Is this the time to sell your piece of England?
2020 has been the year of peaks and troughs for the UK’s housing market. The first lockdown back in March brought housing chains to an abrupt halt, followed by a groundswell of demand as restrictions lifted and Government incentives like the stamp duty holiday were introduced, leading to house prices surging at a pace not witnessed since 2004.
If you are a landowner, with perhaps a disused industrial building or field, you are probably questioning if this is the right time to sell? Newland Homes’ Land Director, Andrew Billings, warns there’s a danger in trying to second-guess the market.
Quite often we are approached by landowners who have tied themselves into knots trying to solve the conundrum of when and how to sell their property; whether it’s a brownfield site ripe for redevelopment or a greenfield site on the edge of a settlement.
Many factors weigh on the decision-making process and it can, at times, become quite overwhelming, especially when you have either family or business ownership. With the benefit of over 20 years of development experience, I find myself reassuring landowners that it is ‘not a bad problem to have’! By working collaboratively, we can help landowners and their professional advisors turn this perceived headache to their advantage.
I joined Newland Homes in 2005 after a formative career as a valuer and land agent. My colleague Simon Richardson (Associate Land Director) and myself are members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) which is unusual in the house building industry.
Our development knowledge, backed up by the high standards required by the RICS, provide confidence to landowners and agents alike. We can provide a steadying hand through the often-complex land sale and acquisition process, having done this many a time before.
Newland Homes has been building houses for over 30 years and we have an exceptionally talented in-house teams of planners, designers, surveyors and engineers giving us the edge when assessing potential opportunities.
As any star baker will tell you, it’s crucial that you introduce all the right ingredients! If you want to maximise the potential of your site, the most fundamental ingredient is to deliver the right planning permission complemented by great design. Time after time, we see opportunities that others don’t.
Take one of our current sites in Bedminster Down, Bristol, called Old Pump House. It is a personal favourite of mine, not only because it’s a great looking scheme, but also the success we had overcoming the significant planning and technical hurdles. The site has fabulous views of Clifton Suspension Bridge, in a vibrant, established community, and the resulting design has maximised this.
When my two children were younger, they thought I worked in construction, like the Bob the Builder cartoon. However, after witnessing my home DIY, they quickly realised that I couldn’t possibly be actually building homes, so now they know that I’m the one buying the land for the houses to go on.
I work closely with our in-house teams to bring the vision to fruition. We all play to our own strengths within Newland Homes and we follow the project through its lifecycle, which brings consistency and reassurance to landowners.
We are a proper and traditional house builder, who take immense pride in what we do. We strive to create a fitting legacy, not just for ourselves, but also for our landowners. We understand that often landowners are well-known in the local area, and we want them to hold their heads up high in their own community. We are steadfast in our belief that relationships are at the heart of everything we do.
So, if you’re a landowner, should you be selling now? Whilst there is no simple answer, I do know that with a professional and experienced partner like Newland Homes, you can maximise the opportunity in front of you with confidence.
I have learnt that you should never try to second-guess the property market, but what you can and should do is find the right people to guide you in your decision-making. Newland Homes is a privately owned, personable and approachable company and we have the internal knowhow to get a project over the line, with diplomacy, tenacity and nimbleness. Come and talk to us.
Andrew Billings – Land Director
Tel: 01452 623000
Email: land@newlandhomes.co.uk
Website: www.newlandhomes.co.uk
