May 2023 Market Update
Dawes London is proud to have acquired over £85 million worth of Prime Central London property for clients since its launch in October 2021.
Core to our business is offering the very best advice to our clients. We continue to have a long-term relationship-driven strategy built on trust, clear communication and in-depth market knowledge. Many would assume that the ‘search’ is the fundamental part of our service, but building a team of the best lawyers, surveyors, planning consultants and architects is also vital to ensure that the correct due diligence is complete in a high-value transaction.
A notable recent transaction was a 12,500 sq ft house in Chelsea. This was truly a ‘best-in-class’ property acquired entirely off-market. We found our client their dream home- one of the finest houses in London- and Dawes London negotiated 20% off the asking price.
Market Update
PrimeResi reported that activity in Prime Outer London – more reliant on domestic and mortgage-reliant buyers – has slowed much more than in Prime Central London. For example, deal numbers have fallen significantly in outer prime markets such as Battersea, Clapham & Wandsworth (transaction volumes are down 47.6% compared to the end of 2022). However, according to Knight Frank data released this week, London’s £10 million-plus (super-prime) property market enjoyed a long overdue recovery during the twelve months through March. Buyers spent £3.1 billion on 161 properties, up from £2.5 billion the previous year, making it the strongest year since 2016.
In our opinion, a continued lack of good quality property for sale has supported pricing in Prime Central London, together with the minimal need of buyers at this level to take financing. Sellers continue to favour marketing their properties discreetly offline, the majority selling to qualified, represented buyers before going on the open market.