Award-winning housebuilder Kebbell has revealed the details of three new developments in Berkshire, Hampshire and Buckinghamshire, totalling an estimated investment value of £89 million, spanning first-time buyer one-bedroom homes in Iver to an opulent flagship development in Ascot. £35 million Cholbury Place in Ascot will comprise 18 elegant three-bedroom, 1800
Andrea Fawell, Sales and Marketing Director of award-winning property developers Kebbell, reveals if problems in the energy markets are driving purchasers to more efficient new homes, answers questions about sustainability in the property market, and how her ground-breaking trip to Svalbard is influencing her view of what the future holds.
Andrea Fawell, Sales & Marketing Director of award-winning property developers Kebbell, reveals what is likely to affect house buyers and housebuilders in the second half of 2022, from market trends to the effects of the cost of living crisis, to sustainability. The Market Are you seeing any changes or trends
Award-winning housebuilder Kebbell has revealed the details of three new developments in Berkshire, Hampshire and Buckinghamshire, totalling an estimated investment value of £89 million, spanning first-time buyer one-bedroom homes in Iver to an opulent flagship development in Ascot. £35 million Cholbury Place in Ascot will comprise 18 elegant three-bedroom, 1800 to 2900 sq ft opulent apartments combining impressive architecture on a grand scale with contemporary design and a cutting edge level of specification. Beautiful carpentry will be a notable feature of Cholbury Place including handmade Charles Yorke kitchens, extra tall doors and exquisite joinery as well as the grandeur of the high 2.8m (9.2ft) ceiling heights. The development boasts a 13m (43ft) high atrium in the communal halls, a lift and a stunning living wall. The principal bedroom suites include large dressing areas with spacious bespoke wardrobes and luxurious ensuite bathrooms. The apartment sales prices are expected to be in the region of £1.5 to £2.5 million. These homes will be within walking distance of Ascot high street and the racecourse, as well as being an easy drive to Wentworth Golf Club or Heathrow, with excellent train line connections and easy access to the M4, M25, M3 and the A30. The site is completely surrounded by a beautiful canopy of trees including big American Redwoods with a stunning view from all apartments. The homes will benefit from basement parking, a lift and car charging points and will be highly energy efficient. Andrea Fawell, Sales and Marketing Director of Kebbell says: “We expect these beautifully crafted apartments to be attractive to downsizers and empty nesters who may be selling substantial homes in the area but don’t want to compromise on the high quality they are used to. The penthouses, in particular, will be quite extraordinary and we believe offer a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Construction has started and we are 12-18 months off from having a show apartment but already have huge levels of interest from people wanting a private priority preview. We expect to complete in 2024.” Following the success of Heatherfields in Bordon, New Hampshire development, Alderbrook is set inPetersfield in the South Downs National Parkand will comprise82 contemporary and energy-efficient two, three and four-bedroom houses, including social housing for rent and shared ownership. Set in a wooded environment and next to playing fields, Alderbrook is a five-minute walk to the highly regarded market town centre of Petersfield. Designed for families or individuals who now need that all important home office space with ultra-fast broadband. Work on the £32 million development has started on site with a show home expected to be open in spring 2023 and completion is anticipated to be in 2025. The homes will range from 960 to 1974 sq ft and prices will be in the region of £500,000 to £995,000. Andrea Fawell says: “The anticipated purchaser profile is aspiring families, young professionals and downsizers who want to live near to the buzzing town centre of Petersfield whilst being close to the area’s beautiful national park. We expect potential buyers to come from London and other large urban areas as hybrid working and the desire for space looks set to remain. Kebbell has a legacy of building homes at Herne Farm in Petersfield and we have already had enquiries from existing Kebbell owners in the area who would like their next home on this new Kebbell development!” £22 million Meadow Court in Iver in Buckinghamshire comprises 39 two-bedroom apartments. Set in a courtyard formation, these homes will include basement parking, a lift, communal electric charging points and direct access to the green belt. The stylish 750 to 1250 sq. ft apartments will be on the market for between £450,000 to £650,000. Meadow Court is 1.8 miles from Iver’s train station which is on the Elizabeth Line, walking distance from Iver itself and is also just outside the M25 in South Bucks and close in proximity to the M40, M4 and Heathrow. Meadow Court is near to the Grand Union Canal which benefits from gorgeous pubs, walks and cycleways. Offering residents semi-rural connected living. Andrea Fawell explains why these homes are expected to be snapped up: “We expect Meadow Court to appeal to young professionals and the downsizer or lock-up-and-leave markets who want a UK base. The show home is expected to open late this year/early next year with the first apartments ready to move into in early 2023 and completion of the development is expected to be late 2023. The beauty of this development is the real potential investment opportunity for young buyers, especially those attracted to low energy bills and contemporary features such as slick fitted kitchens and underfloor heating, set in a stunning area of natural beauty.” www.kebbell.co.uk
Andrea Fawell, Sales and Marketing Director of award-winning property developers Kebbell, reveals if problems in the energy markets are driving purchasers to more efficient new homes, answers questions about sustainability in the property market, and how her ground-breaking trip to Svalbard is influencing her view of what the future holds. Sustainability How is sustainability influencing the new build property market? “There is growing interest in urban sustainability and ESG (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance) in the building industry, more so since COP26 but there is still a lot of greenwashing. We need to be much more sustainable and catch up with other industries such as certain players in the food, travel and retail industries, who are putting sustainability at the top of their priority list if we are going to play our part in becoming net-zero by 2050. “The good news is sustainability is increasingly important to house buyers, particularly first-time buyers who are progressively driven by the sustainability and environmental credentials of their purchases. I don’t think it will be too long before house buyers will be choosing eco-friendly sustainable homes because it’s a dealbreaker for them. Housebuilders are foreseeing this and progressively futureproofing new homes including the addition of air source heat pumps, electric car chargers, underfloor heating, solar panels, super energy-efficient utilities, and excellent insulation which will all begin to come as standard, in addition to innovative water-saving and recycling systems. There may also be changes in the future to mortgages connected with energy efficiency.” Are house buyers willing to pay more to ensure a property has eco-friendly features? “I think at the moment house buyers are reluctant to pay more. One competitor of ours spent 10% more on added eco-friendly features in an endeavor to create a much more energy efficient house and wanted to pass that cost on, but then found it harder to sell as buyers just weren’t ready for the extra cost. But it may well not stay that way. The narrative needs to change. Currently, when a purchaser comes to buy a new home they may focus on the fact that because it is more energy-efficient they will have lower bills. The narrative would need to change to purchasers choosing homes that are more sustainable and use less energy overall and therefore they will have lower bills. The cost saving aspect needs to become an outcome rather than a driver. That’s why I think the sustainability carrot will be more beneficial than a sustainability stick. The benefits of sustainability are endless.” So are you seeing an increased demand in for instance solar panels? “Definitely. At one of our new developments, Alderbrook in Petersfield, part of the planning permission requirements was ensuring the inclusion of solar panels on the social housing; we have decided to go over and above where the planners want us to be and are providing solar panels to all the private homes too. Interestingly as our summers are getting hotter, some new home buyers have asked us for the ability to fit their own air conditioners which use a considerable amount of energy. It is a difficult balance.” You are taking a very personal interest in sustainability in the industry, why is that? “I have just completed an online Leading Sustainable Corporations course at Oxford University’s Said Business School. I was motivated to do this after seeing first hand the detrimental impact of climate change and global warming on the Vatnajokull glacier, the biggest glacier in Iceland, during a training exercise for my forthcoming scientific expedition to ski the Last Degree to the North Pole as part of an all female scientific expedition collecting samples of the sea ice for research into black carbon, microplastics and other studies. The North Pole is an extremely difficult and treacherous place to reach. There is only a 3-4 week window in the year when the conditions are such that it is possible to set up a temporary base camp on the ice and ski from 89 degrees north to 90 degrees north. Due to the pandemic and latterly the Russian-Ukraine war no one has made this journey since 2018. It is possible that changes in the conditions of the ice on the polar cap caused by global warming means that no one will be able to make this journey by foot ever again. In 1969 the first person skied to the North Pole and the last people skied there in 2018. That would mean that I have seen the first and last person ski to the North Pole in my lifetime. It is terrifying. “As we were unable to travel to the North Pole in 2022 we instead went to Svalbard, a remote Norwegian archipelago between mainland Norway and the North Pole to collect samples of the sea ice. These are being analysed at the National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton for the presence of microplastics lead and mercury. Samples are also being sent to NASA for critical research into the presence of black carbon and the impact of LAPs (light absorbing particles) on the rate of glacial melting. Seeing their destruction as a result of global warming and climate change was shocking but you only have to look at daffodils in January to see global warming in action or the soaring temperatures in Spain in March. I came away committed to use my position of influence within the housebuilding sector of the construction industry to effect change for the better. “The issue with tackling global warming is the problems are so huge that companies don’t always know where to start or what to do so we avoid making a voluntary start. Instead, we need to ask how we can behave in ways that mitigate or avoid making a detrimental impact on the environment and nature, so we can safeguard the planet for future generations, as well as try and reverse the damage. Improving our understanding of our own impact will give us the ability to make more informed decisions. For
Andrea Fawell, Sales & Marketing Director of award-winning property developers Kebbell, reveals what is likely to affect house buyers and housebuilders in the second half of 2022, from market trends to the effects of the cost of living crisis, to sustainability. The Market Are you seeing any changes or trends in the new build market at the moment or is it still all about unprecedented demand and a lack of supply? “There still continues to be a ‘race for space’ and chronic shortage in supply of materials and labour and the reasons remain the same ie the effects of Brexit, the pandemic and world shortages. Where it has become even more challenging is that there is now a chronic lack of properties on the second hand market because sellers don’t believe they will have anywhere to move to, so they are holding back on putting their homes on the market. This means potential buyers have far less choice and so the cycle continues. “New builds are still being snapped up before construction even starts at many developments. All of our sites that are selling two to five bedroom houses are sold out or forward sold for up to 12 months, and at Cornelian Fields in Scarborough the waiting list is 18 months. New home property prices are also rising because of energy prices and shortages so the cost to build a house is much greater now. This incredibly hot market is unhealthy for everyone involved. We need more properties on the secondhand market for stabilisation.” So are developers running out of stock? “We are completely led by opportunities that our amazing land buyers can find but there is less available land compared to other countries, especially in the South East. Success is made on how much you pay for a new site adding on the cost implications of building and the managing of a site. Land-buyers have an incredibly difficult job and have to have their ears constantly to the ground. Kebbell largely chooses to stick to markets that we know extremely well but yes it is more of a tousle for new sites than before.” What is the effect of the cost of living crisis and energy prices rises on the new build market? “We are all aware that energy prices have risen for everyone and are set to rise further, from electricity, gas and water, to fuel at the pump, and they have to be absorbed to some extent. However buyers of new homes are taking into account that those running costs are much less per sq ft in a new build than in a second hand home. Buyers are telling us “Your underfloor heating is going to save me money and I’d much rather invest in that than pay the utility companies even more money.” Are new home buyers having to bear the brunt of increased material costs? “Not on our current sites. We have done some very savvy buying and have secured material costs on existing sites, so we have been able to absorb increases on the whole. On newer up and coming sites it is more challenging, but reputable developers are trying to future proof our build costs but also have to be very realistic about increased materials and labour. The import duty now added to materials that come out of the EU, the increased time it takes for things to be delivered and come through customs, plus general shortages are all additional factors to be considered. We ask contractors all the time about how likely their prices are to rise during the duration of the development of a particular site, which could be say three years, and can they guarantee having enough labour? They need to have thought it through too. We need to keep costs sustainable for the whole duration.” Are more new build homes being sold off plan? “Yes houses definitely. We can sell houses all day and all night at the moment especially in the middle price point. We like to be cautious though because as we build we often slightly tweak our designs and specifications to make sure they are perfect in ways that you can’t plan for. Serious early buyers are usually okay with the fact that final details may change as long as they are kept in the loop because they want the best plots on site and are happy to wait for their new home. “It is currently a slightly flatter market for apartments for downsizers and lock-up-and-leavers because the market isn’t as buoyant at that end. These sellers generally haven’t put their houses on the market yet and are even more particular than ever about what they want in their future home. It took us a little longer to sell our luxury apartments at Wintersbrooke in Berkshire than we expected as the market was slower to move during the pandemic, but all of our buyers are delighted to be in their new homes now.” How is sustainability influencing the value of properties? “Whilst this is increasingly on the property industry’s radar, we have really only scratched the surface. We are seeing future changes such as the scrapping of gas boilers and buyers want developers to be more eco-friendly especially in light of increased living costs. ESG (Environmental and Social Governance) is more important but there is also a lot of greenwashing as an industry. Half-hearted attempts just aren’t going to be enough. “There are so many ways we need to make a difference from the materials we use, future-proofing homes, water-saving, sustainability, to our skips and recycling, urban sustainability and less being influenced by geopolitics. I certainly don’t have all the answers, but we are looking in earnest about how we can make a difference. I recently went to Svalbard as part of a global research group to study the effects of microplastics in the ocean water, as well as be part of a survival psychology study. This trip was organised after our expedition to
