Tag Archives: Swansea

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Awards, Lettings

Leading estate agent Dawsons receives coveted award at The Lettings Agency of the Year Awards 2016

Photo Caption: L-R Sir Clive Woodward, Director of Residential lettings Ricky Purdy & Mumbles Letting Manager Tom Hope & Nick Huntley of ZPG

Dawsons was awarded the title of Wales Lettings Agency of the Year at The Lettings Agency of the Year Awards 2016 in association with The Sunday Times and The Times, and sponsored by ZPG.

On Friday 10th June, hundreds of leading letting agents from across the UK attended a glittering ceremony at The Lancaster London Hotel where the winners of the most highly regarded awards in the lettings industry were revealed. The winners were presented with their awards by rugby and Olympic leadership legend Sir Clive Woodward, with renowned journalist, author and newsreader Penny Smith acting as compere.

Award winners were selected following a rigorous and thorough judging process overseen by a panel of 20 industry experts who assessed initial entry submissions before conducting an extensive review of the entrants, including over 150 hours of telephone interviews and independent mystery shopping exercises.

Dawsons, winners of the Wales Lettings Agency of the Year, was delighted to receive the award.

“Winning this year is a fantastic achievement, and something that we have worked towards for the past 12 months. Receiving gold in 2015 represented many, many months of effort and continued progression, but to retain such an accolade for a second year really is a special achievement,” said Ricky Purdy, Director of Residential Lettings at Dawsons.

The judging process was managed by Property Ombudsman Katrine Sporle, whilst Mark Hayward of the NAEA acted as Arbiter. The winners were competing for property management and overall awards by business size and/or region, and accolades were also awarded across a number of specialist categories, from marketing to relocation.

Now in their seventh year as a dedicated competition for the lettings industry, these awards have become widely recognised as the most prestigious and difficult to win. With more entrants than ever before, thousands of British lettings and property management offices were represented this year, but only the very best of the best were crowned winners.

Ricky added, “This award represents every staff member and all departments working as a whole, with our landlords and tenants being at the forefront and our key motivation. We have a great mix of experience, knowledge and enthusiasm, which I know will carry on the momentum of such achievements long into the future.”

The regional awards were sponsored by ZPG whilst the specialist categories were sponsored and supported by some of the industry’s leading suppliers including Boomerang, Brief Your Market and Samsung.

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Dawsons, Lettings

The Salisbury, Swansea, re-invented

Churchill Buildings is set to join the cast of one of Swansea’s most desirable apartment developments by replacing the Ballroom in Walter Road’s ‘The Salisbury’ with a high specification kitchen & substantial sized lounge.

You could be entertaining guests where ladies and gentlemen of the 1920’s danced to the Charleston! The new and exciting development enjoys a prestigious location just a stone’s throw from the heart of the City of Swansea, with all major transport links being within walking distance.

There is a selection of executive apartments boasting contemporary kitchens, oversized bathrooms – some with roll top baths. Original features such as bare brick walls and fireplaces produce a spectacular look, with each flat benefitting from its own quirky style.

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With some of its apartments enjoying 1000+ square footage, these really do need to be seen! Prices start from £695pcm. For more information or to arrange a viewing, contact Dawson’s on 01792 301000.

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Dawsons, Heart of Swansea Loyalty Card, New Investment

Leading estate agent teams up with Swansea BID to unlock savings in the heart of the city

Photo Caption: L to R Russell Greenslade CEO BIDS and Ricky Purdy Director of Residential Lettings, Dawsons

To extend their ethos for delivering independent solutions, Dawsons has collaborated with the Swansea Business Improvement District (BID) team to promote the city’s loyalty card scheme.

The independently owned estate agent, who is celebrating 25 years of trading this year, will be working with Swansea BID to ensure individuals across South Wales have access to the latest and greatest money saving offers. The new city centre loyalty card, courtesy of the Big Heart of Swansea, delivers savings in shopping, health and beauty, food and drink, home, and leisure. Current offers include free hot pod yoga sessions and discounts on everything from beauty treatments to butchered meat and shoe repairs.

“We are delighted to have one of Swansea’s best known estate agents supporting the city centre and the loyalty card concept, which is an important sales promotion for all BID members and rewards the general public for shopping in the city centre,” said Russell Greenslade, CEO of Swansea BID.

Swansea BID is one of only five BIDs in Wales and aims to make the city centre a bustling hub where people can shop, visit, stay and socialise.

Ricky Purdy, Director of Residential Lettings, and Joanne Summerfield-Talbot, Director of Residential Sales, added, “We feel this is a great opportunity to engage with local businesses and the community we live in by spreading the word about the Big Heart of Swansea Loyalty Card. Dawsons’ Sales and Rentals branches will be distributing the loyalty card to all their clients to ensure that they don’t miss out on some great savings, whether it be a saving on a night out, something new for the home or a well-deserved pamper day. Our offices have also been selected by Swansea BID as registration and card collection points for the public not just our current or possible clients.”

To find out more about the city centre loyalty card, please visit www.bigheartofswansea.co.uk/loyalty-card-and-offers.

 

Chris Marina Office02
New Homes, New Investment, Relocation

Could exciting new development plans transform Swansea as we know it?

Swansea city centre and its seafront have already undergone quite the transformation in recent years. In addition to Swansea Bay welcoming a plethora of new businesses, the city’s university has aligned with their world class reputation for research, innovation and education by doubling its campus in size, signalling a brighter future for its students, staff and the surrounding area. But the city’s exciting regeneration plans don’t end there…

Here Chris Hope, Partner at Dawsons Estate Agents, talks us through the multi-million pound proposals and the impact that the revamp could have on the economy, tourism, and the businesses and residents that call Swansea their home.

From the high street to the seafront

According to plans unveiled by Swansea Council, the city centre, from the high street to its harbour, is in for a major transformation. If approved, the outline plans will see two sites undergo redevelopment with work due to start as early as 2017. With developer Rivington Land & Acme leading the way, St David’s shopping centre, along with its car parking facilities, will face redevelopment with a landmark tower and 3,500-seat arena the jewels in the crown of the centrally based leg of the project. The tower is said to be designed to rival the Meridian Tower, whilst the neighbouring retail and restaurant facilities will provide a vibrant quarter at the heart of the city.

On the seafront, Trebor Developments will construct an aquatics research centre and public aquarium as well as a range of apartments, townhouses, eateries and public spaces.

The impact on our local economy

The increased level of facilities is what will really set the new and improved Swansea city centre and seafront apart from not just its former offering but from other cities and towns in Wales, including nearby rival Cardiff. If the developments were to go ahead as outlined the project will improve the look and feel of the high street ten-fold creating a welcoming environment for city centre businesses looking to set up shop within the area. In addition to generating more vibrancy, the development will attract even more investment with the proposals already resulting in a variety of ambitious and high quality shortlisted bids for both the Civic Centre and St David’s sites.

The new arena will also provide the facilities for a host of events, concerts and performances, a prospect that will increase tourism and spending within the area to support big and small brands based in Swansea. Tourism will be increased further thanks to the addition of what will be a world-leading aquarium and aquatics centre.

What will the plans mean for us?

For residents and businesses alike the potential for long term investment within the area will unlock a selection of exciting opportunities. For individuals, job prospects will increase dramatically, particularly within the retail and hospitality fields, whilst residential property values are likely to receive a boost thanks to access to the improved facilities. Business owners will also reap the rewards with enhanced footfall securing high ROI.

Like my fellow residents and business owners, I too am urging the redevelopment plans for Swansea city centre and seafront to go ahead sooner rather than later. I know I speak for many when I say that Swansea as a whole is tired of so many false dawns with delays relating to rail electrification, the procrastination of tidal lagoon and the job losses at Tata Steel just some of the issues casting negativity over whether this particular regeneration project will get the green light. This city really needs this development to happen for the reasons stated in this article and so many more!

Chris Marina Office14
Dawsons

Tidal lagoon: Is the project already a missed opportunity for Swansea?

Back when the £1 billion plans were first thrust into the pipeline in 2010, tidal lagoon was one project that was set to equate to a number of opportunities for the people and city of Swansea. Set to be the world’s first man-made, energy generating lagoon, once completed the project would harness the indigenous, low carbon electricity produced naturally by the Severn Estuary, which has the second highest tidal range in the world.

As a well-respected businessman and commentator based in Swansea, Chris Hope, Partner at Dawsons Estate Agents, is no stranger to the tidal lagoon project. Whilst the plans, and the continued debate regarding whether the venture will or will not go ahead, are old news, the procrastination, missed opportunity and faltering political will experienced so far is worth commenting on.

Why the big delay?

The tidal lagoon build has been hit by delay after delay, with the level of UK government funding available the latest issue that has cast doubt on whether the project will go ahead. Despite receiving backing from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), Tidal Lagoon Power (TLP) has decided to delay construction by a year due to ongoing negotiations regarding how much electricity subsidy will be paid once the build is complete.

Further delays, pushing the 2016 start date to 2017, have been created due to the extended wait for TLP’s marine licence and lease. With recent news of a rival green energy pioneer – Ecotricity – looking to steal the thunder behind the project’s status as the first tidal lagoon development, after all those years of planning could TLP ultimately be beaten to the punch?

What now?

Whilst there is still a possibility that the tidal lagoon project will go ahead, the big question on every Swansea resident and business owner’s lips is – should we move on or as a city should we continue to lobby? The building of the lagoon and its status as the first of six on the British coast will benefit the economy, the city’s wider profile, and the businesses and residents based within the area.

For the people of Swansea, the lagoon will provide a clean, renewable and reliable source of power for some 155,000 homes for upwards of 120 years, whilst the development itself will bring significant employment, community and tourism opportunities. For the planet, the project will see a huge carbon emissions reduction, with the lagoon able to contribute to the meeting of national targets thanks to a saving of more than 236,000 tonnes of CO2 each and every year. The coastal flood protection advantages that go hand-in-hand with the development will also unlock increased reliability and peace of mind for the residents and businesses that call Swansea their home.

An independent government review has been delayed until autumn 2016, but in the meantime are the aforementioned benefits enough to keep you talking about it and positively pushing the project in the right direction? Only time will tell.

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Dawsons

Time running out to enter Dawsons’ Christmas competition

Why not get involved in Dawsons’ Christmas competition – you still have until Sunday at noon to enter.

In the spirit of the festive season, we are giving you the chance to WIN a £50 voucher for the Swansea Waterfront Winterland.

We have placed a number of Santa stickers on our ‘For Sale’ or ‘To Let’ signs around Swansea.

All you have to do when you ‪#‎SpotSanta is post a photo of yourself with the sign to Dawsons’ Facebook hashtag ‪#‎DawsonsChristmas

So why not get involved? Happy hunting!

*Competition entries must be in by 12pm on the 20th of December 2015 with the winner to be announced on the 21st. T’s & C’s apply*

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Dawsons

Leading estate agent appoints new managers

Dawsons have made two key managerial appointments amid a reorganisation of branch managers.

Brett Hampton joins the leading estate agent as the manager of their Llanelli branch, while Kristian Davies is appointed lettings manager at Morriston.

With those significant appointments and the recent promotion to Sales director of Jo Summerfield-Talbot it has meant a change in key personnel.

Taking over Jo’s branch manager role at Gorseinon is Nicola Fulford, whose previous role as Swansea manager is being taken over by Lorraine Evans, who was previously manager at Llanelli.

“I am thrilled to see that staff are recognised for their achievements and these moves enables them to further develop and grow the business from all an already established and successful stand point,” said Jo.

“Brett Hampton is a great addition to our team and we are delighted to welcome him on board.

“It is pleasing that Brett recognises the very high standards and professionalism that Dawsons represents and being Swansea’s leading agent, he chose us over other offers of employment with our competitors.

“Brett is moving his family down from Somerset, where he has worked for leading estate agents and not only brings his passion but a wealth of experience, having worked some 15 years in the business.

“Brett will take up his new role officially on the 4th January 2016 as Manager based at our Llanelli branch, operating both sales and lettings.”

Kristian joins at a managerial level bringing with him several years experience in South Wales along with a great understanding of Dawsons’ immediate catchment and surrounding areas, together with the industry as a whole.

“Kristian strengthens even further our lettings team of more than 45, which use their vast experience and knowledge to provide an unrivalled service,” said Ricky Purdy, Dawsons Lettings Director.

“Several important additions to our lettings department across all offices which include Kristian, from our accounts team through to property management, assures that 2016 will once again be a successful year of accomplishments and achievements.”

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