House hunters looking for a luxury home with a price tag of at least £15million may struggle to find what they are looking for, it has been revealed.

This is because there are just a ‘few hundred properties’ in this price bracket that are currently available to buy, according to new research.

The findings from Agentwise suggested that there are only 180 homes for sale that have a value of more than £15million.

It accounts for only 0.04% of all available housing stock in Britain.

Agent collaboration

It is in sharp contrast to the lower rungs of the property ladder, where a vast wave of inventory means it has firmly become a buyers’ market.

Eric Corsaletti, founder of AgentWise, explains that it is why the super-prime market increasingly relies on collaboration between agents.

He says: “As values increase, the market becomes dramatically smaller.

“There are tens of thousands of homes available between £1million and £5million, but once you move above £10million there are only a few hundred properties across the whole of Britain.’

The super-prime market increasingly relies on collaboration between agents.”

“At that level, the traditional process becomes far less effective. The pool of potential buyers is smaller, more international, and often looking across multiple locations at the same time. A buyer considering a house in the South East may also be looking in London, the French Riviera or New York.

“It is also important to remember that many of the highest value transactions never reach the portals at all. Particularly above £10million, a significant proportion of deals are carried out privately through trusted agent relationships and discreet networks.

“That is why the super-prime market increasingly relies on collaboration between agents.

“When there are only a handful of relevant buyers, a limited number of properties, and much of the market is transacted privately, being connected to the right people matters more than broad exposure.”

Super-prime market

The research by AgentWise found that while London remains the centre of Britain’s super-prime market, accounting for 81.9% of all homes listed between £5million and £10million, 83.1% of those listed between £10million and £15million, and 92.8% of homes currently for sale above £15million.

It said this breakdown of available stock highlights that, when it comes to the prime property market, no individual agent or firm – particularly outside of London – is likely to have access to more than a small proportion of the market.

As a result, collaboration between agents is becoming increasingly important, particularly when dealing with buyers who are often looking across multiple regions and countries at the same time, it concluded.