Past or Present

From the restoration of the much anticipated Battersea Power station development, which will eventually consist of around 3,500 new homes, to the Kidbrooke Village scheme in South East London, one of Europe’s largest regeneration projects, which will feature over 4,800 new houses and apartments, house builders are now developing significantly more new homes across the capital in an effort to meet high demand for housing. But despite the growing volume of stylish new-build properties emerging in London, there a number of people who still prefer many of the older dwellings that Southwest London has in abundance.

From Georgian and Regency homes to Edwardian and Victorian dwellings, there is a wide selection of ‘period’ homes from across various architectural eras to choose from. But before making a final decision over which type of property to go for, there are various considerations that a purchaser should bear in mind.

SPACE
A lot of old properties are extremely spacious, making them ideal for families, unlike new build homes which are notorious for a lack of storage space, small rooms and low ceilings!

PRICE
Older properties, some of which require modernising, generally offer better value for money compared to new-build properties which often command a premium of around ten percent.

CHARACHTER
From Victorian family homes to the grand structures of the quintessential Georgian era, older properties – of which Fulham has many – generally feature unique and stylish character, making them highly sought-after.

FOUNDATIONS
If you opt to buy a property that has stood tall for the best part of a century, it has probably been built on solid ground. A recent report from home insurer LV= revealed that over ten percent of newer homes built on brownfield sites have suffered from problems such as flooding, contamination from sewage and drainage issues. Old homes, on the other hand, have already stood the test of time.

QUIALITY ASSURANCE
From kitchen appliances and roof to doors and windows, everything in a new property by definition is new and will not need replacing anytime soon. What’s more, in a new home, some of these components come with a warranty of up to ten years.

NO CHAIN
There is no upward property chain to consider when buying a new build house, so the whole process is much quicker and less stressful. Some house builders even offer part exchange deals to save even more time.

SAFETY
Newly built homes come with modern fire retardants in materials such as carpeting and insulation, helping to ensure they are a lot safer than older properties.

DESIGN
New builds tend to be more ‘designer’. There are more glass balustrades, larger windows and plenty of balconies which give superior views. If that’s your thing.

ENERGY COSTS
With developers now building new homes from minimum compliance Code Level 3 by using smart techniques, such as airtight doors, insulated roofs and special double-glazing to make sure that draughts will not cause the winter chills, research by Barratt Homes shows that today’s new build homes are up to 55% more energy efficient than an upgraded Victorian home.

All these simple details will keep your bills down and keep you feeling toasty. In fact, you could save an average of £1,312 a year on your heating bills, based upon the comparison of a new build four-bed detached house versus a Victorian property (upgraded with modern-day improvements), according to research undertaken by the NHBC Foundation and Zero Carbon Hub.

SALEABILITY
You can’t underestimate the fact that there are simply more European buyers out there looking to buy period property. Yes the entire block might have be sold overnight to one far eastern buyer but that doesn’t mean that the rest of the market is as interested. That said though it’s likely your property will be more unique for an area, harder to price accurately and therefore with less comparables more easily attract a higher price.