Ravendale House

This simple question is dealt with beautifully and succinctly by the Bard in ‘Romeo and Juliet’.

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”

However, I do wonder if 400 years down the line, things might not be quite so simple and straightforward.

Take for example the subject of street names. On the face of it a fairly harmless subject, but I was reading an article the other day which might change your opinion.

The article in question was looking specifically at risqué street names and what effect they had on the value of the properties built along them. It listed the top 15 in the UK.

I found this interesting for 2 reasons, one of which I will be writing about at a later date. The other is that we are familiar with No. 3, the delightfully named ‘Fanny Hands Lane’ as it is actually in the nearby village of Ludford.

Legend has it that in the early 19th century the local landowner, John Hands, married a young girl called Frances and named the lane in her honour.

So I was amazed to read that a detached house there had a value of £157,200, whilst just round the corner in Magna Mile, a similar property would be £236,987, that’s a difference of almost £80,000!!

There was a further example given, for somewhere in the south of England, where the difference in 2 similar properties ran into six figures. I find that quite extraordinary.

So I think the 21st century answer to this age old question is ‘A substantial amount of money’ !!!!!