More than 130 properties worth £5m-plus EACH sold in London in past six months

In the three months to the end of June 2023, a total of 132 properties in London, each worth more than £5 million, changed hands.

It is an increase from 108 similarly priced homes in the first three months of this year, but a decrease from a figure of 163 homes sold at this level in the second quarter of 2022.

However, all of these numbers are significantly higher than the total of 102 in the three months of 2020 prior to the start of the pandemic.

The increase this year may raise some eyebrows, given the economic background in which mortgage rates have risen above 6 percent.

However, many of these homebuyers were cash buyers who were not exposed to concerns about rising interest rates.

This year, cash buyers accounted for 71 percent of central London prime deals and 35 percent of outer prime London deals, according to Savills.

The broker explained that while the numbers for upscale homes were remarkably resilient to the broader economic picture at the start of the year, buyers still picked the best properties and were “price sensitive.”

The number of sales in the first quarter of this year is a 21 percent drop from sales in the first six months of 2022, but “at the same level” as in the same period in 2021, according to the broker.

It’s also 45 percent higher than the average of just 166 over the first six months in the three years between 2017 and 2019 — just before the pandemic started.

Frances McDonald, from Savills, said: ‘The first quarter marked a slowdown following an intense period of activity from mid-2021 as buyers refocused on urban living.

“These latest quarterly numbers underline the remarkable resilience we have seen in our prime central London index, which fell a marginal -0.9 percent year-on-year.”

Savills said there have been 65 sales so far at the end of the £10m+ market.

This is slightly higher than in 2021 – with 63 sales – and 17 percent above the average from the first half of 2017 to 2019. However, it is again below the same period in 2022 when 91 transactions took place.

McDonald added: “A background of worrying domestic and international economic indicators means that even the money-driven high end of the market is price sensitive, especially given its discretionary nature.

“The momentum will only be sustained if buyers and sellers remain in line with their expectations.”

More than £2.4bn worth of property worth over £5m has been traded to date, according to Savills data. Around the same time last year, that figure was £3.1 billion.

Don’t need a mortgage? Cash buyers accounted for 71% of prime deals in central London, according to Savills

There has also been a shift in the mix of property sales, with flats accounting for a growing share of sales as memories of the pandemic fade.

Overall, 44 per cent of transactions over £5m have taken place in London so far this year, up from 40 per cent last year and just 28 per cent in 2021.

McDonald said: ‘This, to some extent, reflects the completion of some world-class new build programs and buyers targeting turnkey properties, but it also marks a clear shift away from a time when larger homes with private outdoor space were at the top of the expectations of every buyer. wishlist.’

There remains a market for well-priced, best-in-class properties in London’s longest established prime locations.

Chelsea, Kensington and Belgravia have accounted for a third of all sales in excess of £5 million so far this year.

Savills agent Alex Christian added: ‘While there are many more buyers in the market than at the turn of the year, they all take a ‘belt and braces’ approach to every aspect of a purchase. Selling in this market always requires pragmatic “open for business” prices.’