Prime business booming for John D Wood

Something's up at the top of the market. Recent reports of plummeting prices and drippy demand have signalled a change in fortunes for the capital's premier properties.

An in-depth look at Westminster's prime resi market has estimated that the owners of properties worth more than £15m each spend around £4.5m in London annually, with those in the £5-£15m range dropping around £2.75m.

The prime lettings market has "picked up" in the first half of the year, says Savills, as a slow-but-steady economic recovery drives confidence and employment