More Emiratis and UAE-based expats are buying prime property in London, the FinancialTimes reports. UAE nationals made up 3% of overseas buyers in prime central London in the year to July, up from 0.6% the year before, the FT cites data from Knight Frank as saying.
The pull: “London is looking cheaper than it was,” said James Forbes, co-founder of Forbes Gilbert-Green, citing depressed property values and a new four-year tax break on foreign income for new arrivals and long-term returnees — giving fresh buyers a window of lighter taxation. Prices in Kensington and Chelsea fell to their lowest since 2013 this May.
REMEMBER- The same reforms ended indefinite non-domicile status and tightened rules on trusts, pushing many long-term residents to leave. The Treasury expects around a quarter of non-domiciles to exit, with the UK forecast to see a record net outflow of 16.5k high-net-worth individuals this year — the largest globally.
But some are saying the exodus has been exaggerated, with some tax lawyers saying they are seeing British expats in Dubai moving back to the UK to take advantage of the four-year regime.