The inner London property market is down, but certainly not out, according to the latest research from London lettings and estate agent, Benham and Reeves.
Benham and Reeves analysed all residential property transactions to have taken place since we entered the first lockdown (23 March 2020) and how the Capital is performing when split between inner and outer London.
The figures show that there have been just shy of 50,000 sales completed across the Capital in this time, with home-sellers securing an average of ÂŁ487,500 in the process.
Months on end of lockdown restrictions have caused many to look from the inside out for bigger homes with the additional benefit of outdoor space, a trend that is apparent when you dissect the London market at a top-line level.
Since March of last year, there have been 65% more property sales across the Capital’s peripheral boroughs compared to the number completed in inner London. just 38% of all transactions (18,459) have taken place in inner London, while outer London accounts for 62% (30,494).
However, scratch beneath the surface of this top-line trend and it’s clear that inner London is far from out of favour. While transactions level may be trailing, properties in inner London have sold for an average of £595,000 since lockdown, 34% more than sales transacting in outer London.
When breaking the market down to postcode level, it’s perhaps surprising to see that just two of the top 10 busiest property postcodes since we entered into lockdown are located in outer London.
The CR0 postcode of Croydon and Sutton has seen the most homes sold with 894 completed transactions, demonstrating the homebuyer appetite for homes in outer London. E17 in Waltham Forest also places in the top 10 (5th), with 584 homes sold since lockdown started.
In contrast, the City of London has seen just 35 transactions complete across its busiest postcode of EC2Y.
However, while the City has seen a slump, inner London accounts for four of the top 10 busiest London property postcodes since lockdown began. E14 in Tower Hamlets is the busiest of the lot, seeing the second largest number of transactions (759) across the whole of London since March of last year.
SW18 (622) and SW11 (614) in Wandsworth rank as the third and fourth busiest overall, while SW6 in Hammersmith and Fulham also makes the top 10 with 518 homes sold.
It’s clear that homebuyers are also keen for a compromise, with the SW19, SW16, SW17 and SE10 postcodes all ranking in the top 10, and all sitting on the border of inner and outer London.
Director of Benham and Reeves, Marc von Grundherr, commented:
“There’s no doubting that the unprecedented events of the last year have spurred many homebuyers to re-evaluate their property priorities, opting for larger homes on the outskirts of the Capital and beyond.
This trend has led to the false assumption that inner London has lost its desirability and that buyer demand has evaporated completely. This simply isn’t the case and, in fact, parts of the inner London market have been performing very well since lockdown restrictions were imposed.
As the Capital starts to reopen for business, it is inevitable that demand for central London homes will continue to spread.
An interesting trend that is also emerging is the choice by London buyers to sit on the geographical fence, opting for areas that fall on the borders of inner and outer London. This allows them to secure the larger home they seek for a lower price, but without completing forsaking the ability to commute across London with ease.”
Table shows transactions and sold price data for each area since we entered into the first lockdown on 23rd March 2020 and Jan 2021 (latest available)
Category
Completed Transactions
Median Sold Price
% of total transactions
Inner London
18,459
ÂŁ595,000
38%
Outer London
30,494
ÂŁ445,000
62%
London (All)
48,953
ÂŁ487,500
N/A
Sourced from the Land Registry Price Paid data for residential property sale completions
Table shows the 10 best performing London postcodes based on total transactions since we entered into the first lockdown on 23rd March 2020 and Jan 2021 (latest available)
Postcode district
Borough(s)
Completed Transactions
Median Sold Price
Inner/Outer
CR0
Croydon, Sutton
894
ÂŁ350,000
Outer
E14
Tower Hamlets
759
ÂŁ560,000
Inner
SW18
Wandsworth
622
ÂŁ680,000
Inner
SW11
Wandsworth, Lambeth
614
ÂŁ775,000
Inner
E17
Waltham Forest
584
ÂŁ490,000
Outer
SW19
Merton, Wandsworth
571
ÂŁ711,850
Inner and Outer
SW16
Lambeth, Croydon, Wandsworth, Merton
519
ÂŁ475,000
Inner and Outer
SW6
Hammersmith and Fulham
518
ÂŁ895,000
Inner
SW17
Wandsworth, Merton
516
ÂŁ594,000
Inner and Outer
SE10
Greenwich, Lewisham
483
ÂŁ550,000
Inner and Outer
Sourced from the Land Registry Price Paid data for residential property sale completions
Table shows the total number of transactions across each borough, media sold price and the top three best performing postcodes in each borough.
Location
Borough(s)
Completed Transactions
Outcode
Trans
Price
BARKING AND DAGENHAM
955
ÂŁ320,000
IG11
280
ÂŁ315,000
RM10
201
ÂŁ310,000
RM8
195
ÂŁ320,000
BARNET
2,074
ÂŁ557,750
EN5
265
ÂŁ562,000
NW7
202
ÂŁ615,000
HA8
190
ÂŁ486,750
BEXLEY
1,859
ÂŁ375,000
DA16
270
ÂŁ395,000
DA7
269
ÂŁ415,000
DA15
264
ÂŁ409,000
BRENT
1,174
ÂŁ515,000
NW10
335
ÂŁ508,500
NW9
182
ÂŁ482,500
NW6
173
ÂŁ692,000
BROMLEY
2,853
ÂŁ475,000
BR3
474
ÂŁ502,500
BR2
452
ÂŁ480,000
BR6
448
ÂŁ510,000
CAMDEN
1,094
ÂŁ785,000
NW3
326
ÂŁ1,005,000
NW6
211
ÂŁ680,000
NW1
172
ÂŁ707,500
CITY OF LONDON
63
ÂŁ732,500
EC2Y
35
ÂŁ780,000
EC1A
11
ÂŁ765,820
EC4A
4
ÂŁ430,000
CITY OF WESTMINSTER
1,252
ÂŁ895,000
W2
285
ÂŁ868,000
W9
159
ÂŁ705,000
NW8
153
ÂŁ868,000
CROYDON
2,503
ÂŁ400,000
CR0
871
ÂŁ350,000
CR2
430
ÂŁ450,000
CR8
278
ÂŁ550,000
EALING
1,586
ÂŁ489,995
W3
286
ÂŁ542,500
W5
277
ÂŁ685,000
UB6
228
ÂŁ465,000
ENFIELD
1,556
ÂŁ400,000
EN1
280
ÂŁ399,998
EN3
261
ÂŁ345,000
EN2
230
ÂŁ487,500
GREENWICH
1,679
ÂŁ430,000
SE10
469
ÂŁ552,900
SE18
364
ÂŁ360,000
SE9
321
ÂŁ420,000
HACKNEY
1,125
ÂŁ575,000
N16
269
ÂŁ625,550
E8
172
ÂŁ580,050
N1
168
ÂŁ675,000
HAMMERSMITH AND FULHAM
1,212
ÂŁ765,000
SW6
518
ÂŁ895,000
W6
259
ÂŁ905,000
W12
192
ÂŁ615,000
HARINGEY
1,244
ÂŁ540,000
N17
247
ÂŁ399,000
N8
243
ÂŁ575,000
N22
180
ÂŁ520,000
HARROW
1,145
ÂŁ500,000
HA2
292
ÂŁ475,000
HA3
203
ÂŁ467,500
HA7
193
ÂŁ545,000
HAVERING
2,009
ÂŁ380,000
RM3
317
ÂŁ350,000
RM12
290
ÂŁ396,000
RM11
283
ÂŁ440,000
HILLINGDON
1,643
ÂŁ435,000
HA4
367
ÂŁ505,000
UB10
294
ÂŁ456,000
UB4
199
ÂŁ395,000
HOUNSLOW
1,155
ÂŁ435,000
W4
219
ÂŁ924,000
TW7
216
ÂŁ480,000
TW13
162
ÂŁ346,500
ISLINGTON
949
ÂŁ650,000
N1
242
ÂŁ751,500
N7
211
ÂŁ552,500
N5
174
ÂŁ752,500
KENSINGTON AND CHELSEA
974
ÂŁ1,260,000
W8
159
ÂŁ2,000,000
W11
159
ÂŁ1,200,000
SW3
151
ÂŁ2,000,000
KINGSTON UPON THAMES
1,176
ÂŁ503,250
KT6
238
ÂŁ465,000
KT2
225
ÂŁ725,000
KT3
200
ÂŁ547,500
LAMBETH
1,988
ÂŁ590,625
SW16
335
ÂŁ475,000
SW2
304
ÂŁ544,000
SW4
290
ÂŁ632,500
LEWISHAM
1,863
ÂŁ445,000
SE13
302
ÂŁ429,455
SE6
288
ÂŁ425,500
SE23
275
ÂŁ500,000
MERTON
1,354
ÂŁ519,000
SW19
501
ÂŁ750,000
CR4
285
ÂŁ399,000
SW20
242
ÂŁ699,975
NEWHAM
1,130
ÂŁ395,000
E16
361
ÂŁ405,000
E15
207
ÂŁ430,000
E6
201
ÂŁ363,000
REDBRIDGE
1,269
ÂŁ445,000
IG1
202
ÂŁ380,000
IG8
190
ÂŁ500,000
IG6
161
ÂŁ440,000
RICHMOND UPON THAMES
1,562
ÂŁ700,000
TW1
248
ÂŁ792,500
TW2
220
ÂŁ596,475
TW11
198
ÂŁ740,000
SOUTHWARK
1,531
ÂŁ546,000
SE15
345
ÂŁ565,000
SE1
271
ÂŁ525,000
SE22
262
ÂŁ727,500
SUTTON
1,393
ÂŁ418,000
SM1
297
ÂŁ400,000
SM5
248
ÂŁ409,000
SM6
245
ÂŁ406,000
TOWER HAMLETS
1,486
ÂŁ502,000
E14
759
ÂŁ560,000
E1
256
ÂŁ500,000
E3
246
ÂŁ448,000
WALTHAM FOREST
1,549
ÂŁ475,000
E17
584
ÂŁ490,000
E4
386
ÂŁ462,250
E10
308
ÂŁ455,950
WANDSWORTH
2,548
ÂŁ674,000
SW11
614
ÂŁ775,000
SW18
613
ÂŁ680,000
SW17
476
ÂŁ595,500
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About the Author
Established in 1958, Benham and Reeves is one of London’s oldest, independently owned property lettings and sales agents. With specialism in residential sales, corporate lettings and property management in prime areas of London, the company operates from 21 prominently located branches and 14 international offices.