The share of Londoners purchasing property outside of the capital slowed in 2022, back towards pre-Covid norms, according to Hamptons, which analysed data from the Office for National Statistics.  

In 2022, Londoners bought 7.3% of all homes sold outside the capital, down from a 14-year high of 7.8% in 2021.  Proportionally though, with flexible working becoming the norm for many, the rate of London outmigration remains above 2019 levels when 6.8% of homes in the regions were bought by a Londoner.

In number terms this means that Londoners likely purchased 81,200 properties outside the capital in 2022, nearly 20,000 fewer than when London purchases peaked at 100,540 in 2021, but still 8% up on the 2015-19 average of 74,970.

Driven by affordability pressures, first-time buyers made up a record 28% of those buying outside the capital, equating to 22,470 purchases. With an average purchase price of £372,000, 30% more than the national average, first-time buyers leaving the capital are estimated by Hamptons to have spent £8.4bn on property in 2022. This figure exceeds the total value of all new homes sold in London in 2021 (£7.6bn).

Meanwhile, London based investors made up a record 21% of those buying in the regions, up from 16% in 2021 and 9% a decade ago. The search for higher yields to cover rising costs means that nearly two-thirds (62%) of London based investors now choose the regions over the capital for their new buy-to-let, up from 26% in 2012. Together with second home buyers, they spent a total of £4.9bn on property outside the capital in 2022.