If You Want To Buy Property, London Continues To Be A Sound Investment

Posted on March 22, 2008
Filed Under Real Estate |

When it comes to property, UK house prices are starting to slow down and some experts are saying they have reached their peak. However for investors who still want to buy property london has always seen faster growth and higher returns than the rest of the country, so how has the slow down affected the capital? Surprisingly for those investors still looking to purchase property london may still have a lot of potential.

We will show you in this article that contrary to many experts opinion, the London flat and housing market continues to provide an excellent opportunity for investors and will probably carry on doing so for a long time.

The first factor to consider is that there is a large difference in prices and growth in different areas of London. While some areas have reached a plateau in terms of growth, others are nowhere near their peak. In fact on the contrary, due to regeneration, many areas of London are going to see a lot of growth over the next decade. So if you are looking to purchase property, London has a lot of potential.

Take Notting Hill as an example. This represents one of best investment opportunities due to it’s high growth rate. This is a very fashionable area, however prices recently dropped. This has created an opportunity to buy property to let in a very trendy area as prices are now starting to rise again.

The enormous regeneration scheme in London’s East end due to the 2012 Olympics has created a superb opportunity in Stratford. Over the next five years this part of London is going to undergo rapid transformation. Purchasing property for sale here could turn out to be a very profitable investment. A third area to consider is Peckham. This used to be one of the most run down areas in the country. However it recently became the recipient of a £300 million investment and regeneration package and has now even won a tourism award! So even for those looking to buy cheap property, London still holds some excellent opportunities.

What you may find surprising is that the price of property has been and continues to be affected by investors from overseas. To see just how much effect these buyers are having on property for sale, consider that over 60% of all properties over £4 million bought in central London are purchased by foreign buyers. These are typically people taking up high paid jobs in the city.

In the past they would purchase a property on moving to London then sell it when they left their job. However due to the price rises of London property many are now retaining ownership of the properties and looking on them as a capital investment while earning income from property rental. This has resulted in property values further increasing because there are less houses, apartment and flats on the market.

This is a contributing factor which makes London such an amazing opportunity for property investment. In fact within the next ten years the number of people living in London will skyrocket by eight hundred thousand. At this projected growth, even with the high rate of new properties being built there will be insufficient properties available to meet the demand. As a result there will be a shortage of London properties for the foreseeable future.

New properties are being built at an astounding rate but won’t be able to keep up with the demand … and as long as demand outstrips supply, prices will continue to rise and finding tenants wanting property to rent will not be a problem.

So there are still very lucrative investment opportunities in London for buying property to let.

The huge variation in house prices in different boroughs, combined with regeneration investment, overseas buying, the demand for new housing and property for rent, means that if you are looking to buy property london still represents a solid opportunity and will continue to do so for some time.

Tags: Real Estate

If You Want To Buy Property, London Continues To Be A Sound Investment

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