Prime London flat prices up 11.8% as professional and foreign buyers drive market revival

Research by London lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves, has revealed that while the prime market is still struggling when it comes to house price growth, a return to normality has helped rejuvenate the price being paid for flats, with the average price for a flat across the prime market climbing by 11.8% annually. 

The analysis of London’s prime market looks at the average price paid for both flats and houses in London’s most prestigious pockets of the property market and how they have performed over the last year.

The figures show that the average price paid for a house has fallen by -5.2% across the prime London market in the last year, now sitting at just over £3.343m. This suggests that those in the market for a larger family home continue to look towards the peripherals of the capital and beyond in order to secure larger homes with a greater abundance of outdoor space. 

However, with the capital returning to a full state of normality following the end of pandemic workplace restrictions, demand from professional and foreign buyers has once again started to climb. 

In the last year, the average price paid for a flat across the prime London market has increased by 11.8% on average - with the average flat now commanding £1.325m.

The area of St John’s Wood, Regents Park and Camden has enjoyed the largest rebound in property market values where flats are concerned, with the average price paid for an apartment increasing by 42.5% annually. 

Knightsbridge and Belgravia is not only home to the highest current average price for an apartment at £3.125m, but the area has also seen the second largest annual uplift in value at 41.5%. 

The area of Kensington, Notting Hill and Holland Park ranks third, where the average price paid for a flat has climbed by 37.3% in the last year. 

In fact, just three areas have seen the price paid for a prime London apartment fall over the last year - Mayfair and St James’s (-10.8%), Fitzrovia, Bloomsbury and Soho (-5.9%) and Midtown, City and City Fringe (-2%). 

Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr, commented:

“It’s fair to say that the London market has been ticking over and while property values haven’t appreciated at the same manic rates as the rest of the UK, it’s certainly been a slow but steady return to health following the pandemic.

Central London, in particular, was hit hardest as a result of pandemic workplace restrictions and this had quite an impact on buyer appetites across the prime market. 

However, we’ve seen a momentum shift in recent months across both prime neighbourhoods and central London as a whole, with an increased level of demand from professional and foreign buyers driving the market forward. 

As a result, demand for good quality prime London apartments has been high and this has led to quite a substantial increase in the price being paid for them.”