{"id":20869,"date":"2022-06-13T07:22:32","date_gmt":"2022-06-13T06:22:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/?p=20869"},"modified":"2026-02-18T06:18:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T06:18:59","slug":"rising-demand-of-london-homes-for-sale-and-rent-from-chinese-and-hongkong-expats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/london-property-market\/rising-demand-of-london-homes-for-sale-and-rent-from-chinese-and-hongkong-expats\/","title":{"rendered":"Peak season for sales and rentals as Hong Kong and Chinese expats search for a London home"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Japanese-tenants\"Our China desk continues to see rising demand from both Chinese and Hong Kong buyers and renters, particularly Hong Kong BNO<\/a> visa holders moving to the UK.\u00a0 \u00a0The months of June, July and August are peak times for rental and sales enquiries as many expats wish to settle down in London with their families before the start of the September school term.<\/p>\n

Additionally, BNO visa holders coming to London from Hong Kong who have been living in London for several months now are keen to put down roots by buying their first home in the UK.<\/p>\n

Virtually all are professionals, typically working in industries including finance, banking, accounting and engineering.\u00a0 We\u2019re also seeing increasing demand from teachers and nurses.<\/p>\n

Finding a home in London\u2019s fast-paced rental market<\/h2>\n

It’s difficult for renters to find a home in London<\/a> at the moment, especially if they are new to the city, because of the high rental demand and severe shortage of properties<\/a> generally.\u00a0 This is a city-wide problem for all lettings agents \u2013 not just Benham and Reeves<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The rental market is extremely competitive so professionals from Hong Kong and China need to act very quickly when they find the right property \u2013 this can come as a surprise.\u00a0\u00a0So it\u2019s essential to start the property search early, before they arrive in London.\u00a0 To help expats navigate this difficult market we discuss their requirements and identify their needs before they leave for the UK, to get a detailed picture of what type of property they are looking for.<\/p>\n

Essential advice for those moving to London for the first time<\/h2>\n

\"EssentialMany Chinese and Hong Kong expats have not visited or lived in the UK before so we offer them a thorough consultation, explaining the advantages of each area or development so they can decide if it is right for them.\u00a0As soon as a property becomes available, we send them a WhatsApp message, with photos and videos, and we usually carry out a virtual tour, so they can see the property as soon as possible.\u00a0If they like the property, many will pay a deposit immediately, without even seeing it in person, so they don\u2019t lose out to someone else. \u00a0\u00a0Some applicants are now trying to outbid others, so acting quickly is essential to avoid this.<\/p>\n

What are the top priorities for Chinese and Hong Kong renters?<\/h2>\n

Typically, a family will be looking for a two or three bedroom property, furnished, with a parking space.\u00a0 A safe local area and community, together with good schools nearby are also important.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Budgets are good \u2013 typically \u00a31,700 – \u00a32,100 per calendar month for a two bed and \u00a32,400 – \u00a33,000 per month for a three bed property.<\/p>\n

Colindale remains a hotspot for Chinese and Hong Kong buyers and renters<\/h2>\n
\"Beaufort
Beaufort Park<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the most popular developments, with both renters and buyers, is Beaufort Park in Colindale<\/a>, which has a growing Chinese\/Hong Kong community and excellent Chinese amenities including supermarkets.\u00a0 Colindale Gardens<\/a> is also popular while nearby Mill Hill<\/a> is another sought-after area.<\/p>\n

Most Hong Kong professionals rent when they first arrive in London but ideally, they prefer to buy and put down roots as soon as possible.\u00a0 So if they like the area, they will start looking to buy a home<\/a> within three to six months, ideally completing their purchase within their first year here.\u00a0 Most are cash buyers, having already sold their property in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n

Demand to buy property is strong across North London<\/a>, with typical budgets ranging from \u00a3450k – \u00a3600k for a two bed property and \u00a3600k to \u00a3800k for a three bed home.<\/p>\n

In fact, demand is so high that at the latest phase of Colindale Gardens<\/a>, all three bedroom homes were recently sold<\/a> within two weeks \u2013 90% of these were to Hong Kong buyers.<\/p>\n

With Beaufort Park in Colindale<\/a> such a hotspot, most professionals will view both brand new homes and second-hand properties.\u00a0 They are also happy to buy off-plan, prepared to wait for the right property.<\/p>\n

Call our London-based China desk for help renting or buying a London property<\/h2>\n
\"Penny
Penny Cheung<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our London-based China desk offers a complete property finding service for Hong Kongers and Chinese nationals looking to rent<\/a> or buy a property in London<\/a>. Our offices in Hong Kong central<\/a> and Shanghai<\/a> can also assist before they move to the UK. All our teams are multi-lingual so we can help you find the perfect property \u2013 discussing your needs in whichever language you prefer \u2013 English, Cantonese or Mandarin.<\/p>\n

Get in touch with me, Penny Cheung, Head of China Desk<\/a> London, if I can be of any assistance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our China desk continues to see rising demand from both Chinese and Hong Kong buyers and renters, particularly Hong Kong BNO visa holders moving to the UK.\u00a0 \u00a0The months of June, July and August are peak times for rental and sales enquiries as many expats wish to settle down in London with their families before … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Peak season for sales and rentals as Hong Kong and Chinese expats search for a London home”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1001042,"featured_media":19661,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[453,443,451,445],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japan-and-china-desks","category-landlords","category-london-property-market","category-property-rental-market"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20869","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1001042"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20869"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20869\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28219,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20869\/revisions\/28219"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20869"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20869"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.benhams.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20869"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}