Why people who can live anywhere are choosing Birmingham
The first town house to be built in the Jewellery Quarter for 150 years has been snapped up within days of going on the market – highlighting a new post-pandemic upsurge in confidence in Birmingham’s property sector.
The first of nine prestigious, freehold town houses at No 1 to 2 Legge Lane, a previously derelict site in the heart of the historic quarter, was sold on January 21 – and a second sale, with a £850,000 price tag, is also progressing.
The initial success of the town house development – the first of its kind in the Jewellery Quarter since Victorian times – has been hailed by property experts as a clear sign of growing confidence in the city’s housing stock, as Birmingham finally emerges from the COVID-19 crisis.
The project comprises the first town houses to be built in the Quarter since Queen Victoria was on the throne, reflecting the area’s rich industrial heritage dating back to the second half of the 19th century.
Andy Higgs, the first purchaser of a Legge Lane town house, has lived in the Jewellery Quarter for 12 years and says: “I love Legge Lane – it has a lot of history, the architecture of this development is ambitious, and the privacy of the development provides some peace, which is rare for the city centre.”
Andy co-founded Akkroo – a software as a service business in 2013 – and sold it to Phoenix-based Integrate Inc six years later in April 2019. He now heads up Integrate’s events software product, which helps businesses generate leads and revenue exhibiting at trade shows.
“No 1-2 Legge Lane caught my attention, because it had been designed by a firm of local architects who I was aware had worked on successful heritage projects in the JQ. The house’s under-stated styling, and modern industrial feel is what initially attracted me.
“The quality of the overall design was important to my decision to live here. I have a background in industrial design and creating products, so the care invested in getting the details right appealed to me.
“This already feels like home.”
Living in a loft of late, Andy started to lose his privacy as another development went up. He used the months during the pandemic lockdown to start his homework before buying No 1-2 Legge Lane.
“I started walking around streets and canals I rarely visited before. I considered a number of new build developments including in the gun quarter, but none of them had quite the soul that the JQ still holds,” continues Andy.
“No 1-2 Legge Lane caught my attention, because it had been thoughtfully designed by a small firm of local architects who I’d seen had previously delivered other sympathetic projects in the JQ. The building has under-stated styling, a high-end finish, and mixes modern industrial aesthetics with a sensible use of space, such as minimising wasted space by removing corridors and making a feature of the staircase. The double height windows and balconies are really nice touches.
“The design-quality of a living space means a lot to me; I trained as an industrial designer and have spent the last decade of my career attempting to apply good principles of design in my own work, so the details matter.
“This already feels like home.”
Philip Jackson, of city centre agents, Maguire Jackson, described the sale as: “a sign of the times. These are the first town houses to be built in the Jewellery Quarter – Birmingham’s thriving urban village – for 150 years.
“These are superb freehold houses where people can put down roots. They are attracting discerning and interesting individuals who are looking for something special in the city centre.
“The Commonwealth Games, HS2 and organisations such as Goldman Sachs and HSBC moving here means confidence and investment in Birmingham is at an all-time high.”
The development at No 1-2 Legge Lane, with prices ranging from £550,000 to £895,000, is the brainchild of Birmingham-based developer Liv Projekt, led by husband and wife team Marco da Cruz and Maria Sjolander at architects Sjolander da Cruz.
Previous Sterling Architecture award-winners for projects at the Squirrel Works and the Badge Works in Birmingham, Maria Sjolander of Liv Projekt said: “We’d be very happy living there – that’s our test. These buildings are inspired by the creativity of the Jewellery Quarter, but it’s not just skin-deep.
“Conservation codes give you certain pointers, but they don’t dictate the design DNA of the Jewellery Quarter. The houses are modern but draw on the industrial language of the traditional buildings which people love.
“The large floor plates are intended for open-plan living with all the honesty of exposed structure and materials, each house is like a ready-made, architect-designed one-off home.”
The Legge Lane townhouse project contrasts starkly with the long-standing nationwide trend for city centre developments focusing on smaller, single or double-bedroom apartment blocks.
Philip Jackson added: “This confidence in Birmingham city centre as a location for new, substantial high-spec, long-term occupancy housing is due to the quality of life it offers in comparison with many other major UK cities when we compare Birmingham with Bristol, Manchester and London.”
Research by the Office for National Statistics has revealed a higher life quality satisfaction in Birmingham compared to Bristol, Manchester and London, with the Midlands capital outstripping its rivals on air quality, the environment and smaller average household size.
ONS statistics show Birmingham has shown the largest overall improvement in air quality since 2018, with the lowest number of polluted days and the lowest amount of nitrogen dioxide levels. The trend is set to continue following the introduction of the Clean Air Zone in June 2021.
