The founder of a new and socially conscious estate agency was so inspired by the residents of Vauxhall’s iconic Bonnington Square that she decided to name the agency after it.
It seems a natural choice that the agency is now representing one of very few original complete houses in the Square, which has recently come on the market with an asking price of 2.2 million.
“Bonnington Square is an area I studied while doing my Masters in Urban Research ten years ago. My thesis examined the history of the square and what it represents,” Bonnington Square founder Lorna Reed says.
“It represents change, community, and a Do It Yourself attitude, which is how I see our agency as well. It sounds like a real estate agent cliché but this property is a really rare opportunity.
“It’s a full five-bedroom house. There’s less than ten of these left in the square – the rest have all been converted into flats and maisonettes. The owners are part of a group of the original squatters who first moved into the Square 40 years ago. Over those years, they’ve renovated, changed, refurbished and made the house into what it is today; a true homage to the story of the Square,” she continues.
The area was heavily bombed during the war and fell into disrepair in the 1940s. In the ‘70s, it was earmarked by the council to be bulldozed and replaced by a tarmac playing field. Most residents had moved out but one person stayed and protested the redevelopment plans. Squatters started to move in and eventually the council let the squatters buy the houses on condition that they formed housing co-ops and bought the properties from the council.
“The residents transformed the Square by complete DIY, in a DIY, not to say guerrilla, fashion, from the houses themselves to the two community gardens and extensive street planting. Everything’s reclaimed and it’s a real bohemian oasis,” Lorna says.
Lorna, who launched the estate agency earlier this year in partnership with her husband, a qualified architect, got her first listing in January, a £1.4 million property on Holly Grove in Peckham.
“I was always interested in becoming an estate agent but it’s one of those professions that’s not very trusted so I was really put off by the idea!” Lorna says. “But I felt between myself and my husband we have the right skills to do something different.”
The traditional real estate landscape is changing, she says, led by agencies like The Modern House, which represents design-led homes across the UK that pay attention to space, light, materials, nature and decoration.
“The Modern House was set up by two architecture journalists and they’re doing an amazing job,” Lorna says.
“Their theory is a well-designed home will get you 12 percent above the market price. But they’re predominantly targeting the high-end side of the market and are pretty luxury.
“I think good design should be for everybody; your home is your most prized possession, so we want to treat that with the level of care it deserves.”
While setting up Bonnington Square, Lorna designed a way for the business to give back to the community.
“Homelessness had gone up dramatically throughout the pandemic and I thought ‘let’s link house-buying and homelessness.’ So for every house sold, we sponsor a bed for a homeless person for 12 months, which should get them back up on their feet. It’s no extra cost to the seller; we take that out of our commission,” Lorna says.
Another unique service the agency offers is commissioning an architectural study.
“If you buy a doer-upper, you might struggle with visualising what it could be, so we thought we could offer a service where the seller pays to have a survey or study done by an architect that shows the internal or extension possibilities and, crucially, opportunities to improve the house environmentally and sustainably with double glazing and insulation,” Lorna says.
For more information, visit:
www.bonningtonsquare.com
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