Google's new headquarters, the "groundscraper"

Google is constructing a new headquarters in London to pull all of its operations under one roof. Keeping in line with the exquisite design plans we are used to from the company, the new building is going to be 330 meters long, longer than the Shard skyscraper is tall, earning the name: ‘groundscraper.’

The new investment, situated at King's Cross Central, is the latest overseas property deal by the cash-rich US internet group, which will house all of its London staff under one roof when completed in 2017.  

 

The company aims to create an enormous, 11-storey HQ, multi-levelled, ranging from seven stories high at one end to 11 at the other.  Google's future HQ will take in a gross space of 1,000,000 square feet, including 725,000 square feet of office space and 50,000 square feet of ground level retail space, plus 20,000 square feet of bike parking. The architectural firm Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM) is responsible for constructing the 27-hectare establishment.

Its structure will be supported by a steel-frames coated with primary colours, the architects claim that the rather bland glass and steel look takes inspiration from the surrounding area’s industrial heritage. Naturally, the building was also designed to be environmentally sustainable with its low energy usage.

The project will cost a staggering 650 million pounds and is calculated to be worth one billion pounds once it is completed. Furthermore, Google added that the push to build its new HQ will create some 1,500 construction jobs, while the King's Cross Central Limited Partnership estimates that regeneration efforts in the area will bring a total of 35,000 jobs.

Nonetheless, the way the company deals with taxes still sparks controversy, since the decision to buy rather than rent was likely "tax motivated", driven by the fact the company cannot repatriate the cash to the US without paying a fat tax bill.

Virginia Water: house values avarage more than £1m!

The Surrey village of Virginia Water has become the first place outside London where house values average more than £1m!

Famed as the home of Bruce Forsyth and Wentworth golf club, the leafy "village" was yesterday crowned the most expensive in the country in a survey that revealed a huge jump in the number of property millionaires across Britain.

Virginia Water itself has seen a 6% rise in property prices over the pay year according to statistics, with homes on Portnall Rise, located on the exclusive Wentworth Estate, changing hands for a staggering average of £4.3 million.

The success of the real estate market in the area is not a coincidence. James Wyatt, Resident of Virginia Water and Partner of Barton Wyatt, the town’s leading estate agency, commented:

“Having lived in and around Virginia Water all my life, running my business and raising my three children here, I can personally vouch that Virginia Water is and always will be an exceptional place.

“Blessed with good schools, leafy areas for families to enjoy and great links into Central London as well as international airports, this town has everything you need and more with the Wentworth Estate complete with PGA Championship golf courses on your doorstep and true a community feeling.

“But of course, with Virginia Water being such a desirable place to live, this has impacted the local property market, driving prices higher and higher over the years and I’m not surprised to see that it now ranks the first and only town in the UK with the average home costing £1 million or more. Having said that, there are properties in the area which remain affordable, it’s just about knowing where to look.”

Virginia Water is not the only village where the real estate market has soared, recent developments on the scene eventuated the following list of average house prices:

1. Virginia Water, Surrey             £1,034,368

2. Cobham, Surrey                      £842, 806

3. Beaconsfield, Bucks                   £806, 459

4. Keston, Kent                               £785,399

5. Esher, Surrey                           £774, 779

6. Chalfont St Giles, Bucks          £718, 229

7. Richmond, Surrey                       £718, 229

8. Gerrards Cross, Bucks            £717, 319

9. Radlett, Herts                           £691, 211

10. Welwyn, Herts                        £687, 558

Prices also continued to increase in the traditionally popular locations, housing website Zoopla found there had been a 32 per cent rise in homes valued over a million in the last year – a total of 323,684.

Shifting focus away from villages and returning to London, we can find that the most expensive neighbourhood is Kensington Palace Gardens, with the average property value of £36m which means that now it can be named as the UK’s most expensive neighbourhood.

Luxury and wood can go hand in hand

Luxury inside a wooden frame

Wooden houses can be large and beautiful as today’s traditional luxury houses, but they have something that today’s traditional homes don’t have (boules).

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