Kelham Riverside

Developer says ‘buy to live’ don’t ‘buy to let’ at Kelham Riverside

Investors will have to move quickly if they want to purchase one of the luxury apartments at Sheffield’s prestigious Kelham Riverside development as only a handful of properties are being offered for sale to the investor market.

The developer behind the project, The Raven Group along with architects, Axis, have designed Kelham Riverside to create a long term Island community aimed at attracting owner occupiers. The location and design of the development will appeal to the discerning buyer and is ideal for those who want to live in a contemporary urban village environment. Peaceful waterside scenery and the added benefit of being close to the buzz of the city centre are the developments strongest selling points and what The Raven Group believe will appeal to the ‘buy to live’ and not the ‘buy to let’ market.

Speaking at the launch of the development’s new show suite, Clive Wilding, director of The Raven Group said: “Our main focus is to create a substantial, sustainable waterside community at Kelham Riverside and this is only possible if the apartments are predominantly owner occupied. We certainly do not want to alienate the investor market but strongly believe that in order to encourage long-term city centre communities and develop city living in Sheffield for years to come there needs to be a larger percentage of buyers actually living in the apartments they have purchased.

“The provision of luxury city living in Sheffield is moving forward rapidly but we do not want the city to end up in the situation that Leeds and other large cities are finding themselves in with hundreds of new apartments being left empty for months at a time due to over saturation of the letting market or investors simply leaving them unoccupied waiting for their market value to rise. It would be very easy for The Raven Group to capitalise on investor purchases but we believe that in order to achieve our vision for a long-term sustainable community on Kelham Island it would be short-sighted to do so.”

Once complete, Kelham Riverside will breathe life and soul back into Kelham Island, an area that has been sadly neglected over the years, to create a stunning urban village. It will stretch from the listed Cornish Place apartments through to Kelham Island Industrial museum and down to the rivers edge making a waterside haven for residents. However Raven Group is keen to point out that this project is not just another block of apartments. Wilding continued: “Kelham Riverside is like no other development in the city and once complete it will put Sheffield on the map as one of the most desirable places to live in Yorkshire.”

The modern 1 and 2 bedroom apartments will pay homage to the Islands industrial heritage, featuring details which reflect the original workshops that once stood in its place. A large courtyard will centralise the community and will be surrounded by a range of bars, restaurants and convenience shopping.

Linda Crapper, director of Saxton Mee New Homes added: “There are so many developments in the city where up to 50% of apartments have been sold to investors for the buy-to-let market. Kelham Riverside has a community spirit with one of the last water frontage sites in Sheffield and as agents for the development we are very supportive of the stance that The Raven Group is taking, we see this as a successful strategy for Sheffield’s future.”

The Raven Group is investing £43m in Kelham Riverside making it currently the biggest development in the city. Phase 1 is well underway and is due for completion in early 2008. The sales office and show suite are now open at Prospect House, Alma Street, 7 days a week from 10am – 5pm. Prices start at £129,000 for a 1 bedroom apartment and £169,000 for a 2 bedroom apartment with mortgage payments starting from as little as £554 a month.

For more information contact the sales team on 0114 275 6830

Media Contact: Paula Toole at Ledgard Jepson on 01226 732100 or paula@ledgardjepson.com