The lowdown from Neil Sloam, Director of Winkworth in West Hampstead
Congratulations on the new office! How did it come about?
I’ve lived in St Johns Wood for most of my life and I’ve been running Winkworth there for 40 years. We opened another branch in Maida Vale 18 months ago and that gave us the encouragement to keep going – I thought opening in West Hampstead would give us better coverage, so now we have three offices. The location is great – we’re in the golden mile between all the stations in West Hampstead, so everyone walks past us. Jack Peet is the face of the office there, and I run all three of them.
What’s your patch like?
There are more flats than houses. Lots of conversions. It’s quite similar to Maida vale, so there’s lots of cross-fertilisation. The best thing is the transport hub – we’ve got the Overground, the Jubilee Line and the Thameslink, plus great buses into the West End too.
Why should people think about moving to West Hampstead?
It’s younger and comparatively cheaper than the other areas we operate in. You can get into the City and the West End easily, and now that people are back working in offices again that’s a major attraction.
What trends are you seeing among buyers and sellers?
We see people coming from the suburbs, Mill Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb, Bushey, and Hertfordshire – people that want to move into london. Families that start out in West Hampstead might grow and end up in St Johns Wood or Maida Vale where there are bigger houses. And lots of people stay too – once they live here they want to stay or move locally.
What kind of housing stock is there in West Hampstead?
Townhouses go for around £1.5m houses, but we took one yesterday for five million, a substantial six bedroom house with parking etc. It’s such a mixed bag – certain roads are enduringly sought-after: Crediton Hill is popular, and so is Gascony Avenue. We also deal with mansion blocks, Cholmley Gardens is very well-loved. And then there’s the more glitzy side that’s Hampstead really, like West Heath Road.
How's the local market performing at the moment?
We are finding it’s performing well, beyond expectation. That’s because we’re taking on properties that are priced correctly - if it’s overpriced, it won’t sell. People are factoring in interest rates and next year’s election, so it’s more important than ever not to overprice. Some agents are known for doing that, but now people won’t even look if it’s too expensive. We know our pricing - and that’s how we got a house under offer in 24 hours even in a market that’s meant to be slow.
Lettings is absolute lunacy at the moment. We had a mansion flat with 13 viewings on the first day. 5 offers. That’s normal now, and prices are daft because there’s a lack of property. I can’t see prices dropping al all, because there’s no incentive for rental investors to go into the market. The profit isn’t there any more. Service charges have gone up too.
What advice would you give to sellers?
Get an agent that knows their area and doesn’t overprice – it will just take longer to sell if they do. You’re better off pricing it right at the start. We always provide comparable evidence - challenge your agent if they don’t. And remember that mortgage surveyors won’t overvalue even if the agent does.
What are your predictions for 2023/2024?
I would be mad to try and predict the next year! After the year we’ve had with Liz Truss… all you can say with certainty is that there’ll be another prime minister. I think prices will start to go up. Once there’s a bit more stability, then they will go up.