Leading the way is the City of Westminster where average house prices are nearly 10% higher than in July 2007 and Kensington & Chelsea where prices have risen by almost 6.5%. House prices in Camden, Hackney and Hammersmith & Fulham have also all surpassed the level reached at the previous zenith nearly three years ago.
Commenting, Peter Rollings, managing director of Marsh & Parsons, said: "It's remarkable that house prices in some central parts of the capital have already passed the high water mark seen in 2007. But the official figures from the Land Registry don’t tell the whole truth in that we believe the falls during the economic downturn may have been steeper than 10% and that prices have rebounded much more strongly in certain prime areas.
"Villages such as Battersea and Clapham which are popular with young UK-based families have recovered steeply because property for sale has been in short supply, but that is now changing with more property coming onto the market in the expectation of a VAT rise post election.
"As for Pimlico, Chelsea, Knightsbridge, Kensington, Holland Park and Notting Hill – here we have seen the strongest recovery. This is due to cash rich buyers who probably don’t need a mortgage, foreign investment attracted by the weak pound and City workers who have invested in bricks and mortar rather than in low yielding investments such as bonds and ISAs."
Peter Rollings adds: "Outer areas of London have fared less well and many are still some way from getting back to 2007 levels. But 15 of these boroughs are within 5% or less of reaching the heights of 2007. This is not a bad thing because the last thing the property market in London needs is another bubble developing. A slow and sure recovery is better than an overheating one."
