Highest level of buyer demand found in Chiswick

Buyer demand for prime London homes – £2m-plus – rose during the final quarter of 2023, but the super prime market – £10m-plus – continued to decline, according to Benham & Reeves’ Prime London Buyer Demand Index.

PRIME LONDON DEMAND UP WHILE SUPER PRIME DECLINES, RESEARCH REVEALS

The report’s demand metrics were based on the proportion of all homes listed for sale across the prime market that were already sold subject to contract.

Demand in the core prime market rose by 1.1% in Q4 2023, with more than one in five of all homes listed already finding a buyer. However, demand remained down on an annual basis by 0.7%.

•    The highest level of buyer demand was found in Chiswick, at 52.1% in Q4.

•    The largest quarterly uplifts in demand were seen in Richmond (+10.9%), Chiswick (+10.3%), Islington (+5.6%), Wimbledon (+5.5%) and Notting Hill (+4.7%).

•    The largest annual uplifts were see in Putney (+11.4%), Clapham (+11.3%) and Highgate (+4.9%).

In the super prime market, demand fell overall by 3.4% in Q4, remaining 11.9% down compared with the same quarter in 2022. The highest buyer demand for super prime property was in Notting Hill (9.1%), Chelsea (8.5%) and Mayfair (5.7%).

The largest quarterly uplift in demand for super prime London homes was in Chelsea (+8.5%), Holland Park (+4.3%) and Mayfair (+3.8%). On a yearly basis, Mayfair was the only location to see an increase in super prime demand, which rose 1.5%.

LONDON’S HIGH-END HOMEBUYERS CONTINUE TO RETURN

Marc von Grundherr, director at Benham & Reeves: “London’s top tier property market largely echoed the subdued market performance seen across the rest of the capital during the final quarter of 2023.

“However, there are signs that these cooler market conditions could be on the turn, with buyer demand starting to climb across the core prime market, resulting in many individual neighbourhoods registering strong growth.

“It may take some time yet before this growing market sentiment reaches the dizzying heights of the super prime market, although this segment has always been very much about quality over quantity to begin with.

“That said, as London’s high-end homebuyers continue to return it’s only a matter of time before this momentum flows up stream.”