Bankers grab luxury homes
IN a fresh sign that bankers are feeling comfortable enough to splash the cash, enquiries for prime properties in Kensington and Chelsea have jumped in recent weeks, according to estate agents Knight Frank.
Goldman Sachs was recently under the spotlight for awarding its 30,000 staff £500,000 each in bonuses, with some top traders set to pocket sums of up to £20m.
Estate agents say that since the bonuses were announced last week, a flurry of enquiries for trophy properties have been made by Goldman staff who say they had enjoyed “a good year”.
Unlike previous years – when there was stiff competition from the likes of Citi, HSBC, Barclays, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley bankers for desirable postcodes – Goldman Sachs and hedge funds are now making the bulk of enquiries.
Knight Frank partner Charles Leigh said: “We have seen a huge increase in the number of finance based buyers – the market is feeling a bit more comfortable; those who have held onto their jobs are feeling confident.”
Leigh added: “A number of these buyers also don’t want to feel like they have missed the bottom of the housing curve – and that’s pushing volumes up.”
Knight Frank said some of its offices in prime London locations were reporting sale volumes equal to boom time record highs.
And the head of Knight Frank’s Kensington office, Tom Tangney, said he has received several enquiries for so-called “trophy” houses starting from £6m up to £20m. But Tangney added: “Attitudes have changed – they are no longer willing to pay over the odds.”