67% of London buyers consider energy saving features to be of least importance when searching for a property. Despite Government confidence that eco-conscious property owners will benefit from reduced fuel bills, energy-saving features ranked 10th in a list of priorities set by Londoners when looking for a new house. According to a survey carried by Hamptons International, size, location and the condition of the property remain the most important features. The research shows that environmental concerns are yet to affect the buying decisions within both the London property market and the UK property market as a whole. 'In London, so many people are competing for every square inch of property that there isn't the luxury to search by carbon output,' says Phil Tennant of Hamptons International. 'Furthermore, with each square foot of property costing upwards of £1,000 in most central areas, the cost of a new, more energy efficient boiler may be the same as just one more square foot,' he continues.
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Uniquely unique? The Yorkshire grain silos transformed into a home that's a symphony in glass, steel and curvesAmid the beautiful countryside of North Yorkshire, on the edge of the Castle Howard Estate, The Silos is a property for which the word 'house' simply doesn't cut it. And that's not the only way in which it's made us throw out the dictionary.
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Polluting water executives now face up to two years in prison, but will the new laws make much of a difference?The Government has announced that water company executives caught covering up illegal sewage spills could now be imprisoned for two years, under new laws — but many still have their doubts.
