Demand rebounds for Prime London property
Big ticket buyers returned to the capital in the spring months, the Prime London Demand Index from London lettings and estate agent Benham and Reeves has revealed.
Between the first and second quarters there was a 1.8% uplift in ‘demand’ for homes between £2 and £10 million, which is calculated based on the proportion of homes listed for sale that have already been sold subject to contract.
Demand still lags -1.9% below the second quarter of 2024, which means there’s still potential for more buyers to come to market.
This year higher-priced London markets have been affected by a tightening of non-dom rules, as there is a 40% inheritance tax on non-doms’ global assets. In November the stamp duty surcharge on additional properties was also increased from 3% to 5%.
On the flipside the global instability in the Middle East, coupled with Donald Trump’s tariff trade wars, could drive more overseas buyers to invest in the capital’s sought-after property market.
Prime market (£2m to £10m)
Clapham returned to health in the second quarter of 2025, where demand rose from nothing to 36.9%, making it one of the busiest areas.
The second fastest growing region was also in South West London, as Wandsworth saw a 5.0% increase in demand quarter-on-quarter, bringing total demand to 31.8%.
The most in-demand area of all has been Chiswick, at 39.3%, followed by Putney, at 37.8%.
Demand dropped in multiple Central London areas, like Holland Park (-3.4%) and Pimlico (-3.1%), though it fell the most in Richmond (-10.2%) in the South West of the capital.
On an annual basis Wapping in East London has seen the biggest uplift in demand (18.5%).
Super prime market (£10m+)
In terms of the £10 million plus market, the highest demand area is Fitzrovia in Central London, at 25.0%.
This was followed by Victoria (15.6%), also in Central London, as well as Highgate (9.1%) in the North West of the city.
Demand fell off in areas like Wimbledon and Holland Park, where there were no sales for £10m plus in the second quarter.
Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr, commented:
“Prime London property buyers are still seeing value in the market, reflected by demand rising as we get into the warmer months of the year.
“South West London is most in-demand, where investors are likely seeing more value compared to the highly developed Central London market.
“Prime London is commonly seen as a safe haven to park cash in times of global uncertainty, so it remains to be seen if the market will build up more steam in the months ahead.”
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