How Hongkongers became the biggest foreign homeowners in London and where they are buying – including boroughs along the Thames such as Barking and Dagenham, Tower Hamlets and Greenwich

May 10 , 2022

Green open spaces – such as Hilly Fields Park in Lewisham, seen here – are one key to London’s attractiveness with international buyers, with Hongkongers now leading the way. Photo: iStock

Property firm CBRE says house prices in Barking and Dagenham are 35 per cent lower than the London average, plus there are many parks and green open spaces to enjoy

New developments in the area include Fresh Wharf and Beam Park, then there’s One Park Drive in Tower Hamlets and Greenwich Millennium Village closer to Canary Wharf

Hongkongers have long been keen on owning a second home in the UK and the latest market analysis suggests they are buying up properties in record numbers, with certain boroughs of London seeing especially high demand.

The research, by property company Benham and Reeves, shows that Hong Kong buyers currently have the biggest international footprint within the London market, accounting for the highest proportion of homes registered to foreign addresses in a total of 17 boroughs.

Hong Kong buyers currently have the biggest international footprint within the London market

Topping the table at 31 per cent is Barking and Dagenham, an East London borough within the riverside section of the Thames Gateway. According to American property firm CBRE, house prices in the borough are 35 per cent lower than the London average, and are expected to exceed price growth in the capital over the next five years (a projected 22 per cent, versus 19 per cent in London). Residents have around 25 parks and green open spaces to enjoy, and the council is pursuing a sustainable economy, making the borough a hub for green jobs and – CBRE notes – highly attractive to investors.

Other boroughs popular among Hong Kong buyers are Tower Hamlets (26 per cent), Newham (24 per cent), Lewisham (23 per cent), Hackney (23 per cent), Greenwich (22 per cent), Southwark (21 per cent), Islington (20 per cent), Brent (19 per cent), Hammersmith and Fulham (16 per cent), Camden (16 per cent), Barnet (15 per cent) and Croydon (13 per cent).

London’s perennial appeal

Marc von Grundherr, director of Benham and Reeves, said international buyers from all corners of the globe have sought to secure a home in the UK despite Covid-19 travel restrictions.

“You’d need only look at the variety of nationalities that are most prevalent in each borough to see how important this segment of homeowners is to the London market,” he said. “This is especially evident among Hong Kong buyers who have been investing in the UK market in droves since buy-to-let was launched in the mid-90s, with this interest being bolstered further still with the introduction of the BNO visa scheme.”

Fresh Wharf is on a 4.5-hectare brownfield site on the banks of the River Roding and includes Swift House with a collection of one-, two- and three-bedroom flats, with prices starting at £295,000 (around US$365,000). Photo: Fresh Wharf

Even though they cannot travel or attend the usual property launches, von Grundherr believes the volume of buying activity among Hongkongers exceeds pre-pandemic levels. Video viewings hosted by agents on the ground enable buyers to get a virtual feel for a property and its surroundings, resulting in sales.

He found most buyers are not looking for prime properties, but rather, homes that would meet “a typical UK [buyer’s] budget”. The option to have a larger home as compared to Hong Kong, and especially a garden, is particularly appealing, said von Grundherr, adding that with transport infrastructure such as Crossrail coming on stream, Hong Kong buyers are not deterred by a bit of a commute.

Schemes for sale in popular boroughs include Fresh Wharf in Barking and Dagenham, providing 911 homes along with shops, cafes and parks on a 4.5-hectare brownfield site on the banks of the River Roding. Swift House, the residential component, is a newly launched collection of one-, two- and three-bedroom flats, with prices starting at £295,000 (around US$365,000). Every home comes with a private balcony while a communal podium garden provides tranquil waterfront living. Along with riverside walkways, additional green space is being created at Fresh Wharf through a publicly accessible central park with lawns, seating and picnic areas.

With transport infrastructure such as Crossrail coming on stream, Hong Kong buyers are not deterred by a bit of a commute

Beam Park, also in Barking and Dagenham, is a 3,000-home regeneration of a former Ford car manufacturing plant by developer Countryside partnered with housing association L&Q. Green open space forms 77 per cent of the 31-hectare master plan, almost half of it publicly accessible. Among the spaces being created is a 3.5-hectare central linear park that runs through the development and along the River Beam.