Wednesday, October 6, 2010

The low pound, political instability in many countries around the world and the attractions of English public schooling have combined to keep prime London house prices bubbling, according to a new report.

Added to this, financial and professional services companies have embarked on a hiring spree, further stimulating demand for upscale properties, says the report from Black Brick.
More than half the buyers in the posh London districts of Kensington, Chelsea and Mayfair are from overseas, encompassing a heady 51 nationalities, compared to just 30 in mid-2008. Over this period, Sterling has fallen by around 28 per cent against key currencies such as the Hong Kong dollar, the US dollar and the Saudi riyal.
At the highest level of property transactions, where values rise above £5 million, almost 70 per cent of buyers are foreign, against 60 per cent in Mayfair, Knightsbridge and Hampstead.
Some free-spending nationalities opt for specific locations, according to London agents: Hong Kong buyers stick to the financial districts of Wapping and Canary Wharf, diverting only for the leafy charms of Hyde Park. For Kensington, most demand comes from the Far East and the Middle East, according to developer Northbeach.
Russians still make up the most populous group of overseas buyers, at 14 per cent of the total, with Americans second at 11 per cent, Italians next and then newly-rich Indians, Malaysians and Vietnamese. Oil wealth from Norway, Brazil, Kazakhstan and the UAE is pouring into central London bricks and mortar, while the troubles afflicting the Greek economy have prompted its better off citizens to flee to the UK.
As a result, prime London properties have risen by 20 per cent in the past 12 months, says Knight Frank. Not bad in a so-called slowdown.

The original comment can be found at London House Prices

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