Time to look west for property investment

Benham & Reeves Estate Agents, Ealing branch manager Nick Hubbard believes the area’s growing popularity means now is a key time to look west for successful property investment.

“The London property market has always maintained a natural buoyancy, even in the toughest economic times and Ealing is no exception” says Nick who leads Benham & Reeves Residential Letting’s local branch. He believes that property developments such as Dickens Yard with its high specification apartments, concierge and gym, have brought a new level of accommodation to an area that is in hot demand. With well over 100 lets since its launch almost two years ago, take-up has been strong with a high level of tenants renewing their tenancy agreements after their first year.

“Demand is continuing to outstrip supply here in Ealing. Properties are letting within a couple of days and we continue to have a shortage of available rental stock,” explains Nick. “We have professional tenants waiting for apartments to become vacant, meaning properties are often let before they are even advertised. Most tenants are renewing their tenancies and not even considering moving elsewhere, such is the popularity of new developments like Dickens Yard, Napier West, GWQ, Kew Bridge and Kew Bridge West.” He adds “There is also good demand for period properties but again, there is a shortage of quality conversions so we are always keen to speak to landlords who are seeking professional tenants as we can most certainly help.”

The Dickens Yard scheme has just started completing its second phase, Skyline Apartments and we have a very long list of tenants waiting from every corner of the globe UK, Europe, the US, Japan, Australia and via our furnishing in the Far East.

The latest phase of Kew Bridge is nearing completion while the 1st phase of
Kew Bridge West has just become available for rental, and not surprisingly, we already have a list of corporate tenants waiting to rent units in both of these fantastic riverside developments due to their proximity to the M4. Tenants continue to rent for a wide variety of reasons, and in fact a recent survey by Zoopla, revealed that renting in London is a more cost-effective choice than buying. They evaluated that it would take 18 years for the cost of buying property in the capital with a minimum 10 per cent deposit to equate with renting over the same period.

Renting additionally provides greater choice for young professionals as their career progresses and lifestyle evolves. “Renting allows people to experiment by living in different areas and decide where they like best should they eventually decide to buy,” adds Nick.

With excellent transport links (with both London Underground and Mainline stations) and, for the time being, relatively low rents compared with neighbouring boroughs, Ealing is a rising star for London tenants, and one Nick and his lettings team are well-positioned to service.

“Ealing is one of the winners in this migration away from central London to the western fringes,” adds Nick, “It offers that elusive combination of high-quality properties (whether tenants are looking for a new apartment or one of the ever popular period conversions) and affordable rents yet the commute is still relatively short. The Heathrow Express train taking you to Heathrow in less than 20 minutes is also a big draw.”

“Properties which have been furnished with a bit of a ‘wow’ factor let quicker,” concludes Nick. “In fact, when new apartments complete at the same time, furnishing a property well to make it stand out from the competition is even more important – I recommend small touches like painting accent walls in the reception room and master bedroom to really make a property stand out from the crowd. We find it’s not uncommon for applicants to negotiate above the asking rental in order to secure a flat just because of the presentation.”

If you have a property to let in Ealing, Kew or neighbouring areas, please do contact our Ealing branch. Alternatively if you are considering purchasing an investment property in Ealing, as part of our service offering, we can give you our independent impartial view on the rental you can achieve, advice which our landlords find invaluable. Simply click here to contact Nick Hubbard and he will be pleased to help.