According to a recent report published by Savills in October of this year, 63% of residential property sold over £8m in London is now sold to foreign owners. The stat in itself goes to support the fact that London is truly an International destination, but also the pace of change is quite surprising. A similar report from Knight Frank published in September of this year suggests that for properties over £5m, the percentage of foreign buyers has changed from 53% in June 2009 to 68% in June 2010.

And it isn’t just the ‘Super-Prime’ areas that are benefiting. Again according to Knight Frank, for the first time in London foreign ownership between £750k and up to 2m, represents over half of the market, moving from 45% in June 2007 to 54.5% in June 2010. So while many Britons struggle to obtain finance to buy they’ll be pleased to know that their Foreign Landlords will be finding it ever easier by leveraging against non-UK assets.

Why?

The biggest, single reason at the moment is undoubtedly the weakness of Sterling. With the Pound in the doldrums and no respite on the horizon, for many earning in other currencies it is the best time in a decade to invest in the UK.

Due to the true cosmopolitan nature of London, combined with a stable political system, good education and strong finance centre, for many London is a home from home. The robust nature of the London property market also means that it should serve as a good investment as well as providing a family home.

Where?

For the Russians and Uzbeks, Mayfair and Knightsbridge are popular, whilst those hailing from the Middle east, the areas North of Hyde Park; W2, Kensington and St. Johns Wood are strong favourites. For the ‘Med-Set’ (French/Greeks/Italians) South Kensington, Chelsea and Fulham are the places to be.

For many New Build properties are preferred, especially those that are secure and offer 24 hour concierge.

At Enness we pride ourselves on our ability to deliver for International buyers. Not just the basics of offering mortgages in foreign currency, but the ancillary services that a non-UK resident should expect through our preferred partners; property finders, tax advice, legal services, the setting up of offshore holding vehicles, builders, security and management of estates, to name but a few.

Please contact us directly to find out more about the services that we can offer.