Onwards and upwards! Luxury house builder Millgate predicts strong performance in 2013
With house prices stabilizing and even rising a little (1.3% in December 2012, Halifax) and a limited amount of stock in the market the next obvious step, one encouraged by Government, will be for home builders to begin construction again in 2013. New homes are an essential part of the domestic property cycle.
Indeed developers who have had the cash resources or access to bank finance and have therefore still been able to build new homes over the last few years have reaped the rewards. One such house builder is Millgate, operating predominantly but not exclusively at the higher end of the market.
Millgate has seen demand for its award-winning homes remain constant and even grow in some sought-after locations such as the quintessentially British village of Wargrave in Berkshire. Millgate’s latest development of townhouses was in such high demand that upon launch in November 2012 the first property was signed and sealed within 24 hours!
Of course, from its 25 years of experience, Millgate does not expect this speed of response for all of its developments but remains confident that this is a good indicator of the market if you are able to build the right homes in the right location.
Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director of Millgate explains,
“We purchased a terrific site in Wargrave and our expertise and track record ensured that we could work with the planning departments to get the best from the plots. The price point of our town houses is fair at £675,000 for a beautiful three bedroom home with luxury kitchen and bathroom, parking and a sizeable garden and with such little stock on the market in desirable Wargrave we have been inundated with enquiries for these family homes.”
Looking at a national level, the lack of stock is clear with a recent report from Jones Lang LaSalle indicating that new development will continue to be constrained with only circa half of the UK’s requirement being met in 2013 with less than 150,000 homes being built in England each year, even by 2017, well below the number required.
But it’s not all bad news, such low levels of construction activity present a lucrative opportunity for builders such as Millgate who are able to find the funding to continue with developments. Cranley continues,
“We learnt some very important lessons during the recession and have purposefully remained committed to the top end of the market mostly building country mansions for high net worth individuals. Our average sale price in 2012 was circa £2.5 million and we do not anticipate a fall in house prices in our sector in 2013. In terms of volume, we delivered 45 units in 2012 and anticipate matching this figure in 2013. Indeed there were some concerns over the mansion tax effect on the sale of our homes but the influx of overseas buyers has continued and buoyed the market.”
Echoing Jones Lang LaSalle who also suggest that the UK housing market is expected to make steady progress throughout 2013 with accelerated growth from 2014 onwards Millgate see their future clientele being not only UK nationals but a mixture of buyers from all over the world.
For more information on Millgate homes available in 2013, contact the team today on 01189 343 344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk.