The number of million pound apartment sales in England & Wales has grown by 196% since 2006, from 1,002 to 2,967 in 2016, according to the latest research by Lloyds Private Banking.
The rate of growth in transactions for apartments has far outpaced other prime market property types with sales of million pound terraces rising by 165%, followed by semi-detached properties (154%) and detached (88%) in the past decade.
Apartments represented 22% of all million pound property sales in England & Wales in 2016 compared with 17% in 2006. Apartments accounted for 26% of the increase of all million pound property sales between 2006 and 2016 in England & Wales.
The overwhelming majority of million pound plus apartments are in London with 96% of sales in the capital. The number of apartment sales in the capital has increased nearly threefold (193%) from 973 in 2006 to 2,853 in 2016, representing 35% of all million pound property sales in Greater London in 2016.
The South East had the highest percentage increase of apartment sales in the past decade with a nearly fivefold (389%) rise from nine sales in 2006 to 44 in 2016, followed by the East of England (283%) and South West (150%). These large percentage increases, however, were from very low bases with these three regions combined accounting for only 3% of total apartment transactions above £1 million in 2016.
The only other regions to record sales of million pound apartments in 2016 were the North East and North West, both with just one sale.
During the past 10 years, the number of transactions of million pound apartment sales in Kensington & Chelsea increased the most by 374, from 357 in 2006 to 731. The apartment sales in the Royal Borough represented 25% of all million pound apartment sales in England & Wales in 2016. Apartment sales in Kensington & Chelsea now account for 72% of the borough’s million pound property sales compared to 40% in 2006 when terraced properties accounted for the biggest proportion of sales (52%).
Westminster follows with an increase of 369 transactions, from 412 in 2006 to 781 in 2016, accounting for 82% of all million pound property sales in the borough last year compared to 59% in 2006. Westminster has maintained its position as the local area with the highest number of million pound apartment sales in England & Wales, representing 26% of the total in 2016.
Hackney is one of five boroughs in the top 20 local authority districts with the highest increase in million pound apartment sales over the past decade which had no such sales in 2006.
Hackney had the largest rise from zero sales in 2006 to 47 in 2016, followed by Haringey (15), South East’s Windsor & Maidenhead (14), East of England’s St Albans (10) and Brent (10).
Other local authorities outside London with £1 million apartment sales in 2016 are Poole (15), Newcastle upon Tyne (1) and Manchester (1).
There are two local authority districts with average apartment prices above £2 million. Westminster apartments are the most expensive at an average price of £2,215,073 followed by Kensington & Chelsea (£2,158,151).
Outside London, the most expensive apartments in the top 10 are in the City of Bristol (£1.8 million) and South Oxfordshire (£1.8 million).
Louise Santaana, head of lending at Lloyds Private Banking, said: “The past decade has seen substantial increases in the number of million pound apartments sold, outpacing all other property types.
“London dominates the million pound flat market, with the prime areas of Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea accounting for over half of all million pound apartment sales in England & Wales. In these two prime areas of London, apartment sales also account for a bigger proportion of all million pound property transactions in 2016 than 10 years’ ago.
“A finite supply of land in prime Central London combined with a growing population has meant the only way is up with more and more developers focusing on apartments. In the past decade there has been a large increase in the building of high value apartments in Knightsbridge, West End, Victoria and King’s Cross, while Marylebone and Mayfair being the top two locations for most development. With demand still high there are more in the pipeline.
“Outside London, the South East, South West and East of England have seen between two and a half and fivefold growth in the numbers of million pound apartment transactions, but still only account for three percent of the market.”
