With Britain waking up to a new and uncertain dawn, Cluttons, the leading international real estate consultancy has said that for those invested in the property market, the deterioration in the value of sterling overnight will have erased any gains in recent years, particularly buyers from the Gulf, whose currencies retain a fixed peg to the US dollar.
Faisal Durrani, head of research at Cluttons commented: “Any US dollar or UAE dirham investors will find the price of an average prime Central London residential asset USD 96,000 (AED 350,000) less than it was on June 20. Conversely of course, London residential property is now USD 96,000 cheaper for international buyers looking to enter the market.
“A silver lining today is that those from the Gulf eyeing up a London residential asset will find it 31% cheaper than it was during the last market peak in Q3 2007, suggesting that we may be on the cusp of seeing a significant resumption in property investment activity in the British capital, mirroring the results of our recent Middle East Private Capital Survey, particularly as global investors seek out safe haven assets such as gold and London’s bricks and mortar, which we expect will retain its appeal”.
“The longer term implications are too early to assess, but we may start to see the unlocking of London’s stalled residential property market, with investors both exiting and entering the market as we head towards a period of demand volatility.”
