£5m-plus homes driving prime London market

The top-end of the prime London market was a key driver for sales and new listings last year, LonRes figures suggest.

Analysis by the property data company shows that while all parts of the prime London market were affected by the mini-Budget inspired turmoil in the final quarter of 2022, it was the top-end of the that proved to be the most resilient.

Properties sold at £5m and above, form a relatively small part of the prime London market at around 8% of sales, but it is this market that recorded the highest growth in sales during 2022 when compared to the pre-pandemic average, LonRes said.

Sales at the £5m plus price point were up 63% last year compared with the 2017-2019 pre-pandemic average.

The £1m to £2m market saw 23% more sales in 2022 than the 2017-2019 average while the £2m to £5m market recorded a 42% rise over the same period. But the highest price band (£5 million and above) was the one that recorded the biggest increase, with sales in 2022 63% higher than the average for 2017-2019.

The total stock on the market at the end of 2022 was 12% higher than the average for 2017-2019.

However, the increase in listings at the £5m plus market has contributed to a rise in stock levels, according to LonRes.

The number of top-end properties on the market at the end of 2022 was 24% higher than the pre-pandemic average.

The LonRes data shows activity levels fell in the final quarter of 2022.

Prices were down 2.5% compared with the pre-pandemic average while sales fell 27% and new instructions declined 22.9%.

Anthony Payne, managing director of LonRes, said: “The top-end of the prime London market was one of the strongest performers of last year.

“In the final quarter of 2022 new instructions in this rarefied market were some 74% higher than the pre-pandemic average. But this a discrete sector and many of these properties will be marketed quietly off-market. And just as quietly withdrawn if they fail to meet their asking price.”