The great British boozer is in decline. More than 500 freehold pubs were sold last year, with over a third of those being converted from local drinking spots for alternative uses.
Vikkie Lee, a veteran of home renovations, had no fears taking on a fixer upper. But buying a property at auction was a different story. “I never wanted to do it – it sounds so scary,” she says. “My first thought is always: “What’s wrong with it?”
Jo Eccles is the founder and managing director of Eccord, which specialises in acquiring and managing residential properties in prime central London. For 17 years she has sourced and acquired prime and super prime properties on behalf of private individuals and families, and her firm also oversees £1.5bn of residential property on behalf of one-off and portfolio landlords.