Becky Fatemi, managing director at Rokstone, says that the Prime Central London property market is entering prolonged phase of stagnation and that the selling cycle has extended from every five years to every eight years.

In the Rokstone Property Review 2016/2017, Fatemi wrote: ‘It wasn’t until late-2015 and early-2016 that the impact of George Osborne’s stamp duty overhaul started to hit the £1m plus market in central London. The changes made by the former Chancellor in December 2014, hiking the transaction levy on properties worth more than £937,000, have acted as a drag on transaction volumes and therefore prices.

‘New data revealed that sales of luxury apartments in London have collapsed by more than 80% since the spring. Property is still the safest place to put your money but only for buyers who are looking long term. Confidence is down and people are confused about which way the market is going.

‘We are entering a period of stagnation in terms of volumes and therefore price. Prices will come off in the first half of the year to the point when such falls wake the market up again.’