£600million Spender on London Real Estate Market.
Wealthy African buyers
are spending almost £4million on London property every week as they look
to snap up exclusive investments in the UK, it has emerged.
Super-rich oligarchs are
taking their vast resources and investing them in the safe haven of
London property - with more than £600million spent in the capital in the
past three years.A mixture of traditional reasons combined with
increased terrorism and the outbreak of Ebola is said to be behind the
dramatic influx of African money to the capital.
Super-rich African
oligarchs are taking their vast resources and investing them in the safe
haven of London property - with more than £600million spent in the
capital in the past three years and £4million spent in the city every
week. They favour the likes of One Hyde Park
Folorunsho Alakija, a
billionaire oil tycoon, fashion designer and philanthropist from Lagos,
is a big investor in the London market
The wealthy buyers are typically spending between £15million and £25million on each home and are purchasing luxury properties
Beauchamp Estates, which sells some of London's most expensive homes, said properties such as the one above are those favoured
While African buyers
only account for 1.5 per of transactions in the 'ultra prime' London
market, they make up five per cent of sales by value - up from two per
cent. This is by typically spending between £15million and £25million on
each home.
The recent Ebola
epidemic and continued terrorism from groups such as Boko Haram has
resulted in an increase in buyers in recent months.
Beauchamp Estates, which sells some of London's most expensive homes, today released a report on African buyers in the capital.
The upmarket estate agency said the buyers are coming from six countries - Nigeria, Ghana, Congo, Gabon, Cameroon and Senegal.
Nigerians are the biggest spenders, with wealthy nationals forking out £250million on London homes in the last three years.
The new wave of
super-rich includes Aliko Dangote, a Nigerian business magnate who, with
a £16billion fortune, is Africa's wealthiest man.
Folorunsho Alakija, a
billionaire oil tycoon, fashion designer and philanthropist from Lagos,
is also a big investor in the London property market. She recently
bought four apartments in One Hyde Park, the super-exclusive development
in Knightsbridge.
Her British-born nephew
Rotimi Alakija, who also goes by the stage name of DJ Xclusive, has also
invested property in the capital.
It is thought other tycoons have also been eyeing up homes on Kensington Palace Gardens - known as Billionaires' Row.
Nigerians are the
biggest spenders in London, with wealthy nationals forking out
£250million on homes in the city in the last three years
African buyers make up five per cent of sales by value in the 'ultra prime' London market - up from two per cent in recent years
Beauchamp Estates said the African buyers are coming from six countries - Nigeria, Ghana, Congo, Gabon, Cameroon and Senegal
The super-rich look to buy luxury property in the 'platinum triangle' which is made up of Mayfair, Belgravia and Knightsbridge
Gary Hersham, managing
director of Beauchamp Estates, revealed he has had three super-rich
Nigerians enquiring about homes in the past week alone. This is despite
the average person in Nigeria earning just £850 per year.
He said: 'I've had an upturn in African buyers over the last few months.
'The situation in West
Africa at present is pushing rich African buyers back into Central
London at a significantly higher level than is normally experienced.
'While war, disease and
terrorism in West Africa grab media headlines, actually for super-rich
Africans its domestic wealth, cultural ties to London, general safety
and education for their children that are the key attractions for buying
a home in central London.'
Mr Hersham said these
super-rich look to buy property in the 'platinum triangle' which is made
up of Mayfair, Belgravia and Knightsbridge.
Around 80 per cent spend
between £15million to £25million on a residential property, with ten
per cent spending more than £30million.
If they are not buying,
they are renting luxury homes for up to £15,000-per-week and staying for
between six weeks and three months per year.
London's reputation for
having a residential property market, which is secure and a stable
investment, is one of the main reasons wealthy Africans are buying,
according to Beauchamp Estates.
Another reason is historic cultural and community ties.
Nigeria is a
Commonwealth country and there is a community of 70,000 in London. There
are a similar number of Ghanaians in the capital.
It is thought the
property tycoons have been eyeing up homes on Kensington Palace Gardens -
known as Billionaires' Row (pictured)
London's reputation for
having a residential property market, which is secure and a stable
investment, is one of the main reasons wealthy Africans are
buying, according to Beauchamp Estates
Around 80 per cent spend
between £15million to £25million on a residential property, with ten
per cent spending more than £30million
If they are not buying,
they are renting luxury homes for up to £15,000-per-week and staying for
between six weeks and three months
The third reason is
education, with King's School Canterbury, Wycombe Abbey, Cheltenham
Ladies College, Eton, Harrow and Bradfield are among the favourite
private schools for wealthy families from Africa.
According to the
Nigerian embassy, Nigerian nationals spend more than £300million-a-year
on tutoring, accommodation, fees and equipment at British schools and
universities.
Mr Hersham added: 'It is going to be the African century.
'Continental African buyers or luxury tenants in London are currently where the Russians and Ukrainians were five years ago.
'At present virtually
all the transactions are for end use, not rental investment, which
indicates that the African buyer market in London has significant room
for growth and maturity.
'Nigerians have been long standing property purchasers in the central London market, going back to the early 1980s.
'However, in the 1980s and 1990s they typically purchased houses in North London, in Hampstead, St Johns Wood and Primrose Hill.
'Now, enhanced wealth
has enabled them to move into the ultra prime market in Mayfair,
Belgravia and Knightsbridge, and have been joined by affluent purchasers
from other West African and French equatorial states.'
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