“As such, it could be worth exploring these less traditionally though of areas of the outer prime market, which look well placed to hold their value in a softening property market", Cook says.
Longer-term factors
These headwinds may be short-lived, however, according to wealth consultancy estimates.
The five-year outlook is for global wealth to continue growing. There is an expected increase of US$173trn (£140.3trn), equating to a 38 per cent rise between 2022 and 2027, according to the 2023 UBS Global Wealth Report.
The number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals, a key buyer group for central London homes, is also predicted to rise.
Sister title Nikkei Asia has put the number of China's billionaires at 440mn, out of a total of 990mn across the whole of Asia. This is expected to reach more than 1bn uber-wealthy individuals within the next year alone.
This should be good for London.
McDonald explains: "Despite some concerns surrounding the UK capital’s standing in a global context post-Brexit, London remains an international hub for business and has a rapidly growing tech sector in particular.
"The UK capital attracted by far the most venture capital in Europe last year, some $12.2bn (£9.89bn) and this has helped to cement its position as Europe’s premier tech city.
“This suggests central London’s potential buyer base is set to continue expanding, with a more diverse mix of where their wealth has been generated.”
Moreover, the cooling in the housing market generally across the UK as interest rates have reached a 15-year peak and inflation remains stubbornly high is not typically reflected in the ultra-high-net-wealth property market.
According to von Grundherr: "There’s no real wrong choice when it comes to investing long-term in the London property market.
"Over the past 10 years, London house prices have climbed by 60 per cent, and while the strongest performances have come across the capital’s peripheral boroughs, inner London house prices have also climbed by 47 per cent in that time."
He points to 2023 figures from organisations such as the CRBE and JLL Residential's Prime Centra London, which show the "prime heartlands" of Mayfair and St James’s and South Kensington have seen strong annual growth despite cooler market conditions with property values increasing by approximately 7 per cent to 13 per cent respectively.
And the fundamentals still remain, as Bhakta adds: “More generally, we have to remember that there are several fundamental reasons that Asian investors – and indeed investors globally – are attracted to London’s property market.
"The capital’s reputation as a desirable place to live, work, study or holiday is well-known.
"But the simple transaction processes, coupled with the transparency of the UK's legal system, also continue to bolster the longstanding resilience and demand in the capital's property market."
