According to The Sun, estate agent Patrick Aschan said: 'Garages in Chelsea are as rare as hen's teeth. It is quite a moment when one comes on the market. People prefer to keep them even if they are no longer needed. They make great long-term investments.' The price of the garage works out at more than four times the cost of an average first-time buyer's home.

Yes, house prices in Britain are moving again after a slowdown. In September the average cost of a home hit $2.49 million.

But $8.6 million for a garage? This week Your Money looks at what else, if you do not need a garage, you could spend $8.6 million on.

If you fancy an island, Farhad Vladi, a German-born real estate agent, can help. At a starting price of around US$400,000 his inventory includes everything from rustic little isles to Isla de sa Ferradura, a posh 'rock' in the Spanish Balearics that a Dutch developer has transformed into a Mediterranean fantasyland of pools, gardens and waterfalls.

'There are literally hundreds of freehold islands available in Sweden and in Nova Scotia,' he said. 'You can still buy a substantial island for under US$400,000. That's less than what you pay for a condo in New York.'

Chockle Cap Island in Nova Scotia could be considered a snip at US$50,000 compared to more pricey sites, such as Ile de Caille in Grenada (US$10 million).

If you prefer warmer climes, Kalabash Cay, a small private island in the Bahamas, is on offer for US$995,000. Its 3.4 hectares offers white beaches and two ridges.

You could try 40 nights in one of the world's most expensive hotels. That's the Atlantis Bridge Suite on Paradise Island in the Bahamas, which costs US$25,000 per night. The 10-room suite is on top of a bridge that connects the two Royal Towers buildings, so it overlooks the entire resort and marina. It comes with its own butler, bar lounge and entertainment centre.

If you are into sailing, you might charter The Annaliese for 81/2 days - that's US$113,760 per day. The Annaliese -which is also the most expensive yacht currently for sale at US$90 million - is a 'superyacht' owned by Greek entrepreneur Andreas Liveras.

Onboard facilities help explain the price. They include a spa, with a marble Roman bath, saunas and steam rooms, Jacuzzis (in the spa as well as on the sun deck), a full-size movie theatre, a business centre and a helicopter landing pad. Sailing itineraries include the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and the South Pacific. The Annaliese and her sister ship, the Alysia (which has the same daily rate), each accommodate 36 people.

In Shanghai, for anyone with 5 million yuan, an old garden house is available. The detached villas, built before 1949, usually cover 300 to 700 square metres with a garden of 100 to 500 square metres. In Hong Kong this sum of money only buys a small apartment with two rooms and one sitting room.

Weighing in at an average of more than 110,000 yuan per square metre, flats in the Tomson Riviera project, developed by Hong Kong-listed Tomson Group, have set a record as Shanghai's most expensive.

Of the first 74 apartments put up for sale in November, the cheapest, at 434 square metres, carries a 38 million yuan price tag while the most expensive costs more than 170 million yuan. Sales are reported to be sluggish.

Greener pastures perhaps? If so, your $8.6 million would get you Kin Kin, 115 hectares of lush land in Queensland, Australia, near the coastal resort of Noosa with a colonial-era home and permanent creek and lake. With it goes 1,651 millimetres of rain a year, fertile soil and a hardwood forest.

For motor fanatics, the Volvo Museum recently paid US$1 million for the missing 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder that James Dean drove to his death almost 50 years ago. Before the car's disappearance in 1958, it had been linked to a series of deaths, injuries and unusual events for those involved and subsequently became known as 'The Curse of the James Dean Death Car'.

But maybe you'd prefer something with a little less history. Your $8.6 million would buy you two Saleen S7 supercars. Built by Saleen, a sports-car manufacturer based in California, just one S7 costs US$562,000. Or you could buy two Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren supercars for US$452,750 each. But the hitch, of course, is you still need a garage for that dream machine.

Parking in Hong Kong is not exactly cheap. A parking space at one of Hong Kong's luxury developments can easily set the buyer back $1 million-plus to park the family sedan or even that eye-catching US$670,000 Ferrari.

THE ART OF SPENDING

The view from the Atlantis Bridge Suite on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. A stay of 40 nights would cost about US$1 million. But you do get a butler

Kalabash Cay, a small private island in the Bahamas, is on offer for US$995,000. Its 3.4 hectares offers white beaches and two ridges

You could swap your Chelsea garage for 115 hectares of lush land at Kin Kin, Noosa, in Queensland, Australia. It has a colonial-era home and permanent creek and lake

Chartering the Annaliese for 81/2 days will set you back about US$1 million

This is the Saleen S7 supercar. You could buy a couple of them