London house prices: Which exclusive areas suffered the biggest drop in property values?
House prices in some of London’s most exclusive neighborhoods plunged due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the latest research.
Sold prices across prime central London postcodes have fallen 10 per cent since the start of the pandemic, while property values across the capital grew three per cent on average.
The W1J postcode in Mayfair and St James’s was the worst hit area, with prices toppling 40 per cent during the Covid-19 crisis, down from £4.9m to £2.9m.
Kensington’s W8 postcode recorded the second largest decline of 18 per cent, followed by SW1X, W1S and SW1W suffering drops of 17 per cent, 15 per cent and 11 per cent respectively.
However other areas have boomed during the pandemic, with house prices in SW1Y climbing 54 per cent during the period.
Chelsea’s SW3 and SW10 postcodes recorded an uplift in prices of 23 per cent and 12 per cent respectively, according to research by Astons.
Meanwhile W1K properties and houses in SW1 saw prices rise six per cent and three per cent.
Astons managing director Arthur Sarkisian said: “This decline in property prices has been due to a number of factors. While nice, the stamp duty holiday saving hasn’t boosted buyer demand amongst high-end homebuyers to the same extent as it has in the regular market.
“Restrictions on travel have also prevented foreign investment to a certain extent while those looking to buy for themselves have continued to opt for more peripheral locations such as Hampstead.
However, the silver lining is that prime London has arguably become more attractive as a result of lower property values, particularly to foreign investors.”
He added: “With much of prime central London holding its value and demand starting to return, it won’t be long before the current areas offering an attractive investment proposition start to see property prices climb once again.”
| PCL outcodes | Area | Pre-pandemic avereage sold price | Pandemic avereage sold price | Change (%) |
| W1J | Mayfair & St James’s | £4,916,184 | £2,948,037 | -40% |
| W8 | Kensington & Holland Park | £2,177,317 | £1,794,394 | -18% |
| SW1X | Knightsbridge & Belgravia | £2,966,277 | £2,474,977 | -17% |
| W1S | Mayfair & St James’s | £3,407,148 | £2,901,048 | -15% |
| SW1W | Belgravia | £2,002,914 | £1,774,371 | -11% |
| SW7 | South Kensington | £1,663,605 | £1,708,141 | 3% |
| W1K | Mayfair | £2,637,291 | £2,799,490 | 6% |
| SW10 | Chelsea | £1,232,384 | £1,381,822 | 12% |
| SW3 | Chelsea & Knightsbridge | £1,560,784 | £1,921,112 | 23% |
| SW1Y | St James’s | £1,094,712 | £1,683,498 | 54% |
| PCL average | – | £2,365,862 | £2,138,689 | -10% |
| London overall | – | £471,170 | £485,370 | 3% |
| Postcode property data sourced from PropertyData | Feb 2019 to Dec 2019 (11 months) | Jan 2020 to Nov 2020 (11 months) | ||