This week’s exclusive interview looks at property investment and speaks to Richard Forman, head of sales and marketing at Delph Property Group, which has a long history in the sector and is launching a new brand for investors aiming for a city centre or commuter audience.
Please tell us a little about yourself and Delph.
Delph Property Group is a family owned residential property investment company that has been operating since 1948. We own a buy-to-let portfolio of over 1,700 properties in 16 English cities and across London. A major focus for us today is providing finance for builders and developers to deliver new housing in the regions.
I’ve worked in the property industry for over 30 years. I joined Delph in 1997 and today I’m responsible for marketing and sales at all our developments. A big part of the role is ensuring the specification, layouts and pricing is appropriate for each local market and our customers.
What projects are you currently working on?
This July we launch Forty/8, a new brand from Delph offering buyers the opportunity to purchase direct from us, high-quality, contemporary apartments in regional city centre locations or sites within a one hour commute of London. We’re starting Forty/8 with four developments initially, in Manchester, Liverpool, Leicester and Bedford. Across these four sites we have over 350 apartments available for purchase, with a further 500 apartments in the pipeline.
What can buyers expect from a Forty/8 property?
Forty/8 is an exciting new concept for us and we’re confident the brand will appeal to investors, first-time buyers and older downsizers.
All Forty/8 developments are fully bespoke and design-led by our team of talented architects and interior designers. Professional management, with common areas including features such boutique hotel-style receptions looked after by an expert residential team, will ensure our properties are well cared-for and attractive to owner-occupiers, not just buy-to-let investors.
Location is very important to us. All Forty/8 developments near excellent public transport, and with shops, restaurants and a vibrant evening economy typically within walking distance. City living is growing in popularity but supply is failing to keep pace with demand in the towns and cities we’re targeting.
To ensure we keep pace with current trends, we aim to constantly review and improve the specification of our apartments – something not always easy when selling off-plan! We want to ensure the residents’ experience starts at the entrance of the building and continues beyond the front door of the apartments. For us this means spending as much time designing the common areas as we do the apartment interiors and then, on completion, bringing in an independent and professional management team.
Do you have a favourite, and what is it about it that makes you think it's exceptional?
Our newest development, The Hallmark in Manchester, is our largest scheme to date and pretty special. Because the development is still two years from completion, we’re hosting exhibitions one weekend a month at The Green Quarter’s Park Inn Hotel. We have an amazingly detailed scale model with product samples covering everything from flooring to kitchen cabinets and bathroom tiles. But the most exciting part of the exhibition is our virtual reality tour. Our design team has built a virtual model and we have VR headsets which allow buyers to ‘walk’ around the apartments. This is a first for Forty/8 – and Manchester – and we’ve seeing the benefits already. As a result, we’ve had an incredibly positive response from buyers and reserved 15% of the apartments in the first weekend.
Are more people seeing the benefits of new build over re-sale homes?
In the locations we’re focusing on, for example cities such as Manchester and Liverpool, overcrowding is recognised as a challenge, with the number of households in private rented accommodation at well above the national average and ageing properties accounting for a high proportion of housing stock.
Young professionals and older downsizers are a significant demographic and there’s clearly an appetite within this group for stand-out apartments, centrally located with great shops, restaurants and a vibrant evening economy on the doorstep. Our new build apartments are built with this population in mind, which isn’t the case with a lot of second-hand homes.
How have you found the market, after the political turmoil of the last couple of years?
The central London housing market has been hit fairly hard over the last two years with luxury homes in the ‘prime’ category just not selling. Outside of London the story is completely different. Regional city centres or towns within an hour’s commute of London are undervalued and we’re seeing strong growth in these locations with a high level of sales interest. The surprise general election campaign did dampen things slightly, although the market is starting to gain momentum again.
Have changes to stamp duty and tax affected the property investor market significantly?
We’ve noticed a reduction in the numbers of individual buy-to-let investors, because of the unfortunate changes the government introduced. But overall, residential property is still viewed as a good investment opportunity, with a record of sustained long-term capital growth. Interestingly, we’re also seeing more and more investors forming companies to purchase investment properties in a tax-efficient way. That said, we always try to create a fair balance between investors and owner-occupiers within our blocks as, in our experience, a mixed community creates a better overall environment.
What's in the pipeline for the coming months for Delph and Forty/8?
The Hallmark – still two years until completion – will probably keep us busy for a while, but we’re also due to start sales in mid-September of a new build scheme of 93 apartments in Leicester city centre. This is another off-plan launch but one with a considerably shorter lead time, with completion due in early 2018. On top of this, we’re currently working on a further 500 units which we plan to bring to the market over the next 18 months.
Looking ahead to next year – Delph will be celebrating its 70th birthday and everyone at head office is looking forward to marking this anniversary.