George C Parker, Wansteadium’s property blogger, writes:
* December already! As always, gentle Wanstead folk go about their business in the run up to the Festive season. They pop into Harvey’s for parcels of winter berries and mistletoe, and leave their goose and turkey orders graven in the grand book of fowls kept at AG Dennis. Al along the High Street, twinkling bulbs light the crisp dusky evenings, the chain coffee shops commit quite unspeakable crimes against cinnamon, and parents make the gravest of oaths to their little darlings regarding their behaviour influencing the big man’s generosity come the 25th.
*Â Back at Parker Towers, when business affairs are put to one side for the rest of the year, I like to pour a glass of something Churchillian, and settle back with Mrs P to watch a classic movie by the fireside. And if for whatever reason (usually precedent) my viewing companion flatly refuses my first two dozen choices on grounds of taste and decency (her loss) then we compromise on a Christmas classic. My all-time favourite is the incomparable It’s a Wonderful Life, not least because I recognise a lot of the young George C Parker in the character of George Bailey – it’s almost suspicious. Principled, beautifully cardiganed, modest, the hero defends his beloved family “Savings and Loan” building society business tooth and nail in order to keep alive the hopes and dreams of the good people of Bedford Falls. I’m getting an investment idea: Parker’s Saving and Loan would be hot on speakeasies, emporia, mansion flats and bookshops; tough on betting shops and drab chains. Perhaps an idea worth reviving in my 2014 resolutions .. I’ll let you all in on the ground floor.
*Â Talking of ground floors, in Autumn, I covered the news of a premium bungalow on the Avenue which appears to be still on the market. For the avoidance of doubt dear readers, it does have a chimney, so there are no grounds to fear that any seasonal, sleigh-based delivery service would have difficulty in servicing the property. Bid away.
*Â Finally, a word on house prices, which seem to have strengthened particularly during 2013. A stalwart Guardian journalist recently tweeted that his Wanstead pad had nominally increased by 20% in the past year. This kind of news might not please those trying to get on the property ladder, but it does tend to bear out my frequent assertions that Wanstead’s fine location and amenity will continue to serve it well in future.