London’s prime market saw an increase in transactions in July despite continued falling prices, according to property analysts LonRes, who have released their latest analysis of the sector.
Prime London values fell by 4.9% on an annual basis last month, which at +0.6% is in line with pre-pandemic levels.
Sales activity in London was the best so far in 2024, with 8.7% more transactions recorded than July 2023, which is also above the pre-pandemic July average.
There was also an increase in the number of properties going under offer in July, which increased 23.6% compared to the same month last year. This is partly explained by a slower market in June, when the market slowed in the run up to the election, with a large number of deals put on hold. The fast bounce-back in July indicates that things are once again moving in the right direction.
Housing stock continues to rise, with 11.1% more prime London properties on the market at the end of July than a year earlier.
£5m transactions fells by 18.9% year-on-year, although this is still 34.% above the pre-pandemic July average.
LonRes head of research Nick Gregori said: “July is typically a quiet month for the prime London sales market due to summer holidays, but this July has been a little different.
“Transaction levels bounced back from a slow June, with delayed deals and pent-up demand from the pre-election period pushing sales well above both July 2023 and the average for the time of year. The key question looking ahead is how sustainable this improvement is – are the conditions in place for a sustained recovery?
He added: “On the positive side, the much-awaited first base rate cut was delivered in August by the Bank of England. Many lenders responded by lowering mortgage rates, with some deals falling below the 4% mark. Even in a market with lots of equity and a high proportion of cash buyers like prime London, this is an important boost to sentiment. Agents will be hoping that the ‘wait and see’ game being played by buyers and sellers might be coming to an end.”
