As expected, July and August were fairly quiet in parts of the prime London property market as many prospective buyers took stock over the summer following both the General Election and Chancellor’s Budget. However, September has seen an upturn in buyer enquires.
Covent Garden & Soho have seen transaction levels increase by 19% between July-Sept 2015 compared to the same period in 2014*, however an overall decrease in transactions of around 22% across Prime Central London has been reported**. Activity between £1M & £2M remains strong, with a good number of buyers and more stock begin- ning to filter in to the market.
28% of Central London agents in Q2 2015 reported that vendors were seeking unrealistic prices** and we’ve seen a big difference in levels of interest between sensibly priced stock and properties asking a more optimistic premium, even those in the most sought after streets and buildings. Demand remains strong, but the market is price sensitive and we believe it will remain so for the foreseeable future as buyers seek not only exceptional homes, but demonstrable value.
*source – Rightmove | **source – Lonres