Canary Wharf is the new Cuffe Parade

It’s been nearly four months since Britain voted to exit the European union, the Pound has plummeted by over 10 per cent and London’s already-attractive real estate is a red hot opportunity for Mumbai’s richie-rich folks. The buzz in the market is that a good number of Mumbaikars – from industrialists and bankers to Bollywood stars and entertainers – are picking up apartments in London. “At least 50 transactions involving Indian investors have been registered since Brexit,” says a top talking head attached to a MNC consultancy, adding that while Mayfair and Marylebone continue to be the favourite addresses for Indian buyers, the new bunch of investors are also snapping up homes in emerging districts like Canary Wharf and Croydon. 

Experts opine that the current tentativeness in Britain is just the right opportunity for high net worth Mumbai’s rich investors to snap up prime real estate in the priced London market. “In the coming months, a combination of falling sentiment and distress sales by investors in urgent need to sell their properties will result in some disposals which will be likely to weigh on asset prices,” says Gráinne Gilmore, head of Residential Research at Knight Frank UK, adding that the combination of lower prices, plus exchange rate effect should draw in Indian investors looking to acquire assets in the UK. With Indians being among the top overseas buyers of prime properties in London over the past few years, it is widely anticipated that they will among top players. 

Brexit is a short-term opportunity for international investors; a correction in London’s property markets is expected to be followed by an upturn as opportunities re-emerge and the benefits of a weaker sterling are recognised. 

From the high-profile acquisitions by industrial houses to the routine purchase of 2 & 3BHK apartments by individual buyers, Indian investors are increasingly emerging as key players in the British real-estate sector. According to a study by realty consultancy Knight Frank, as much as 60 percent of newly-built property in central London is purchased by Asian buyers, thanks to the favourable exchange rate and London’s status as the top destination for international property purchases.

With London’s real estate market having been a fairly stable investment destination, leading corporate houses and local NRIs in the UK have taken advantage of a good investment opportunity, and reaped in the benefits of the subsequent recovery.