A recent Financialadvice.co.uk article reported that the number of prime property sales in London showed a significant increase in March. Having risen by 105 per cent compared to February, the figure compared with sold property statistics last seen in 2007.
The article stated that there was an overall increase of 83 per cent sales for these properties during the year so far. Estate agents throughout the city also report that the demand for property to the value of more than ?2 million is very high.
However, this is not to say that the overall UK economy is showing the same trend. According to the article, the London property market is quite distinct from the rest of the UK.
Financialadvice.co.uk noted that the city in fact acts like an independent economy. Hence it is somewhat dangerous to assume that the increases in property demand in the city is an indicator of improved economy throughout the country.
Also, it is undeniable that there are significant problems in the general UK property market that make it difficult to explain the London trend. Finance in the mortgage market is for example still relatively low, with unemployment in the country remaining at a relatively high level.
Perhaps one should not view the London market only in terms of the UK. Certainly foreign investors focus particularly on London when investing in the UK prime property market. London?s return to its 2007 prosperity levels should be seen as a herald for the future of the UK and world economy, rather than isolating the city as an elite financial hub.
