London homeowners who bought within the past 20 years and sold their homes in 2023 got an average £204,190 more than they paid for them, according to new research.
The typical London seller had owned their home for 9.5 years, meaning homes in the capital ‘earned’ £21,500 per year of ownership, data from Hamptons showed.
But slowing house price growth in London meant 2023 sellers saw 51 per cent added to their house price, compared with 58 per cent in 2022, and 100 per cent in 2016.
London house price growth has been on a slow decline since 2016, meaning that while almost all (98 per cent) of Londoners who bought in 2007 and sold in 2023 made a profit on their home, only 72 per cent of those who bought in 2016 did.
Hamptons attributed this in part to the stalling of the prime central London market dragging the capital’s average down with it.
Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, said: “Households rarely move when they’re faced with the prospect of selling their home for less than they paid.
"Generally, the chances of selling at a loss peak within the first few years of ownership. But for some Londoners, that stretches back to when parts of the market peaked in 2016.
“Many households who bought a home between 2014 and 2016, predominantly in prime central London, face selling at a loss which has reduced sales numbers over the last few years.
"However, we expect prices to start rising in London later this year which may start to unlock some of these moves.”
London homeowners biggest gains
Although the number of local authorities in England and Wales where homeowners made a six-figure profit on their home sale fell from 181 in 2022 to 156 last year, every single London borough was on the list.
Homeowners in London’s most expensive boroughs made the biggest cash gains on their home sales last year.
Kensington & Chelsea sellers added £680,580 to their homes’ value, a 52 per cent rise in an average of 10.8 years of ownership; in Westminster the average was £386,070, a 50 per cent increase after 10.4 years of ownership; while in Richmond upon Thames sellers gained £286,560, or 51 per cent, after 9.5 years.
However, in percentage increase terms, sellers in the outer east London borough of Barking and Dagenham saw the biggest gains in the country, with 74 per cent added to the value of their properties, or £137,600.
Both also in outer east London, Waltham Forest (up 64 per cent, or £186,840) and Havering (up 64 per cent, or £160,420) were the next two biggest risers in percentage terms.
Seller gains in every London borough
Borough |
Percentage gain |
Cash gain |
Average years of ownership |
Barking & Dagenham |
74% |
£137,600 |
11.0 |
Waltham Forest |
64% |
£186,840 |
8.3 |
Havering |
64% |
£160,420 |
9.9 |
Bexley |
58% |
£136,070 |
9.3 |
Hillingdon |
58% |
£166,000 |
10.4 |
Enfield |
57% |
£165,450 |
10.7 |
Merton |
56% |
£241,040 |
9.6 |
Redbridge |
56% |
£166,210 |
10.3 |
Bromley |
55% |
£183,540 |
9.2 |
Hackney |
55% |
£216,580 |
8.8 |
Kingston upon Thames |
54% |
£223,430 |
9.7 |
Sutton |
53% |
£151,080 |
9.4 |
Haringey |
53% |
£211,840 |
9.0 |
Hounslow |
53% |
£181,650 |
10.1 |
Harrow |
53% |
£188,220 |
10.5 |
Lewisham |
52% |
£155,170 |
8.7 |
Kensington & Chelsea |
52% |
£680,580 |
10.8 |
Ealing |
52% |
£199,230 |
10.1 |
Richmond upon Thames |
51% |
£286,560 |
9.5 |
Brent |
51% |
£200,980 |
10.1 |
Barnet |
51% |
£250,630 |
9.9 |
Islington |
50% |
£257,700 |
9.8 |
City of Westminster |
50% |
£386,070 |
10.4 |
Newham |
50% |
£121,860 |
9.0 |
Southwark |
49% |
£183,350 |
9.1 |
Greenwich |
47% |
£132,140 |
9.0 |
Croydon |
47% |
£122,330 |
9.5 |
City of London |
44% |
£216,370 |
10.6 |
Camden |
42% |
£261,510 |
10.0 |
Wandsworth |
42% |
£221,390 |
9.0 |
Lambeth |
42% |
£157,940 |
8.6 |
Hammersmith & Fulham |
38% |
£245,620 |
9.5 |
Tower Hamlets |
34% |
£113,660 |
9.3 |
Source: Land Registry and Hamptons
House price gains in England and Wales
As a result of its slowing property market, London was the second highest rising region in percentage terms, with an average 51 per cent price uplift, after Wales where sellers made 53 per cent on the original purchase price, equating to £71,470.
Meanwhile 12 of the 15 local authorities where sellers saw the biggest gains in percentage terms were outside London, up from six before the pandemic in 2019.
Homeowners in parts of outer London and cities such as Bristol and Manchester were the biggest house price growth winners.
The average household in England and Wales made £102,650 (48 per cent) on the sale of their property in 2023, the second highest figure on record after 2022’s £112,930.
The decrease in gains is down to house prices falling slightly in 2023, as well as households selling after a shorter period of ownership.
This was due to a spike in households moving after two years, who were disproportionately likely to be selling a home in the suburbs, countryside, or small rural town.
Hamptons said this was likely due to post-pandemic movers’ regret.
“Double-digit house price increases since Covid have meant households moving within two years can achieve a higher price than they paid. Historically these are people moving due to a change in circumstances,” said Beveridge.
“However, the spike in the share of households moving within two years goes beyond that and suggests an unwinding of ’the race for space’.
"Most of these sellers are selling larger homes in the country, often in favour of a move back to the suburbs or city."
