Because you’re worth it: the best bachelor pads in town
ATROPHY apartment is the ultimate reward for spending your 20s chained to a desk. And in case you hadn’t noticed, tastes for this type of flat, and the facilities found within it, are changing. Overt ostentation, 1980s-style, is out – so swimming pools with your monogrammed initials at the bottom are a no-no – to be replaced by other, more subtle, signifiers of wealth. Wine cellars and cinema rooms, for example, are two common features you’ll find in top-end apartments today.
Alex Michel, director of property firm Finchatton, purveyors of high-end trophy flats, has noticed that his clients are very concerned these days about where to store their vino. “Wine cellars are almost de rigueur now,” he says. “Once they were in only the most exclusive of properties, but, like cinema rooms, they have now trickled down and become relatively standard. The proliferation of wine fridges in upmarket apartments is a case in point.”
Another new feature that the very wealthy – and very stressed – are requesting is massage rooms. “Media rooms are very 2007,” says Knight Frank’s James Simpson. “Now a far more desirable feature is a small massage room; a simple haven of tranquility where you can recover from the stresses of the modern world. Typically this type of room is relatively small and lies adjacent to a spa, swimming pool and home gym, and is set aside for treatments. A masseur coming to your home will set to work here.”
The ultimate extravagance, however, is having a bespoke home: one designed top-to-toe to suit you. “Our clients don’t just want a nice big living room; they want the kitchen cooker to be at the right height for them, the dustbin to be on the left side if they’re left-handed, and the knife drawer on the right because they cut with their right hand,” says Michel.
His own bachelor pad in Knightsbridge is a good example of this philosophy: sleek and monochrome, it includes a bedside switch that turns off every light in the flat, including the terrace ones, so he can hop into bed and not worry about leaving anything on. Now that’s luxury.
THE MARBLE ARCH MANSION
For buyers with traditional tastes when it comes to the exterior of the building, but who like their interiors state-of-the-art, there is 4 Connaught Place, a new development converted from a Grade-II listed building that was the former HQ of Cadbury. The grand-looking building is found close to Marble Arch Tube, on the edge of Hyde Park and close to Oxford Street. Selfridges is a stone’s throw away, and Marylebone village is a five-minute walk. There are two flats left (out of 10 originally launched) – a two-bed flat with balcony for £1.995m, and a three-bed flat with two internal courtyards and terrace for £2.25m.
Contact: Knight Frank, tel: 020 7173 4999, www.fourconnaughtplace.com
THE “LOOK-AT-ME” MEGA LOFT
If understatement is your enemy, then you might be interested in the Presidential Residence at the Bridges Wharf development in Battersea. The two-bedroom, 2,100 sq ft apartment offers panoramic views across the River Thames from the living room. This flat is found on the 12th floor of the Altura Tower, above the first five-star hotel (not yet opened) found south of the river. There is a terrace that stretches almost the length of the apartment, perfect for a few drinks while watching the sun going down or rowers gently traversing the river. The kitchen has been described by developers Weston Homes as being “Michelin-starred quality”, with two Miele ovens and a double-door fridge. The price is a cool £2.5m.
Contact: Weston Homes, tel: 0845 638 5005, www.weston-homes.com/bridgeswharf
THE RIVER VIEW PAD
Another swanky home on the Thames developer St George is selling this two-floor apartment within Imperial Wharf, a 32-acre development along the river. It’s found adjacent to Chelsea Harbour and close to the shops and restaurants of the King’s Road. The flat features under-floor heating, a touch-screen pad to control the music and films you are watching, surround sound, mood lighting, iPod docks and ceiling speakers. There is also a 24-hour concierge to look after you around the clock, and a residents’ gym. Surrounding the flat are 10 acres of landscaped gardens, and close by lies a newly opened overground station, Imperial Wharf, connecting travellers to Clapham Junction and Westfield shopping centre. Price is £1.85m.
Contact: St George, tel: 020 7610 9693, www.imperialwharf.com
THE STATE-OF-THE-ART HOME
Not so much a bachelor pad, but a statement home for families with a taste for design and lots of bedrooms, this vast six-bed, six-bathroom detached house in St John’s Wood has just come on the market. Measuring 7,470 sq ft, it’s being sold for £15m through Knight Frank, and has been completely refurbished, with interiors designed by Kelly Hoppen – so expect oversized light fittings and Ibiza-style day beds in the living rooms. There is a basement swimming pool, gym, massage and steam room, and garden lounge featuring a floor-to-ceiling glass wall, blurring the lines between the indoors and outdoors.
Contact: Knight Frank, tel: 020 7483 8353, www.knightfrank.co.uk
THE FORTRESS
Finchatton’s latest scheme is Montpelier Hall in Knightsbridge, a converted nurses’ home found a short walk from Harrods. Here, a three-bed 2,874 sq ft flat over two floors costs £6.75m. For that you get all the furnishings, underfloor heating and wall-mounted touch panels controlling your DVD database, as well as your lighting, air conditioning and CCTV. For the security-conscious there are several alarm systems with motion sensors and panic buttons. There is secure parking and a house manager to look after residents.
Contact: Philip Woolf Property, tel: 020 7935 8181,
www.finchatton.com