A new analysis suggests that North Americans form the fastest‑growing international buyer group in Britain.
In the first quarter of this year, they accounted for a record 19% of all overseas-based applicants looking for a property in Britain, says Hamptons, using Connells Group data.
That’s up four percentage points on last year and eleven points higher than a decade ago.
There were 13% more North Americans registering to buy property in Britain in Q1 2026 than in the same period last year, despite a 10% overall decline in international registrations.
European buyers, when aggregated, account for 54% of international applicants.
While their share is broadly unchanged year-on-year, European applicants now stand eight percentage points lower than a decade ago – Hamptons says this is “in part a lasting legacy of Brexit.”
Much of this longer‑term decline has been driven by reduced demand from French and Spanish buyers, who made up a far larger share of international applicants a decade ago.
So far, there are no signs of an uplift in demand from Middle Eastern buyers looking to buy into Britain’s housing market, following the outbreak of hostilities.
Applicants from the Middle East accounted for just 5% of all overseas‑based house hunters in Q1 2026, the lowest share recorded since 2013 and down 1% year-on-year.
Registrations from the region fell sharply following the outbreak of war, declining 27% month‑on‑month and standing 58% lower than in March last year.
The agency says this appears to reflect caution around new purchases, with many Middle Eastern households retaining existing UK homes, opting to rent as a stop‑gap, or choosing to base themselves in other countries.
While international demand declined across most of Great Britain, the same cannot be said for London.
London was the only region to see growth in overseas buyer interest in Q1 2026, with international registrations rising 8% year‑on‑year.
As a result, a quarter (25%) of all international enquiries were focused on the capital, up from 21% a year ago and marking the largest annual increase of any UK region.
Hamptons says this probably reflects London’s struggling housing market, which in recent years has made it look better value than in the past.
The average property in the capital is now 3% (or £18,000) cheaper than in 2022, while values in Inner London are down 7%, or around £50,300, over the same period.
Outside the capital, international demand fell across every region with the steepest falls seen in Scotland (-26%), Wales (-27%) and the South West (-20%), where appetite from overseas buyers remains limited.