London, South West, SW1
The SW pre-fix to London postcodes is synonymous with a number of high quality, diversified, locations in prime central London.
The international executive would understand more familiar terms such as South West Downtown; where central London takes on a conservative persona; where senior civil servants meet HQ executives.
Any commercial real estate investor should consider how these locations are fundamentally buoyed by prime residences, where their appeal reaches international borders, in particular to those wanting the best options for their second homes; locations such as Knightsbridge, Westminster, Chelsea, Kensington and St. James. Sharing locations with residences doesn't inhibit the creation of formidable commercial properties where many international organisations looking for the ideal UK HQ and have found grand offices of sufficient size and quality to fulfil the management of European operations.
Diversity translates into security for the commercial investor; restaurants, hotels and retail units when they're not serving executives will be at least serving residents and tourists, of which SW1 maintains one of the strongest appeals in the UK.
Westminster, London
Probably one of the most iconic symbols of British politics and the city of London is taken in Westminster, where the House of Parliament, government offices of Whitehall and Westminster Abbey are all here in Westminster. Over the last 25 years, it has developed a more modern character through the addition of retail, trendier officers (Saatchi and Saatchi) and modern apartments to house the young professional, civil servants.
Westminster though, has a presence of international politics; there a police presence, there are the King's horse guards, it is the home of the prime minster and it connects with other key locations (St. Jame's, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square); Westminster bears the hallmarks of British History and tradition through it's architecture, official protocols and the complexity of civilization developed over the last 1000 years; further adding to the appeal of the UK, where it's judicial system, education (Westminster Boys School), security, history and economics are favored by the international communities.
Victoria St, Westminster
Rent Price per Sq Ft: £69.50 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £1600 - £1800 / Sq Ft.
Featured buildings: The IVY, Department of Trade and Industry, John Lewis HQ, The Selso Building, The Albert, One Victoria St
Description: Victoria St is the key link between Buckingham Palace Road (major transport hubs; Victoria Railway Station, Victoria Tube Station, Victoria Coach Station) and Parliament Square and Whitehall; which eventually leads to Trafalgar Square. Other locations such as St. Jame's and Millbank also link to Victoria St. Over the years, Victoria St has evolved into becoming a mixed use location with retail, restaurants, grade A offices and residential apartments; becoming a highly diversified location, enhancing it's appeal amongst executives seeking more versatile locations to accompany their high grade offices.
knightsbridge, London
As Knightsbridge is primarily a residential location; the balance between it hosing commercial space and serving the residents, Knightsbridge sets the perfect balance for creating a softer ambience for the office workers, who will appreciate the reduced clinical nature of rows of skyscrapers and office blocks. Knightsbridge is a place where individuals are keen to express themselves from the halls of Harrods, to the outlets on Sloane St, as well as the Rolex store and the Mclaren showroom. The offices and restaurant spaces complement each other very well; the location serves the have their standards precedented by the hotels situated within less than a square mile; four 5 Star restaurants; The Lanesborough, The Peninsula, The Mandarin Oriental and The Berkeley.
Knightsbridge commercial properties rightfully gains worldwide attention and it's assets are often held by high profile foreign entities.
Knightsbridge & Brompton Road, knightsbridge
Rent Price per Sq Ft:: £95 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £1685 - £3135 / Sq Ft.
Featured buildings: Harrods, Lanesborough Hotel, Embassy of Libya, Mandarin oriental
Description: Knightsbridge, starting from Hyde Park Corner, is the name given to both area and road. It runs parralel to the southern border of Hyde Park and then taking the left fork after a mile, becomes Brompton Road, leading to Kensington. On the otherside, Knightsbridge also leads into an underpass that travels under Hyde Park Corner and into Piccadilly, which is a comparable road to Knightsbridge.
Chelsea, London
The most free thinking, artistic, family friendly, stylish, practical and ambitious suburb in central London; defined by the executives that live there, commercial spaces in Chelsea are oriented around the needs of the city executive, delivering all the living requirements, including the most unique and individual townhouses after Mayfair. But where Mayfair is even more focused around the executive / entrepreneur, Chelsea is more focused around the wider needs of the executive's family.
For the commercial investor this means providing retail, leisure and office facility and a significant number of it too, as King's Road of Chelsea runs the whole length of the suburb and otherwise there are other locations, such as Lots Road; Europe's centre for Interior Design. The investor will find more accessible, less risky options; where capital growth is strong and vacancy rates are low. But like much of central London, grand office blocks are not far away, neither are significant industrial units, large gyms, football stadiums, shopping centres and cinemas. Because if it's not in Chelsea, then it's probably next door, at walking distance.
Investors can rely on a football team with international fame, rich list residents, dedicated reality TV programmes and a location where the Thames River flows along the southern border, Kensington on the northern border and Belgravia next door on east.
sloane Sq, Chelsea, SW1W
Rent Price per Sq Ft: £115 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £2450 / Sq Ft.
Featured buildings: Sloane Place, Wyndham House, Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square House, Sloane Square War Memorial, The Venus Fountain
Description: Resident businesses on Sloane Square include Tiffany's, Boss and Peter Jones. There is also a theatre, a number of restaurants, bars and the entrance to Sloane Square tube station. The location is highly significant; Eaton Square, Chester Row, the designer stores of Sloane St and the shopping opportunities of King's Road are all within arms reach. The square is outlined by a one way system in the shape of a square and at the centre of it is a large block paved section with trees, benches and in the summer, there is an outdoor bar / restaurant.
king rd, Chelsea, SW3
Rent Price per Sq Ft: Primary Retail: £125 / Sq Ft. Offices: £50 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £1500 - £2750 / Sq Ft.
Featured buildings: Atlantic Court, Duke of York Lane, Saatchi Art Gallery, College House, 81 - 103 Kings Road, 195-197 King's Road
Description: King's Road zips it way through the whole of Chelsea, leading to the next door borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The pavements on either side are busy with pedestrians taking advantage of the excellent, diversified shopping and traffic is using the road as a main route to get across from central London into more suburban, less commercial London. But as King's Road splits Chelsea into half as it goes across; it's an ideal route to get to anywhere when travelling by foot and makes Chelsea one of the most desirable places to live. The commercial assets therefore are prime investments; accessible, stable and yet with competitive growth prospects. Retail, provides greater revenue and is priced at a premium in comparison with offices; offices are priced lower than central London and even SE1. Further west of King's Road, away from Belgravia and towards Fulham; prices drop significantly.
kensington, London
Kensington, lying west of Hyde Park and North of it's sister location; Chelsea; is one of the UK's most exclusive residential locations.
It is amongst the most family oriented locations within central London and the vast array of townhouses are designed to service the active city family. Commercial property in the area is oriented towards such families and social sectors that are somewhat related to family structures. Hence the commercial outlets serve residents that range from students, young professionals, entrepreneurs and senior business executives. Commercial properties will hosts businesses providing high quality products and services, aligning with the high prices associated with living costs in the area where rent and house prices are amongst the highest in the country.
kensington High St, kensington, W8
Rent Price per Sq Ft: Primary Retail: £245 / Sq Ft. Primary
Offices: £65 - £75 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £1098 - £2350
Featured buildings: Kensington Arcade, No 101-103 Kensington High St, Barkers, The Former Post Office
Description: Far more commercial than it's sister street; King's Road of Chelsea; Kensington High St offers more in diversity and product range. Unlike King's Road, Kensington High St has hotels, car showrooms, a tube station, large stores (H&M, Marks and Spencer, Curry's World, TK Maxx). Some of the world's most exclusive residential streets come off this High St, including a number of Embassies a short walk away but serving the whole of Kensington community (the country's most densely populated) there is strong demand for retail and leisure space and investors can find quality assets at all levels of the price spectrum.
princes gate, Exhibition Road, kensington, SW7
Rent Price per Sq Ft: Offices: £65 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £2888 / Sq Ft.
Featured buildings: Embassy of Iran, Consulate of the UAE, Imperial College,
Description: Encompassing Prince's Gate, Prince's Gate Garden and Exhibition Road are the academic halls and embassies, situated opposite Hyde Park and close to the Royal Albert Hall. Not far is Kensington Palace Gardens, where further embassies can be found or the residences of ambassadors. Prince's Gate is quieter and though it may not have as high a profile as Palace Gardens, it has a tranquility and grand architecture to warrant it's premium value. Such assets can also work as premium residences and will serve well as diversified assets. Exhibition leads into the centre of South Kensington where commercial properties have the more familiar format of leisure and retail on the ground floor, with offices on the 1st floor upwards.
Old Brompton Road, kensington
Rent Price per Sq Ft: Office: £49.50 / Sq Ft; Retail: £65 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot £750 - $1500 / Sq Ft
Featured buildings: Lamborghini London, Ferrari, The Brompton.
Description: Old Brompton has a smaller number of large retail establishments, it mainly consists of smaller stores with apartments and offices on top. These are accessible investments with diversity yet simplicity in management and development.
fulham Road, kensington
Rent Price per Sq Ft: Office: £42.50; Retail: £25 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £605 - £1285 / Sq Ft
Featured buildings: Ralph Lauren
Description: One of the more commercially active roads in Kensington; Fulham Road intersects through with Kensington on one side and Chelsea on the other, where some of the country's most prime residential streets can be found.
belgravia, London
Belgravia starts where Chelsea ends, where it's southern edge touches Victoria and where the core includes high profile residential locations such as Eaton Square, Eaton Place and Chester St. Upon reaching Hyde Park Corner at it's northwest corner, after the newly built Peninsula, Knightsbridge starts with it's iconic Lanesborough Hotel and Belgravia's westerly border runs alongside the walls of Buckingham Palace's where a newly built private hospital reached £1bn in build costs. The limits of Belgravia are set by the ambitious who regard Belgravia as being worthy of any level of investment for either commercial or residential property, made ideal by t's collection of historic buildings, an incredibly central location, yet with sufficient distance from the hustle and bustle of Oxford St.
Belgravia's commercial properties will vary from having key office blocks, to large townhouses converted to offices, to high profile restaurants, hotels and other times, small shops, as those seen on Ecclestone St, where local residents are served by coffee shops, antique shops, exclusive wear and service based offices.
Belgrave Square, belgravia, SW1X
Rent Price per Sq Ft: £62.50 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £1750 - £3101 / Sq Ft
Featured buildings: Multiple embassies, Cultural centres, royal colleges and private residences.
Description: Belgrave Square is where the grand, meets size; Belgrave Square's properties make the ideal offices and are thus popular amongst embassies wishing to fulfil their space requirements but also want to take advantage of the prestige offered by the Square, which has it's own private garden in the centre. As expected, there is a high security presence, guarding individual properties as well as an ambient police team patrolling the vicinity. Buckingham Palace's grounds are less then 0.25 miles away and three of the UK's top ten most expensive streets come off Belgrave Square which, at the same time itself, represents some of the most expensive properties in the UK but as the size is extensive, the price per square foot is reduced, providing great value for the purchaser able to outlay the capital of £60m plus. Some of the selling prices have at least on one occasion, reached £100m plus. Houses in the vicinity may rent for £100k plus per month.
St James, London
St. James lies in between Mayfair's Piccadilly and Westminster's Victoria St; close to Buckingham Palace, the House of Parliament and the Ritz Hotel. Looking at the lay out and architecture of St. James and it's surroungings, one can make some fair presumptions that St. Jame's was once the heart of high public servants and nobility. Even to this day, it reflects a strong ambience of significance and unstated grandeur; it is the epitome of discretion and a world oriented towards commerce, economics and politics.
St James Square, St James, sw1y
Rent Price per Sq Ft: / Sq Ft: £150 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £3,395 / Sq Ft
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Pall Mall, St James, sw1y
Rent Price per Sq Ft: / Sq Ft: £100 / Sq Ft
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: / Sq Ft: £995 / Sq Ft
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St. James St, St James, sw1a
Rent Price per Sq Ft: £105 / Sq Ft.
Purchase Price Per Square Foot: £2,575 / Sq Ft.
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Disclaimer
The information displayed here comprises of a location summary, of which Mountesque Ltd makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the information, which is to act as a guide at the viewers discretion. Whilst the information is periodically maintained by Mountesque; they are subject to market, economic and geographic changes and influences, as well as individual and collective interpretation and viewpoint. Please contact us directly for direct assistance with enquiries and guidance on our consulting packages.