Which area is better to buy a luxury property in London – Hampstead or Belgravia?

Hampstead or Belgravia? | 

How to Choose the Best Area for You

One of the biggest issues you can face as a buyer is deciding on which is the best area for you.

Indeed, I am often approached by people who ask me which are the best areas in which to acquire a home.

Because, there are so many great areas to acquire luxury property in London, that it can often be confusing.

Especially as you may well be asking friends who know London better than you for advice. Unfortunately, the answers they give you may actually be unhelpful and cause mistakes, because what will probably happen is that they will tell you about the areas that they like.

As a related example, my son was offered a place at Eton. So we needed to choose which house we wanted him to go to. So, I asked several friends which houses their sons were in and which houses they recommended.

Every single one said the house that their boy was in was the best. Indeed, there was only one area of agreement: the house that my brother and I were in over 30 years ago was the one to avoid!

The same happens with London property. Although friends want to help and have the best intentions, they judge the areas using their own preferences. So, unless they have made a disastrous mistake, clearly they are going to recommend the area they live in. But how often have they asked you what you specifically want when acquiring a luxury property in London?

So, which is better – Belgravia or Hampstead?

Well, it depends on what you like. Here are some snapshots of what attracts people to each area:

Property in Belgravia

1. It is incredibly central and close to the restaurants and boutiques of Sloane Street, Knightsbridge (where Harrods and Harvey Nichols can be found), Mayfair and the King’s Road. It is also a short taxi ride to museums, galleries and the theatres in the West End.
2. It is regarded as one of the most prestigious areas in the world to own property.
3. Planning restrictions mean that there is a limited supply of property that cannot be greatly expanded.
4. It is safe and well looked after as almost all the properties come under the watch of the Grosvenor Estate.
5. There is a good mixture of houses and apartments.
6. It is close to Hyde Park and many residents can also apply for access to Belgrave Square.
7. There are good schools nearby.

Property in Hampstead

1. It is further out so less frenetic and has the feel of a village as it is less densely populated and built-up.
2. The air is cleaner.
3. There is the wide-open space of Hampstead Heath and the incredible views over London.
4. Most houses in Hampstead are on larger plots of land so the houses are wider, less tall and have bigger gardens.
5. It is safe.
6. There are good schools (although avoid the roads during pick up and drop off because the traffic jams are diabolical).
7. If you work in Canary Wharf, you can travel directly from Hampstead on the Jubilee Line
8. Property in Hampstead is less expensive on a price per square foot/metre basis than property in Belgravia (please note that I hate generalisations like this as they are misleading so you need to have a very clear understanding of valuations in whichever area you choose to acquire a luxury property in London

Of course, this is just a very brief snapshot of what attracts people to each area. I have clients who would never consider living in Hampstead because it is simply “too far out” from the centre of London. Meanwhile, I have clients who live in Hampstead who say that it is much closer than people realise. They wouldn’t consider living in Belgravia because it is too busy and the houses are too tall and narrow.

Neither view is right or wrong. So you need to consider what are the most important criteria for you and then choose which area and style of property fits you best.

One practical point to consider:

If you only plan to stay in London for one or two weeks at a time. Do you really want to spend time travelling from Hampstead to the shops, restaurants and theatres in Mayfair, Knightsbridge and the West End?

I make this point because there is a famous/notorious street on the fringes of Hampstead called Bishop’s Avenue which was crassly named as the original “Millionaires’ Row” a few decades ago. This is because several Middle Eastern and other international families started acquiring all the houses.

The attraction was that they were large properties on big plots of land. However, over the decades many of them have been left empty and have become dilapidated.

Why? Because the owners realised that if they were flying into London for a few days or even a few weeks, they really wanted to be more central. So, they either acquired additional luxury properties in Belgravia, Knightsbridge and Mayfair or they simply stayed at the Dorchester, the Connaught, Claridge’s or one of London’s other top hotels.

Please note that they have still made considerable money on these “abandoned” properties over the last few decades. But it shows the importance of really focusing on what you want, especially because the cost of acquiring and selling luxury property in London is high. So it will be an expensive mistake if you have to sell because you have bought in an area that isn’t right for you.

This is just one of several expensive mistakes that buyers make. It is an obvious one but there are other huge but less obvious mistakes you will make. Which will cost you hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of pounds.

If you would like to discover what they are and how to avoid them. You can request a complimentary copy of my book, The Insider’s guide To Acquiring £1m to £100m Property in London, by clicking here.