Fashion designer and film director Tom Ford has paid around £80 million for a Chelsea mansion in one of the biggest deals in London this year.
The former Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent creative director is believed to have bought a spectacular nine bedroom house with a swimming pool, private cinema and glass lift in one of central London’s most exclusive addresses.
Ford purchased the property after reportedly deciding to sell another home in Regent’s Park, also for an eight-figure sum.
The 63 year old American previously owned a three bedroom townhouse in The Boltons in Chelsea, which he is believed to have sold around a decade ago.
The latest deal was said to have been completed just before Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a two per cent increase in stamp duty on second homes in the Budget last week saving the director of the Colin Firth drama A Single Man around £1.6 million in tax,
Paul Finch, a director at central London agents Beauchamp Estates, said that American buyers made up a large portion of the pre-Budget influx of buyers, in part reflecting concern about a Donald Trump presidency. Tom Ford is a high profile supporter and fundraiser for the Democrat party.
Mr Finch said: “A significant number of these are American buyers of which Tom Ford is the most famous,” he said. “I think part of it is these American buyers wanting a second home away from the US mainland if Trump does come to power, and the urgency of the sales has also been fast-tracked because American buyers have wanted to avoid anticipated tax rises. ”
He added: “The biggest pre-budget deals have been by overseas cash buyers in rank order from America, India and Asia. Over the last three months wealthy American and Asian buyers have been extremely active in the London marketplace to a level we have not seen since before the COVID19 pandemic. From June onwards we noticed a 30% rise in overseas clients enquiring about suitable homes in the capital that they could purchase and get fast-tracked before budget day.”
Mayfair agent Peter Wetherell said: “The UK Autumn Budget, with its non-dom abolition and 2% stamp duty uplift for 2nd homes triggered a wave of trophy home sales deals in the weeks and days before budget day. Both financial changes impacted on vendors and purchasers. The Non-Dom abolition served to fuel vendors desire to sell whilst the stamp duty rise help to push buyers into agreeing prices that suited both them and the vendor.”
“In the three months between the start of August and budget day at the end of October we have seen a huge wave of sales as existing vendors have sought to exit London and a rush of incoming buyers, particular from India and America, who have raced to buy prior to the budget and the rise in Stamp Duty.”
“Over the last few months Wetherell have sold two apartments in Grosvenor Square, deals for £7.85 million and £9.15 million, both two bedroom lateral apartments purchased by Indian families as their London base. We have also seen the sale of the £10.95 million former Spencer family house on Farm Street, much visited by Princess Diana, which sold in just three days. Finally in the hours before budget day an American buyer purchased the £6.5 million Hay’s Mews house formerly owned by American art collector Doris Lockhart Saatchi, finalising the deal in the late evening just before Budget day.”
