•       London’s prime property now 161% (£708,000) more expensive than a typical London home
•       Gap between top and middle of the market considerably wider in London than rest of UK

Growth in the price of London’s prime properties has left a £708,382 gap between the asking price of top end properties and the average London home, according to the latest Prime Index from PrimeLocation.com (www.PrimeLocation.com).

The monthly index, which tracks the top quarter of the property market by value, reveals that prime property asking prices in the Capital now average £1,149,551 – 161% more than the asking price of an average London home, which is currently £441,169.

The prime property gap for the UK as a whole, while significant, is considerably less. Average UK prime prices currently stand at £472,340, some £252,397 or 115% higher than the typical UK home which now commands an asking price of £219,943.

The average asking price of London’s prime properties have risen 4.75% or £51, 907 over the past 12 months – significantly more than the 0.8% year-on-year growth that the UK prime market has experienced.

Nigel Lewis, property analyst at PrimeLocation.com said: “The distribution of property wealth in the Capital is becoming increasingly uneven, as the prices of London’s most expensive properties continue to grow. The asking price of the average London home has performed well this year, growing consecutively every month, but this is no match for London’s prime property market, where prices are almost £10,000 higher than they were this time last year.”

Average asking prices for London’s prime platinum properties (the top 10% of the market) are up 3.22% on last year at £1,729,894. This is 292%, or £1,288,725 higher than the typical London home. Prime platinum property for the UK as a whole carries an asking price of £654,746, which is around 198% or £434,803 more than the asking price of an average UK home.

The prime property gap in London appears to be gradually widening, rising from £673, 523 in September 2009 to £708,382 this month – a trend that has also been repeated in the UK market.

Nigel Lewis continued: “London’s prime property market operates very differently to the overall UK market and is far less sensitive to the issues facing the UK economy due to high levels of foreign investment. The London prime property market is viewed by many investors as a safe investment opportunity, particularly those from overseas who also stand to benefit from a weaker pound.

In the same way that the divide between rich and poor is greater in London than in the UK overall, the disparity of the Capital’s property wealth is far more extreme than the UK’s, and this is definitely a trend that looks set to continue.”
The Prime Property Gap – UK and London
Prime Asking Prices – London    Average Asking Prices – London  Prime Price Gap – London        %
01-Sep-11       £1,149,551      £441,169        £708,382        161%
01-Sep-10       £1,097,466      £427,773        £669,693        157%
01-Sep-09       £1,105,510      £431,987        £673,523        156%
Prime Asking Prices – UK        Average Asking Prices – UK      Prime Price Gap – UK    %
01-Sep-11       £472,340        £219,943        £252,397        115%
01-Sep-10       £454,022        £218,189        £235,834        108%
01-Sep-09       £458,189        £218,510        £239,680        110%
Prime Platinum Asking Prices – London   Average Asking Prices – London  Prime Platinum Price Gap – London       %
01-Sep-11       £1,729,894      £441,169        £1,288,725      292%
01-Sep-10       £1,675,960      £427,773        £1,248,187      292%
01-Sep-09       £1,652,882      £431,987        £1,220,895      283%
Prime Platinum Asking Prices – UK       Average Asking Prices – UK      Prime Platinum Price Gap – UK   %
01-Sep-11       £654,746        £219,943        £434,803        198%
01-Sep-10       £634,479        £218,189        £416,290        191%
01-Sep-09       £629,099        £218,510        £410,589        188%
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Source: PrimeLocation.com, October 2011

-ENDS-
Notes to Editors
About the Prime Index
The monthly PrimeLocation.com Prime Index offers a unique, independent and robust view of the UK’s prime property marketplace, including prices and stock levels. For the first time, the index provides authoritative data for all regions of the country.
It segments the upper end of the market as follows:
• Prime – incorporating the top 25% of all UK property by value
• Prime Platinum – incorporating the top 10% of all UK property by value

The percentile approach enables the two prime tiers to track the overall market prices, stock and remain relative to local market forces.

About PrimeLocation.com
PrimeLocation.com is the UK’s principal portal for leading estate agency firms, representing 12,600 branches including major national agencies such as Savills, Knight Frank and Hamptons International. It lists just under a million properties to rent or buy in the UK and overseas and has over 5.2m visits a month*.  PrimeLocation.com is part of the Digital Property Group, a division of A&N Media.

*Source: Cognesia, September 2011.
For further press information please contact Citigate:

Tesco Compare is offering 500 Clubcard points to all Clubcard holders who buy a car or home insurance policy through www.tescocompare.com.

The comparison website searches and compares over 65 leading brands of car insurance and over 25 of home insurance to help customers choose the right deal.

It is the only comparison site to offer its customers loyalty points, giving them that little bit extra when buying a car or home policy through Tesco Compare.

Commercial Director, Vikki Macleod, said: “Our Clubcard offer is our way of saying thank you to Clubcard customers. In the current economic climate it has never been more important for customers to search for competitive car or home insurance quotes. With this offer there is now the chance to collect 500 points as a welcome bonus.”

How does it work?

The offer couldn’t be simpler. Customers visit the Tesco Compare website, enter their Clubcard number when getting a car or home insurance quote, and the 500 points will then be awarded after the policy is purchased.

Vikki Macleod added: “Our intention is for Tesco Compare to be the comparison site of choice for Tesco customers. We believe the offer is a great way for people to pick up a little something extra when shopping around for a car or home insurance deal.”

Alongside launching the offer, Tesco Compare is focused on helping customers to search for deals so they could save money. In addition to comparing by price, customers can also compare car and home insurance quotes by features and benefits according to what is most important to them.

Tesco Compare’s services don’t stop there: It can also introduce people to comparison services for products including Money, Utilities and Telecoms, and a wider range of insurance products.

– ENDS –

 For media enquiries please contact:

Monica McCormack, Tesco Bank on: 0131 479 1346 or monica.mccormack@tescobank.com

Notes to editors:

Tesco Personal Finance Compare Limited (trading as Tesco Compare) is part of the Tesco Personal Finance Group Limited, the financial services arm of the UK’s number one supermarket chain, which is fully owned by the Tesco Group. Tesco Personal Finance Compare Limited, registered in Scotland No.318925. Interpoint Building, 22 Haymarket Yards, Edinburgh EH12 5BH. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

The Financial Services Authority does not regulate loans, credit cards, telecoms or utilities.

Terms and Conditions of 500 Clubcard Points Offer for Car and Home Insurance.

The Clubcard must be in the policyholder’s name and the Clubcard number must be entered correctly when completing the details on tescocompare.com. Failure to do so will mean the points will not be allocated to the Clubcard holder’s statement. Tesco Compare will notify the policyholder via email when the Clubcard points have been awarded. Please be aware that from purchasing insurance to points being awarded could take up to eight weeks. If the policy is cancelled within two weeks of purchase then no Clubcard points will be awarded. Tesco Compare reserves the right to amend, vary or cancel these terms and conditions or to withdraw this promotion at any time.

Tesco Compare

• Tesco Compare is a comparison site, based in the UK. Since our launch in 2007, our business activities have extended to facilitate the introduction of a wide range of comparison services.
• Our own principal comparison services are for car and home insurance to which we compare over 65 and 25 providers respectively.
• Products compared by third party suppliers include: Money (credit cards, loans, mortgages, current accounts and savings accounts). Insurance (business, life, van, motorbike, travel and health). Utilities (broadband, mobile broadband, home phone, digital TV and gas & electricity). We also provide customers with links to pet and breakdown insurance providers.
• Our aim is to introduce customers to fair prices and deals from a range of leading brands.
• We believe that comparison sites should be about more than just the lowest price so our comprehensive comparison service helps you search and compare a wide range of products and providers by feature as well as price.

London, London ( PressRelease101 ) January 5, 2011 – Learn the mistakes the estate agents enjoy watching buyers make.

Buyers do not realise that the London property market is rigged against them. Consequently most people buying a home or investment fail to acquire the finest property their money can buy on the best terms possible.

Discover:

- How buyers handicap themselves from the outset and the easy solution to the problem.

- Why the prime London market is especially rigged against buyers

- How to source the most exclusive “off market” properties

- The single most expensive mistake you can make

- How to find the vital information you will need to make an astute acquisition.

- The eight most expensive negotiating mistakes buyers make.

- How to prevent gazumping and other problems that cause over 25% of purchases to fail.

“Every week we see properties being bought at a high price, when there is a better home for the same price or less literally just around the corner,” says Jeremy McGivern, an authority on prime central London property and Managing Director of the internationally renowned property search agency, Mercury Homesearch. “Unfortunately most buyers, whether based in London or overseas, fail to acquire the best property within their criteria because they make basic mistakes that could have been easily avoided.”

Jeremy McGivern, as well as helping the super-rich acquire the finest properties in London, has been featured in numerous publications including The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Sunday Times, Bloomberg News and Spear’s Wealth Management Survey. He understands the unique issues facing high net worth individuals and is happy to share information that will help them make the correct choice for their next acquisition. For more information and to contact Jeremy to schedule an interview call +44 (0) 7780 696394 or email jeremy@mercuryhomesearch.com

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London, London ( PressRelease101 ) November 10, 2010 – The US is purposefully devaluing the dollar. Charlie Bean, Deputy Governor of The Bank Of England has said that he wants us to take on even more debt: “What we’re trying to do with our policy [of keeping the bank rate low] is encourage more spending… we want to see households not saving more, but spending more.”

In the meantime Europeans are worried about the complete obliteration of the Euro, while vast wealth is being created at an extraordinary pace in the “Emerging” (or should that be emerged) Markets. Governments worldwide are moving the goalposts and the wealthy as always are one step ahead in protecting their wealth.

Discover:

- What represents “inherent wealth” – it is not the number of zero’s in one’s bank account.
- The seven reasons why London property has been a major beneficiary of this flight to inherent wealth
- The biggest problem this shift has created for British property buyers in prime central London & the dangers that face the market.
- Which areas of the prime London market are the most vulnerable.
- The golden rule to acquiring property in these times.

“Having recently visited Mumbai to give a presentation on prime London property, the overwhelming opinion was that the U.K. is in trouble and that the rupee would strengthen against sterling.” says Jeremy McGivern, an authority on prime central London property and Managing Director of the internationally renowned property search agency, Mercury Homesearch. “Nevertheless we are acquiring a number of properties for Indian and other overseas’ clients despite the fact they regard it as a poor “investment”.

For more information on this story and to contact Jeremy to schedule an interview call +44 (0) 7780 696394 or email jeremy@mercuryhomesearch.com. Jeremy McGivern is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the prime London property market and has been featured in numerous publications including The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Sunday Times and Spear’s Wealth Management Survey. He has represented some of the world’s wealthiest families and most successful entrepreneurs, so understands the unique issues facing high net worth individuals.

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Housing minister Grant Shapps has announced that he will not introduce further regulations for lettings agents or private landlords, stating that this would create too much red tape. This is a blow for the industry as Marc von Grundherr, director of London’s largest, independent lettings-only specialist Benham and Reeves Residential Lettings explains: “This is a disappointing decision. We believe the market must have mandatory regulation to protect landlords and tenants – many professional agents such as ourselves hoped the new legislation would raise industry standards but this move will only reduce consumer protection.”

Marc continues: “Shapps says the private rented sector is already governed by a well-established legal framework but he fails to mention that you must register to be a member and that isn’t cheap. ARLA membership is not mandatory and even the Ombudsman for Lettings scheme isn’t foolproof – many smaller agents slip through the net as there is no reliable system to check membership.”

“The recession has prompted many amateurs, often estate agents, to set themselves up as lettings agents, often with no experience of drawing up tenancy agreements or knowledge of legislation and this can cause serious problems for landlords.”

“A client recently let her house through an unqualified estate agent. When she wanted to end the tenancy she found the tenancy agreement had been worded so that the tenant had the indefinite right to live at the property until he terminated it. The estate agent advised her to seek legal assistance but she came to us and we sorted out everything within days – but letting a property can be a legal minefield and this illustrates the importance of using a professional agent.”

“As a founder member of ARLA, we work within a strict Code of Practice and recommend anyone letting a property use an ARLA agent to ensure full legal protection.”

Press enquiries:
Tracie Lack
020 7433 6670
brmarketing@brlets.co.uk

Editor’s notes:

With 10 offices in the prime residential areas of London (and overseas offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai and India), Benham and Reeves Residential Lettings is recognised as London’s largest, independent lettings-only agency. They are also one of the only London lettings agents to offer an interior design, refurbishment and furnishing service for investment properties through their sister company In:Style Direct.

The company is part of established property group, The Complete Property Investment Solution, which offers a complete range of services to help clients maximise their return on investment. With a leading sales and acquisition agent, interior designer and furnishing company within the group, The Complete Property Investment Solution can manage all aspects of property investment.

Media Contact Information

Name: Benham and Reeves Residential Lettings
Website: http://www.brlets.co.uk
Phone: 0800 092 9656
Address: 2/F Marlborough House
179-189 Finchley Road,
London NW3 6LB
Country: United Kingdom

London, England – June 02, 2010 Despite the current economic recession, it appears sales of expensive sheds and summer houses are booming in 2010. Indeed one of the UK’s most respected broadsheets, the Daily Telegraph, recently reported that sales of high end summer houses and garden sheds, are flying off shelves at home and garden retailers.

“Summer houses have traditionally been used for relaxing in the garden in warm and wet weather, providing a cool shady place of tranquility from the pouring rain, or a place to recline and bask in the summer heat,” said Jasmine Bright, Spokesperson for Summer Houses For Sale

“However, not every summer house purchased by shoppers this year will be used in such typical manner. As the UK recession continues to bite and more adult children, discouraged by the high cost of rented property, return home to live with their parents, a number of these constructions will be utilised as guest rooms.”

“Don’t be surprised by this as many wooden cabins and sheds today are not the creaky/damp places Grandad used to keep his rusty rake and hide his home brew kit from Grandma. In 2010 high end sheds and summer houses are often equipped with double glazed windows, brass fittings and boast mortice locks for additional security.”

“When you factor in effortless electricity hook ups and wireless Internet access, no wonder these garden structures are becoming attractive prospects for twenty somethings seeking respite from spiralling rental costs and exorbitant property prices in the UK.”

It seems with UK unemployment figures at their highest level for 15 years, and many of Great Britain’s youth “economically inactive” this trend of summer house purchase could be set to continue long into the future.

About: – http://www.summerhousesforsale.com is a site offering an introduction to garden summer houses. It includes a price comparison feature and the latest UK deals.

Jasmine Bright
Summer Houses For Sale
UK
Telephone: +44 – 07929 12371
Email: info@summerhousesforsale.com
Website: http://www.summerhousesforsale.com

Victoria Plumb aim to bring their customers the highest quality bathroom products at unbeatable prices as well as the best service and support. As a testament to their commitment, Victoria Plumb have received ‘Trusted Seller’ status from NexTag after receiving tremendous positive responses from NexTag customers.

In a bid to continually improve their service levels, Victoria Plumb has always encouraged their customers to provide helpful reviews, feedback and suggestions. To make it more assessable, Victoria Plumb incorporated the NexTag feedback forms to allow customers from the shopping comparison website to comment on their experience and service with Victoria Plumb. Victoria Plumb have received tremendous positive feedback at NexTag and have achieved the 4-star rating at present along with the ‘Trusted Seller’ status.

To qualify as a NexTag Trusted Seller, a store must have received positive customer reviews and rating as well as address customer service complaints quickly and fairly. Furthermore, to qualify, a store has to provide accurate and correct product information such as price, shipping, availability, along with identifying product conditions correctly. The store must also allow NexTag to place an independent feedback store link on their website that is monitored and conducted by NexTag.

The achievement of this status is a testament to Victoria Plumb’s commitment to providing their customers with the best level of service. Victoria Plumb also feature their products on other shopping comparison websites such as Shopping.com, Shopzilla, Kelkoo and CIAO to name a few.

Last year, Victoria Plumb’s customer services team leader , Lianne Todd, won the ‘Fair Trading Award’ assuring that Victoria Plumb customers get the best qualified support and service from the Victoria Plumb customer service team.

To add to the glory, same time last year, Victoria Plumb’s call centre was awarded a City & Guilds Award for Customer Service , thus further strengthening Victoria Plumb’s resolve to provide excellent customer service.

“Victoria Plumb are committed to providing the best level of service to their clients and for that we strive very hard. After our achievements last year, receiving further accolades is a proof of our commitment,” Ged Lees, Commercial Director of Victoria Plumb, said. “Our customer service team continually works to improve customer experience and ensure that everyone gets their ideal bathroom!”

NexTag is one of the largest online shopping comparison sites with perhaps the most widespread selection of products on the web. They operate their network throughout UK, USA, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. NexTag has been the top choice for millions of shoppers monthly to find the best deal for products.

Victoria Plumb is UK’s leading online bathroom retailer supplying a large range of luxury bathroom products ranging from Bathroom Suites, Shower Enclosures, Showers, Bathroom Furniture and Accessories. The comprehensive range of bathroom products have been designed to offer both quality and versatility to any bathroom. www.victoriaplumb.com

Villa Plus, the independent, direct-sell villa specialist, has rebranded itself with a fresh, modern look, demonstrated by a vibrant and uplifting new colourful logo.

As part of the re-brand, Villa Plus will also be adopting a new tag line; ‘Villa holidays with a difference’, which reinforces the fact that the company’s villas come with many extras as standard and are among the best equipped rental villas in Europe. An impressive 98% of villas are air conditioned and all have their own private swimming pool, many of which are heated. Other additional benefits include sun beds, BBQ’s, table tennis tables, pool tables, Playstation 2s, satellite TV (many with BBC and ITV), as well as the added security of an alarm system. All villas include maid and linen service and, space permitting, each villa is equipped with a washing machine and dishwasher.

Simon Linford, Sales and Marketing Manager at Villa Plus said: “Having been about for a while, we’ve decided it’s time to better reflect the fabulous product and service we sell. Our new brand is characterised by a modern logo of a friendly persona. Also, to illustrate the extra value we give the customer, we’ve come up with the tag line ‘villa holidays with a difference’.

“Yet this doesn’t mean we’ve been taken over by the big boys,” Linford continued. “On the contrary, Villa Plus remains an independent direct sell tour operator owned and managed by its founders. We have over 700 exclusively contracted villas across nine destinations in Europe and we select the very best villas in the very best locations. All our villas have their very own private pools and are amongst the best equipped in the market.”

Villa Plus has been providing quality villa holidays for 23 years and was the pioneer in improving the standard of European villa holidays. Started from the bedroom of founder Nick Cooper, the company has to date booked over 300,000 customers and become the UK’s second largest villa tour operator. With a culture of providing strong customer service, Villa Plus has built up an enviable reputation in the business and a well deserved customer loyalty which is unrivalled.

As the company rolls out its fresh, new image, Villa Plus looks forward to the future and continuing to raise the standards of villa holidays for customers old and new.

About Villa Plus:
VillaPlus.com is an independent tour operator that has been providing villa holidays for 23 years to the best locations in Europe, providing holiday villas to rent in Cyprus, the Algarve, Costa del Sol, Mallorca, Menorca, Corfu, Costa Blanca, Kefalonia and Villas in Lanzarote.

VillaPlus.com has extensive experience and the independent operation means that they can offer ATOL protected air inclusive holiday packages that are genuinely tailored to individual client requirements.

In the late 80s and early 90s VillaPlus.com were the first villa company to try to install into every villa, basic items such as washing machines, dishwashers, satellite TV, microwaves, safes and alarms. These items were later followed by further upgrades such as PlayStation 2, stair gates, pool tables, table tennis, brick barbecues and sun bed mattresses.

VillaPlus.com have a highly experienced and dedicated team based in the UK and overseas who work hard to provide clients with the high levels of professional service required to ensure that the VillaPlus.com holiday experience is enjoyable and hassle free.

Media Contact
Karen Robertson
Villa Plus Ltd.
16 Adelaide Street
St. Albans
Hertfordshire
AL3 5BH
01727 738 516
www.villaplus.com