By Camilla Dell for PrimeResi.

Vendors are ‘on the ropes,’ says buying agency boss, as she reports ‘record discounts & exceptional value across Prime Central London’. But buyers still need a deft touch to secure a good price.

For optimistic thinkers, London’s market in mid-2026 represents a real opportunity to acquire best-in-class property at realistic prices — a view we wholeheartedly share (writes Camilla Dell, founder of Black Brick). Our team has been achieving record discounts and uncovering exceptional value across Prime Central London.

Vendors on the ropes – but it takes skill to land a knockout blow

The American politician Jacob Lew was White House chief of staff for Barack Obama and later the US’s ambassador to Israel. Safe to say he has had his fair share of difficult conversations. His advice on how to horse-trade is especially pertinent in London’s prime property market right now: “The most critical thing in a negotiation is to get inside your opponent’s head”.

London is certainly a buyers’ market right now. Whilst house price analyst LonRes reports that transaction numbers have increased by 2% in the past year, indicating buyers are inching back into the fray, average sale prices are down 5%.

This is naturally frustrating for vendors, many of whom started out with over-ambitious ideas about what they think their properties are worth and have had to trim back both their expectations and their asking prices. Others have given up on selling altogether – LonRes found that the number of homes withdrawn from sale in the capital has jumped by almost 60% in the last year.

Given the fragile sensibilities of these bruised homeowners negotiating discounts is an extremely delicate business.

I always advise clients to avoid making an insultingly lowball offer on a property they have their heart set on. In reality, the majority of central London homeowners own their homes outright, and can afford to wait for a sensible offer.

I always advise clients to avoid making an insultingly lowball offer on a property they have their heart set on

Starting off negotiations on the wrong foot can backfire. You have to think beyond just: “Is this property a really good deal?”. If it is something which is rare, which really suits you, and which won’t come up all the time, then we have buyers who will decide that although a property isn’t a steal, they love it and want it, and will own it forever.

Tom Kain, a partner at Black Brick, says that the added value a buying agent brings is their ability to glean as much information about the vendor’s situation as possible, and pitching bids accordingly. “Sometimes we will make a low offer and then just leave it on the table for a week or two,” he said. “The psychology of buying is a very delicate thing.”

A taxing problem

Fears that the Government would impose a draconian “Mansion Tax” on high value homes put the brakes on the prime market for months as buyers awaited clarity about how much they might have to pay to own a home in London.

The reality, announced in November, was considerably better than many had feared. But its implementation may prove to be a longer-term headache.

From 2028 owners of homes valued at £2m-plus will pay an annual surcharge on their Council Tax. The levy will range from £2,500 p.a. for homes worth up to £2.5mn up to £7.500pa for homes worth more than £5mn. The vast majority of those properties are, of course, in central London.

As ever with these sort of root-and-branch changes the devil is in the detail.

Current Council Tax valuations are woefully out of date. Before charges can be made the government will have to carry out a wide-ranging valuation exercise. It has confirmed those charges will increase annually in line with inflation, with revaluations will happen every five years going forward.

Exactly how this can be achieved remains to be seen. Late last month the Government launched a consultation on its proposals, confirming it intends to use AI, alongside “professional valuer judgement” to assess individual properties, based largely on recent local sales data.

But I am a million per cent certain that a simple comparison with other nearby home sales will not produce an accurate valuation on a PCL property. What it would have to do is actually physically go into those comparison properties and actually compare them – everything from their ceiling height, to their condition, to their aspect and views. These little nuances can make a massive difference.

I am a million per cent certain that a simple comparison with other nearby home sales will not produce an accurate valuation on a PCL property

The tax is also likely to have a major impact on London’s prime rental market, since the Government expects the owner of the property to pay the surcharge. For landlords it means an extra up to £625 per month to find at a time when London rents have begun to plateau after years of inflation-busting growth during the pandemic. According to the Government’s Office of National Statistics, London rents increased 2%in the year to March.

The shockwaves of conflict

Property consultant JLL has downgraded its forecasts for Prime Central London property prices, blaming the war in the Middle East for damaging buyer confidence.

Pre-war the firm had expected 2026 to “usher in a new phase of the housing cycle”, with cuts in interest rates underpinning the plateauing of prices in Central London after several years of annual falls.

But central London is a discretionary market which is hugely impacted by sentiment, and on that basis JLL believes that prices will fall by 5.5% in central London by the end of 2026.

The picture elsewhere is more positive. Beyond central London buyers tend to be more needs-based – first time buyers keen to get out of the rental trap, families upsizing, relocators looking for a home in a London village. But JLL forecast that a combination of rising inflation and higher-than-expected interest rates means that it will also experience a price fall this year, of 2.5%.

Far from being deterred by the prospect of further price falls, our buyers appear to be excited by the opportunity the current market affords them. What is coming up is that lots of clients feel that the current market is a good buying opportunity. We have a European client who has always wanted a PCL property and has been watching the market for years. He thinks that it is now good value.

Although the wider PCL market is generally sluggish, with buyers not feeling a huge sense of urgency to move, there are also sweet spots where buyers need to be on their toes. Kain said freehold houses in the £2mn to £5mn bracket, in good condition still attract considerable competition and sell well in PCL. “The market is very nuanced,” he said. “I have a client currently looking for a mews house in Mayfair or Belgravia in that price bracket, and it is surprisingly active out there. The key to success is gaining access first to compelling deals, such a receivership deals, before they reach the open market. This is where working with us gives buyers the edge and a first mover advantage.”

For the article, click here.

Black Brick has strengthened its London team with three new appointments as demand continues to grow across its buying, rental search and property management services.

Alex Oliver returns to the business, bringing extensive experience across Prime Central and Outer Prime London and a strong track record advising high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients on residential acquisitions. Lorraine Germaix joins to support rental search and property acquisition clients, particularly international buyers and tenants, while Emma Soanes strengthens the property management team with her experience across Prime Central London properties.

The appointments reflect increasing demand across Black Brick’s expanding service lines, which include buying, investment advice, rental search, managed sales and property management across London and beyond. Since launching in 2007, Black Brick has sourced more than £2 billion of residential property.

Commenting on the appointments, Managing Partner Camilla Dell said she was “thrilled” to welcome Alex, Lorraine and Emma to the business, adding that the firm has seen “significant growth and demand” across both its rental search and property management divisions.

Click here to read the full article.

Super-prime residence near The Berkeley was acquired off-market for just under £14mn, illustrating a wider market trend.

By PrimeResi.

Black Brick has completed the off-market purchase of a six-bedroom townhouse on Wilton Crescent, one of Belgravia’s most prestigious addresses, securing a 13% reduction on the original asking price for a repeat client based in Asia.

The property — a period home spanning more than 5,500 sq ft, with two private terraces and access to a communal garden — was originally listed at £16mn. Black Brick’s buying team identified it through their exclusive off-market network and negotiated the acquisition at £13.88mn (£2,495 per sq ft), completing the transaction last month.

The client had previously purchased an apartment in the neighbourhood through Black Brick and returned to the agency when seeking to upsize to a larger home with outdoor space. Grand period houses of this calibre on streets such as Wilton Crescent — situated between The Berkeley hotel and Belgrave Square — rarely reach the open market, making off-market access a decisive advantage.

Read the article here.

We’re celebrating a major milestone this week as we reach £80 million in deals, despite today’s challenging UK housing market.

Despite a challenging London property market in 2025, buying agency Black Brick has turned difficult conditions to its clients’ advantage, completing approximately £80 million worth of transactions since January.

The Mayfair-based firm has leveraged market softness — including hesitant buyers and vendors with unrealistic pricing expectations — to negotiate significant discounts on behalf of clients. Headline deals include a Georgian townhouse on Marylebone’s Manchester Street acquired for £7.5 million, a trophy flat on Mount Street in Mayfair concluded at £5.95 million following off-market negotiations, and a duplex apartment on Randolph Avenue in Maida Vale secured for £4.5 million — a 14% reduction from the original asking price.

The firm’s most high-profile acquisition was a Grade I-listed Hampstead villa with nearly 300 years of history, originally listed at £25 million. Managing Partner Camilla Dell led due diligence on the landmark property, explaining: “Because this landmark property is close to 300-years-old, and restoration of a Grade I building is complex and expensive, it was crucial we did our due diligence during the sales process.” A heritage specialist was commissioned to verify compliance with listed building requirements, and the transaction completed in under a month.

Dell added that the current market has created ideal conditions for Black Brick’s model: with some vendors overpricing and serious buyers in short supply, the firm has been able to secure outstanding value for its clients.

Read the article here.

By PrimeResi.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered her much-anticipated Budget yesterday, in which she confirmed a new so-called ‘mansion tax’ as well as hiking rates on property income.

The Chancellor’s Budget delivered fewer shocks than many in the prime property sector had feared, with Camilla Dell, Managing Partner at Black Brick, describing the announcements as “fairly benign” for buyers and sellers in the prime and super-prime market.

The headline measure — a new annual Council Tax surcharge on homes valued above £2 million — proved significantly less severe than widely anticipated. Rather than the 1% annual charge on values above £2 million that had been mooted, the confirmed figures of £2,500 for properties above £2 million and £7,500 for those above £5 million represent a far more manageable outcome for high-value homeowners.

Camilla Dell noted that Black Brick had been on standby to begin renegotiating deals for clients currently under offer, had a more punishing levy been announced. With that scenario avoided, she confirmed the charges are unlikely to “drastically change the way prime and super-prime property is bought and sold, or have a significant impact on prime London property values.”

One area to watch, however, is the potential for a “bunching” effect around the new thresholds, as owners look to price or value properties just below the £2 million and £5 million bands. This is a dynamic Black Brick is monitoring closely on behalf of its clients.

Camilla also offered a longer-term note of caution: previous increases to Stamp Duty and ATED demonstrate that once a new levy is established, governments tend to raise rates over time — making this a consideration for prime property owners looking beyond the immediate market.

For now, the absence of changes to Stamp Duty or Capital Gains Tax means the prime central London market can move forward with greater confidence and clarity.

Read the article here.

By PrimeResi.

Here at Black Brick, we’ve seen an influx of enquiries from investors looking to take advantage of the improving investment market in recent times.

“Buy to let investments have been a hard sell in recent years,” says Camilla Dell of buying agency Black Brick, “but over the past couple of years the goal posts have moved.”

Prime Central London’s remaining landlords are enjoying higher yields as rents climb while property values fall – twin trends driven in part by a sustained exit of investors over the last decade.

With rental yields now coming in at 4-6%, investors are once again eyeing PCL assets. Black Brick says it is seeing more enquiries from investors “who can see that it is starting to make sense.”

The agency is currently bidding on a one-bedroom apartment in W1 for an investment client, which has a gross yield of 5.85%, and has its eye on an apartment building in Kensington that is heading to auction offering yields of 4.59%.

Camilla Dell, Managing Partner at Black Brick: “Buy to let investments have been a hard sell in recent years, with increases in Stamp Duty and an end to mortgage interest relief making it challenging for landlords to turn a profit and the incoming Renters Rights Bill making it harder for landlords to evict tenants when they please.

“And, since Black Brick was founded in 2007, high entry costs and buying costs mean that yields in PCL have been unappealingly low at two to three per cent.

“But over the past couple of years the goal posts have moved. Prices have fallen and rents have risen – ironically in part because many dissatisfied landlords have exited the sector over the past decade reducing stock levels.

“As a result Black Brick is now seeing yields of four to six per cent. We are also starting to see enquiries from investors – in one case an investor from Asia looking to invest up to £120m in London – who can see that it is starting to make sense.

“While capital growth, in the short and medium term, is unlikely to be significant, rents are set to increase by 21.1 per cent between now and 2029, according to Knight Frank.

“Meanwhile, and for the same reasons, long-term London residents who have always rented are now calculating whether it might make better financial sense for them to buy if they intend to remain in London.”

Tom Kain, Partner at Black Brick: “We have received an influx of enquiries from investors looking to take advantage of the improving investment market. These are both clients looking at individual units, and block buyers, with buildings containing six or more apartments under one roof. Typically, they are looking to diversify their wealth, and central London property is still viewed as a stable asset to own.”

Read the full article here. 

By PrimeResi.

Keen to keep up to date with all the latest property news from across the UK?

Black Brick Managing Partner Camilla Dell has been quoted in PrimeResi’s latest prime property market round-up, offering her assessment of London’s shifting position on the global stage.

Commenting on the capital’s prime market, Camilla noted: “There was a point when there was a perfect storm which propelled London’s market to the top of the global league, but that time has passed.”

The round-up highlighted a number of key trends shaping the prime London property market, including a fall of over 30% in Prime London sales transactions in July compared to the previous year, slowing rental growth of 3.3% against a revised 5.4% in June, and just 466 sales completing in Prime Central London during Q2 2025 — 7% below the same period last year.

The data also pointed to a significant supply shortage in new homes, with fewer than 2,200 new private homes started in London in the first half of 2025, and average UK house prices rising 3.7% annually to £269,000 as of June 2025.

Read it here.

By Camilla Dell for PrimeResi.

British purchasers now make up over 40% of Black Brick’s client base, up from 25% last year.

British domestic buyers are making the most of some unprecedented conditions in London’s prime property market, according to Black Brick.

The high-profile buying agency has reported a notable shift in its client base this year, with the proportion of UK domestic purchasers rising to 41%, compared to 25% in the previous year.

This is unsurprising, said the firm, given the recent increases in stamp duty rates for overseas purchasers and changes to the non-dom regime: on a £3mn purchase, a foreign buyer of an additional property now pays £210k more in stamp duty than a UK buyer.

Traditional prime markets are “suffering hugely” as a result of these changes, according to the team, citing LonRes data showing achieved prices in Belgravia and Knightsbridge sank by 8.9% in Q1, with buyers achieving an average 12.8% discount on asking prices.

Overall, Prime London transaction volumes in May were down by 35.8% compared to the same month a year ago.

At the same time, there’s lots of choice: the data shows stock levels are now 22.4% higher in the £5mn-plus range.

These conditions are creating buying opportunities “that have never been seen before”, said the firm, offering up a recent acquisition in Marylebone as an example.

Acting on behalf of a UK domestic client who was looking for a second home in London to add to their primary residence in the country, the agency secured an 18th century freehold townhouse – recently renovated and in a prime spot on Manchester Street – at £250k below the asking price.

It’s a different story in more domestic markets like Chiswick and Tufnell Park, however, where demand for family houses is outstripping supply. The team is on the hunt for a number of family houses up to £3mn, and said the comparison with super-prime is “like night and day” with good houses attracting multiple bids and selling within a few days of coming to the market.

Camilla Dell, Managing Partner at Black Brick: “With stamp duty rates having risen significantly for overseas buyers, combined with the abolishment of the UK Res Non-Dom tax regime it is unsurprising to see that British are back. Overseas buyers of a UK property who are also buying an additional property face stamp duty rates of 19% on the portion of the price above £1.5 million compared to 12% for a British buyer moving home.”

The firm also reports a rise in the number of US buyers, who now make up 23% of its client base, up from 15% last year.

Dell: “Many US buyers are looking to diversify, and some are unhappy with both the political and social situation. In other areas, like California, high property tax and climate change are also causing buyers to look abroad. Having a bolt hole in London makes a lot of sense for US buyers, even if they are not relocating permanently to the UK. Remaining buyers we are advising are from Middle East and continue to show strong interest in London, followed by European buyers. Recent volatility in the Middle East may drive more buyers from these regions to diversify and buy London property which is looking cheaper by the day.”

Another key trend flagged by the firm is a rise in the number of new developments catering to short term stay buyers in areas like Knightsbridge: “Developers such as Finchatton are creating two and three-bedroom luxury new build apartments to cater for a new breed of super prime buyer. Those who do not wish to rent or become tax resident in the UK but still want a luxury pad in the capital,” said the update.

Dell added: “These new boutique developments often have smaller sized apartments priced below £10 million and do not have all the luxury amenities of the traditional super prime new build but that’s the advantage. Buyers who are here for 90 nights or less don’t need or want to spend tens of millions or pay ridiculous levels of high service charges for facilities they will barely use. As long as there is a lift and some kind of porter then it’s enough for this new kind of buyer. We have been to a series of development launches recently which appeal to this trend, one was situated in Knightsbridge, and we recently acquired a property just like this in Mayfair for a client.”

Read the article here.