Homeowners leaving London bought property outside of the capital worth £30 billion, the highest level since 2007.
In 2018 Londoners bought an estimated £30 billion worth of property when leaving the capital since the 2007 peak of £37 billion according to a report by Hamptons International.
During the year home movers or first time buyers purchased 74,350 homes outside London, up 3.5% on last year but below the 113,640 reached in the peak of 2007.
Aneisha Beveridge, Head of Research at Hamptons International said, increasingly as affordability in the capital is stretched, more households are looking beyond the confines of London to buy their first home.
The average house price paid by a Londoner was £398,910 and they are moving further afield with 21% going to the Midlands or North, increasing from 15% back in 2015.
Popular destinations for Londoners
The most popular destination was Broxbourne in the East of England where 72% of all homes purchased in 2018 were by Londoners.
The following table from Hamptons International shows the most popular local authority for Londoners and the percentage of all homes bought by them in 2018.
| Region | Local authority | London buyers |
|---|---|---|
| East of England | Broxbourne | 72% |
| South East | Sevenoaks | 52% |
| South West | Bath & NE Somerset | 52% |
| East Midlands | Daventry | 17% |
| North East | Middlesbrough | 16% |
| Yorkshire & Humber | Doncaster | 13% |
| North West | Liverpool | 10% |
| West Midlands | Stoke-on-Trent | 7% |
In the South East region Sevenoaks is the most popular destination with Bath and North East Somerset popular in the South West and for both, 52% of buyers are from London.
For home movers leaving London with high property values to areas with lower values, they may have extra equity for a deposit to buy a larger home or can reduce their mortgage.
The high numbers of buyers from the capital increases competition for properties making it harder for local first time buyers to get on the property ladder.
Competition from Londoners also means buy-to-let landlords may pay more for properties requiring a larger deposit or higher rental incomes to cover the interest payments.
There is a lower proportion of London buyers outside these leading local authorities with Daventry in the Midlands with 17% of homes purchased.
Prices paid by Londoners rise
The average price paid for a home outside the capital a Londoner is a record high of £398,910 and is 3.9% higher than in 2017 and 37% higher than 2007.
Prices have been rising by an average of 5.4% or £16,758 each year since reaching a low after the financial crisis in 2009 of £248,080.
Prices paid by Londoners are now £150,830 higher than they were in 2009 despite house prices in the capital dipping -0.5% year-on-year in 2018.
One advantage of rising house prices for local homeowners in the last nine years is remortgage buyers can now release capital for home improvements.
For older homeowners in the popular local authorities, equity release buyers can access this wealth using a lifetime mortgage to repay an interest only mortgage, holidays or home improvements.
Aneisha Beveridge said, despite a rise in leavers, 2018 is likely to be a peak as a slower housing market in 2019 will likely mean that we see fewer Londoners buying homes outside of the capital.
What are your next steps?
Speak to our LCM mortgage advisers if you are planning to move home, buying your first home, remortgaging your existing home to a new cost effective mortgage deal or are a buy-to-let investor.
Learn more by using the mortgage cost calculators, equity release calculator and property value tracker chart. Start with a free mortgage quote or call us and we can take your details.
For equity release buyers our London City Mortgage brokers can recommend lifetime mortgages allowing you to receive cash from your property to help maintain your standard of living as costs rise or pay for care at home.
