Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by The Negotiator. Read the original article for full details.
London dominates overseas company property ownership
London accounts for more than 40% of all property investment from companies based abroad, according to new research by Benham and Reeves covering England and Wales. The capital holds 43% of all property titles owned by foreign companies, making it by far the most prominent region for overseas company ownership.
The figures in detail
There are currently 91,136 properties registered with overseas companies, of which 88,933, or 97.6%, are located in England. Of the titles owned by businesses based in other countries, 39,172 are within Greater London.
That is more than two and a half times as many titles as the South East, the next most prominent region, where 14,919 titles account for 16.4% of the total.
What the research suggests
Marc von Grundherr, director at Benham and Reeves, said London's position as a destination of choice for high-net-worth international buyers has been built over decades and is not dictated by the recent period of house price stagnation. He noted that the data relates specifically to property owned through overseas-registered companies rather than individual foreign ownership, but said the concentration within London is another indication of the international appeal underpinning the capital's property market on both personal and professional levels.
He also observed that while London has seen a more subdued period for house price performance, international buyers tend to look beyond short-term fluctuations, and that for those taking a long-term view, softer market conditions can offer an attractive opportunity to establish or increase their position in one of the world's most established property markets.
Why it matters for agents
For letting agents and inventory clerks operating in London, the figures underline the scale of overseas company-owned stock in the capital's rental and sales markets. Properties registered to overseas companies often require careful handling at check-in and check-out, and the concentration of such titles in Greater London points to continued international demand for the capital's property market despite recent house price stagnation.
Source: The Negotiator