There was a brilliant Matt cartoon in the Telegraph last week. A shark is slumped in an armchair, watching humans on television as they run around outside an estate agents. “At the first sniff of a housing boom,” reads the caption, “the humans go into a buying frenzy…”Those in the market for a new home might not see the funny side. London is certainly in the grip of a boom.

Average prices in the capital rose more than 10 per cent in the past year, according to Halifax. The figure was even higher in some areas. New developments are selling off-plan faster than you can say “foreign investor”. But behind the frenzy the simple truth is that London prices are high because people want to live there. Jobs, transport infrastructure, culture: the capital is a buzzing metropolis. A seemingly endless supply of skilled, upwardly mobile people flows there from all over the world.

If you are set on London life, where should you look for value? Mayfair, Kensington and Knightsbridge have been expensive almost forever. Notting Hill, Primrose Hill and Marylebone are not far behind. More recently, prices in Hackney have rocketed. But as locations ascend to become prime and super-prime, others also begin to rise. Savills expects prices in London to rise 8.5 per cent this year, and by 24.4 per cent over the next five.“The three ways we separate new areas are whether they’re novel, new or next door,” explains Sophie Chick from Savills. Novel could be an unfashionable place that has become cool again, and new where there’s lots of development. “Next door is traditionally a good indicator. This is where an area comes up because it is next door to an existing spot. Often it will have similar stock and amenities.”So where should the canny investor place their bets?

Nobody would argue that Wandsworth or Maida Vale or Bloomsbury are “undiscovered”. But well-established hot spots can contain pockets of good value, or less salubrious streets nearby. Using research from Knight Frank and Savills, here are 20 suggestions for first-time buyers, families trading up and those who are new to the capital.

1. Canonbury

Tucked behind Upper Street, north of the Regent’s Canal, the Newington Green side of Canonbury has sometimes been overlooked, compared with nearby Barnsbury and Highbury. A reopened overground station has revitalised this area, which has plenty of period terraces, easy transport connections and a relaxed atmosphere. “This is a classic ‘next door’ type of area,” says Chick, “and is ‘novel’.” Prices have risen by more than half since 2007, reflecting the desire for all things Islington.

2. Finsbury Park

N4 has traditionally been the slightly less-smart end of Islington, compared with Highbury or Angel. Although it is farther out, Finsbury Park is on the Victoria Line, has easy access to the City on the mainline, and has plenty of shops and restaurants. There’s a new theatre and smart new accommodation popping up all the time. Average prices are around 30 per cent lower than in Islington as a whole.

3. Marylebone

It’s hardly an undiscovered find, but Marylebone is becoming the latest kid on the super-prime block. Where it was once the poor northern relation of Mayfair, it is quickly catching up. “Marylebone has always been an excellent location, but, during the past 15 years, the two major local estates, Howard de Walden and Portman, have paid attention to significant regeneration and gentrification says Christian Lock Neckrews of Knight Frank. “The area also benefited from the recession, with developers able to pick up commercial buildings for 50-70 per cent less than residential. This has led to first-class prime properties.”There are great shops and restaurants on the high street.

4. Bayswater

It’s all relative, but Bayswater has historically been a bit more run-down than its Hyde Park neighbours. But that is changing. “This is a fascinating part of London, brimming with character,” says Sam Allport, of Mountgrange Heritage. “The plans to renovate the Whiteley site on Queensway are having a positive effect. “Coupled with the fact that prices here remain up to 20 per cent lower than in neighbouring Notting Hill and Marylebone means a variety of buyers are drawn to the area.”

5. City Road

Angel has long been yuppie central, while Shoreditch and Old Street have emerged as the centres of Britain’s tech scene. But the road that links them had little to recommend it bar the Victoria Miro museum.“Old Street has morphed from a commercial entity with more of an industrial feel into an increasingly vibrant and well-located hub,” says Matt Cobb of Hatton Real Estate.

6. Earls Court

No longer the dog-eared paperback next to Kensington’s gleaming coffee-table tome, Earls Court is undergoing serious redevelopment. The 77-acre site of the exhibition centre is being turned into mart shops, 7,500 new homes and other leisure facilities. It is increasingly popular with families and professionals. Prices have risen more than 70 per cent since 2007.“With the development of the Earls Court Exhibition Centre, the surrounding areas are going to improve hugely over time,” explains Will Watson of Middleton Advisors.

7. White City

The BBC might have upped to Salford, but the Westfield Centre has brought shopping and jobs. Still, White City is firmly in the “new” category.“Five years ago, people wouldn’t have considered it,” adds Chick. “But Soho House has just announced it is opening there.” With good access to the rest of rest London, White City should be a reliable bet.

8. Stratford

There was a fear that after the Olympics, Stratford might struggle to live up to its post-Games plan. But after a brief plateau, the area is picking up again, with an increasingly settled community of young families and professionals. It has brilliant train and Tube access to central London, and, between the Olympic swimming pool and velodrome, plenty of sports facilities.

9. Honor Oak Park

Here is another part of south London that has been opened up by the revamped London Overground route. Honor Oak Park is leafy, and you get more for your money than in equivalent areas in north London. “Honor Oak Park is just inside Zone 3, with a great overground line,” says Oliver Knight of Knight Frank. “The area looks set to become a hot spot for families looking for more space, great schools and more for their money than areas such as Islington.”

10. Woolwich

Sometimes called the Shoreditch of the South, Woolwich is an attractive option for those who cannot afford nearby Greenwich. “Activity in the Woolwich property market has significantly increased over the past few years, with hundreds of new homes being built,” explains Mo Clarke of L&Q housing association. “But prices remain considerably lower than the rest of inner London. Now is a great time to get on the ladder here.” The addition of Crossrail to the DLR links will further open the area

11. St Margarets

St Margarets is on the up, with buyers drawn to the value it offers compared with Richmond and Twickenham nearby. “In the past year alone, property prices have increased by 10 per cent in the area,” says Jeff Spencer of Featherstone Leigh. “With the current economy, I would expect them to continue to rise.” According to Savills, prices have risen 23 per cent since 2007.

12. Acton

Increasingly, Acton is shaking off its reputation as Ealing’s poor cousin. It has plenty of shops, bars and restaurants, as well as good schools. “Property in Acton has historically traded at a discount to its affluent neighbouring districts of Ealing and Chiswick,” explains Mark Wilkinson from Knight Frank. “But the opening of Crossrail will reduce the price difference, and ensure good capital growth relative to the rest of London.”

13. Maida Vale

“Surprisingly, values here remain well below that of neighbouring St John’s Wood,” says Camilla Dell from buying agent Black Brick.“We feel Maida Vale still represents good value for investors, where you can still buy for less than £1,000 per sq foot.” There are pretty shops on Clifton Road, while Lord’s Cricket Ground and the canals of Little Venice are a short walk in either direction.

14. Bloomsbury

Between UCL, the Bloomsbury Group and the British Museum, this area has long been a haven for literary and artistic types. Prices are already high, but there is a consensus that the area is catching up with Marylebone, to the West, in the prime London stakes. “Prices have risen steadily since 2009 in Bloomsbury,” says Adrian Philpott of Winkworth. “Achieved prices have risen between 10 per cent and 15 per cent in the last 12 months. It is expected that the arrival of Crossrail in 2017 at Tottenham Court Road and Farringdon will keep interest in the area high.”

15. Ravenscourt Park

Sandwiched between Chiswick, Shepherd’s Bush and Hammersmith, Ravenscourt Park benefits from the “next door” phenomenon. “Housing stock in Ravenscourt Park is typically made up of three- to six-bedroom Edwardian properties,” says Christopher Bramwell from Savills. “This attracts buyers from Notting Hill, Kensington and Holland Park who are looking for more for their money, greater outdoor space and closer proximity to schools.”

16. Camberwell

With a villagey feel, art school and a good mix of housing stock, Camberwell has always had the fundamentals in place. But thanks to improved rail connections to the West End and the City, prices are picking up.

17. South Highgate

Between Belsize Park, Highgate and Dartmouth Park, this area has not traditionally been considered a separate market. But, says Chick, it is benefiting from a “classic next-door effect. There are lovely houses, but they aren’t quite as popular as Hampstead or Bishops Avenue yet.” Prices have risen 57 per cent since 2007.

18. Croydon

Once synonymous with unfashionable London, Croydon is undergoing a renaissance, with more than a billion pounds of investment planned, including a revamped high street and a Westfield shopping centre. The new Overground link has cut travel times to the centre of London and increased capacity.

19. Streatham

“People who can’t afford Clapham any more are taking a punt on Streatham,” adds Chick, who affords it “new” and “novel” status. “There is lots going on, with development schemes and a revamped high street.” Prices have risen 25 per cent since 2007, but with average sold values at £375,481, the area is still affordable compared with many boroughs, particularly north of the river.

20. Wandsworth

Wandsworth is hardly a new kid on the property block. But even with increasingly high prices, it keeps attracting buyers. They are drawn by schools, gardens and a leafy feel. “Wandsworth and Clapham are two real hot spots if you’re looking for great capital growth and overall returns,” says Sam Sproston of Knight Frank. Growth here, partly fuelled by the huge investment in Battersea to the north, has outstripped even the rest of the capital, at nearly 20 per cent in the past year. Proof that, as long as people continue to want to live in London, areas will keep rising.

 

Meet the Moore family. Gary and Celia have two children, Maddie, 10, and Ethan, nine, and both of them work in television as many hours as they can to maintain their lifestyle and meet the mortgage repayments. To help them do this they have a fifth member of the family, their au pair Nely Arroyo from Spain. To accommodate her they have completely changed their house around.

Nely is their sixth au pair. In previous years they all squeezed in, and the au pair had a small bedroom. Then Gary and Celia decided to convert the loft. “We moved up there,” says Celia. “Our son moved into our room and goes in with his sister when we need a guest room. His old room is my office. Then we knocked the two small bedrooms together to make a good room for the au pair. It is worth it because, though we have no more bedrooms, we have a better house.” Houses in their road in Esher sell for £800,000 to £1.3 million, but when they tried to sell two years ago the market was in the doldrums and they realised they couldn’t afford the extra space without moving farther afield.

So great is the need for au pairs, domestic help and childcare for dual middle-class income couples that canny developers are now building “au pair suites” into their new homes. Berkeley Homes is finishing a clutch of houses in Wimbledon village, where a flatlet consisting of a large room with its own bathroom and lavatory is tucked into the lower ground floor. “Developers now recognise this as a key requirement for family houses in London commuter suburbs,” says Clive Moon, of Savills in Wimbledon.

Along the wealth corridors out of London into Surrey, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, where buyers with young families migrate, the need for live-in home-help space is changing the market. “The majority of families in Wimbledon village now have a live-in housekeeper, au pair or nanny to assist with daily household chores or provide childcare support,” says Clive.

In Chiswick, west London, the developer Crest Nicholson is constantly adapting its floor plans to meet the changing demands of the London buyer. At St Peters Place, five-bedroom houses have been built in faux Regency style, tailored to families with a nanny or au pair. Houses start selling in the early summer and you need £3 million to buy.

“Significantly, at this price point we have included a self-contained apartment on the third floor, which has been designed to accommodate au pairs,” says Julia Reynolds, sales and marketing director. “The space is equipped with a built-in wet room, studio kitchen and capacious storage.” This inner sanctum also has double doors on to a private roof terrace. “As more London families recruit live-in childcare, this provides privacy from the rest of the household.”

The cost of employing a full-time nanny has become prohibitive for many. A recent survey by Mumsnet revealed that 38 per cent of working mothers had thought of leaving their jobs because of the high cost of childcare. Mothers on the website say rates of pay for nannies in London are around £22,000 to £27,000 a year, or even higher. By comparison an au pair, who is not a qualified child-carer, will live in as a member of the family and work perhaps 25 hours per week for £70 to £100, do a bit of babysitting and light housework, in return for two free days a week and time to go to language school.

“One partner needs to be earning £65,000 to £70,000 per year to be able to afford the nanny, so this is where the au pair comes in,” says Caspar Harvard-Walls of housefinders Black Brick, who helps buyers with budgets of £500,000 to £10 million or more to find houses in London and the Home Counties. But having an au pair means you need an extra room or must sacrifice an existing room, which he says people are prepared to do. In the middle-priced streets of Clapham or Wandsworth, or in the squares of Islington or Camden, Caspar believes most houses will have an au pair living on the top floor. “If one partner stays at home but the children go to two different schools, which is often the case, then the au pair can give them a chance to manage their lives,” he says.

Recent research by Savills on price extremes shows that the value of a room in London’s best addresses is around £262,000. In the North East of England it is £39,000, and at the bottom of the market £15,000. “The important thing,” says Caspar, “is that the buying and selling transaction now costs so much that people need to think whether a house will meet their needs in a few years’ time. A lower ground floor room might be good as an au pair suite now, but could be used as a teenage room later when the children are older. People need flexibility.”

A survey last year shone light on the new Upstairs, Downstairs of the 21st century, showing that there were more servants in Mayfair than there were 200 years ago. Wetherell estate agents found that 90 per cent of the 4,500 home owners in Mayfair had domestic help of some kind, as did 80 per cent of flat owners. Help included live-in servants, visiting daily cleaners and the occasional Mary Poppins who had blown in on the East Wind, as well as au pairs.

by Zoe Dare Hall. Thoughts of the coming year in the central London property market inspire a curious cocktail of optimism and fear for agents. The market is “on fire”, as Howard Elston, director of Aylesford International, puts it. Foreign buyers will continue to dominate the picture and new areas are becoming magnets for international wealth – Battersea’s vast Nine Elms regeneration area, for example, Marylebone, whose new boutique developments are breaking previous price ceilings and Mayfair, no longer Belgravia’s poor cousin.

But prime London’s market sizzles beneath an ominous shadow: the threatened Mansion Tax. Until the May 2015 election, no one can know exactly what the tax – Labour’s proposed 1 per cent annual levy on homes worth £2m or more – will mean for property values. But Trevor Abrahmsohn, director of Glentree Estates, who sells some of London’s most expensive mansions in Hampstead’s The Bishop’s Avenue, sees it in dramatic terms. “It will drive a coach and horses through the finely balanced dynamics of the residential property market, the like of which has not been seen since the Second World War.”

“Many owners of high value homes aren’t prepared to wait and take the risk, so they’re downsizing in anticipation. That’s a trend that’s likely to continue next year, with more renters likely to target the top end of the London property market as a result, says Camilla Dell, partner at Black Brick buying agency. “But non-doms will continue to flood in, despite a new capital gains tax on profits from April 2015,” she adds of the new announcement that overseas investors in UK property will have to pay tax on any profits.

Among those non doms, Chinese buyers will come to the fore in London next year, says Rachel Thompson, a partner in The Buying Solution, branching out from the new-build riverfront developments that have typically attracted them to more traditional period properties, while Middle Eastern buyers will increasingly diversify to the commercial sector.

For those with aspirations of digging deep in Kensington & Chelsea or Westminster, 2014 will be the year to do it before their local councils – who are already clamping down on mega-basement conversions – put a stop to the practice entirely.

As for areas on the up, the South Bank is “the most exciting contemporary urban quarter” and firmly on the prime central London map now, according to Savills, who predict 25 per cent growth over the next five years. New projects include South Bank Tower, an overhaul of the 1970s King’s Reach Tower, where 173 flats will launch in Spring from £650,000 through Savills and CBRE.

The South Bank’s competition will come from The Strand, soon to be rebranded “North Bank” and to become a “world class destination”, according to Ben Babington from Jackson-Stops & Staff, who are marketing the new 353 The Strand development, with apartments costing from £2.35m. Neighbouring Covent Garden and the “city fringe” are also part of the WC2 overhaul and will see buyers migrate from the likes of Mayfair.

Overseas, residency will be the buzzword in 2014. Following in Portugal’s footsteps, Spain recently launched its “golden visa” scheme, offering residency to non-EU nationals in return for at least €500,000 in Spanish property. Malta has introduced a new Global Residence Programme for non-EU nationals and similar incentives are taking off in the Caribbean, where the success of St Kitts’ citizenship programme has driven Antigua and Grenada to launch similar schemes. Barbados is also making it easier for buyers to invest by relaxing the amount of time they can stay without needing to renew their visas.

Spain will be hoping for some light at the end of the tunnel, now that it’s officially out of recession. Bill Gates has shown a vote of confidence by investing in the Spanish construction industry FCC and Ibiza’s property market is set to continue to fly next year, with British buyers back in force. “But don’t expect any bargains,” says Alex Vaughan from Lucas Fox. “For that, head to Barcelona, the Costa Brava or Marbella, whose markets have seen big price drops but are now recovering.”

Italy – whose luxury property market saw prices fall by up to 20 per cent this year, according to Linda Travella from Casa Travella estate agency – is hoping to tempt investors by reducing buying costs from January (you’ll save around €12,000 on a €1m home) and Tuscany will be the place for Italian bargains, says Paul Belcher from Ultissimo. “The large supply of luxury properties, some at distressed prices, will put the brakes on price rises for at least another year,” he says.

So, mixed fortunes await in London and incentives galore are on offer in weaker markets abroad. Where will you invest?

Fierce competition for property has brought back a much-loathed spectre of boomtime, and not just in London by Ed Cumming

You have endured the estate agents’ pointy shoes and tiny cars, and at last found a home you can imagine settling in. You’ve worked out the finances. Taking a deep breath, you’ve made an offer, perhaps haggled a bit over the price, and had the offer accepted. There have been months of stress, but you are finally set to exchange. Mentally, you are already in the removal van and plotting a trip to Ikea, when the call comes. Someone has made a higher offer. All that hard work is undone in an instant.

Being gazumped is probably the most infuriating thing that can happen to a house-hunter. It was a tell-tale feature of the booms in the Nineties and Noughties, but since the financial crisis of 2008 it has been much less common. Vendors have struggled to find any bidders for their property, let alone more than one.

Yet parts of the market, particularly in central London, are now steaming ahead. According to Rightmove, prices in the capital increased by one per cent in October. The average asking price went up to £544,232. Analyst Hometrack estimates that in the same period there was a two per cent increase in the number of buyers registered with agents, while the number of properties on the market fell 1.6 per cent. Buyers are paying 95.2 per cent of the asking price, nearly back to the 2007 peak of 95.7 per cent.

The Government’s Help to Buy scheme, which guarantees mortgages for first-time and new-build buyers up to £600,000, is only fanning the flames. Since the scheme launched last month, it has already boosted demand.

As a consequence of all this, competitive bidding on properties big and small has become a common occurrence once more. Returning with it has been its ugly sister, the gazump.

“Gazumping is well and truly back, and with force,” says Caspar Harvard-Walls of buying agency Black Brick. “The last time we experienced a market like this was in the heady days of 2007. Back then, fierce competition was mainly confined to Knightsbridge and Belgravia. Now it is happening much further outside the traditional core prime central market. This is partly because buyers have been priced out of super prime and are looking further afield. But also there is a constant lack of supply of sensibly priced, well-located properties that aren’t in some ways compromised.”

One factor is the influx of foreign money to the capital. Favourable tax laws, combined with the capital’s evergreen attractions, mean that overseas buyers are prepared to pay a premium – and act fast – to secure a piece of the action.

“Two weeks ago, we had an apartment in Portland Place that was under offer to a local British buyer,” says Simon Deen of Aston Chase. “They were gazumped by a Chinese buyer, who exchanged contracts within 72 hours of seeing the apartment, and 48 hours from when her solicitor received papers. She was buying the flat for her daughter, who will be studying in London.”

To those in the heat of things, the new intensity of the market can be challenging. Lea Karasavvas, a London-based mortgage broker, was gazumped three times in 48 hours last week, on properties that proved the situation has spread beyond central London. In Clapham and Earlsfield, in south-west London, offers on two-bedroom flats around the £550,000 mark were beaten by offers £30,000 and £40,000 higher than the asking prices. In Guildford, meanwhile, a four-bedroom house was beaten by an offer £20,000 higher.

“What’s unusual is that these clients could hardly be better prepared,” Lea says. “They have done everything you are supposed to do: they’re chain-free, with decisions-in-principle for mortgages and all their documents are ready to go. But still they are getting gazumped. It’s a sign of an overheated market: in some ways it’s a good thing, of course, but it is very frustrating for the people involved. They are doing everything right; they’re just being pipped by the aggression of the market.”

In certain parts of the countryside, too, gazumping is making a comeback. According to agents, the market there is behaving even more oddly than in town.

“I have seen a marked increase in gazumping this year at the top end of the country house market,” says Edward Heaton of Heaton & Partners. “What has been unusual is that houses which have sat for several months suddenly find themselves with two or three prospective buyers. It often begs the question why the buyers didn’t get on and try to secure the house earlier, rather than waiting until someone else makes a bid. It’s almost as if they need the reassurance that someone else likes the house. Inevitably this leads to one or more parties being disappointed.”

Estate agents usually work for the vendor, of course, not the buyer. Gazumping might not be polite, but if it gets a higher price for the property on sale – and a bigger fee for the agent – they will not be complaining.

“The property conveyancing system in this country allows a period of time for the buyer to carry out his due diligence before exchanging,” explains Howard Elston of Aylesford International. “If you want to minimise the chances of being gazumped, get ‘your ducks in a row’ before you make an offer. Speed is what every vendor wants to see to be convinced that you are serious. Consider offering a non-refundable deposit to get a lockout agreement. The ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ is a thing of the past. In London, the values have reached such dizzy heights; the more time you give a vendor the more you face the possibility of losing the property.”

If it all sounds a bit ruthless, then it is the new reality in London and parts of the South East. If you want to guarantee not being gazumped, perhaps your only option is to head to the North or parts of Scotland, where the market has yet to bounce back in the same way. But if you are joining the masses squabbling for a tiny number of properties in the most desirable areas, different rules apply. Be fast, be prepared, and hope for the best.

Thinking of moving?

Have all your finance ready before you offer. Cash trumps all, but mortgage agreements in place can help speed things along.

Chain-free deals can move much faster than properties in a chain.

Exchange as fast as possible. Make sure your solicitors know that you are keen to close.

Be direct with the agent. Clear communication adds credibility to your offer.

Say that your offer is conditional on an exclusive basis, depending on the property being withdrawn from the market as soon as your offer has been accepted.

Consider a formal lockout agreement. This is legally binding and designed to protect both parties, but can take a while to draw up.

Offer a non-refundable deposit to the vendor, guaranteeing the sale unless the buyer pulls out for different reasons.

 

Fashion shoots, hired Bentleys, new kitchens… There are no half measures when it’s time to sell, says Zoe Dare Hall

Some may consider its money to burn, but Cire Trudon candles that cost up to £700 a pop are merely the finishing touch for interior designer Nicola Fontanella, who completed the £1million redesign of a Regent’s Park mansion, now on sale for £42million.

Fontanella, founder of Argent Design, commissions almost every piece bespoke for her clients. On the stairs of Lethbridge House on Cornwall Terrace, for example, as well as an original Lowry seascape, there’s an £80,000 hand-cut Venetian crystal chandelier. Known for her Hollywood staircases, she has chosen a design in white onyx with illuminated Lalique panels for the house, and she is keen on exotic skins, stingray decorates everything from desktops to drawers. The walls are coated in cashmere wallpaper and wood pilasters are wrapped in lacquered goatskin, hand-dyed by craftsmen in Columbia. “The minute you enter the driveway to a property, every detail has been designed for a purpose. I can go to four countries for one piece of furniture,’ says Fontanella, whose clients include Madonna.

Vendors and developers will go to extraordinary lengths to sell a luxury lifestyle through soft furnishings and designer accessories. ‘You stock the fridge with goodies from Fortnum & Mason, hire a Bentley for the driveway and say “look how we live”, says Mark Crampton from buying agent Middleton Advisors, who sees plenty such ploys in his North Surrey patch, including St George’s Hill and Virginia Water.

Selling a lifestyle

Styling doesn’t necessarily stop at the property, either. Sometimes it involves providing a new whole identity for the owner, too, as Lucy Powel’s from Brahm Interiors discovered. “The day after buying a London house from a developer, one overseas client asked for all the soft furnishings to be reinstalled as the place didn’t feel the same without them. He also asked us to buy his clothes (he gave us his sizes) and CD collection and tells him where to eat and which members’ clubs to join. We created the ultimate style profile for him,’ says Powles.

‘Every brand that goes into the property is crucial to forming the profile of this inspirational life. We’ve worked with clients who hire everything from Steinways to beautiful women for the photo shoot. Vendors wish potential purchasers to walk around thinking, “I want to be the guy who lives here.”

Spending tens of thousands dressing a home to sell it may seem a pointless expense, especially when the new owner starts from scratch when they move in, but it is common practice. James Wyatt of Barton Wyatt estate agents recalls the buyer of a mansion on the Wentworth Estate in Surrey. “The owners could not sell for £3.75million, so spent £1.5million on remodelling the property. It sold for £6millionto a local couple who promptly ripped everything out, including the new £100,000 kitchen.”

But a certain level of styling is considered essential to set one multimillion-pound property apart from another. That means Chloe clothing and Louboutin shoes in the wardrobes (luxury brands loan items for the right calibre of project) and other hints of grandeur such as stationary embossed with the address, using a logo that is echoed in the frieze of the coving and monogrammed towels.

Daniel Kostiuc, who runs the interior design house Intarya, was called in to transform a small tired Kensington mews house specifically to sell. “The owner spent more than £100,000 on removing walls and converting the basement and we used a lot of glass, mirrors and slim line furniture to make it look bigger than its 1,000 Sq Ft. It sold instantly for double the amount the owner had paid for it a year before,” says Kostiuc, whose signature style includes £2,000 embroidered cushions, silk damask on the walls and hand-painted murals.

One Chelsea owner had a similar windfall when he called in the architect Hugo Tugman to make his ground/ basement-floor flat appear more inviting. “We removed some of the floor, turning the basement into a funky, double-height space and the flat sold instantly for £3million – twice what he had paid before the project,” says Tugman.

He adds, “Viewing is an emotional process- most people react to what’s in front of them, rather than being able to see what the property could look like.”

The owners of a house in Belgravia were hoping for that knee-jerk reaction to their eye for design, having spent £150,000 on dressing and refurbishing their property. This work added approximately £1million to its value, according to Simon Godson, partner at WA Ellis, which marketed the house for £7.25million.

Room Service

Added value may not always be quantifiable, but styling can make the difference between selling or not. Russell & Cheryl Agius, both actuaries in their early forties, built The Glade, a neo Georgian six bedroom mansion in Kingswood, Surrey, less than five years ago. When they decided to sell it – for £2million – they spent 10 per cent of the build costs on refurnishing the house, so that it was in line with brand-new properties on the market. “It’s no use building a Rolls Royce then dressing it in cheap seat covers,” says Russell, who sourced “classic meets contemporary” furniture from Italy and shipped it over.

Although some homes can be styled with a specific client in mind – for example, a £10million apartment in an Italianate Holland Park mansion might have a dark palette and marble features throughout to attract Middle Eastern or Russian buyers – high end show-home dressing can nonetheless start to look a bit formulaic. That’s why interior designer Louisa Grey travels the world to source one off objects that will inject personality into a client’s home.

“House styling has made the same transition as Victoria Beckham. It’s more about being refined and natural than flash and showy these days” says Grey, who adds that a Moroccan wedding blanket or Larusi rug, specially made for the house, are ideal statement pieces.

She is about to put her talents to the test as she prepares to sell her own three storey Islington House. Every room has been repainted, uplifting aromatherapy oils are dotted around and in, the bathroom, Pantene products have been replaced with Aesop toiletries and hammam towels – with her partner under strict instructions not to use anything. “The last thing buyers want to see is towels that have been used in the morning,” says Grey.

A vital consideration is that prospective buyers know where the dressing ends and your real life begins. “One African client bought a flat in Marylebone and negotiated the price on everything in it, including the owner’s laptop,” says Camilla Dell of buying agency Black Brick.