A property developer has created London’s biggest cash cow by building a £25 million mansion on the site of an old milking parlour.
The stunning 8,139 sq/ft home on Farm Street in Mayfair boasts five bedrooms, an indoor swimming pool, gym, lift and media room.
But 150 years ago, the location wasn’t one of opulence and grandeur – but of agriculture, as one of central London’s milking parlours.
Cows would have been brought to Farm Street from grazing areas which included Peckham, Holland Park and Hampstead Heath. They were then sold to local butchers.
London’s milking parlours dated back to Tudor times but as technology improved and the Mayfair village expanded, the parlour became a depot.
Another property was built on the site towards the end of the 19th Century which remained until 2011 when developers were given planning permission to demolish it and replace it with a double-fronted mansion.
The result is an “immaculately finished” property which is almost ten times the size of the average new home.
It could now become an impressive cash cow for both the developer and the government after being put on the market for a staggering #25 million.
This is 140 times as much as the average home and would incur a £2.9 million stamp duty bill as the government looks to milk wealthy property buyers.
At #3,000 per sq/ft, a cow would currently take up around £78,000 of space, while the asking price could pay for around #50 million pints of milk.
A mansion tax could cost the owner tens of thousands a year but the annual council tax is just £1,345 – with Westminster Council among the UK’s cheapest boroughs for council tax.
The mansion is on the market with Wetherell and Knight Frank.
Peter Wetherell, chief executive of Wetherell, said: “This recently built house is an outstanding example of contemporary living in historic Mayfair at its very best.
“As the location of Mayfair’s dairy, the interesting and unusual history allowed for the construction of a house on a commercial depot site, without the usual restrictions of historic listing controls.
“The result is an open flowing family house providing spacious rooms and generous ceiling heights rarely found in historic Mayfair.”
The master bedroom suite takes up the entire second floor and boasts a bedroom with day/living area, a pair of walk-in dressing rooms and a master bathroom with oval Jacuzzi-style bathtub and separate marble walk-in shower.
There are three further VIP bedroom suites, all of which have en-suites, while he top floor has a private rooftop garden.
The lower ground floors feature a swimming pool complex with mosaic-lined pool, steam room, gym, shower and changing facilities, kitchenette, guest cloakroom and media room.
It also has a private lift, marble flooring, a sweeping spiral staircase and a dining room which can seat 14.
