January 2009 Venulum’s UK based property division has successfully overseen the completion of its’ Semilong Road development, to create six terraced houses for the rental market. Work on site commenced in June last year and was completed in January.
The development of the former fruit and vegetable warehouse, created four new houses in what was originally the yard and the refurbishment of two existing houses. The architects designed the scheme for the local market, using quality interior fittings and sympathetic exterior materials like red brick and slate roofing.
Richard York, Operations Director of Venulum Property (www.venulum.com) commented “The project brief was to create the space to a higher standard than the local competition, but not to be too luxurious so that they are priced out of the market. Rented housing in this area of Northampton is holding up well in a volatile market, so we are confident that we will achieve strong rental levels.”
He adds, “The UK property market is still stalled because of restricted liquidity in the mortgage market and this has had a knock on effect on the rental market as buyers wait to get onto the property ladder. Government intervention is having little effect as banks are still showing little appetite to lend at higher ratios for new projects. Venulum is in a strong position to take advantage of this downturn and the opportunities that present themselves.
Mr York thinks that some buy-to-let investors are re-entering the market to take advantage of depressed prices and he is keen to develop new schemes for this market.
“We are being offered an increasing number of sites because developers and land agents are aware that we have significant equity funds available and that we are able to source debt at attractive rates”. Mr York comments “Venulum discreetly and pragmatically assess each site, and have dismissed most of them to date on the grounds of unrealistic valuations. However, we are revisiting some of these sites again as increasing realism has an impact on quoting terms.”
The environment may be an unwitting benefactor of the housing market in these financially troubled times as Venulum Property is looking to use environmental and energy efficient technologies in all of its developments in the future. Mr York explains “On sites where previously we would not have considered new technologies and materials on the grounds of cost, we can now buy at prices comparable with more traditional methods and materials. As part of our corporate and social responsibility we endeavour to reduce energy and water use, manage waste responsibly and ultimately reduce carbon emissions. By doing this we generate financial savings and increase the attractiveness of our buildings to occupiers, as well as enabling us to manage our impact on the environment”.
About Venulum:
The Venulum Group is a multinational private wealth management firm headquartered in the British Virgin Islands. The Group manages the wealth of high net worth individuals, and specializes in alternative investments often not available to the general public. Venulum helps high net worth individuals balance their portfolios through property, wine and alternative investments
The Venulum Group was formed in 2002, and has expanded to include offices in four countries. Since 2002 Venulum’s client base has grown steadily, and now has a substantial number of United States based clients.
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Quote: “Mr York thinks that some buy-to-let investors are re-entering the market to take advantage of depressed prices and he is keen to develop new schemes for this market.”
Agree. Good time to buy at the moment! We’ve got the vultures circling too ;D