The weather was much warmer in MIPIM this year – with no
sign of the snow and rain that had plagued us last year. This made
standing outside Bar Roma into the small hours of the morning a far
more enjoyable affair! The warmer weather was also in keeping with
the more upbeat mood of the MIPIM attendees, many of whom seemed
optimistic about UK market prospects.
Foreign investment
At the more exclusive lunches and dinners hosted by London First
the focus was on the London market being seen as a 'safe
haven' for many investors, particularly from Eastern Europe and
Asia. Boris Johnson may want resident UK buyers to have first
refusal on the capital's properties, but the fact is that
developments like the regeneration of the Battersea Power station
site attract massive overseas interest. Over 800 residential homes
have already been sold offplan, generating £675m – with
further sales in the pipeline. No doubt we will be reading
considerably more about this issue over the
