Article written and provided by Jo Eccles, Managing Director at Eccord, for Beacon Gainer, private wealth advisory services group.
Whilst domestic demand for family houses continues, we are seeing international buyers returning with more due to arrive in September. During August and September we will have worked with clients from Israel, Azerbaijan, Australia and America.
All of them are buying for personal use; with plans to spend more time in London for work purposes, or they are buying for grown up children who are studying or working here. Their budgets range between £2.5m – £10m.
International buyer activity has brought back demand for lateral and duplex apartments in central locations, particularly Kings Cross, Marylebone, Fitzrovia and Soho.
This echoes data from the Shaftesbury Estate – one of London’s biggest landlords which owns shops, offices and homes in Soho and Chinatown – who recently confirmed that footfall in the West End has increased to 50-60% of pre-pandemic levels, up from 10-20% of normal levels during the UK lockdown at the start of this year.
The UK’s education system and the pull of London as a destination city are once again underpinning the appeal of London and its property prices. Proximity to family, schools and members clubs have overtaken office commute as location anchors.
