Forbes’ annual top ten most expensive properties list shows that the credit crunch has even crept into streets paved with gold, as the homes are cheaper than last year and the superrich are withdrawing properties from the market, unable to reach the price they want…
Now, when I say cheaper, I mean it in the loosest sense of the word, as a property must still be worth more than around £40 million to even make it onto the list, which only features publicly listed sales not private deals.
Anything less than eight figures is mere pocket change to this elite brand of M&M’s (multi millionaires).
Struggling to get by on a mere millionaire’s salary, some M&M’s have withdrawn their prestigious property from the market as they can’t realise the price they are seeking and don’t want to lose out-after all, a few million would cover their food shop for a good few months.
Recently, investor Marty Zweig pulled the plug on his £46.8 million Pierre Hotel penthouse listing after four years on the market. Financier Leonard Ross, who had asked £110 million for the Hearst Mansion in Beverly Hills, California, also de-listed it in September.
And late last year, Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia removed his £90.3 million Aspen ski lodge from the ranks of available listings.
Because the Aspen ski lodge was removed, the former number two moved up to claim first place.
The 2008 gold medal is shared this year (how appropriate, given the credit crunch) and is split between a £83.6 million property on the Holmby Hills Estate between Beverly Hills and Bel Air, California.
The Versailles style property, known as Fleur de Lys, has 12 bedrooms and 15 bathrooms, but its mammoth asking price is the lowest price of any top spot property since 2005.
Also at the top of the list is Dunnellen Hall, a Jacobean style manor in Greenwich, Connecticut, which has vaulted ceilings and marble floors.
The most expensive home in the UK is the £70 million Updown Court in Surrey which is bigger than Buckingham Palace and Hampton Court. With 103-rooms and 58 acres of gardens and woodlands, this property also boasts an indoor squash court, bowling alley, 50-seat cinema, helipads, space for eight limousines and a heated marble driveway.
Heated driveway?? A necessity in any home…
Joint number four goes to a Lake Tahoe, Nevada property, owned by Joel Horowitz, joint founder of Tommy Hilfiger. The home comes with a wine cellar with 3,500 bottles – a snip at £67 million.
Whilst the Forbes list is compiled from the world’s most valuable properties on the market in every continent, (excluding Antarctica) discovering every top-tier property is impossible. This is because some M&M’s don’t advertise their homes, selling instead to pre-selected buyers and keeping the asking and selling prices secret for tax purposes.
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