“As safe as houses” is a term which has long been used to describe the London property market as a place to invest your money.
But, the latest data suggests this may no longer be the case.
In the past year, sellers in the capital were the most likely in the country to get back less than they paid for their homes, according to Hamptons Research analysis of Land Registry sales prices, comparing what UK homes were bought and sold for.
Just over one-in-seven, or 14.8 per cent, of Londoners took a hit on the price when they sold, compared to a national average of 8.7 per cent, or one in 11.
Traditionally, it’s been the North East of England that has topped this chart, with sellers here most likely to make a loss in nine of the last ten years, as the region recovered only slowly from the 2008 financial crash.
This year, however, it’s in second place with 13.9 per cent of sellers having to accept lower offers.
The South East also fared poorly and was in third place at nine per cent.
Sellers were least likely to make a loss in Wales, with only 6.2 per cent selling for less than they paid.
Across the UK, the average homeowner sold after nine years, for £91,260 (or 41 per cent) more than they paid.
While London sellers tended to see a higher cash increase, selling for £172.510 or 44.6 per cent above their original price, most of this uplift was due to historic price growth.
Half of London sellers had owned their home for over a decade, but these long-term owners contributed a bigger proportion and accounted for 77 per cent of the total gains.
Those owning their properties for less than ten years only accounted for 23 per cent of the average increase, indicating that the boom years pre-2016 skewed the results.
A clear North-South divide can also be seen with those in the South (South East, South West and East) seeing the difference between the purchase and sales price in negative numbers between 2024 and 2025, while those in the North seeing an increase.
London itself had only a very moderate increase of £160 year-on-year.
The data for London hides a market of two halves.
Flat sellers, who accounted for 60 per cent of the capital’s sales last year, represented 90 per cent of the homes sold for a loss, with those selling houses making up the remaining 10 per cent.
This is a stark comparison to 2019 when the percentage of flat owners making a loss was much lower at 78.4 per cent.
Those selling houses made 59.6 per cent over an average of 10.3 years, compared to 35.4 per cent over a similar 10.1-year period for flats.
This pattern was repeated across the UK as 19.9 per cent of flat owners made a loss, compared to 4.5 per cent of house owners.
The best and worst boroughs for house price growth
London boroughs made up eight of the top 10 places in the UK where vendors made a loss.
Topping the UK list was Tower Hamlets, which comprises of trendy Shoreditch, Hackney and the regenerated Docklands area, and has an average property price of £470,209.
Last year 28.2 per cent of sellers here sold for less than they paid, with flats making up 90 per cent of all sales.
This was closely followed by The City of London in second place where 26.2 per cent of vendors made a loss; Kensington & Chelsea at 22.4 per cent; and Westminster at 22.1 per cent, highlighting how London’s most exclusive areas have taken a hit in recent years.
At the other end of the spectrum was Barking and Dagenham, London’s cheapest borough, where the average property price is £354,709.
Here, only 5.3 per cent of sellers sold below their purchase price. Also, bucking the London trend was Bexley in the South East, where the average property price is £410,002 and only 5.4 per cent of sellers sold for less than they paid.
“In some cases, even owners who bought a decade ago still face getting back less than they paid — something that would have been almost unthinkable in the heady days of 2015.
“And, for many, the sums are likely to remain tight,” says Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons.
“Over the next few years, more sellers are likely to have missed out on London’s 2012-16 house price boom, having bought instead at what turned out to be the top of the market.”