Report into high rise buildings

High-rise residential towers are rapidly becoming a developing feature of the property market across the UK says a report by Knight Frank and EC Harris.

Have high-rise buildings become the future of residential development in the UK? High-rise residential towers are rapidly becoming a developing feature of the property market across the UK says a report by Knight Frank and EC Harris.

They have jointly produced a comprehensive report analysing the issues of cost versus revenue and the future sustainability of high-rise development.

Two leading factors have combined to drive this increased interest in high-rise development.

The first has been the rising profile of city living over the last ten years with the planning system's emphasis on high density developments and increased brownfield schemes.

Second has been the impact of rapidly increasing house prices over recent years, growth which has outpaced build cost inflation.

There are other less obvious factors, including the rise of London's international profile together with the increased rivalry experienced between provincial cities in the UK and demographic shifts which have underpinned demand for smaller apartments in high density schemes.

The development of high-rise residential buildings, as with most construction trends, has been led by London.

With its position as the leading capital in Europe and its growing status as one of the world's leading financial centres London has attracted developers, architects and planners with vision and enthusiasm.

One of the unusual elements of the high-rise boom has been the strength of the main provincial centres such as Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Glasgow and Birmingham where several residential towers are being constructed, and many of the most striking proposals have been made.

The modern council leaders are continuing the tradition of their Victorian forebears, although the symbols of civic pride and economic progress now are displayed by higher and higher residential and mixed-use towers rather than by town halls and corn exchanges.

Liam Bailey, head of residential research at Knight Frank said; "The viability of any development depends on an assessment of costs versus revenue.

The particular issue relating to high-rise buildings is that this relationship becomes increasingly complex as ever higher buildings are considered.

As the height of buildings increases so does the cost of construction, at the same time there is a recognised potential uplift in sales from units on upper floors, particularly in iconic or well designed buildings." He continues; "With good design, a tall residential tower can deliver an iconic landmark building, which responds to the site and urban context.

In these types of building structural engineering is a key driver, affecting everything from the technical viability of the design to the aerodynamic form, the rationality of the envelope, the ability to transfer large loads safely into the ground, and the ease and speed of construction." Keith Brooks from EC Harris said; "We have developed a model which examines the relationship between cost and height of buildings, and it shows that there is inevitably a cost premium payable to shape and design that is intrinsic to tower buildings.

There is an extra cost invariably payable because many of the developments are very high quality schemes in desirable inner city locations.

We noted that in an increasingly competitive market, design needs to be attractive, if not cutting edge, to secure planning consent and attract buyers at premium prices" He continues; "With all residential developments, there is a balance between the need to release units to the market, usually in a phased manner, and the need to minimise costs.

This issue is magnified in tower schemes as the opportunity to facilitate phased release of apartments is restricted, in construction terms, yet vital if the scheme is to be viable.

Phased completion is not, however, impossible and an early consideration should be made of both horizontal and vertical phasing.

The need to facilitate phased release of units through scaffold free elevations, innovative use of lifts, etc, becomes a fundamental part of the design brief.

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