London Luxury-Home Prices Rise on Lower-Taxed Property

Provided by Barton Wyatt Letting Agents Sunningdale

Luxury-home prices in central London rose at their fastest rate in three months in September, powered by demand for properties that escape a new higher rate of sales tax, Knight Frank LLP said. The average value of a house or apartment in the U.K. capital’s most expensive neighborhoods climbed 0.7 percent from August, according to an index compiled by the London-based broker. The annual increase was 10 percent compared with a 13- month low of 9.9 percent in August.

Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne raised sales tax for properties valued at more than 2 million pounds ($3.25 million) to 7 percent from 5 percent starting in April. The number of homes sold that weren’t subject to the higher levy rose by 23 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier. That lifted prices in the bracket by about 12 percent, Knight Frank said.

“London’s market performance continues to be aided by overseas buyers, who account for more than 50 percent of buyers in the 2 million-pound plus market,” Liam Bailey, Knight Frank’s head of residential research, said today in a statement.

Russian, Indian, Italian, U.S. and French nationals were the biggest buyers from overseas, the broker said. Foreign buyers accounted for 41 percent of prime London homes purchased for 1 million pounds or more.

Values have risen 51 percent to a record since March 2009, the low point for London’s prime residential market after the financial crisis, according to the report.

Knight Frank compiles the index from its own appraisal values of a sample of properties in the 13 most expensive central London neighbourhoods, such as Belgravia, Mayfair, Kensington and Knightsbridge.

Letting Agents Surrey

Basic Window Dressing Rules to Make More Sales

Are you aware of the latest trend in the retail industry? Why do you think that the retailers are focusing on developing effective visual merchandising? Why is there such a high demand for the visual merchandisers?

The visual merchandising is the latest market norm and its demand is increasing at an accelerating rate. The concept “Visual merchandising” can be best described as the art and strategy of displaying the merchandise in the manner that has an aesthetic appeal that draws the attention of the customers towards the retail store. It basically sets the merchandise of the store in a way that customers get attracted to the retail store and enhance their shopping experience by visiting the store.

In order to develop an effective visual merchandising in the store, the store owners are looking for skilled visual merchandisers who know the art of enhancing the aesthetic appeal of the retail store. The professional needs to be creative and talented so that he can place all the merchandise in proper way so that the customers get attracted to the aesthetic appeal of the store. Hence, the experts need to have passion for design, creativity and innovation so that they can make sure that they are talented and highly skilled visual merchandiser.

Retail Window Dressing

The main visual merchandising duties comprise of working on every aspect of the retail store from the placement of the merchandise to the promotion offers on the merchandise. Therefore, the professional will need to work on attractive window displays, creative signs, aesthetic interior displays and other types of sales promotions that should be offered to the customers. Hence, the professional will have to ensure that everything is properly coordinated which means that the color of the store should be complemented with the display of the products and the stage of the retail shop.

Hence, the professional will also be up-to-date with the fashion world and must be aware of the changes happening in the dynamic environment and market so that the changes can be incorporated effectively. Therefore, the visual merchandisers will have to make sure that they are aware of the latest market trends and they must ensure that everything is coordinated and strategy must be properly designed and implemented.