Indian homebuyers in London rise by 11%

Hyderabad: London property market continues to remain one of the preferred destinations for wealthy Indians, with a latest report by leading property consultancy Knight Frank - London Super-Prime Sales Market Insight-Winter 2019 - showing an 11 per cent year-on-year increase in the number of Indian homebuyers in prime London markets in the 12 months to June 2019.

The main areas of interest for Indian homebuyers are - Mayfair, Belgravia, Hyde Park, Marylebone and St John's Wood.

An effective discount of about 20%, taking into account the currency and price movements in prime central London in the period between the EU referendum and October 2019, has benefitted Indian buyers.

The report highlights that the profile of wealthy Indian buyers are becoming younger, with those kind of investors keen to spend time in other areas of the world including London, rapidly coming up.

The average age of super-prime buyers in London is falling, with some 73 per cent of super-prime buyers below 50 in the year to September 2019, which was up from less than half at the start of 2015.

As revealed in the Knight Frank Wealth Report 2019, which was released earlier this year, 21% of Indian UHNWIs showed affinity towards purchasing homes outside of their domicile country, out of which 79% are looking to make property investment in the United Kingdom (UK), higher than both the Asian and Global average.

Brexit-related political uncertainty is the primary reason, however, that some buyers and vendors are still hesitating, the London Super-Prime Sales report said, adding that, once the political uncertainty recedes, the level of pent-up demand that has formed in recent years is likely to start moving and suggests that the conditions are in place for an increase in trading activity.

Shishir Baijal, Chairman & Managing Director of Knight Frank India, said, "London has always been a hotspot for Indian investors due to its economic and political importance.

Despite the recent political and economic developments, the long-term economic fundamentals for the market has remained strong and is therefore continuing to generate interest amongst Indians looking to purchasing properties outside of the country.

When compared to investments in Indian markets, the yields for both capital and rental are higher.

As the domestic economy hits a slow block, we can expect Indians to continue the momentum of investments in a mature market such as London that offers higher returns and relatively shorter hold period."