Homes & Property

Property news archive

Save your heritage

London has hundreds of empty historic houses in desperate need of new owners.
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July 2008

Who's moving: homes gossip

Cambridge University digs beckon for millionaire supermodel Lily Cole; Kiki Dee flees London for the countryside; and The Bill's Micah Balfour begins married life in Croydon.
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July 2008

Exposing the 'green con'

So-called green building products that make false claims will be rejected under a new government-backed scheme.
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July 2008

Saving grace

Finding that dream cottage or some dilapidated hovel to do up is made easier with SAVE Britain’s Heritage annual register of crumbling and unloved properties. See a selection of wonderful wrecks.
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June 2008

Modern mansion blocks

A 21st century version of the Victorian mansion block is to be built on the site of a former taxi showroom on Holloway Road, Islington.
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June 2008

Boris's property ladder

Another suitcase in another hall... Boris Johnson is perfectly equipped to move to City Hall. He has moved 32 times since he was 15, so he is used to packing his bags.
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May 2008

Putney's post pair

Two jaunty skyscrapers will brighten up a dreary district.
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March 2008

Zero worries

Exciting new zero-carbon family kit homes you can buy off-the-peg from £122,000.
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February 2008

The high life

Posh homes aren’t just for rich people. Now first-time buyers can live in a stunning block of flats near Clapham Junction with private balconies, three penthouses, a landscaped roof terrace and views over the Thames.
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February 2008

Improve your neighbourhood

Get involved in promoting better designed homes. The Government’s urban design watchdog, Cabe, is asking the public to nominate well-designed new housing developments for its 2008 Building for Life awards.
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February 2008

Master the art of design

Be inspired by experts, with fresh new ideas for your home this spring on this one-day crash course, at the world famous Chelsea Harbour Design Centre, that has a special Homes & Property discount.
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February 2008

Easy-peasy extensions

From April, one in four domestic planning applications for minor improvements or small side or loft extensions will be removed from the planning system. As well as saving time and worry it will save the application fee of £135 – and hundreds of pounds more for searches, plans and drawings that are presently required.
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February 2008

Build with care

Prince Charles says that the Government’s housing targets can be met without dotting London with skyscrapers
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February 2008

Be a judge in our New Homes Awards

If you love looking at show homes, and feel passionately about the quality and design of new homes, this is your chance to have your say. You can apply to be on the judging panel for our prestigious 2008 Evening Standard New Homes Awards.
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January 2008

Save now and buy later

Millions of young people will benefit from a scheme to help them buy their first home, a new report reveals.
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January 2008

Bag a juicy Florida bargain

Get online for Florida’s biggest property auction and buy your home in the sun.
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January 2008

Locals get a gift

Passionate protesters save Art Deco frontage of Kensington Odeon, writes Mira Bar-Hillel.
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December 2007

Riverboats plan is sunk

A plan to put riverboat homes on the Thames in Battersea has been turned down.
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December 2007

Buy a mansion

A 17th century house with 19 rooms is up for grabs, and could go for a knockdown price, says Mira Bar-Hillel.
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December 2007

New code for bad builders

Unhappy buyers of new homes will be able to complain about their builder to an independent agency to be launched next spring under a new compulsory code of conduct.
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December 2007

The fraud trap

Most identity theft happens while moving home, says Mira Bar-Hillel.
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November 2007

On Green St

Sanford Walk, a south London housing co-op, has become the first street in Britain to go collectively green, cutting its carbon emissions by more than 60 per cent — a target the Government wants the rest of the country to achieve by 2050.
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November 2007

The big council house sell-off

Camden council is being forced to sell off 500 properties to pay for a £242 million repair bill, reports Mira Bar-Hillel.
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November 2007

Singles are Browned off

The new Inheritance Tax changes are good news for couples, but those without partners will suffer, says Lorna Bourke.
November 2007

Housing crisis

London is one of the greatest cities in the world: financially, commercially and artistically. But the downside is a population growing much faster than the available housing, plus all the stresses that overcrowding and undersupply cause. Come to the Evening Standard debate on London’s homes shortage.
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November 2007

Builder rewarded for bad behaviour

A developer that built an extra 50 flats without the required planning permission on a new waterside site in Fulham has got away with it, writes Mira Bar-Hillel.
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November 2007

Risky business

Beware property developers selling holiday flats in northern Cyprus, writes Lorna Bourke.
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November 2007

Anyone for tennis in Idaho?

Sporting champions, Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, set up new development, reveals Cathy Hawker.
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October 2007

Gordon's green lies

Zero-carbon homes costing less than half a million pounds to buy will get stamp duty exemptions of up to £15,000 backdated to 1 October, says Gordon Brown. But this week environmental homes experts agreed that this is a worthless “gift” and no incentive to go green, writes Mira Bar-Hillel.
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October 2007

Flood warning

Poor drainage and a big rise in basement extensions threaten two top boroughs reports Mira Bar-Hillel.
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October 2007

World's highest flat

Now you can buy into the tallest residential tower in the world – with more than 1,000 flats. David Spittles reports from Chicago.
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October 2007

Restoration of the month

A decade ago, this medieval Grade II listed building near Norwich, was derelict and empty. Fortunately, the Norfolk Building Preservation Trust have repaired it carefully, using traditional material, and it's back on the market.
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September 2007

New warning on small print

We unearth a disturbing new trend in leases – a buried clause that that means ground rent can double in 10 years. Mira Bar-Hillel reports.
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September 2007

Writing is on the wall for billboards

Unlawful advertising hoardings bolted to the sides of buildings and walls create an ugly environmental hazard. Wandsworth council is now clamping down on advertising companies that attempt to get away with using open spaces without permission, writes Mira Bar Hillel.
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September 2007

Football pitch for Kensington?

Kensington could be the home of a new 60,000-seat football stadium, writes Compton Miller.
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September 2007

Taken for a ride

Exposed: flat-owners hit by insurance scam. Mira Bar-Hillel reports.
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September 2007

Seaside towns are a winner

British seaside towns have become hot property over recent years, but homebuyers can still combine bargain prices and quality of life on the coast.
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August 2007

Buy-to-let tips

The high cost of property and five interest rate hikes in less than a year have left buy-to-let a tough prospect for investors planning to put their savings into property.
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July 2007

Stamp duty: Ripe for a change?

Homebuyers hope that Gordon Brown’s successor as Chancellor will seek to make their mark by overhauling stamp duty.
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June 2007

A problem shared

Home-owners know how painful an increase in the mortgage rate can be. But shared owners are usually better placed to withstand these rises.
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June 2007

Tram backtrack

Mayor Boris Johnson is overturning Ken’s plans for trams in Oxford Street, to the delight of residents.
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July 2008

007 studio is not ‘licensed to build’

Residents protest as Pinewood tries to build 2,250 homes on green belt.
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July 2008

A bridge too far

The mystery of the holes in Putney Bridge and the architect is revealed.
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July 2008

Judges see double

Council slammed for giving brothers right to ‘desecrate’ beauty spot.
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July 2008

£1.5bn project 'down the Tube'

An angry dispute between TfL and a developer threatens to freeze Elephant & Castle in a dilapidated time warp.
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July 2008

Healthier by design

Simple ideas revolutionise a new care centre.
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July 2008

Here is the future

A new exhibition shows how London will look in the years to come.
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July 2008

Candy for Candys

Builder brothers make a killing selling site to Abu Dhabi royalty for £320 million.
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July 2008

Versace ‘couture condos’ in Dubai

Big-bling brand puts its name to super-rich homes.
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July 2008

For sale: lock, stock and barrel

Ten unusual riverside properties are to be offered for sale by the Environment Agency. The sales are part of plans by the agency to reduce its stock of 57 lock-keepers’ houses along the Thames following an efficiency review.
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July 2008

A life less taxing

A rare £5 million home in Guernsey with an intriguing history comes up for auction.
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July 2008

St Pancras wins RIBA award

St Pancras International station sped off with two winner’s plaques at the RIBA London Awards 2008 for its sensational refurbishment and redevelopment.
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July 2008

Agents’ fees squeeze

Buyers pay only the agent who sells their home, judges rule.
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July 2008

Architect in the house

Here is an opportunity to change your life and get great design advice and ideas from an architect for your home - for only £40.
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July 2008

Join our debate on security

RIBA think-tank Building futures and Homes & Property are hosting a debate on security in our cities on 25 June.
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July 2008

Celebrate our city

The London Festival of Architecture (LFA) starts on Friday and runs for a month, with more than 600 events around the capital.
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July 2008

Selling just gets harder

As buyers are harder to come by these days it is not good news that sellers are having to wait longer for their local authority searches — vital information needed for completion of their Home Information Packs.
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July 2008