London’s super suburbs

In the top 25 London suburbs, the average property value is £540,000, according to the latest from Savills Research. In the top ten of these suburbs over 1 in 6 houses sell for over £1million.

Lucian Cook, Director Savills Research comments, “Although prime London is readily associated with the central areas including Kensington, Knightsbridge and Belgravia and the inner south west suburbs of Richmond and Fulham, the desirability of suburban life and the post war encroachment of suburbia, has resulted in the emergence of the super suburb.”

% homes over £1m

Savills research shows that city suburbs are the most popular of all locations amongst householders, appealing to some 60% of the population. This popularity is largely based upon the fact that suburbs combine the attributes most valued by home buyers namely quality of neighbourhood, access to good schools, safety of the environment and proximity to amenities.

Whilst the prime suburbs would once have been the domain of middle management, high ranking executives now account for 50% of all buyers in these locations. Another important fact is that 46% of buyers are employed in investment, finance and business services which implies that City money is being invested into these areas.

City money buyers are attracted by the lure of the increased space, which their bonus can buy in suburbia - whether that be in terms of the size of the house or the grounds upon which it stands or a combination of both.

Their demand is supplemented by high levels of interest from developers, some 8.5% of properties are bought with an intention to redevelop making the most of these large plots.