Super prime residential sale volumes in London resilient amid wider slowdown in the capital
According to Knight Frank’s London Residential Development H2 2019 report, new homes sold for more than £10 million have remained resilient in the face of a wider slowdown in the capital, and as a result, accounted for 34% of total sales in Q2, up from 18% in Q2 2017.
Rupert des Forges, Head of Prime Central London Developments at Knight Frank, explains:
“Prime buyers are increasingly focused on securing a London residence in a new scheme, prioritising the high level of security and extensive amenity on offer. These purchasers are becoming far more discerning, and in an increasing number of cases we’re seeing them benchmark the homes in which they live against the hotels in which they stay.
“With that in mind, prime apartments offer a seamless transition away from transient hotel living for the new, younger generation of global wealth now driving the top end of the market. This is a demographic who truly understands the superior modern services and amenities that a new home can offer, compared to what is available on the resale market.”
Several high profile schemes have sold out in recent months, and the current planning pipeline points to yet more constrained supply on the horizon, The number of units given consent across Westminster City Council and The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, where much of the capital’s super-prime homes are delivered, fell to its lowest level in a decade during the twelve months to Q2 2019.
Given the current scarcity of supply, three best in class examples of completed schemes that are ready to move in are:
- Qatari Diar’s Chelsea Barracks, with starting prices from £5.25 million;
- Native Land’s Holland Park Villas, with starting prices from £7.5 million; and
- Finchatton’s Twenty Grosvenor Square, with starting prices from £17.5 million.
