London Sets Record for Luxury Home Sales

The market for London's most luxurious homes is skyrocketing as foreign buyers, seeking safe investments, swoop in to purchase the city's priciest residences. Sales of properties worth more than $8 million spiked 31% to a record 262 in the past year, reports Businessweek. House-hunters hailing from the Middle East, North Africa, Eastern Europe, and Russia are investing upward of $1,900 per square foot in posh London neighborhoods as a way to escape volatility in their home countries.

The most expensive deals are being struck for apartments in central London neighborhoods including Belgravia, Knightsbridge, and Mayfair. One six-story building dating from the Victorian era, located near Paddington Square, was recently listed at $44 million. (More London stories.)