In case you missed it... a very interesting piece in yesterday's Telegraph about some slightly depressing opportunities to bag historical and architectural treasures the councils can't afford to keep at bargain basement prices. Examples? The Old St Giles Hospital in Camberwell, about to go under the hammer. Another former hospital - admittedly in North Wales - recently sold for £275,000. It came with seven and a half acres of grounds. Back in south London, Southwark Council sold a split-level three-bedroom flat in east Dulwich for £240,000. Read the original piece here.

Technorati Tags: property, real estate

Compare your neighbourhood as it develops between 1896, 1899, 1915, 1920, 1938, 1949 and 1954 here. Plus scanned maps dating back to the 16th Century. Fascinating stuff.

[via Nestoria on Twitter]

Technorati Tags: property, real estate

It's thousands of years old, and at one time served the people of Peckham (the "Pecks") and the people of Dulwich (the "Dulls") with their drinking water, when taxis refused to bring Evian south of the river... or something. Anyway, it's been rediscovered, in a 64-year-old woman's back garden. According to the Telegraph:

Some history books have claimed that "camber"' meant crooked and that water from the Camber Well could cure "crippled or crooked people. Another theory is that the well was named after Prince Camber, son of Brutus of Troy who according to legend was the founder of London.

I prefer the first explanation, and suggest bottling the stuff and making it available in the House of Commons restaurant immediately.

Technorati Tags: London

According to a survey by Savills, the following addresses are potential candidates for future primeness. The important driver is an influx of professionals combined with nice existing stock, preferably Victorian or Edwardian homes. The advantages to being "prime"? If you've been reading the Rat and Mouse at all over the last few years you'll know that prime London tends to outgrow the rest of London, indeed the rest of the UK. So here goes:

• Tooting ("the new Notting Hill")
• White City
• East Acton
• Tulse Hill
• Camberwell
• Fortis Green
• Finchley
• Brondesbury
• Willesden Green
• Cricklewood

[via the Times]

Technorati Tags: London, property, real estate

In an interesting morning read, the Independent visits Denmark Hill, and likes what it sees:

The station, the altered view and handsome houses are Denmark Hill's main attractions today. The hill is high enough to afford panoramic views of London's skyscrapers and helps explain the prevalence of well-preserved Georgian and Victorian houses.

The piece goes on to give some examples... but we suspect the best relative value is to be found by those with a bit more money to spend, looking at four or five bedroom houses.