According to a new survey, international home buyers have long been a part of London's prime central residential market, but "global buyers" are increasingly U.K. residents. Main suppliers
Global buyers made up 49 percent of all sales of £1 million or more in prime central London in the year to June, according to nationality. According to a Knight Frank survey, only 28% of buyers were not British citizens, and the majority were investors searching for rental income.
In the paper, Liam Bailey, global head of residential research at Knight Frank, said, "Once we begin to consider residence, we can understand more clearly where investment flows are originating." "Our research shows that Europe, the Middle East, and Russia are at the top of the field in terms of both buyer nationalities and primary hubs for non-resident buyers."
When evaluating the new-build home market, which is more appealing to developers, the number of international buyers rises both by nationality and residency, according to the company. Global buyers made up 69 percent of prime central London new-build transactions in the two years to June, while 49 percent were non-UK residents.
Global investors are pushing purchases in prime Central London, according to analysts, with prices up 5.5 percent so far this year. Buyers from Hong Kong and China were the largest group of buyers in London's new-build industry, accounting for 27 percent of the market by volume, according to a Savills survey.
To assess the international presence across Greater London, Knight Frank looked at new-build properties sold to foreign owners in the two years leading up to June across all 33 London boroughs.
Although U.K. residents accounted for 51% of new-build purchases in the prime central London sector, they accounted for 80% of new-build purchases in the rest of inner London. According to Knight Frank, the figure was even higher in outer London, where U.K. residents accounted for 93 percent of sales.
The firm concluded that there is no proof of higher non-UK resident transactions outside of central London after two years of study.
Mr. Bailey wrote in the study that "while some developers have noted rising interest from overseas buyers in areas outside of central London, these tend to be localized examples." "According to our report, the majority of overseas demand for new-build property in London remains concentrated in the relatively limited and concentrated market of central London post codes."