WITH Labour winning the General Election and the Bank of England cutting interest rates this summer, there has been plenty to navigate.
As the dust settles-autumn Budget permitting-buyer activity may be set to rise.
'A lot of buyers are looking to activate their plans in the autumn, when they will have a clearer picture on interest rates and government tax plans,' believes Edward Rook, head of Knight Frank's country department (020-7861 5115).
What is catching buyers' eyes? According to Edward Sugden, head of prime country houses at Savills (07557 337507), recently refurbished or modernised country houses are garnering more attention 'due to their running efficiency and often lower maintenance costs'. Joanna Cocking, head of private office and prime at Hamptons (07824 623709), agrees: 'Buyers are coming to us saying that they ideally want a country house that they don't have to do anything to. "Turnkey" has been an ongoing trend for the past 10 years, but has been amplified since the pandemic.'
Denne historien er fra October 02,2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra October 02,2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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A berry timely harvest
AS summer leans into autumn and either end of the day anticipates the season to come, I occasionally find myself checking the slowly colouring fruit of the Chilean guava hedge that edges one of the perennial beds.
The rest is history
Narrative art that explored religious, mythological, historical or allegorical subjects took a while to become established in Britain, but, when it did, it was in its grandest form, on the largest scale and for a very long time, finds Michael Hall
The show must go on
England travel to Pakistan for a three-match Test series. James Fisher contemplates the sublime and the ridiculous
If walls could talk
Is it possible to take on the genius or character of those who have slept in your bed before? Steven King stays in homes with illustrious past owners to find out
That old chestnut
For the unimaginative Briton, chestnuts roasting on an open fire is the only way to go. Yet these sharp little nuts can elevate your baking game, assures John Wright
The world on the doorstep
England, Africa, Italy or China-it's possible to travel the world without leaving this imaginatively designed garden, which divides into four distinct geographical sections. Each one has resonance for the owners, reports Caroline Donald
To build or not to build
When it comes to the skyline, do we need to know when to say 'enough is enough', asks John Goodall
Pyramid scheme
In a city as large as London, the problem of where to lay the dead to rest is ever-present. One extraordinary unfulfilled scheme would have made space for five million, finds Jack Watkins
Best foot forward
Some of the country's finest estate agents let Annabel Dixon in on the secrets of prepping a country house for sale.
Nice work in the West
With hybrid working now a fact of life, four special houses in Devon and Cornwall are well equipped to more than pay their way
