Billionaires from Middle East drive London property boom as they flee Iran war

American and Middle Eastern buyers are driving a London property boom after over £1billion of super-prime homes were snapped up in the first half of 2026.

Analysis of property market data shows £1.24bn of sales were recorded in the capital between January and June - a 79 per cent spike year-on-year driven by, experts say, one-time non-doms trying to shield their cash from the effects of the Iran war.

Around 25 per cent of buyers were from the Gulf, according to Beauchamp Estates, which analysed the data.

Middle Eastern buyers are hunting for new boltholes abroad should they have to retreat from scenes like those in February, when Tehran began raining down hell on American allies including Dubai.

And like the Americans who make up another 30 per cent of those snapping up prime London homes, they pay in cash - typically immediately remortgaging to free up liquid assets and so the home can be registered as a debt for tax purposes.

Rosy Khalastchy of Beauchamp Estates said concerns about personal safety among Gulf nationals had prompted a 15 per cent spike in enquiries. 

She said: 'The buyers include Gulf nationals, Gulf based UK and European expats and also Indian, Pakistani, Lebanese and other nationals who are based in the Middle East. 

'This has led to a significant rise in both sales and lettings deals in Central London to Gulf based families who have young children and want their families to have a safe base in the UK capital they can use when required.'

Estate agents expect the proportion of sales made to Middle Eastern billionaires to rise significantly in the second half of the year, as sales that began in the midst of the Iran conflict complete.

Many of those selling up are ex-non-doms shifting their UK bases in order to move abroad after Rachel Reeves scrapped the status, which had allowed the super-rich to shield foreign earnings from HMRC.

Others are British nationals downsizing, or leaving London for the Home Counties.

In all, 34 super-prime homes worth at least £15million changed hands in the first half of the year, at an average of £36.5million - almost twice the average selling price three years ago - with buyers favouring mansions over apartments.

Savvy Gulf buyers are also snapping up new-build apartments in bulk as an investment or to let, hedging their bets that they will appreciate in value.

But the market performance has been skewed by some seriously big deals, including what is thought to be Britain's biggest ever residential property sale.

Providence House, in Chelsea, was sold by businessman Nick Candy to Labour donor Suneil Setiya for £275million earlier this year.

Other above-average transactions include the £195million sale of The Holme, an enormous mansion in Regents Park, to Dubai real estate developer Abbas Sajwani.

His father Hussain, a friend of Donald Trump nicknamed the 'Donald of Dubai', also sought to purchase a £55million Knightsbridge mansion this year but lost out to a British buyer.

And a penthouse at the Park Modern complex overlooking Hyde Park was reportedly flogged for £57million to Elon Musk collaborator Igor Babuschkin - though he has since denied that he was behind the purchase. 

Beauchamp Estates says many of the sales in the Mayfair area are also being driven by Americans who disagree with the policies of President Donald Trump, and are pooling their money into real estate and tech start-ups, particularly in AI.

Belgravia has also been a big winner, with nine transactions in the last six months compared to two in the same period of 2025.

Both Gulf and US buyers tend to be in their mid-30s to mid-50s, with young children. Often, their new London bolthole operates as a fourth or fifth home.

'The US economy and booming AI/tech sector is generating significant wealth but unease over Trump has helped to generate a 10 per cent rise in American buyers transferring some of their money offshore into London property purchases.'

Elsewhere, London has a new billionaire's row: Hamilton Terrace in St John's Wood has seen almost £100million of house sales in the last 12 months alone, largely attracting buyers from India.

Estate agents Aston Chase, which conducted a wealth survey of the area, says buyers are drawn in by the street's competitively priced homes: a relative snip for the burgeoning billionaire at £5million to £20million.