Q&A: inside the JLL and WA Ellis merger

JLL has expanded into the prime London residential sales and lettings market, via its merger with WA Ellis, announced last week.

The 140-year-old firm gives JLL access to the prime London sales, lettings, management and valuation markets with a particular focus on Knightsbridge, Chelsea and Belgravia.

Lucy Morton, senior partner at WA Ellis, will join the JLL residential executive board to lead the agency business. Andrew Frost, head of residential for JLL, will continue to lead the residential business in the UK. They reveal to Hannah Brenton the rationale behind the merger.

How did the merger come about?

Morton: Over the years, we’ve shared clients and done a lot of work together. It has been the perfect fit for both firms — there’s no overlap. JLL brings a global presence along with a huge amount of development stock and we bring an agency presence and an opening into the prime central London agency market.

Why undertake the merger now?

Frost: From the JLL perspective, in growing the residential business over the last 10 or so years, we have concentrated on organically building a substantial profile in the land, finance and international markets.

Having become established very successfully in all of those markets, it was the right time to grow our agency presence, which was probably the shortest leg on the stool — and to do that effectively was to work with a best-in-class business.

Why a merger and not an acquisition?

Frost: JLL has acquired WA Ellis, but it would be inappropriate for this to be regarded as anything other than a merger because there is no overlap and the new skills that WA Ellis brings to JLL are totally complementary, so that’s why we consider it to be a merger.

So this will allow you to work all the way through from development to end product?

Frost: That’s right. It’s not to say that JLL doesn’t have the capability now but we don’t have anything like enough coverage in prime central London.

Do you have any comment or concerns about the prime market over-heating?

Morton: Demand is still definitely there, both on the letting and the sales sides and this is evidenced by the developments being launched at the moment — there are queues of people wanting to buy for both owner-occupiers and investment.

There’s more stock coming on but if a property is well-presented and priced correctly, the buyers are still there.

Frost: This is a strategic decision that we’ve taken for the long term and long term it would be crazy to bet against London.