"Live the luxurious life in East Lothian" 

"Live the luxurious life in East Lothian"  by Michael Blackley, Edinburgh Evening News

July 19th 2006

"Bankpark House developer targets professionals priced out of the Capital" 

Professionals priced out of the Edinburgh property market are being targeted in a development of luxurious homes in the grounds of a 19th Century East Lothian mansion. Jemma James Properties has built 11, four-bedroom homes in the grounds of the historic Bankpark House in Tranent. The developer says it is targeting professional families who feel they are not getting value for money in the Capital property market. Experts say Bankpark House could be a sign of a trend away from targeting first time buyers to more wealthy buyers. Jemma James who owns Bankpark House and the development company that has built the homes, said: The accommodation is very flexible and is well suited to families who want to live on a stunning site. It is mainly the over 30 to 40 something executive we expect will want to move here. The location is amazing for commuting into Edinburgh and we ve even had people enquiring from America who are doing fellowships at the university. Its all sorts of buyers. Living outside the city suits a lot of people s needs. Sometimes they want something exclusive for less than they need to pay in the city and, if you have a very busy life, sometimes you just want to get out of that after work  These properties are similar to the properties on the outskirts of Edinburgh but are even more accessible because you are only minutes from the city centre. Tranent is a great town and very historic.  Bankpark House itself was built ion 1857 by John Greeve, the former mayor of Duddingston and Portobello. The house is separated from the development by trees. Each home has four bedrooms and two or three public rooms as well as extras such as Jacuzzi baths, hard-wood flooring, underfloor heating, high spec kitchens and appliances, double garages and oak wood doors. Hector Grant, director of Edinburgh Solicitors  Property Centre said:  Traditionally the average prices in East Lothian are much less than in Edinburgh and its suburbs. There are very few bits of land left in Edinburgh for developers, so to meet the demands of the market place, developers will need to look beyond the boundaries of Edinburgh. This will affect all levels of housing and costs, not just first time buyers, so this probably will be a trend that will grow.  Maurice Allen, a negotiator with estate agents Strutt & Parker, who mainly deal with high value properties, said East Lothian had much potential to build on. Developers will have identified that there is a market for families operating at the high end of the property market and the price for detached homes is so high in Edinburgh that people will look outside to buy. East Lothian is a very desirable place to live.  The average three or four bed-room property in the Edinburgh suburbs sold for £261,170 in the first six months of 2006, up 9.7% on the same period in 2005. In the Lothians, the same properties are now selling for an average of £196,150  up buy 11.2%.