An estate agency says retrospective investigations into Russian ownership of London properties could lead to substantial amounts of wealth moving out of the UK.
North London high end agency Aston Chase says an attraction of the UK for Russian buyers was the belief that their assets were ‘safe’ - if this is no longer the case then an exodus from London would not come as a huge surprise.
“On the other hand, the younger generation who are buying and living in the UK are confident in the validity of their assets and have no concerns regarding sanctions becoming stricter” says a statement from the agency.
Despite perhaps feeling uncomfortable with the portrayal of Russians as a whole, their presence is unlikely to change regardless of the situation, the property firm suggests.
Mark Pollack, co-founding director of Aston Chase, says: “While prime central London is always an appealing area for high-net-worth buyers, at Aston Chase we have found areas such as Highgate, Kenwood and Hampstead Garden Suburb are in high demand now for Russians.
“The historic catalyst for this interest can be attributed to the Russian Trade Delegation being based in Highgate West Hill and Karl Marx being buried in Highgate cemetery has, in the past, also been a draw to the area.”
He adds: “In our experience, buyers from Russia are predominantly looking for houses, however, they are also prolific buyers of large lateral apartments in new developments with the amenities that high net worth individuals have come to expect in today’s luxury London market.
“We also find that, while some of these Russian buyers may have been resident in the UK for many years, they are still very proud of their Russian heritage.”
The older generation who acquired great wealth very rapidly were subsequently attracted by established prime central London locations such as Chelsea, Knightsbridge and Belgravia which are synonymous with wealth and therefore very appealing.
Now, the agency says a younger generation of Russians are happier to live more anonymously and have other priorities for their homes such as the schools of Highgate and Hampstead and the green space of Hampstead Heath.
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If you give the super wealthy a hard time they will just take their wealth and spend it in another country. If the EU/NATO stop its massive expansion and just say NO to the Ukraine joining or at least say NO to Ukraine for a period of time, WW3 averted. Simples.
What an extraordinary comment to make, as Russia begins a military invasion of an independent democratic nation.
Weird!
If only it was that simple. Mr Putin was looking for any excuse to invade, and seems to be slowly losing the plot as he surrounds himself with yes men and becomes increasingly erratic and unhinged. Sound familiar?
Also, the argument that the wealth will be taken anywhere is not an argument against cleaning up PCL, which has allowed far too much Russian money into it, often from dubious or nefarious sources. Plus the government may want to double check their donor list again.
The EU is hardly instigating a "massive expansion". Former soviet block countries wanted desperately to join it for safety and security which, by definition caused the EU to expand. Hardly surprising given this morning's news. I fully appreciate that Russia has at last stopped reeling from the speedy loss of its massive empire and wants to flex its rusty muscles and use the Ukraine as a buffer between itself and the democratic west - an explanation which has been noticeably lacking from our independent media which could have encouraged NATO Governments to discourage Ukraine from attempting to join the organisation (rather as the EU always puts hurdles in the way of Turkey joining the EU). If wealthy, super-rich Russians want to spend their wealth in other countries, so be it. It will be a pinprick of a loss to London, but quite where they are going to go now apart from China is anybody's guess.
Russia sees the Ukraine as we see the Isle of Wight. Anyone remember the Cuban missile crisis, its the same in reverse. The common Market now EU, has gone from 6 to 28/32. I would call that expansionist. If this develops to WW3, i know who to blame.
You already got Brexit - you no longer need to blame the EU for everything. Maybe try blaming the country that is invading another sovereign country. Just a thought.
James, I appreciate your pro-Russia stance which is is understandable when the great bear has been on its back foot for a third of a century, but you cannot call a non-military organisation expansionist when every free European country wants to join it (except for us of course) of their own free will. If you had said NATO not the EU then that would have been more accurate Having a mobile home on the Isle of Wight I beg to differ with your analogy! Blame the EU for World War III - Wow!
EU and Nato. For the first time in my life i'm agreeing with Komrade Corbyn on this. Now watch China and Taiwan. Two Communist dictators Putin and Xi together now that is dangerous.
An unstable dictator is invading one of the richest resource countries in the World and our take is 'dont spook PCL buyers/owners'. Come one folks- if they go, another group will take their place. This is in line with Italy's 'let's impose sanctions- but not on luxury goods as we sell a lot of those to them'. Disgusting self-interest when people's lives are ijn the hands of a megalomaniac!
You all should be ashamed of yourselves innocent people are dying and you are carrying on about how it will affect the London property market disgraceful
The two are linked, though. How has London's property market been able to be infiltrated by so much Russian money, which in turns gives them power and influence? And because, in many cases, they're mates with Putin, it gives him legitimacy and credibility and power and influence himself. It's the same with Russian donors to certain political parties in the UK, and the reliance on gas and oil, and as Kristjan says above, Italy's caveated sanctions. Self-interest is being prioritised, and proper sanctions aren't yet being introduced.
Before Colin Murray throws his toys out again, i'm no Putin fan, but to protect Mother Russia did he have other options? I still blame the west for putting him in this position. But few seem to understand this.
No one can possibly know what this mad man is thinking and he certainly doesn't care what any of us think.
One thing for sure is that the UK urgently needs to up its arms expenditure.
Wow!! Exactly who has threatened Mother Russia, James Gibbs?? Putin is a megalomaniac who has done a Scargill so he can be President for life, and is a diseased product of the old style Kremlin. Please do not try to justify what he is doing to the innocent Ukrainians. It should be beneath you.
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