London's Rich List Priced Out By Wealthy Foreigners

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As far as the UK property market is concerned there is London and the rest of the UK, with the performance of the two growing further and further apart. London has been somewhat shielded from the elements of the traditional property market swings, by the mass of wealthy foreign investment coming into the region. If the recent Sunday Times Rich List 2008 is anything to go by, as the rich get richer, the global property appeal of London is such that even wealthiest Londoners may be being priced out of London putting them in the shoes of most first-time buyers.

While big money buyers have appeared from all over the world, London property seems to have caught the eye of the growing number of Russian multi-millionaires appearing in the UK. Guy Ritchie, the film director husband of Madonna, is currently in the process of putting together a light hearted look at the London property market, where he insists it is impossible to buy a property for less than £10 million!

Ritchie’s new film, RocknRolla, will highlight the difficulties those in London are experiencing with the property market and the fact that the sheer weight of interest has seen prices out perform other areas of the UK for many years. While many claim that London has its own micro-economy, it seems that it may also have its own micro-property market.

One of the major concerns which some have expressed, with regards to London property prices, is the fact that many UK residents are being squeezed out of the market with little chance of returning. As prices continue to rise, against the backdrop of the traditional economic cycle, the difference between the price those native to the UK can afford and the price of London property continues to widen.

In many ways London has become a victim of its own success with more and more visitors travelling to the capital each year. It has long been a favourite of the Americans (both corporate and individuals) and now it seems this attraction has extended to places as far away as Russia, where many businessmen have made substantial amounts of money since the “Iron Curtain” fell. To the new breed of London property investors, money is no problem and many are willing to pay well over the odds for the London residence of their dreams. This attitude may see London’s property market follow in the steps of its football teams!

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