More than a third of the top 1,000 most expensive properties were made outside of London, according to an increasing number of wealthy homeowners leaving life in London for the countryside after lockdown
The city’s richest men and women leave the capital for the Home Counties
Million-pound property outside London grew for the first time in seven years
The rich prioritize green spaces over the bustle of inner-city London
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London-based home buyers are leaving the capital and fleeing to the leafy Home Counties, research suggests.
The city’s richest men and women are looking for rural and suburban homes such as Surrey, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire.
More than 34 percent of the top 1,000 most expensive home purchases in Britain were made outside of London – a record 45 percent in 12 months, according to Find Acumen, a prop technology company.
Earlier this year, the number of one million pound homes was found to grow for the first time since 2015, with one in 42 homes valued at £1 million or more, the Telegraph reported.
The city’s richest men and women are looking for more rural and suburban homes in Surrey, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire
Research suggests tenants are longing for more green space as people were locked in their homes after the lockdown.
More working professionals are spending more time at their workplace, with a third of people continuing to work from home for part of the week.
Three years ago, only 15 percent of the most expensive sales were made outside the city.
Rows of residential houses in London. Earlier this year it was found that the number of £1million properties was growing for the first time since 2015, with one in 42 homes valued at £1million or more
While London continues to dominate big ticket sales, Surrey was now the second most in-demand place for new homes.
With the exception of the Big Smoke, the county had the bulk of the high price tags, with more than four in five of the most expensive homes in the country this year.
The second most popular destination for big ticket sales was Buckinghamshire (32), followed by Herfordshire (28) and Hampshire (26).
Meanwhile, demand for expensive housing in Kensington and Chelsea fell 45 percent year over year to 154.
At the same time, Westminster sales fell 50 percent and Camden saw demand fall 36 percent.
A large detached house in Suffolk. Demand for homes in the Home Counties is through the roof
Search Acumen said the slump in demand was due to the loss of international buyers from London’s once-red-hot market.
However, according to Bloomberg, the same group has bought 48 percent of first-class homes in central London this year
This figure is up from 35 percent in 2021, when Britain was hit by a series of restrictions and lockdown measures.
Research found that the cost of living for the top 0.1 percent living outside London has fallen.
The average price paid for the top 1,000 sales so far this year was £3.4m – about half of the £6.3m spent in 2021.
With the exception of the Big Smoke, Surrey (pictured) had the bulk of the high price tags, with more than four in five of the most expensive homes in the country this year.
Loughborough University found in 2020 that even a basic standard of living was up to 58 percent more expensive than other urban areas in the UK.
Andy Somerville, of Search Acumen, said: ‘The days when London was the default location for buying high-quality homes are increasingly behind us, as high-spending home buyers want to invest their time and money in locations outside the capital.’
Dawn Carritt, of Jackson-Stops brokers, said: “The key to this rebalancing was the emptiness of international buyers during the lockdown.”
“Offers made now feel much more grounded in reality than at this time last year. Buyers don’t want to get involved in the bidding wars that we sometimes saw six months ago.’