£1 million apartment sales triple in 10 years

Sales of £1 million-plus apartments have increased by 196 per cent in England and Wales in the last decade.

High end apartments now make up nearly a quarter of all million-plus sales, with 96 per cent of these taking place in London.

Lloyds Private Banking reports that there were just 1,002 million pound apartment sales in England and Wales in 2006, compared to 2,967 in 2016.

The South East had the highest percentage increase of apartment sales in the past decade with a nearly fivefold (389 per cent) rise from nine sales in 2006 to 44 in 2016.

The East of England – which includes Hertfordshire – was next, with a 283 per cent increase, followed by the South West (150 per cent).

These apparently huge increases came from very low bases however, with these three regions accounting for only 3 per cent of all £1 million-plus apartment transactions in 2016.

Louise Santaana, Head of Lending at Lloyds Private Banking, said: “The past decade has seen substantial increases in the number of million pound apartments sold, outpacing all other property types.”

“Outside London, the South East, South West and East of England have seen between two and a half and fivefold growth in the numbers of million pound apartment transactions, but still only account for three per cent of the market.”

House sales continue to dominate at the top end of the market in Hertfordshire, however.

There are currently 20 apartments listed for sale in this price bracket on RightMove, compared to 911 properties in total.

The majority of the high-end flats are conversions from historic homes, such as the four-bed flat in country manor, Tewin Water House, Tewin Water, Welwyn, which has a guide price of £1.5 million.