Yahoo Finance 
Singapore buyers losing interest in London property?
Singaporean buyers have flooded London's property market over the last three years and have significantly reshaped it, media reports said.
Based on Knight Frank data, almost 75 percent of new-build homes in prime central London were snapped up by non-UK buyers in 2012, with over one out of six foreign buyers in central London coming from Asia.
The pent-up demand saw London house prices surge by over 11 percent in a year, causing politicians to decry the dearth of affordable homes while economists warn of a price bubble.
However, judging by the glossy marketing flyers stuffed in the mailboxes of potential Singapore investors, neither issue has affected interest.
"Of course, there's some concern that the bubble might burst... but at the end of the day there is huge liquidity out there. It's easy to get out of the market and you have a deep pool of buyers waiting on the sidelines," said Donald Han, managing director, Chesterton Singapore.
Mark Yap, a 43-year old doctor, revealed that he spends his spare time researching the London property market. Much like other Singaporean buyers, Dr Yap looked to London after the local property investment market became prohibitively expensive.
To capitalize on this, developers and agents have held property shows for local buyers where they are entertained at evening cocktail events amidst presentations for London property. Some of these have led to actual transactions.
Despite the interest, signs are starting to show that the appetite for these types of events are diminishing.
Mike Bickerton, head of new homes of the global residential department at DTZ, noted that the Singapore government's restriction on the amount of money that an individual can borrow to acquire property has had a dampening effect.
"The profile of the buyers has changed, we used to see the same faces turning up at every exhibit and they'd buy a property once every few months. Buyers are now judged on their incomes," he said.
Christopher Chitty, Senior Content Producer at PropertyGuru edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email christopher@propertyguru.com.sg
Related Stories:
Encouraging interest at Samui show
Sales boom in London, Miami, NY
More from PropertyGuru:
UEM Sunrise partners with KLK for Iskandar projects
Sochi sees the Olympic Effect
Encouraging interest at Samui show
Sales boom in London, Miami, NY
