The number of vacant homes in central London continues to climb, with some boroughs seeing up to one in three properties standing empty. At the same time, a report from Compare My Move has recorded a 27% increase in people moving out of London between the first and second quarters of 2025.
Three London boroughs, City of London, Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea, are among the top five areas in the UK with the highest proportion of unoccupied homes. These figures include both properties registered as fully vacant and those listed as second homes without permanent residents. Each of these areas has more than 25% of its housing stock currently unoccupied.
10 Emptiest Areas in England and Wales
Source: 2021 Census
Despite high vacancy rates, these boroughs remain among the most expensive places to purchase property in the country. The average house price exceeds £1.4 million, over £1.1 million more than the national average.
Dave Sayce, co-founder and managing director of Compare My Move, linked the increase in outward migration to the growing number of vacant homes across the capital.
“The property market is currently fighting back against the inflated price of central London,” said Sayce. “Not only is there an increase in people choosing the rest of the UK over the capital, but the value of properties in these areas is dropping significantly. The emptiest borough, the City of London, has seen the average price of its property drop 36% since 2018.”
“Unless prices drop significantly, these homes are not viable for the average person to buy,” he added. “Meaning London is going to stay a ghost town until we see a drastic change.”
