Estate agent Richard James has opened a new office in Hendon and has already sold two large houses there. The estate agent, which has been established in Mill Hill for six years, has sold two high-value properties in Manor Hall Drive, Hendon. One of them is a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house with scope to extend. The asking price was £1.125 million. The other is on a double-width plot and totals 3,600 sq ft with six bedrooms, three bathrooms an outdoor swimming pool and a Mark Wilkinson kitchen. Its asking price was £1.75 million.

Richard Power points out that the estate agency, which he established with James Goldsobel, sells properties of all kinds. It is active in the rental market, too, and has two one-bedroom flats under offer.

However, he adds that in Hendon, "we're going to try to specialise at the top end, which is what we do best in Mill Hill".

Richard James has picked up a sizeable sole agency in Cedar Close, Hendon. The 2,700 sq ft property with scope to extend has five bedrooms and three receptions rooms. It comes with an 80ft garden, parking with its own garage and is on the market at £1.595 million. "This is arguably one of the best roads in Hendon," says Mr Power.

Mr Power feels his firm could not have opened in Hendon at a better time. "The market is very good," he says. "It's been a very good couple of months for us. There is a huge lack of stock. If your house in Hendon is priced correctly, it should go straight away. If it doesn't, the problem is usually price-related."