Arab property buyers target London as political uncertainty hits market

LONDON: London luxury property brokers expect Arab investors to return to London this summer as political uncertainty accelerates a slide in prices.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said the average number of homes on the books of estate agents fell to its lowest number since 1978 when it started its monthly survey.

Some 44 percent of contributors blamed political uncertainty for the subdued market, while 27 percent highlighted Brexit as the most important factor.

But that has also created a buying opportunity for overseas investors, especially those from countries with dollar pegs, whose money now goes further because of the continued sterling weakness.

The Knightsbridge office of Savills, which handles some of London’s most expensive property transactions, reports a rise in activity from Arab investors this summer despite the wider market malaise.

“We are seeing more Middle East buyers take advantage of the current decline in prices and sterling weakness,” said Noel de Keyzer, a director at the office.

He said that transactions had increased by a third since last summer when the property market was reeling from the surprise outcome of the referendum in which Britain voted to leave the EU.

Despite the rise in transactions, Savills reports that the overall stock of properties available for sale in prime locations such as Knightsbridge has fallen by as much as 40 percent since 2014.

Agents blame higher stamp duties introduced by former Chancellor George Osborne, which have deterred owners from moving home.

A 15 percent decline in prices since the market peak for prime central London property 2014 has also prompted some owners to withdraw their homes for sale in the hope of a recovery in prices.

The summer months are traditionally a busy time for property brokers in the prime central London locations such as Knightsbridge and Belgravia as wealthy Gulf nationals descend on the capital — some seeking to buy apartments for children studying in the UK capital.

The RICS Residential Market Survey for June said that the pace of decline in house price inflation in central London continued, with 45 percent more respondents seeing a decline in prices over the month.

Respondents once again saw a decline in newly-agreed sales in June, with 5 percent more respondents seeing a fall in sales over the month.

It represents the fourth consecutive negative reading and reflects both the lack of stock coming on the market and a more cautious stance from buyers over recent months, the RICS said.

New instructions also fell again and for the 16th month in a row, with 19 percent more respondents seeing a fall rather than a rise in property coming on the market.