After the pandemic produced the greatest wave of emigration from the capital in a generation, Londoners spent a record £54.9 billion on property outside the city in 2021.

According to data provided by real estate consultant Hamptons, home purchasers located in London acquired more houses outside the metropolis in 2021 than in any other year since 2007, when £36.6 billion was spent.

The major driver of the move was a huge increase in remote working, especially at the start of the year when England was in its third lockdown, prompting many to quit the capital for commuter towns where larger houses with gardens are more affordable.

According to Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, the year 2021 “is expected to signal the highest outmigration from London in at least a generation.”

“In the previous 20 years, more homeowners have purchased outside of London than those who own in London now.” City emigrants have altered the landscape of not just the commuter belt, but also of smaller towns and cities throughout Southern England. And in a Covid environment, this has gotten progressively entrenched.”

It has been a year of highs and lows for the British housing market, which began 2021 with the onerous challenge of navigating the third shutdown in England and comparable limitations throughout the rest of the nation.

As a result, London-based purchasers acquired more than 112,700 properties outside the city this year, the greatest amount since 2007, with first-time buyers accounting for over a fifth of that total.

According to Hamptons, the average “London leaver” paid £18,980 less on their house outside the city than the price of the property they sold, with the average “London leaver” selling their home for £525,910 and spending £506,930 on their new home.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s stamp duty vacation, which provided purchasers with a discount of up to £15,000 on the first £500,000 of a purchase price until the end of June, also contributed to the increase beyond the capital.

The tax incentive was subsequently scaled back to apply just to the first 250,000 people until the end of September.

According to Hamptons, St Albans in Hertfordshire was the top location for first-time buyers moving out of London in 2021, while Dartford in Kent was the biggest draw for current homeowners transferring outside the metropolis.

According to the estate firm, the Arun area of West Sussex, which encompasses Arundel and Bognor Regis, was the top choice for London-based purchasers looking to buy a second property.

Despite the end of the stamp duty vacation, British home prices rose 10% year on year in November and are already about 15% higher than at the start of the recession.

According to Nationwide, the average price of a property in November increased by 0.9% to £252,687 from £250,311 the previous month, exceeding all expectations.

Looking ahead, Ms Beveridge stated that there are still many unknowns, since we do not yet know what long-term impact the epidemic will have on the way we live and work.

According to the estate firm, the Arun area of West Sussex, which encompasses Arundel and Bognor Regis, was the top choice for London-based purchasers looking to buy a second property.

Despite the end of the stamp duty vacation, British home prices rose 10% year on year in November and are already about 15% higher than at the start of the recession.

According to Nationwide, the average price of a property in November increased by 0.9% to £252,687 from £250,311 the previous month, exceeding all expectations.

Looking ahead, Ms Beveridge stated that there are still many unknowns, since we do not yet know what long-term impact the epidemic will have on the way we live and work.