Los Angeles has pipped London to become the second most active city by real estate sales in the first quarter of this year, according to a ranking revealed by Estates Gazette.
The list, compiled by international data firm Real Capital Analytics and released on EG’s global property investment website www.globalrealestateinsight.com, shows that Los Angeles saw just over $7bn of sales activity in the three-month period, compared with $6.4bn in London.
New York topped the league of the top 30 metropolitan areas in the world for sales activity, with volumes of $14.2bn in the first quarter, double that of its closest rival.
The US dominated overall, with South Florida rising to fifth place with sales of just under $5bn.
Washington DC, Boston, Denver and Chicago also all feature in the top 10.
Tom Leahy, director of market analysis at Real Capital Analytics, said: “The first-quarter investment volumes show New York remains the biggest real estate market in the world, but in a change from the pattern established since the end of the financial crisis, LA has leapfrogged London to take second place.
“This emphasises the worse than average start to the year in London, where volumes are down by 45% versus Q1 15.
“The EU referendum is causing some investors to take a breather after a record 2015, but other factors such as record pricing and external macroeconomic risks have also had a negative effect on market activity.”
Click here to visit EG’s global website and see the full league table.
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