A mansion in London’s Mayfair neighborhood sold for about £52 million ($63 million) as part of a UK enforcement action.
(Bloomberg) — A mansion in London’s Mayfair neighborhood sold for about £52 million ($63 million) as part of a UK enforcement action.
The house on Hill Street, one of the most desirable streets in the exclusive district, comes with about 20 bedrooms and a swimming pool. The property was built in the 1700s and its previous residents include lawmakers, dukes and barons.
Today, it’s located close to the UK headquarters of luxury giant Richemont and a short walk from Berkeley Square, where many hedge funds and private equity managers work.
The property was one of three luxury mansions in Mayfair sold to a single buyer for £80 million by receivers at Begbies Traynor, according to two people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be named as the deals are private. The other two properties are on Charles Street and Hay’s Mews and were also once owned by the same investor, the people said.
A spokesman for Begbies Traynor confirmed that they had been appointed as receivers of the properties on Nov. 17, 2020 and declined to comment further. UK receivers are typically appointed by a creditor with a view to liquidating a company’s assets to pay down the debt.
National Bank of Abu Dhabi held a charge over the properties, according to official property documents. The bank has since merged with First Gulf Bank to form First Abu Dhabi Bank, which declined to comment.
The sales are the latest instances of luxury homes in London being sold in insolvency proceedings. A tightening of debt markets has left some owners struggling to refinance mortgages after interest rates soared.
Earlier this week, a property known as The Holme in Regent’s Park was put on the market following the appointment of receivers, according to React News.
The number of homes selling for £5 million pounds or more in London’s best districts in January was 92% higher than the same month in 2019 and 56% higher than a year ago, according to researcher LonRes.
Still, many other vendors decided to pull their homes from the market, with withdrawals in that price bracket rising to the highest level on record last month.
–With assistance from Nicolas Parasie and Fiona MacDonald.
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