Hong Kong leads overseas ownership

Research by agents Benham and Reeves shows that the territory has the largest number of overseas personal owners of UK residential properties. Singapore is in a strong second place.

Using information supplied by the Land Registry, they determined that 187,000 residential properties in England and Wales were registered to individuals living overseas.

Those from Hong Kong were the largest group, accounting for 24,700 homes, 13.2% of the total. Buyers from Singapore own 15,700, or 8.4%. Other Asian countri high on the list include Malaysia and China.

UAE has the largest number of Middle Eastern owners with 5.7% of the total. GCC residents overall own 29,400 homes, or 15.7% of the total.

Other notables include United States and Australia.

Marc von Grundherr, a director of Benham and Reeves, said "It's no secret that England and Wales is a hugely attractive market for overseas property buyers.

"While this popularity isn't limited to one single nation, it's certainly being driven by Hong Kong buyers who continue to be the most prominent foreign nation operating within our bricks and mortar market."