Prices for designer homes in London are going through the roof thanks to creative use of space, quality materials and craftsmanship
Wealthy international buyers are paying the highest prices in the world for London's designer homes.
Top developers, designers and architects carry as much cachet in the minds of luxury home buyers as top designer labels, and their creations have price tags to match. Brands are being created, not just homes. Sometimes, a home receives a stylish new lease on life; very often, an entirely new, branded residential scheme is built.
Designer homes are usually fully furnished with custom-made furniture. This ready-to-move-in aspect makes them particularly popular with overseas buyers.
An ambitious project in the pipeline is the Richard Rogers-designed One Hyde Park in Knightsbridge where Candy & Candy is development manager and interior designer. The Mandarin Oriental Group will provide residents with five-star hotel-style services when the project is completed in 2010.
Sales prices at the project are nudging close to GBP6,000 (HK$92,522) per sqft, one of the highest in the world. Half of its apartments have been sold for an average of GBP20million each since marketing started. Eighty per cent of buyers are from overseas.
'People have bought into Candy & Candy because there is comfort in the brand like there is for a Louis Vuitton handbag,' says Camilla Dell, partner of Central London property firm, Black Brick.