London’s luxury homes market ‘strongest for six years’

London’s market for top-end homes is having its best year for sales since 2015, according to the estate agent Savills.

It says there have been 352 transactions above the £5m mark in the capital’s super prime residential market in the first nine months of 2021. This compares with 348 deals for the whole of last year and 319 during 2019.

The company says the value of sales comprising £5m-plus properties totalled £3.49 billion for the first three-quarters of this year. This is 39% higher than the same period last year and 62% greater than 2019.

Savills says sales in the £5m-£10m bracket have dominated London’s super-prime market this year. There have also been 94 sales of homes worth £10m-plus.

It says the market has predominantly been driven by demand from buyers already living in the capital, with many looking for more space to counter the effects of pandemic lockdowns, restrictions and changing work patterns.

Five central London locations prized for their luxury homes - Chelsea, Kensington, Belgravia, Notting Hill and St John’s Wood - are responsible for over half of this year’s transactions.

The weight of demand means the average value of London’s top-end homes with six or more bedrooms has risen by 6.2% over the past year, compared with 2.4% across prime London as a whole.

Jonathan Hewlett, Savills’s head of London residential, said: “As travel restrictions ease, we are seeing more international buyers looking to snap up homes. In particular, we’re seeing a notable uptick of activity from US tech entrepreneurs and individuals from the investment sector who are looking to purchase a London base.”