Eight in 10 homes in London's prime postcodes sell below asking price, Coutts finds
Coutts says prime central London prices fell 5% in the third quarter of 2026, with homes selling at an average 10% discount to asking price.
Eight in 10 properties in London's most exclusive neighbourhoods, including Mayfair, Belgravia and Knightsbridge, now sell below asking price, according to research by the private bank Coutts.
Coutts found that prices in prime central London fell 5% in the third quarter of 2026. Properties are selling at an average 10% discount to their asking price, and prices are 14% below their 2014 peak. Prices in Knightsbridge and Belgravia and in South Kensington are 30.8% and 26.9% below their peaks respectively, the bank said.
Coutts said new listings were down 14% on the previous quarter and available stock was down 6% year on year. Transactions were 9.1% lower in the third quarter, with the biggest fall in the £2m to £5m band, where they dropped 22.3%.
Alex Webster, head of lending at Coutts, said buyers and sellers at the top end of the market were taking a more cautious approach, even before this week's budget. Sellers will be watching to see if the budget "encourages some of that delayed activity to return", she said. "But financing conditions and the wider economic environment will continue to influence the market."
The Bank of England base rate has not changed since last December and is at 3.75%. Volatility in the bond market has pushed up the swap rates that influence the pricing of fixed-rate mortgages. Expectations are growing that the Monetary Policy Committee will vote next week to raise the rate to 4%.
Separate research by the estate agent Savills found that buyers at the very top of the market are driving activity. It recorded 26 transactions above £10m in the third quarter, making 127 over the past year, worth a combined £2.88bn.
