London is awash with spectacular prime properties, and following the change to the UK's travel rules, it is now much easier for travellers from the UAE to come and see them.
The National'sLondon luxury property series serves to whet the appetite, and this month we take a look at a four-bedroom Art Deco property, brimming with original features.
Featured property
Hamilton Terrace, St Johns Wood, London, NW8 9UJ – £17.25 million ($23.2m).
The key details
A handsome three-floor, 6,750-square-foot Art Deco detached house built in 1938.
Inside Hamilton Terrace in St Johns Wood, London. Photo: Savills
The principal bedroom suite occupies the whole of the first floor and comprises a large bedroom, two sizeable his and her dressing rooms, a bathroom and a gym or sitting area (depending on how energised its occupant is feeling). The floor also offers access to a terrace overlooking the garden.
There are four more double bedrooms – all with en suites – on the second floor. Portholes light the staircase with natural light.
The garden floor features a commodious gallery ideal for a home office or studio.
It also boasts a housekeeper's bedroom suite, a utility room and an integral garage.
The landscaped garden measures about 125 feet with a heated outdoor pool and sitting area. The house has planning permission for a further 5,000 square feet.
What the broker says
What makes the property stand out from the crowd?
Its history is what makes this property particularly special – Hamilton Terrace is an extremely desirable street and many of the properties along the road are Victorian, so the fact this is an Art Deco home makes it stand out.
The house was commissioned to be built for a prominent London couple, the Marques and Marquesa de Casa Maury, in the late 1930s, and still has many of the original features that they installed such as lit bookshelves and porthole windows.
It is also said that the marques and marquesa regularly entertained some of the glittering stars of the day at the property.
Winifred May, the Marquesa de Casa Maury, was a renowned English socialite. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
It’s definitely retained that sense of being a brilliant house to host guests, particularly as the living accommodation is all on the ground floor and leads out to the garden and the outdoor heated swimming pool. You could imagine someone could have some great parties here.
Are there similar homes in London?
It’s unusual to see a home in this part of London that combines Art Deco features with this sense of scale and specification.
The sale definitely presents an exciting proposition for someone. Particularly in the super-prime market, we are seeing buyers wanting the rarity factor in a property and Hamilton Terrace certainly delivers on that requirement.
What kind of buyer would the property most suit?
This is a fantastic and versatile house in terms of its accommodation. It could work well for a family, particularly as it is in a great location for some of London’s best schools, but we’d also expect it to appeal to the international market who might be drawn by the spread of bedroom accommodation for them and their guests. The principal suite is incredibly impressive – it occupies the entire first floor with his and hers dressing rooms, a bathroom and a balcony overlooking the garden.
Hamilton Terrace is beautifully presented but also offers someone the opportunity and flexibility to create a home that suits them and their needs in the future. There is currently a studio on the garden floor but this could make a great games room, cinema or staff accommodation.
The wider St John’s Wood area combines proximity to central London with a neighbourhood feel and holds many delights, including the home of cricket, Lord's.
Lord's is a mere cricket ball's throw from Hamilton Terrace. Getty Images
Why is now a good time to buy in London?
The top end of the London prime property market is the strongest I’ve seen it. Our researchers recently indicated that the London market has just seen record levels of £5 million-plus ($6.8m) activity. There’s strong demand at the top-end, particularly as buyers recognise the value to be had given that prices are now about 20 per cent below their peak.
Zach Madison, director, Savills St Johns Wood and property agent, Hamilton Terrace
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened. He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia. Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”. Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE) Where: Allianz Arena, Munich Live: BeIN Sports HD Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Open Men (bonus points in brackets)
New Zealand 125 (1) beat UAE 111 (3)
India 111 (4) beat Singapore 75 (0)
South Africa 66 (2) beat Sri Lanka 57 (2)
Australia 126 (4) beat Malaysia -16 (0)
Open Women
New Zealand 64 (2) beat South Africa 57 (2)
England 69 (3) beat UAE 63 (1)
Australia 124 (4) beat UAE 23 (0)
New Zealand 74 (2) beat England 55 (2)
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
