London still resilient and prospers
Many things are changing in the property market in London at the moment and the market for new build property is growing rapidly. Pastor Real Estate has conducted a research report that offers an in-depth analysis of the prime central London residential property market. These insights reveal the development of the prime central London market.
Since 2009, housing stock across prime central London has risen by 8.6%, which equates to 5,200 new residential addresses. This is compared to only 4% across Inner London as a whole. There are a total of 7,000 new homes in the pipeline and total housing stock has increased by 8.6%. These days, the modern developers in London are involved in shifting from small singleoccupancy units to familysized homes.
Also, there is at least one three-bedroom flat within 71% of the developments currently in the pipeline in London. There has been a shift in the development pipeline to larger units across the neighbourhoods of Marylebone, Belgravia, Knightsbridge and Mayfair. In addition, there has also been an increase in the average size of apartments. The average size of studio apartments is 763 square feet, compared to 543 sq.ft. for those that are under construction.
Optimism and confidence have been returning to the prime central London property market after a long period characterised by a sense of hesitancy. Viewings, offers and sales have increased since May across all sectors of the market, and there have been a lot of enquiries from international and domestic purchasers – especially from the Middle East.
In 2015, there are 13 schemes that are due to be completed, bringing 213 units to the market. The majority of these units are within two main London schemes, the Chilterns (Marylebone) and Phase 1 of the Chelsea Barracks (Belgravia).
There were fears of a housing bubble in London at the beginning of 2014, which were then dissipated by the introduction of the Mortgage Market Review and the fear of a potential rise in interest rates.
Through it all, prime central London’s residential market has remained resilient and has continued to prosper. Luxurious developments have been in very high demand for both domestic and international buyers. The important factors cited in prime central London purchases have been high-specification, quality and location, and sellers are marketing the “lifestyle” of the area. Developers are working to create urban retreats within London, in the style of ultra-prime and super-prime.
London is very attractive as a safe haven and it has been a desirable investment in the recent years following the credit crunch. The growth in property values clearly demonstrates the attraction of London residential property. The majority of the properties that are in the development pipeline are new, as opposed to old buildings that have been refurbished or new buildings with the old façade retained. Of course, this statistic is skewed by the large new build schemes that include Clarges Mayfair.