What are your fees?
Our aim is to offer a superior service at a competitive price. Our standard fees are 2% of the sale price as Sole Agents, and 2.5% as Joint Sole Agents. The commission for our lettings service is 10% of the annual fee. 

Do you work on a Sole Agency, Joint Sole Agency or Multiple Agency basis?
We represent the majority of our properties as Sole Agents, whereby we are the only agents instructed to handle the sale. However, we also frequently operate on a Joint Sole Agency basis, which means that we market the property in conjunction with a second agent and the fee is divided between the two agents upon completion of the sale. We will occasionally agree to operate under the terms of a Multiple Agency agreement. This is when numerous agents represent one property and the fee is payable solely to the agent that introduces the eventual purchaser.

While local agents have a limited (albeit valuable) reach, we look to sell to buyers across Britain and overseas. There are agents that claim to be national, or international, chains, but such is the volume of their business that they can rarely offer the level of service and attention that a focused agency such as ours can.

What types of property does The Modern House sell?
We represent houses and apartments of all sizes in both rural and urban locations. At the less expensive end we might offer a small apartment in an outstanding block in London, while at the higher end we might market a significant country house set in extensive land.

All of the properties on our website were built or converted between the 1930s – the early years of the Modern Movement in Britain – and the present day. We will sometimes take on an older house if a modern-day architect or designer has converted the interior to a high standard. We also offer older buildings with outstanding extensions, and plots of land with planning permission for imaginative new-builds.

We only market properties that we ourselves are inspired by. These include penthouses, warehouses, factory spaces, barn conversions, loft apartments, school conversions, industrial properties, urban spaces and rural retreats… anything that is unusual, inspiring and out of the ordinary.

We have a thorough knowledge of the Barbican and the Golden Lane Estate, and modernist apartment blocks like Trellick Tower, Balfron Tower, Keeling House, Bevin Court, Warner House, Bruno Court and the Brunswick Centre.

We specialise in Span houses designed by Eric Lyons, such as those on the Cator Estate in Blackheath, New Ash Green in Kent, Highsett in Cambridge, Cedar Chase in Taplow, Weymede in West Byfleet, Parkleys in Ham, Templemere in Weybridge and West Oak in Beckenham.

We also represent flats in contemporary developments such as Bankside Lofts, the Alaska Building, York Central, the Jam Factory, the Yoo Building and Gainsborough Studios. Clerkenwell and EC1, in particular, has an array of loft apartments in buildings such as Ingersoll (a former watch factory converted into Manhattan-style lofts), Paramount and the Ziggurat Building.

What price ranges do you cover?
If a property is of sufficient design merit, we will represent it! In the past, we have offered for sale properties ranging from £100,000 to £10,000,000 and everything in between. 

What areas do you cover?
We have offices in London and in Surrey, but we represent property throughout the UK, in both urban and rural locations.

Our London office is centrally located between the Angel and Old Street, within striking distance of the City, Clerkenwell, Shoreditch, Spitalfields, Marylebone, Bloomsbury and the West End. We are also well placed for access to Victoria Park, London Fields and the rest of Hackney to the east, Camden, Primrose Hill, Tufnell Park, Kentish Town, Highgate and Hampstead to the north, Notting Hill, Holland Park, Ladbroke Grove and Westbourne Park to the west, and Chelsea, Fulham, Battersea, Richmond, Greenwich, Blackheath and Dulwich to the south.

Our Surrey office is positioned close to the M3 and M25 motorways, making it a convenient base for access to the Home Counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Berkshire, Middlesex, Kent, East Sussex and West Sussex. From here, we are also able to cover Cambridge, Suffolk, Norfolk and further north towards the Midlands, Manchester, and beyond to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Modern House often sells properties in rural parts of Hampshire, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall.

Do you have offices that are open to the public?
We have offices in central London and in Surrey, but these are not open to the public. We are always happy to travel to meet prospective sellers, and we try to keep as much information as possible available on our website. Due to the broad geographical spread of our properties and the niche nature of our company, there is no need for walk-in high-street premises.

Do you get press coverage for your properties?
Due to The Modern House's extensive contacts in the media, and the unique nature of the homes that we represent, we are confident of gaining editorial coverage for many of our properties. This coverage, which can cross local, national and international media, comes at no cost to the client and will often prove a highly effective marketing tool. To see some previous examples, visit our Press section.

Are your properties viewable on the online portals?
We subscribe to all of the major property websites including Rightmove, Primelocation, Findaproperty and Globrix.

Do you advertise?
We sometimes advertise in specialist publications or local newspapers, but this is not something we do as a matter of course. We believe that our regular editorial coverage in national and international newspapers and magazines represents the best marketing tool. Our properties can also be found on many architecture and design websites.

What sort of sales particulars do you produce?
Full details of our properties are published on our website. These include a minimum of six photographs (usually more), floor plans, individual room descriptions and dimensions, and information about the architectural merits of the property. Where high-quality images of a property are not already available, we will commission a professional photographer to take some. All details can be printed from our website. We do not produce glossy brochures for the simple reason that we no longer have people asking for them. 

How can I sign up for email alerts?
We send a ‘property alert’ by email whenever a new property comes onto the market. We also email out a monthly newsletter. To sign up, please click here.

Do you provide a property-finding service?
We do occasionally provide this service. Please email us with your requirements and we will let you know if we can help.

Are your properties available as locations for photography or film shoots?
Sometimes they are. Please contact us and we will be happy to discuss your requirements. The locations generally start at £1,000 per day.

Do you know of any surveyors that specialise in Modern buildings?
Unfortunately not. If you are a surveyor with a special interest in Modern buildings, please do get in touch! We do know a structural engineer who has extensive experience and interest in this area: Stuart Tappin of Stand Engineers.

Why buy a modern house?
All properties represented by The Modern House will have been built as the result of careful consideration by a particular architect, or firm of architects. They will have been designed for the exact setting in which they sit, giving them a true relationship with their surroundings. The immense amount of thought and attention that will have gone into each detail of a particular property should result in a building that functions far better than most built to a more standardised design.

Like an investment in a good work of art, substantial gains can be made by purchasing houses of architectural distinction. It has been well documented that interest in 20th- and 21st-century architecture and design is growing and, as time goes by, this growth is likely to continue.

I am a photographer who would like to work with The Modern House. Can I send you some examples of my work?
Yes, you can. Please email us. Please be aware, however, that we only use a small number of trusted photographers and that we have a very limited budget!

I am a journalist wanting to write about one of your properties. Who should I contact?
Please email us, and we will be happy to provide high-res images and any other information you require.

Are all of your properties shown on your website?
No. Often vendors will not want exposure of their property on the internet. In this case, we will send out an email alert but not publish it online. This is why we stress the importance of signing up for email alerts, so that you never miss out on the opportunity to find the property that's perfect for you.