Residential sales in many of the world’s mainstream markets are down by 20% to 30% year-on-year. This weakness is mainly due to the surge in finance costs over the past year, which has had a dramatic impact on affordability and market accessibility.

While not immune from slowing activity, the latest data provided by Knight Frank shows that global super-prime markets have been more resilient, with sales falling 2.4% in Q3 2023 on a year-on-year basis.

The super-prime market in London has seen fewer sales in Q3 this year against Q3 2022. The city came second in the ranking of quarterly sales, after Dubai, with Hong Kong sitting in third place.

The super-prime market is driven more than most by new-build completions. Strong sales volumes in 2021 were flattered to an extent by delayed completions in 2020, with some of the current strength in global number, especially in London, having been bolstered by completions in luxury schemes which started pre-pandemic.

However, as we move into 2024 the tailwind Knight Frank analysis shows that the tailwind from new build sales will weaken as the lower volume of new project starts through the pandemic begins to be felt.”