The Property Week Podcast

City A.M. Editor Allister Heath joined LBC’s James Max at Property Week to talk about the recent banking scandal and London’s future as a major financial hub Heath speaks about the negative effects the Libor banking scandal could have on the reputation of London. He also discusses the need for the government to reform property development regulations to enable growth in the property industry. Finally, he mentions the importance of social media for business, his opinion of the economy and the Olympics.

Mike Sales, managing director of global property at Henderson Global Investors joined LBC’s James Max in the Property Week podcast studio this month to discuss funds, Europe and why he likes secondary retail. Sales talked about how he thinks a good investment opportunity is the best properties in secondary retail locations, combining a discounted price with strong demand. He also talked about Henderson’s strategy, his views on the economy and his choice of Saturday night TV.

In the latest Property Week Podcast, DTZ’s Colin Wilson gives his first interview since taking the helm of the company’s UK & Ireland business. Wilson, who was made head of DTZ’s UK & Ireland business in February, spoke to Property Week’s podcast host, LBC’s James Max, about the disruptions for the business over 2011 and what his new role will entail. He also discusses the company’s future under its new owner, Australian services firm UGL, including potential expansion of the business, as well as his views on the market. You can find Property Week’s podcasts by clicking here, or by searching for “Property Week” on iTunes.

Mike Hussey, chief executive of Almacantar, joined LBC’s James Max in the Property Week podcast studio this week to discuss his plans for his business and the reasons why he left Land Securities. Hussey, who set up Almacantar in 2010 following his departure from LandSecs where he was managing director of the London portfolio, his plans for his current assets, such as London’s Centre Point, and what he would like to buy. He also discusses his view on the market, his motivations, and why he would describe himself as a “value-add kind of guy”. For more information on Almacantar visit www.almacantar.com or follow Mike on Twitter at @Mr_Property_W1. You can also find this podcast and all of Property Week’s previous podcasts on iTunes.

“Click and collect” will be “completely fundamental” to evey retail location by 2020, Guy Grainger, head of UK retail at Jones Lang LaSalle, said in this month’s Property Week podcast. Talking to Property Week podcast host James Max, Grainger predicted that the retail landscape will have changed considerably in eight years time. He said the idea of a department store being the “all and everything” won’t be what it was, that online retailing will have continued to expand and online-only retailers, such as Amazon, ASOS and Ebay, will have moved into bricks and mortar. Grainger also discussed his views on the problems of the high street, administrations, government policy and Mary Portas.

Residential development in London should trend towards smaller units in order to create an “investment grade product”, residential experts from Knight Frank said in the latest Property Week podcast. Joining LBC’s James Max in the Property Week studio were James Mannix, head of residential investment at Knight Frank, and residential development partner Alex Lewis. Mannix told Max that residential development in London could learn from the Japanese model, which could require smaller apartment development, in order to get a higher yield from residential property. He said that, if you consider that an average professional in London is willing tyo pay £250 to £350 a week for accomodation, and you are developing in higher value areas, then you need to produce smaller units. The pair also discussed who is investing in London residential, best places to invest in London, and the impact of stamp duty land tax.

Inflation will rise this year, despite the claims of the government, Dr David Kuo of financial advice website the Motley Fool said on this month’s Property Week podcast. Kuo said that despite government claims that inflation would fall this year, “they are wrong”. He said that the trillions being pumped into Western economies meant inflation had to rise. He pointed the finger of blame at the European Central Bank in particular as a country whihc is pumping trillions into European banks - something he likened to “one huge Ponzi scheme”. Kuo also discussed the state of the European economies, pension funds and what shares you should invest in.

Leisure entrepeneur Luca del Bono gave a rare interview to Property Week’s podcast host James Max this week. Del Bono, who set up private members club Quintessentially and now runs hotels and leisure firm Luca de Bono & Partners, London’s prime leisure scene. He discusses who is investing in London and how, his views on the international hotels market and howe London is perceived.

Irvine Sellar, the man behind what will be Western Europe’s tallest building, The Shard, talks to PropertyWeek.com about the highs and lows of the 10 years it has taken to realise his vision. Sellar talks frankly to Property Week podcast host James Max about financial difficulties along the way, his thoughts on the scheme as it nears completion in May, and what drives him personally.

Matt Lacey, founder of the Youtube and Twitter sensation Gap Yah, takes you through the story of his posh twit creation Orlando and introduces you to the character himself. Oxford University graduate Lacey, a member of comedy troupe The Unexpected Items, has shot to fame with the spoof of wealthy Western gap-year students “vomiting all of the Western world.” He talks to Property Week’s podcast host James Max about how he came up with the character, his new book Gap Yah Plannah, and Orlando gives his views on protestors, travel and his mantra “What Would Genghis Do?”

Most 25-year-olds, on hearing that the company they worked for was being put up for sale, are likely to start looking at the job market or do nothing. Not Ray Bloom. On hearing of plans to sell John D Wood, where he was head of commercial property management, Bloom wrote a business plan, sought an investor, bought the company and became chief executive officer. In the latest Property Week podcast Bloom talks to James Max about the challenges he faced into taking over the business including dealing with his colleagues and clients. He also discusses plans for the business and gives his views on the property market, protestors and road ahead.

The global economy is, at the very least, a mess. Luckily Jamie Dannhauser, director at economic consultancy Lombard Street Capital, is here to make sense of the turmoil. Dannhauser, talks to Property Week’s podcast host James Max about what is happening in the UK, European and global economies, and examines issues such as the UK’s role in the Eurozone and the continuing sovereign debt crisis in southern European countries.

Central London rents will outstrip inflation this year, Robert Noel, managing director of Land Securities’ £5.7bn London portfolio, said in the Property Week podcast this week. Giving a bullish view of the market, Noel said that though the nation’s capital has threats in the forms of immigration, personal taxation and the rise of Eastern centres, London is unique in that it “ticks all the boxes.” Noel also outlined his goals at LandSecs - “to make the business admired as well as liked” - and talked about the “wrench” of leaving Great Portland Estates and its chief executive Toby Courtauld.

When it comes to choosing what you spend your hard-earned money on, top contenders are likely to include clothes, a car, your home or an evening out. Pensions are often way down the list. However, as Julian Webb, Fidelity International’s head of defined contributions and platform sales, said in this month’s Property Week podcast, pensions are becoming more vital than ever. With people living longer, the age at which you can claim a state pension is being pushed further up. Meanwhile, global economic turmoil means that choosing the right type of pension is critical. Not saving enough or in the right way could mean the difference between cruising around the Med or struggling to pay the electricity bills during retirement. So how much should you be saving? As a rough guide, Webb recommends halving your age and then contributing that percentage of your salary to your pension — for example, if you are 30 then you should contribute 15% of your salary. Someone who did this from an early age would have a pension worth two-thirds of their current salary if they retired at 65. You should also find out how your pension is being invested. The chances are — especially if you work for a large company — that you will be contributing towards a defined contribution salary pension, rather than the defined benefit salary pensions of yesteryear. The difference between the two is that a defined benefit salary pension promises to pay out a set sum every year after retirement, which is guaranteed by your employer. With a defined contribution pension, the amount you and your employer contribute is invested. A downside of the latter is that if, for example, your pension was heavily invested in equities when you neared retirement age and the market turned, your pension could take a big hit. The turbulence in the equities markets over the past few weeks, could have wiped up to 20% off the value of pensions. “The key thing is to understand exactly where your pension is invested,” Webb says. “I was reading the other day that people spend more time choosing their new car than they spend looking at their pensions and planning for their retirement. “A younger person can invest more in equities in a bid to boost their pension, but when you get closer to retirement age you need to be more risk averse, investing in bonds and cash,” he adds. A person with a “medium attitude” would ideally invest about 50% in equities, 35% in bonds and cash and 15% into property, Webb suggests. To hear more on how to manage your pension, go to propertyweek.com/podcast or search for Property Week on iTunes.

Planning rules that rigidly dictate particular building uses in particular geographic areas are damaging to the property industry, Structadene chairman David Pearl, tells Property Week in this month’s podcast  Pearl says one of his main gripes, along with the scrapping of empty rates relief, is that building uses are not flexible. Pearl also speaks frankly about his career in the property industry, from starting out as a 15-year-old who earned his living packing cardigans into boxes. He tells Property Week podcast host James Max about how, over the recession, his business had turned “into a property management” company, focused on collecting rents. He talks about why he decided to sell buildings — “one of our banks was in trouble” — and explains why, although he still enjoys his job, he no longer has an “insatiable appetite to buy buildings”.