{
  "id": 17349482,
  "title": "Eight in 10 homes in London’s poshest postcodes now sell below asking price, Coutts finds",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/31/eight-in-10-homes-in-londons-poshest-postcodes-now-sell-below-asking",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-10-31T06:00:37.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Guardian Business",
    "slug": "guardian-business",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/money/2026/oct/31/homes-london-poshest-neighbourhoods-sell-below-asking-price-coutts"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Eight out of 10 homes in London's most affluent neighbourhoods, such as Mayfair, Belgravia, and Knightsbridge, are now selling below the asking price, according to research by Coutts, a private banking service for wealthy clients. Property prices in central London's premium postcode areas have declined by 5% in the third quarter of 2026, as the UK property market slows down, leaving some affluent individuals facing losses ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of pounds on their homes. On average, properties are being sold at a 10% discount to their asking price in these high-end areas. Prices in London's top tier property market have dropped 14% below their peak in 2014, affected by Brexit, the Covid pandemic, higher property taxes, and increased borrowing costs.\n\nExclusive districts like Knightsbridge and Belgravia, as well as South Kensington, have been particularly hard hit, with prices 30.8% and 26.9% below their all-time highs, respectively. Alex Webster, head of lending at Coutts, notes that buyers and sellers in the top echelons of the market are being more cautious, even before Chancellor John Healey's first budget was announced. Sellers are now closely watching the budget to see if it will reignite delayed activity, but financing conditions and the broader economic environment will continue to impact the market.\n\nThe Bank of England base rate has remained unchanged since last December, but bond market volatility has led to higher swap rates, influencing fixed-rate mortgage pricing. Despite the Bank of England maintaining its key interest rate at 3.75%, there is speculation that it may increase the rate for the first time in three years to 4% when the Monetary Policy Committee meets next week. Meanwhile, sellers in prime central London are becoming less inclined to list their properties, with new listings down 14% compared to the previous quarter and available stock down by 6% year-on-year. The number of transactions has also fallen by 9.1% in the third quarter of this year, with the most significant slowdown occurring in the £2m-£5m price range, where sales dropped by 22.3%. However, research from estate agent Savills indicates that buyers at the very top of the market are still driving activity, with 26 transactions above £10m recorded in the third quarter, accounting for 127 transactions in the past year, worth a total of £2.88bn.",
  "summary": "Sellers in areas such as Belgravia and Mayfair face hundreds of thousands of pounds in losses as property prices fall Eight out of 10 properties in London’s most exclusive neighbourhoods – such as Mayfair, Belgravia and Knightsbridge – now sell below asking price, according to research by Coutts, which provides private banking services to wealthy clients. Property prices in “prime central…",
  "key_points": [
    "Eight out of ten homes in London's top postcodes sell below asking price",
    "Property prices in central London's premium areas declined 5% in Q3 2026",
    "Prices 14% below peak in 2014 due to Brexit, Covid, taxes, borrowing costs"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The persistent decline in central London property values forces wealthy homeowners to absorb significant capital losses as cautious buyers demand steep discounts in an increasingly volatile economic environment.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}