Ancoats & New Islington

Twenty years ago Ancoats was empty mills and car parks. Now it is where a great many buyers start their search and where plenty of them end it: restored cotton mills with original beams and cast-iron columns, new buildings around New Islington marina, independent places to eat and drink, and Piccadilly a ten minute walk away.

That popularity cuts both ways. A converted mill apartment with a canal outlook is a very different proposition from a one bedroom flat in a 2008 block two streets away, and buyers here know the difference. Pricing a home in Ancoats properly means knowing which building, which side and which floor.

Living here

Cutting Room Square is the centre of things, with restaurants and bakeries that draw people from across the city. The Rochdale and Ashton canals frame the neighbourhood, and New Islington marina and Cotton Field Park give it more green space and water than anywhere else in the centre. New Islington tram stop serves the east side.

The homes

Converted mills such as Murrays' Mills, Royal Mills and the buildings of Albion Works sit alongside newer developments around the marina and a growing number of townhouses. Lofts with exposed brick and timber command a premium over standard apartments, and canal-facing homes over those that face the street.

Selling here

Ancoats draws owner-occupiers and investors in roughly equal measure. We price for the building rather than the postcode, market to whichever buyer is likely to pay most for yours, and gather the service charge, lease and building safety information before launch so a good buyer is not lost waiting for it.