New provide reshapes London’s prime residential map

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Oliver Knight, associate and head of residential improvement analysis, Knight Frank

The South Financial institution emerges as a focus for prime supply amid provide disruptions elsewhere

New houses reshape the character of cities; a single daring improvement can shift perceptions and redefine neighbourhood boundaries.

Nowhere has this been extra evident than in Prime Central London, the place for greater than a decade builders have steadily prolonged the perimeters of historic enclaves comparable to Mayfair, Knightsbridge and Belgravia. Whereas rich consumers nonetheless gravitate to those areas, they now have actual competitors from Bayswater, Bloomsbury, Marylebone, Fitzrovia and the South Financial institution, the place regeneration, cultural cachet and new improvement are reshaping the prime map.

The pandemic and subsequent spike in rates of interest accelerated this development. Development dropped sharply throughout a lot of the capital as viability pressures and regulatory burdens mounted. Builders have been constrained by a mix of persistent construct value inflation, labour shortages and complicated regulatory frameworks – you’ll be able to learn extra on this in Knight Frank’s newest Residential Growth Land Index. Hearth security laws additional delayed begins, particularly on high-rise city websites, limiting the pipeline of recent improvement in central areas.

Provide is turning into tighter in a few of London’s housing hotspots, however a handful of prime places escaped the worst of those obstacles – both as a result of key developments secured planning and broke floor earlier than the pandemic, or as a result of their design prevented essentially the most restrictive hurdles, comparable to fireplace security rules on constructing peak. The South Financial institution is one among them; key schemes comparable to Opus, The Edit, and SEVEN at Southbank Place all secured momentum early, drawing in prime purchasers whereas there have been fewer schemes underway elsewhere.

Southbank’s shift

Molior knowledge for the whole capital exhibits the diploma to which these challenges have distorted supply. Simply 1,210 models began on website in London throughout Q1 2025 – the bottom quarterly complete since Q1 2009. Of the 33 native authorities throughout London, 23 recorded zero begins. The long run provide pipeline additionally seems skinny: solely 7,100 personal houses are anticipated to finish within the two years from 2027 to 2028, primarily based on the schemes at present on website. Sixteen boroughs are set to ship no completions in any respect throughout that interval.

Prime boroughs are among the many worst hit. Within the boroughs of Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea, simply 326 new houses broke floor through the yr to Q1 2025. That stands in distinction to Southwark, residence to the South Financial institution, the place 1,245 houses began throughout the identical interval, bringing the dimensions wanted to additional embed its standing as a residential neighbourhood.

Essentially the most seen signal of Southbank’s shift is Opus, a 50-storey residential tower being developed by Native Land as a part of the bigger Bankside Yards regeneration challenge. Positioned yards from the River Thames, the constructing is one among solely three 20+ storey residential towers at present underneath development in Central London – the others are at Chelsea Waterfront and Southbank Place. Venture gross sales have surpassed £100m, Native Land introduced in June.

Pricing at Opus signifies a willingness amongst some consumers to pay a premium for specification and views, with greater per sq. foot values on the higher flooring that include panoramic views. This positions Opus on the higher finish of the marketplace for new-build houses within the space, reflecting its position throughout the broader South Financial institution improvement pipeline. Many consumers are home professionals, usually working in finance or regulation, with curiosity supported by the world’s proximity to cultural establishments and key central places comparable to Covent Backyard and Soho.

Branded residences

Mount Anvil’s The Edit supplies a smaller-scale various to high-rise residing, with a deal with wellness and modern design. The scheme consists of life-style options comparable to ice baths and infrared saunas and is situated lower than 400 metres from the Tate Gallery.

The South Financial institution was arguably cemented as a chief London location as early as 2023, when the Mandarin Oriental Lodge Group confirmed plans for a brand new lodge and branded residences at Bankside Yards. The 70 houses will sit above 171 guestrooms in a standalone constructing. The challenge is a part of a rising branded residences sector that’s gaining traction globally.

Proof up to now of £psqft values in Bankside Yards set a brand new benchmark for a comparatively current addition to Prime Central London, nevertheless it’s not sudden given the power of the model, the riverside location, and the cultural significance of the encircling space. As supply in conventional prime markets slows underneath the stress of construct prices and complicated regulation, the South Financial institution has taken benefit of its early momentum. Its trajectory highlights a delicate however vital shift within the geography of London’s prime market – one pushed as a lot by provide dynamics as by evolving purchaser preferences.

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