ex-Proctors Estate Agents

[Checkmate]

Anyone have any gossip on this?

George Proctors Sydenham branch, onthe corner of Silverdale and the high street, closed probably about 18 months-2yrs ago and has been empty ever since.

A few weeks back some people were in there clearing stuff and up a ladder painting black over the orange sign.

Since then - nothing.

[leenewham]

I think they just did it up to make it look more presentable.

Arguably the black plastic film they put over the sign make it look worse!

[blue&whitewizard1991]

I actually had a look round the premises about 8 weeks ago and the agent said that there were two national chains intrested in the premises and one local organisation interested. He didnt say who but suggested it would not require a change of use (currently A2). He also said that the national interest meant a slow process.

Make of this what you will, but my feeling was estate agent/ bookies or legal office.

However a backwards change of use to A1 (retail) would be permitted.

[bigbadwolf]

Make of this what you will, but my feeling was estate agent/ bookies or legal office.

However a backwards change of use to A1 (retail) would be permitted.

Can anyone else hear leenewham licking his lips?

I know I can.

[leenewham]

You heard that? What big ears you have Mr Wolf.

[bigbadwolf]

I also heard the unmistakable tapping of an opportunity knocking at your door, lee.

Though I got the feeling you'd heard it before anyone else had.

[leenewham]

No Huey Greens on my doorstep. Although I was conctacted by a TV production company and a few newspapers about the what if project.

I contacted the people behind the new fishmongers but I haven't heard anything from them and they are working on their place now.

Just out of interest, I was trying to avoid and may use it as a poll on the blog, but do you think it's worth public money in the form of grants being used to fund shop front improvements via a strict design code and use of materials?

We are already spending millions of public funds to improve the look of the high street, but this doesn't address one of the main issues which is that the majority of the shops in the high street make it look shabby. And after 6 months any new paving will look the same as it does now, dirty and covered in chewing gum. Other councils have done it. Should this one?

[digime2007]

I think that's a good idea.

I thought it had been done before though. I have a (very) vague memory of reading about grants for updating shop fronts in Forest Hill. That would have been a good few years a go though.

[leenewham]

Apparently (so I was informed) it was done in the 1980's when the council helped fund all these lovely new shop fronts which is one reason why our high street (and many high streets in the UK) looks shabby.

The council have very good guidelines for shops but they don't enforce them. I know I will encounter the wrath of some by pointing to Paulros who have got rid of their signage, installed a rather nasty, tacky yellow shutter which is expensive (they are about £1500-2000 when I as enquiring about them). It actually breaks the conservation guidelines. Link shutters are far better and don't get covered in grafitti (Sugahill have a link shutter). These are the same price and sometimes cheaper than the fully covered or perforated ones.

This is what I find amazing:
It's MORE expensive to rip out an original shop front.
It's MORE expensive to install a roller shutter.
It's MORE expensive to install illuminated back lit boxes than redo your original sign.

Raised letters are not expensive. Signwriting varies form a few hundred to about £1500 for a sign.

One other thing that really puzzles me is why newsagents plaster the outside of their shops with phonecard prices. I don't think I have ever seen anyone look at them! Do they really make that much money from them?

[bigbadwolf]

That's one hell of a shrewd sales pitch, lee.

Though I hear what you're saying with regards to the window cards. There's one in the window of a newsagents in Forest Hill that's still got an 0181 number accompanying an ad for a Soda Stream.

[digime2007]

There are references to shop front grants on the following Lewisham pages:

http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/exeres/D5 ... CFDA77.htm

http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres ... dAudit.pdf

Seems to be within the remit of the Town Centre Manager.

Or were you thinking of some different/bigger/better?

[leenewham]

Thanks for posting this Digime. Very interesting.

Shame it gives no details.

I will attempt to contact our town centre manager about this. If grants are available then shop owners SHOULD know about it.

[digime2007]

Chris Best lists a vibrant high street as one of her aims and mentions shop front grants here:

http://www.chrisbest.labour.co.uk/?location_id=30

Maybe she can comment but I don't remember seeing any posts from her since the election results!!!

[Checkmate]

errrr......anyone know whats happening to Proctors then?

[Checkmate]

Well its gonna be another estate agents....

So does that mean they have overtaken chicken shops, barbers, nail bars and bookies then?

Hardly bringing more variety to Sydenham's high street is it?

not impressed.

[leenewham]

Agree. It hasn't set the forum alight has it?

[Hill Dweller]

If the average house price range in Sydenham is now £350-400k and commission is around 3% (or £10-12k), estate agents have made huge gains from the benefits that the recent Ofsted reports and better public transport have brought.

'Earnings' would be the wrong word; 'made' not being the same as 'earned'.

It's funny to see who gains from local improvements
.

[Dorian]

HD , thats very true.

Its rare that Estate Agents " earn " there money, the bottom line is an area and its qualities and above all the asking price sell property , not the agents.
The agents marketing , appearence , web site, and advertising are all to attract sellers not buyers. Property sells its self , some one wants to buy or they dont.

[Hill Dweller]

[quote=self]
It's funny to see who gains from local improvements
.[/quote]


Yes D but I should have been more objective though and admitted that owners also reap the same un-earned rewards when areas improve.

.

[Tim Lund]

It's funny to see who gains from local improvements
.

I'm not sure if I'd say it was 'funny', but it's well worth being aware of who gains. A crude, but nonetheless useful, economic approach is to say it's the landlords who benefit, because any greater profits retailers can make, the landlords can capture by raising the rent. I suspect there are some landlords who think like this, who look at the coming of the East London line, the TfL improvements (please!), and think, 'Oh good - let's put the rents up'. I suspect the landlords of 59 Sydenham Road are like this, but I may be wrong - I don't know who they are. They quite likely are businesses based miles away, with a portfolio of similar High Street properties around the country, which they see in a completely impersonal, mechanical way, advised by similar commercial estate agents. But not all landlords are like this, because if they know the area, first they can be more intelligent, and second they will have a personal interest in the whole High Street. They will still benefit, but I don't begrudge them this - they are also taking on some fairly significant responsibilities.

In any case, this way of looking at it - which goes back to Adam Smith and Ricardo - is too crude, because between rent reviews traders will benefit from increased profits, and when the rent review comes, they will have some advantages in their negotiations with their landlords, and better landlords will understand it benefits them to have good tenants.

And finally, it is us as customers who benefit from the the individual services that High Street businesses can provide, and as citizens from the general vitality, with all the community benefits this brings - increased sense of security, etc.