Exclusive: London Mayor Khan warns lack of supply in capital pushes up property prices
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, warned that London’s house price hikes are primarily caused by a lack of available properties.
“The main reason is the lack of supply to meet demand. And so what we’ve got to do is increase the supply of all forms of housing in London to meet the demand,” Khan told City PM
Speaking via Zoom, the Mayor added that the current property market is quite heated.
“The government has now changed its policy in relation to stamp duty. We’ll have to wait and see the impact of that,” Khan said.
London continues to have the highest average house price in England, at £497,948 in May, up 5.2 per cent year-on-year.
Hong Kong arrivals
Khan was asked whether he thinks that the arrival of thousands of relatively wealthy Hongkongers may drive up prices across the capital.
A recent survey by estate agency Chestertons showed that sales enquiries from Hong Kong buyers jumped by 20 per cent over the past 18 months, with Canary Wharf, Kensington, Covent Garden and Mayfair being particularly popular.
“Somebody is very blinkered if they blamed Hongkongers for the current price of the property in London or a potential increase,” Khan noted.
Demand for rental properties is expected to increase ahead of September, following the launch of the new Hong Kong BN(O) visa scheme since January.
As of the end of March, the Home Office had received 34,300 applications for the new visa.