Is Mayfair the best area in London?
This is a question I am often asked by my clients, but it very much depends on what you want. One thing I have noticed in over 20 years of advising our clients on their Prime London property acquisitions is that they receive all sorts of well-meaning advice from their friends on where they should live, but their friends rarely ask the simple questions like “what do you need to be near?” and “what type of area do you like?”.
For example, I have clients who own property in Mayfair & Belgravia who could think of nothing worse than living in Notting Hill while I have similarly wealthy clients with houses in Notting Hill for whom living in Belgravia & Mayfair would be purgatory.
In other words, “the best area” means different things to different people. So, the question is which area is best for you? This is why I have a range of questions I ask my clients to establish what they like and then recommend areas accordingly.
Of course, just focussing on the best areas isn’t enough. There are plenty of dreadful properties in world-renowned addresses like Knightsbridge, Belgravia and Mayfair that you should avoid like the plague. Similarly, the best investment opportunities aren’t necessarily in the best areas, so you need to be very aware of which properties will outperform the market.
Which part of London is the most expensive?
Well, it depends on what you mean by expensive. Is that price per square foot or simply the capital value of the property? It could also mean “which areas are overvalued?” but that is a more complicated question that I don’t have time to address here.
You will read in the press about “The most expensive streets in London” and I have to say that I disagree with almost all of the articles. So, for clarity, if you would like to know which is the most expensive street in London in terms of capital values, it is Kensington Palace Gardens.
This road runs between Kensington Palace and Kensington High Street. It has armed guards at both ends and the houses are absolutely stunning. An entry level house is c.£100m. There are a handful of apartments at the northern end of the road near the Russian Embassy while there are more apartments at the southern end in the section known as Palace Green near the Israeli Embassy.
However, Kensington as a whole is not the most expensive part of London by some distance.
The most expensive apartments can be found in Knightsbridge and Mayfair in developments such as One Hyde Park, Grosvenor Square and The Peninsula on the fringe of Belgravia overlooking Hyde Park Corner.
But, these headline numbers and almost everything you read in the press are far too general to be of any real use to you. If you wish to make an astute acquisition – be that a home or investment – you must have better information and more accurate data than the average buyer, otherwise how can you expect to find the best property your money can buy and negotiate the lowest price/most favourable terms possible?
Fortunately, there is a tested and proven method for having first refusal on the best opportunities.
If you would like to know more about the methods I use to give my clients first refusal on the best opportunities and negotiate prices they often don’t think possible, I’ve written a book called The Insider’s Guide To Acquiring £1m to £100m Property in London. I’m happy to send you a complimentary copy. Just let me know.
Best regards,
Jeremy
