One of Park Lane’s ‘Grande Dames’ has come onto London’s luxury market, marketed at a guide price of £50 million via Wetherell and UK Sotheby’s International Realty.
The Art Deco icon Aldford House has a price tag that reflects the substantial square footage on offer across the floorplates of both the sixth and seventh floors. Currently in shell condition across both floors, this comprises approximately 18,910 square feet in total, with planning consent for two units per floor (four in total).
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According to Peter Wetherell, Founder and Executive Chairman of Wetherell, this renovation-ready lot represents the pinnacle in ultra-prime Park Lane real estate.
“Now that the freehold has been purchased by the residents, this is an opportunity to be part of the restoration of one of Park Lane’s ‘Grande Dame’ buildings from the 1930s building boom,” he said.
Unrivalled views over Hyde Park and London’s skyline
Dressed in Portland stone banded with London red stock brick and Beaux-Arts and Art Deco period detailing, Aldford House is one of Mayfair’s most distinguished 1930s apartment blocks and a defining feature of the Park Lane streetscape.
Investors acquiring the substantial top-floor megadeal apartments will enjoy outstanding views over Hyde Park and down Park Lane toward the Wellington Arch from apartments 61 and 71 on the southern side of the building.
The larger apartments, 62 and 72, to the north, offer cinematic London skyline views toward the City and Canary Wharf, as well as across Hyde Park toward Marble Arch.
“Dressed in Portland stone banded with London red stock brick and Beaux-Arts and Art Deco period detailing, Aldford House is one of Mayfair's most distinguished 1930s apartment blocks and a defining feature of the Park Lane streetscape”
In a wider project which will update the building’s common parts now that residents have collectively acquired the freehold, proposals include the reinstatement of Art Nouveau-style iron and glass entrance doors to the Park Street entrances, replacing later, out-of-context timber additions,
Portland stone, quarried on the Isle of Portland and long associated with London’s grandest public buildings, remains the primary facade material and will form a central part of the building’s restoration.
Constructed in 1930–31 by the architectural partnership of George Val Myer and F. J. Watson-Hart – the practice responsible for the BBC’s Broadcasting House – the building was redeveloped on the site of an earlier 1890s mansion built for the diamond magnate Sir Alfred Beit. Sir Edwin Lutyens, one of the 20th century’s most celebrated architects, acted as consultant on the design.
A rare legacy asset play in Mayfair’s heart
The two shell floors represent a rare opportunity to acquire substantial floorplates for bespoke legacy renovation within one of Park Lane’s most architecturally and historically significant buildings.
Beyond its architectural significance, Aldford House has notable cultural heritage. Between 1950 and 1964, the top-floor apartment was home to Dame Anna Neagle, one of Britain’s most celebrated film actresses, and her husband, film producer and director Herbert Wilcox.
“Between 1950 and 1964, the top-floor apartment was home to Dame Anna Neagle, one of Britain's most celebrated film actresses, and her husband, film producer Herbert Wilcox”
Simon Burgoyne, Sales Director at United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty, says: “To buy into Park Lane at £2,500 per square foot is a rare opportunity to create large lateral apartments no longer possible with current planning constraints.”
The Aldford House sixth and seventh floors (Flats 61, 62, 71, 72) are currently in shell condition, at a price guide of £50,000,000, offered on a 999-year lease with a share of the freehold.
Investor notes
The two-floor acquisition presents a rare opportunity to create a legacy asset with multiple configurations on one of the UK capital’s best-known stretches of super-prime real estate fringing Mayfair and Hyde Park.
Wider upgrades to the interior and exterior of storied Aldford House further position the renovation project as a compelling proposition for investors looking outside of turnkey, new-build homes within London’s trophy postcode, ultra-prime segment.
The project would particularly suit UHNW buyers prioritising bespoke shell-condition renovation control over immediate availability.
