Lansdowne Villas attracts home-grown buyers

Sales figures released by the property firm Savills show that most up-market properties in London are now being bought by foreign purchasers; according to Savills, they accounted for 55% of purchases over £750,000, compared with 45% during the property boom in 2007.

Maybe that’s because the canny UK buyer is looking further afield for high-end property, to locations such as Lansdowne Villas, Storey’s sensitive and visionary redevelopment of 18 Victorian villas in Bedford’s premiere residential enclave.

Savills’ announcement is the first time that foreign buyers have accounted for over half an estate agent’s clients. It is part of a trend that has seen overseas investors flocking to London to take advantage of the weakening pound and the plethora of ultra-luxurious property available in the capital. The top end of the London market is being held firm by the Russian and Middle Eastern super-rich, helping London prices to rise by 14% over the last year, compared with an average increase of 8.5% elsewhere in the UK.

But it is easy for British buyers to out-smart the international competition, which remains transfixed by the capital. Just a bit further out up-market homes offer much better value for money and are attracting a steady stream of UK purchasers.

Lansdowne Villas typifies the style and value that affluent homegrown buyers appreciate. The houses, built in Lansdowne Road in the 1880s, are being redeveloped with one eye on their impressive period detail and one very much on the requirements of luxurious contemporary living. Only three are still available, priced from £599,950 to £995,000. Similar houses in fashionable Wandsworth can fetch up to £3million.

"British buyers are flexible enough to look outside the wealthy enclaves of London," says Gareth Jacob of Storey Homes. "They know they can make their money go further in the comparatively unexplored areas outside the capital – places like Bedford, which may lack the jet-set glamour of Knightsbridge but more than makes up for it in charm, character and quality of life.

"The traditional market town has a universal appeal for the British, and Bedford has everything that many up-market buyers are looking for: fine historic architecture, a selection of markets, good schools and plenty of beautiful countryside."

Lansdowne Villas is a unique and ambitious development that is breathing new life into a handsome conservation area of Bedford. In the early years of the 20th century the houses, in Lansdowne Road, were acquired by Bedford PE College, which later became De Montfort University, and were used as student bars and common rooms. Number 15, included in the Storey Homes scheme, was the birthplace in 1886 of Apsley Cherry-Garrard, the famous Arctic explorer who survived Scott’s fabled expedition to the South Pole in 1912 and wrote the classic memoir The Worst Journey in the World.

The houses feature the high ceilings, open fireplaces and magnificent bay windows that typify the very finest Victorian domestic architecture. All include a designer kitchen featuring a choice of granite worktops, a stainless steel American-style fridge freezer, an integrated dishwasher, a wine cooler and microwave, and an oven with five-ring gas hob and extractor hood.

Bedford is ideal for both commuters and those wanting a lively local scene. Bedford mainline station is less than half a mile away, with trains into London St Pancras taking approximately 40 minutes, and Luton Airport is nearby.

Prices at Lansdowne Villas start from around £599,950 for a 3864 sq ft semi detached, £650,000 for a 3657 sq ft detached house and £995,000 for a 7 bedroom 6476 sq ft property. For further information visit: storey-homes.co.uk