The three-bedroom home has a spacious drawing room, a fine conservatory and stunning views over clipped gardens.
Life-changer: King's Lynn, Norfolk
City living might become a distant memory once you up sticks to The Old Coach House in the village of Ingoldisthorpe. There is bags of potential with this 4,000sq ft house to turn its seven bedrooms into guest suites.
Spotlight on Berkhamsted
Nestled in the rolling hills of Hertfordshire, Berkhamsted is 30 miles north-west of the Londonand has a pretty high street, a picturesque canal and a good mix of family houses and town centre flats.-
Buy of the week: Fulham, SW6
This smart Victorian garden flat in sought-after Sands End, Fulham, has two double bedrooms and an open-plan reception/dining space opening to a stylish walled garden. -
Out of town: Lower Slaughter, Glos
This Cotswolds cutie is in Lower Slaughter - one of Gloucestershire’s prettiest villages. The three-bedroom home has a spacious drawing room, a fine conservatory and stunning views over clipped gardens. -
Life-changer: King's Lynn, Norfolk
City living might become a distant memory once you up sticks to The Old Coach House in the village of Ingoldisthorpe. There is bags of potential with this 4,000sq ft house to turn its seven bedrooms into guest suites.
Property search
Can we spend the deposit before completion?
Lawyer Fiona McNulty explains the legal issues relating to the use of a buyer's deposit prior to the completion of a property sale
They’ve offered us a 10 per cent deposit, which we’d like to invest in equipment for a small farm we own after contracts are exchanged. We don’t want to wait until completion in midwinter. Can we use the deposit in this way?
Answer: You may well have a problem here. The usual process is that your solicitor will hold, on your behalf, the deposit paid by the buyer. Generally, the Law Society standard conditions of sale, which govern most contracts for the sale of residential property, say that the seller’s solicitor should not part with the deposit until completion.
Thus your solicitor should retain the deposit of £200,000 paid by your buyer upon exchange of contracts in their client account and should not release the funds to you until completion takes place in December. However, there is an exception: the deposit can be used prior to completion if it is used as a deposit on a related purchase of a residential property.
In your case your buyer must agree to the standard conditions being amended so that your solicitor can pass the deposit on to you early and prior to completion.
Your buyer is at risk if you fail to complete but have spent the money and can’t return the deposit.
Do not be surprised if the buyers’ solicitor advises against the deposit being used in this way. You will have to convince the buyer you are absolutely trustworthy.
What's your problem?
If you have a question for Fiona McNulty, email legalsolutions@standard.co.uk. We regret that questions cannot be answered individually.
Fiona is a partner in the residential real estate team at Thring LLP (www.thrings.com).
These answers can only be a very brief commentary on the issues raised and should not be relied on as legal advice. No liability is accepted for such reliance. If you have similar issues, you should obtain advice from a solicitor.
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