Prime central London property has seen a significant rise in demand as the Stamp Duty deadline looms large, according to estate agent eMoov.co.uk.

It’s latest property index shows a 16% rise in demand for property in the heart of the capital over the last month to its highest level since last June.

The demand for property in prime central London has been boosted due to April’s Stamp Duty changes, which will see both foreign and domestic buyers charged an additional 3% in Stamp Duty when purchasing a second home.

For those looking for a property over the £1m mark, that’s an additional charge of at least 13% of the property’s value, with April’s impending deadline seeing many rush to secure a sale before the changes are implemented.

Booming demand

As a result, some pockets of prime central London have seen demand levels explode since the end of last year, with Maida Vale top in terms of change up +281%, with demand now at 16%.

Primrose Hill has seen the second highest change, up +169%, closely followed by Chiswick where demand has increased +128%.

St Johns Wood (+119%), Marylebone (+55%), Knightsbridge (+48%), Fulham (+28%), Chelsea (+5%) and Belsize Park (+5%) have also enjoyed an uplift in demand.

Surge in stock

eMoov found that the level of stock across the major portals has more than doubled since the end of last year from 5,729 to 13,481, as homeowners try to increase their property price potential by selling during the scramble to buy before April.

Founder and CEO of eMoov.co.uk, Russell Quirk, said: “It’s clear that the fast approaching increase in Stamp Duty tax is having an impact on London’s high-end market. The prime central London market in particular has been in decline for quite some time now, but this flurry of activity from both buyers and sellers has seen demand on the up for the time being.”