Marc Da Silva talks to Chris Warner of Antler Homes.
Name and business title:Chris Warner, sales & marketing director, Antler Homes.
Where is your firm developing new homes? We are currently building new homes in Berkshire, Surrey, Hampshire and Oxfordshire.
What types of properties is Antler Homes building? Luxury, limited edition homes with a very high specification in hand picked locations.
How much does an Antler Homes home cost to buy? The average property is around £750,000 to £1m. We do a range of limited edition developments that start from around £350,000 and then go right up to current projects at £4m.
What makes an Antler Homes stand out from the crowd? We are a design-led company with a reputation for outstanding space utilisation, signature kitchen/breakfast/family rooms, high ceilings, rigorous attention to detail and luxury built in as standard.
Have you noticed any particular buying trends recently? Affluent downsizers are currently the most important contributors to the property market outside London. In 2012, the most dominant trend was that buyers knew exactly what they wanted. They had done their research and had a well honed tick list with location, traditional character and ultra-efficient, contemporary interiors that include cutting edge technology and security as the four most important must-haves.
These buyers also tend to wait until they can see a finished show home before committing as they want to view and compare our homes in the context of the local market. They also like the fact the customer extras found in some new homes are already built-in as standard with an Antler property.
Is your company currently offering any incentives or discounts to homebuyers? We offer expert advice on moving, part exchange and mortgages. We also do Smooth Move - an excellent extra route that gives buyers the chance to secure an unfinished house and a head start on selling their existing home before they need to reserve the Antler Home.
In 2012 we have not had to offer many incentives as the properties have all sold well. For example, at Sovereign Mews, Ascot, we sold the majority of the ten properties all asking prices of over £1m in the first ten weeks.
Which Antler Homes development potentially offers the best property investment prospects? The majority of our properties are bought for owner occupation as we are a low volume, niche builder in the luxury homes market. However, investors have been buying this year - not for the immediate yield return [it would be around 5-6%] - but for long term capital growth. They wanted a top quality property where the rental return would be more than adequate to cover costs but more specifically, it would be a saleable investment. They bought from us because we offered the combination of a high specification and a great location like Ascot and Wokingham where there is always a market for top quality property.
What is Antler Homes' USP? I would say our USP is that Antler Homes is made up of dedicated professionals whose passion is property. This means that from buying land through to post-completion customer service, our buyers can rely on us for a superb product and to do our utmost to meet their demands. We want every property to be a pleasure to live in and we design them to adapt to our buyers' changing lifestyle but, above all, we hope it will be a place that they will be proud to come home to.
Has Antler Homes ever won a What House? Award? In 2012, we won gold at the What House? Awards for Best Small Housebuilder, as well as silver for Best Luxury Development and bronze for Best Luxury Home. Additionally, last year we won a bronze Award for The Carlton, Havre des Pas, Jersey in the Best Apartment Scheme category.