

The Return: Property & Investment Podcast
Anna Clare Harper
The Return is a podcast for property investors and developers who want to get UK housing deals done, even in a tough market.Getting homes built is harder than ever. Planning delays, rising construction costs, funding gaps and shifting market conditions stop most projects before they start.Learn from investors, developers and policymakers discussing what's happening in the UK housing market right now and how to learn from their experience.Each episode features a real life case study or topic including: planning reform, policy shifts, funding conditions, deal viability, sales, delivery challenges and measuring impact.Hosted by Anna Clare Harper, Director at Pinnacle Investments and author of three best-selling books on residential investing. Her mission is to help mobilise capital to drive the delivery of 10,000 more, better homes by 2030.Join 350,000+ listeners learning how to build, fund and deliver more, better UK housing deals.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 23, 2023 • 27min
What is Net Zero for UK Homes?
Send us a TextWhat is Net Zero for UK homes? Anna Clare Harper discusses with Phil Mason, Head of Regulatory Engagement at Trustmark, the government endorsed quality scheme for home improvements.In Anna's words:I chatted to Phil Mason, Head of Regulatory Engagement at Trustmark, the government endorsed quality scheme for home improvements, an organisation that is critical for the urgent retrofit of UK homes, about the impact of regulations on retrofit and the path to Net Zero for homes.We covered:What Net Zero means for UK homes The path of least resistance for achieving Net Zero 2050 - avoiding inefficiencies and just ‘retrofitting once’ How policies, practices and grant funding opportunities differ between tenures, and what finance is available for retrofitGuest website: https://www.trustmark.org.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-mason-29a5a9164/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/The Return: Property & Investment Podcast has been featured in Feedspot’s UK and London ‘Best Real Estate Podcasts’ lists, coming in at #4 in the UK! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/uk_real_estate_podcasts/https://blog.feedspot.com/london_real_estate_podcasts/

Nov 9, 2023 • 20min
Should You Buy a Multi-Million ££ Home Now?
Send us a TextIs now the time to upsize? Anna Clare Harper discusses with Polly Ogden Duffy, MD at John D Wood & Co.In Anna's words:I had a great chat with Polly Ogden Duffy, Managing Director at prime sales and lettings agency, John D Wood & Co.We covered:How to achieve your buying, selling or renting goals in the current market How upsizers are winning in 2023What has caused the time taken to complete a sale to double since 2019How establishing pregnancy loss and menopause policies - as well as being vocal about such real staff issues - improves staff loyalty and so boosts long term profitabilityGuest website: https://www.johndwood.co.ukGuest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/polly-ogden-duffy-17070651/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/The Return: Property & Investment Podcast has been featured in Feedspot’s UK and London ‘Best Real Estate Podcasts’ lists, coming in at #4 in the UK! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/uk_real_estate_podcasts/https://blog.feedspot.com/london_real_estate_podcasts/

Oct 26, 2023 • 32min
£223bn Aviva Investors: How to be a Fund Manager
Send us a TextHow to become a fund manager, and what are the greatest opportunities for institutional real estate investment? With Imogen Ebbs, Head of UK Real Estate Funds at Aviva Investors and Anna Clare Harper.In Anna's words:I had the chance to chat with Imogen Ebbs, Head of UK Real Estate Funds at £223bn asset manager Aviva Investors, on the podcast. We covered:How to become a fund manager, and how Aviva Investors are helping the next generation of fund managers onto the ladderWhat ‘good’ looks like in the current market, and how this has changed - including macroeconomic factors, pricing, microeconomics and ESGThe most exciting emerging investment strategies (spoiler alert: lots in ‘living’!) and the death of the commercial property ‘40/40/20’ allocation strategyWhy reporting is so important, and how data collection and impact possibilities define what is investible Guest website: https://www.avivainvestors.comGuest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/imogen-ebbs-37136262/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/The Return: Property & Investment Podcast has been featured in Feedspot’s UK and London ‘Best Real Estate Podcasts’ lists, coming in at #4 in the UK! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/uk_real_estate_podcasts/https://blog.feedspot.com/london_real_estate_podcasts/

Oct 12, 2023 • 36min
EPC Rules Scrapped - So What?
Send us a TextWhat does scrapping EPC targets mean for residential? Rod Turner x Anna Clare Harper, CEO of GreenResi.In Anna's words:In this episode I share my thoughts on the scrapping of proposed Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards of EPC C+ for properties to be legally rented out. The tables were turned and I joined Rod Turner on his Property Business Investment ‘Rodcast’ in my capacity as CEO of GreenResi, which helps residential investors with portfolios worth £100m+ to make efficient, reliable buy, sell and upgrade decisions at scale, so that they can future proof and grow portfolios in the context of the urgent need to retrofit homes.We covered topics including Why scrapping planned MEES is likely to be positive for the Private Rental Sector, its renters and the environment Why our clients, institutional investors, were and are self-regulating, and targeting better than the ex-proposed minimum EPC of CWhat other policies would work better than MEES, such as using Council Tax to incentivise upgrades.Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Guidance: https://bpf.org.uk/media/4534/bpf-residential-esg-guidance.pdfListen to The Rodcast: https://www.podpage.com/the-rodcast-property-business-investment/Rod Turner Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rod-turner-936a837/Anna Clare Harper LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/GreenResi website: https://www.greenresi.com/The Return: Property & Investment Podcast has been featured in Feedspot’s UK and London ‘Best Real Estate Podcasts’ lists, coming in at #4 in the UK! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/uk_real_estate_podcasts/https://blog.feedspot.com/london_real_estate_podcasts/

Sep 28, 2023 • 23min
TrustMark: Retrofit, Rogue Traders + Regulations
Send us a TextAvinash Rajan, Proposition Director for TrustMark, the UK Government-Endorsed Quality Scheme for home improvements and Anna Clare Harper discuss 'How to protect consumers and innovate for Net Zero'.In Anna's words:I had the chance to chat with Avinash Rajan, Proposition Director for TrustMark, the UK Government-Endorsed Quality Scheme for home improvements, and an organisation that is critical for the urgent retrofit of UK homes.We covered:Innovations and policy changes in home comfort and the path to Net Zero How to ensure quality delivery and protect consumersHow to adapt your retrofit approach when policy objectives conflict, for example when changing from gas to electric brings down Energy Performance Certificate gradesGuest website: https://www.trustmark.org.uk/homeownerGuest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avinashrajan/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/

Sep 14, 2023 • 14min
£1bn Property Lender: How Family Offices Protect Wealth
Send us a TextAnna Clare Harper talked to Carl Jabbour, Head of Investors and COO of £1bn+ bridging lender Fiduciam about what next for real estate non-bank lending, and how Family Offices protect their wealth in an inflationary environment.In Anna's words:I had a great, very informative chat with Carl Jabbour, Head of Investors and COO of £1bn+ property and SME lender Fiduciam, for the podcast. We talked about: Why family offices and institutional investors are so keen to lend, and the non-cyclical growth of non-bank lendingHow macroeconomic shifts like high inflation, high interest rates and low economic growth/confidence define what works for Family Offices and institutional investorsWhy lenders are swallowing profit margin in the face of higher base rates, and what distinguishes lenders who will survive, thrive or fold in the 2020sGuest website: https://fiduciam.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-jabbour/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/

Aug 31, 2023 • 15min
Octopus Energy: Zero Bills, Technology + Green Innovation
Send us a TextEmma Fletcher, Homes Director for Octopus Energy joins Anna Clare Harper for this episode on Octopus Energy, Zero Bills, Technology + Green Innovation.In Anna's words:I chatted to Emma Fletcher, Homes Director at Octopus Energy, the UK's most awarded energy supplier. Emma is also a renewable energy pioneer herself, having led the UK’s first green district heating system, which we have talked about in past episodes.In this episode, we talked about:Using technology and innovation bridge the gap between traditional housing infrastructure and the demands of a more environmentally conscious societyPioneering products like ‘Zero Bills’ - where customers with solar, heatpumps, batteries and smart meters pay £0 for five years Testing then rolling out innovations to support energy transition across housing developments Guest website: https://octopus.energy/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmafletchercambridge/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://www.greenresi.com/

Aug 17, 2023 • 25min
5% Home Deposits + Better KPIs
Send us a TextAnna Clare Harper talks Humans, real estate and finance with Ray Rafiq, serial founder including of Unmortgage, which became Wayhome.In Anna's words:I chatted to Rayhan Rafiq, serial founder including of Unmortgage, which became Wayhome - a ground-breaking institutionally-backed shared ownership scheme for aspiring owners of existing homes letting people buy as little as 5% of a home and rent the rest.We talked about ‘the human side of business’, including:What key performance indicators ‘customer-centric’ businesses really needBuilding trust and rapport in low trust, emotionally-charged industriesPeople, politics and the risks of poor communication Social impact, diversity and inclusion and how to change the disappointing talk/change ratio in real estate and finance - featuring lessons from BarbieLeaning into human-only capabilities through the rise of AIGuest website: https://www.wayhome.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray5d/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: greenresi.com

Aug 3, 2023 • 22min
PAS2035 + Training 200,000 Retrofitters by 2030
David Pierpoint, CEO of The Retrofit Academy, discusses the importance of PAS 2035 in retrofitting, the relationship between PAS 2035, ECO4, and EPC recommendations, and the challenges in maintaining quality in a race against time.

Jul 20, 2023 • 17min
What Next for Offices + The Airbnb Approach
Send us a TextWhat next for office leasing? With Jon Dweck, Founder of Space32, a leading office flexspace marketplace and Anna Clare Harper.Jon Dweck, Founder of Space32, a leading office flexspace marketplace joined me on the podcast to discuss how flexible office space is evolving, from location choice to days per week. Highlights include:The extent to which office demand has fallenThe future of the office sector - from flex space to Build to Rent conversionsWhat businesses paid for in the last 12 months, including less time in the office, and higher qualityShaking up the office leasing sector with a new marketplaceGuest website: https://www.space32.com/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathandweck/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: greenresi.com


