London High-End Property Prices on the Rise
A recent survey has found that the high-end property market in London is bucking the downward trend as prices continue to rise, most noticeably with houses worth more than £10 million.
It seems that, despite the current economic crisis in the UK, there is a growing demand for houses in London that are worth more than £10million. The latest survey shows that buyers of properties in this price range have risen by a third in the last twelve months although virtually all buyers are foreign and most are from the Middle East.
Savills carried out the survey and found that the upper end of the property market in London could be divided into three clear categories. At the top is the £10 million plus category, followed by homes costing £5million-£10million and the final tier is made up of properties priced between £1million and £4million.
The middle tier has seen a decrease in the last twelve months as a result of the City boys finding it difficult to compete with wealthy foreigners. The market has therefore reduced quite significantly as the City tries to ride out the economic crisis.
The state of the City has also had an effect on the final tier, as those living beyond their means in expectation of large bonuses are being forced to rein in the extravagant lifestyle. Sales in this category have fallen by nearly 45% as a result.
Areas such as Kensington and South West London have been worst hit, whereas traditionally high-brow areas such as Knightsbridge, Mayfair and Belgravia have maintained a reasonable level of stability, thanks to old-money and international demand.
Although the very top-end of the market is slowing, there is still competition for the most prestigious properties. It is only to be expected that turnover will slow down, given the current property market elsewhere, but prices are still up over 11% compared to this time last year.
Elsewhere in the UK the property market is unfortunately less stable, with the number of new-builds at its lowest since 1994 – it remains to be seen when this will start picking up.
