The verdict in three sentences
For a luxury property developer in London, a dated website costs credibility at the exact moment a buyer or their agent compares three schemes in Mayfair, Kensington or Battersea. A redesign is justified as soon as the site no longer shows completed schemes, floor plans, availability and a fast response to enquiries. The budget runs from 2,300 to 6,900 GBP on Kolonell's fixed grid against £15,000 to over £100,000 at a specialist London agency, provided SEO risks and a compliance review are scoped before go-live.
Signs your website is working against you
Buyers in this segment, British or international, often arrive through an agent or a family office. They open the site on a phone between meetings and judge it in under a minute: real delivery track record, architectural quality, location, timeline, downloadable plans, unit status. A few signs rarely mislead:
- completed schemes are mixed with current ones with no clear distinction;
- CGIs carry no 'artist's impression' or 'CGI' label;
- a scheme page has no floor plans, no size range and no indicative completion date;
- the enquiry form lands in a generic inbox and replies take 48 hours;
- the site is only in English while part of your buyers read another language first.
What does a redesign cost in London in 2026?
| Option | Budget (2026 ballpark) | Typical timeline | Usually included |
|---|---|---|---|
| London freelancer | £4,000 to £12,000 | 6 to 10 weeks | Design and build, content supplied by you |
| Generalist London agency | £15,000 to £40,000 | 8 to 14 weeks | Design, CMS, scheme pages, basic SEO |
| Specialist prestige property agency | £45,000 to £120,000 and above | 12 to 24 weeks | Art direction, film, buyer areas, CRM integrations |
| Kolonell Starter | 2,300 GBP | 3 to 4 weeks | Showcase site, project manager reachable in your time zone, native English copywriting, 3 months of support |
| Kolonell Growth | 3,900 GBP | 3 to 4 weeks | Starter plus detailed scheme pages and search-ready structure |
| Kolonell Premium | 6,900 GBP | 4 to 6 weeks | Multilingual tier, languages set in the quote |
| Maintenance after 3 months | Market assumption: £150 to £600 per month | Ongoing | At Kolonell: on quote |
Gated buyer areas, availability tables synced with a CRM and portal integrations are on quote, whatever the tier. Tier details are on the international offer page.
Timeline: from inventory to launch
| Phase | Duration at Kolonell | What the developer provides |
|---|---|---|
| URL and content inventory | Week 1 | Search Console access, list of completed and current schemes |
| Sitemap and mock-ups | Weeks 1 to 2 | Approved CGIs, floor plans, scheme legal notices |
| Copywriting and build | Weeks 2 to 3 | Copy approval, partner agent contacts |
| Compliance review | Week 3 | Internal or adviser review of claims and visuals |
| 301 redirects and go-live | Weeks 3 to 4 (Premium: 4 to 6) | Final sign-off, DNS access |
| Post-launch follow-up | 3 months included | Feedback from the sales team |
These timelines start once content is ready. In practice, it is approval of visuals and copy by the architect or the legal team that stretches a schedule.
Risks and how to contain them
Search ranking loss. A redesign without a URL inventory removes pages that used to bring enquiries. The fix: export the pages that receive clicks in Search Console, build a page-by-page 301 redirect map, then monitor errors for 8 weeks.
Regulated content. Property advertising in the UK is subject to consumer protection law, and material information about a property (tenure, service charges, off-plan status) must not be omitted or misleading. If your marketing mentions investment returns, FCA rules on financial promotions may come into play. On data, UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and PECR for cookies and marketing email, overseen by the ICO, govern your forms. Targeting WCAG 2.2 AA also supports your Equality Act 2010 duties. This is not legal advice.
Downtime. A DNS switch scheduled on a weekday evening, with the old site kept read-only for 30 days, limits the risk.
As a reference, Kolonell built the website of Orven Properties, a real estate company in Dubai (orvenproperties.com): a comparable brief in substance, presenting high-end property to an international clientele.
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When a London agency is the better choice. If you need a full marketing suite (filming, marketing suite fit-out, press campaigns) run by one team a few Tube stops away, or a bespoke buyer portal wired to your CRM from day one, a local specialist agency is justified. Questions to ask in every case: who writes the copy, who builds the 301 map, how many review rounds are planned, and who owns the code and the visuals.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Albemarle Row Developments, a fictional developer with 4 residential schemes in Chelsea and Marylebone, receives a local quote of £38,000. The audit shows 180 indexed pages, 46 of which received clicks over twelve months. The team chooses Kolonell Premium at 6,900 GBP for an English site with a second language set in the quote, and keeps a separate budget of £9,000 for an on-quote buyer area. Total: 6,900 + 9,000 = £15,900, which is £22,100 less than the initial quote. Each of the 46 useful pages gets a 301 redirect checked before the switch.
FAQ
How long does a full redesign take?
At Kolonell, 3 to 4 weeks for Starter or Growth and 4 to 6 weeks for Premium, once content is ready. With a London agency, allow 8 to 24 weeks depending on scope.
Should unit prices be displayed?
It is a commercial decision, but a 'from' price or a range reduces unqualified enquiries. Some developers display prices for 50 to 70% of units and keep the rest for agents.
How do we present CGIs safely?
Every non-photographic visual should carry a clear 'CGI' or 'artist's impression' label. An off-plan scheme page should also give an indicative completion date rather than a firm commitment.
Will the site be multilingual?
Multilingual is the Premium tier at 6,900 GBP, with languages set in the quote. The other tiers are delivered in one language.
What happens after the 3 months of support?
Maintenance is offered on quote. In the London market, the common assumption is £150 to £600 per month depending on update volume.
Let's scope your project. A Growth or Premium redesign for your schemes, with a redirect map and a compliance review, delivered in 3 to 6 weeks. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
