London Property Market Update in COVID-19 Era

London housing

Yemi Edun

It’s been a roller coaster few months since the December 2019 outbreak of the coronavirus. The world has gone through a once in a generation systemic shock that has upended and confounded what our sense of normality is. However, after almost 20 months due to the miracle of Vaccination, the end seems to be roughly in sight.

As your trusted property advisors, it is our duty to show you how the property world has emerged from this long night. The property market is currently on course for its busiest year since 2007, which comes on the back of data showing that the sector as a whole has defied expectations to generate double-digit price growth over the past year.

This has been fuelled by a number of factors, but chiefly a supply squeeze across most regions, with London being the least squeezed region. This is chiefly a creation of the pandemic as buyers and sellers alike reassessed where and how they lived during the three national lockdowns.

This has inadvertently raised the demand for properties with outdoor spaces and proximity to greenery. The stamp duty holiday also came to an end on June the 30th leading to a rush to complete purchases by the deadline.

Now that you have a picture of the market, we have received a lot of questions on what to do now the pandemic is over, and we feel that advice is best categorised based on where you are in your investment cycle.

For seasoned property owners, before acquiring any further investments, this may be the best time to review what and how you’re holding your investments. How short are the leases on your properties?, are your properties still fit for purpose or do you need to downsize and for those with enveloped dwellings, have you had a review into whether your structures are in good standing?

These are all important things to consider and In the case of an enveloped dwelling could de-enveloping or liquidating the structure to a more tax-efficient vehicle be a better solution for you?

For those selling, they have to be realistic with prices. Whilst we’ve seen record sales volumes, it does not cut across the board. The numbers seen may not be a true reflection of the overall market as new builds come tops due to government help to buy and in some cases, particular price points that were achieved were a fallout from the stamp duty holiday.

For those people buying. Keep a keen eye out for the EWS1 because of cladding, according to Barry Kyte of Hadley Kyte Solicitors. The winds of a historical low interest rate fly in your favour with a current rate of 0.1%. A great positive for Nigerian buyers is the fact that there are a record number of banks available to provide mortgage options with an equity contribution of 30%. These banks are both Nigerian and international banks.

The next generation of upwardly mobile buyers has sought to learn lessons from the mistakes of the older generation. Low property stock is still a hindrance, but in the search of ways to affirm their global international standing a Second passport is also now an important acquisition. Primary focus hotspots for such buyers are the U.K, Cyprus, Greece, Malta, and some islands like St Kitts and the Dominican Republic.

For the most mature of our investors, one thing we’ve identified is people downsizing due to children completing their education. They are now focused on the important matters of Legacy and Estate Planning.

However, whatever your position or current standing, we here at Daniel Ford International are always available for a no-fee non-obligatory conversation. We are open to the various means of reaching out like zoom and any other comfortable medium and are able to give tailored advice.

Edun is CEO, Daniel Ford Int’l, London