Across the world, almost every village, town and city has a street that the locals consider to be ‘the best’. This could be a row of merchants’ homes in a former industrial powerhouse, a tree-lined enclave in the suburbs or a cluster of double-fronted Georgian properties in a charming village.
At the top of the residential food chain is the ‘Billionaires’ Row’ – an ultra-exclusive street where the wealthiest of the wealthy hold property. It’s often the most desirable street in the most sought-after neighbourhood in one of the world’s wealthiest cities, and owning property here comes at a premium, points out Adam Simmonds, director of super-prime projects at Savills.
From London and New York to Hong Kong and Singapore, homes on these streets can command tens, if not hundreds of millions, of pounds. Rock stars live next to top financial services CEOs, and royals live adjacent to ex-politicians. Security and privacy are paramount, points out Simmonds. Many of these streets hire private 24-hour security, are inaccessible to non-residents and have looming gates outside each of the houses – without compromising their luxurious surroundings.
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The locations of Billionaires’ Rows have shifted throughout history. Long before the Bishops Avenue in London emerged – and when billionaires did not exist – aristocrats of the 18th and 19th centuries coveted townhouses on Piccadilly. There is already an argument that the UK capital’s Billionaires’ Row has changed addresses again.
London: The Bishops Avenue
A wide, tree-lined street in north London, the Bishops Avenue is considered by many to be London’s Billionaires’ Row. Located north of Hampstead Heath in the wealthy neighbourhood of Highgate, the road is known for being quiet and spacious, yet not too far from London’s busy centre.
First called ‘Millionaires’ Row’ in the 1930s, the street still boasts properties that command some of the highest prices in the capital. By the 1980s, properties on the Bishops Avenue were selling for over £1 million; by 2008, a mansion on the road had sold for £50 million to the president of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev. Unlike other roads on this list, the Bishops Avenue is not a private road; the H3 bus from Golders Green regularly runs down it, and it is close to one of London’s busiest parks, Hampstead Heath.
Notable residents
The Bishops Avenue has been home to royals, business magnates and pop culture icons. The Sultan of Brunei is said to own multiple homes on the street, and Indian billionaire Lakshmi Mittal once owned a house there before selling it for £36 million in 2011 to an unnamed buyer. The last king of Greece, Constantine II, lived on Linnell Drive, just off the Bishops Avenue, during his years in exile prior to returning to his home country in 2013. And for a short period in October 2016, US pop star Justin Bieber rented a 15-bedroom property on the street during the London dates of his Purpose world tour.
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Adapting to modern tastes
At a time when some houses on the Bishops Avenue lay empty and ultra-wealthy Londoners are considering other streets to set up base, some developers have seen it as an opportunity to change the nature of the road. While some UHNWs still want to buy mega-mansions with countless bathrooms and ample private land, others prefer the convenience of serviced residences.
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Charles Leigh, the director of a new development on the street called Bishops Avenue Gardens, says these developments are better suited to contemporary buyers: ‘To meet the evolving needs of modern buyers, traditional single dwellings along the Bishops Avenue are being thoughtfully repurposed into multi-unit new homes that offer world-class amenities, 24-hour security and the convenience of having everything under one roof.’
A rival Billionaires’ Row
Another contender for the Billionaires’ Row title in London is Kensington Palace Gardens. As its name suggests, this private road off Kensington High Street sits behind the royal palace where the Prince and Princess of Wales, Duke and Duchess of Kent and Princess Eugenie and her husband, Jack Brooksbank, live. Lined with pristine detached Victorian villas and inaccessible to members of the public, the road is home to Russian billionaires, such as former Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich, and property entrepreneur John Hunt, who bought his home on the road for over £15 million in 2005. Owing to its historical setting, numerous embassies and ambassadors’ residences are on Kensington Palace Gardens, including those of France, Russia, Japan and Kuwait, highlighting the exceptionally high level of security on the street.
Paris: Villa Montmorency
Paris’ answer to a Billionaires’ Row is not a street, but rather an entire gated enclave, notes Pauline Chpilevsky, a manager at the luxury Parisian estate agent Daniel Feau Paris Auteuil. Situated in the 16th arrondissement of the French capital, this private neighbourhood is home to around 100 homes, which lie on quaint tree-lined lanes. With strict planning laws prohibiting rentals and subdivision, Villa Montmorency is exceptionally well preserved, points out Chpilevsky, and was established in 1853 on former aristocratic lands. With Paris being one of the 10 most expensive cities in Europe, according to Statista, it is no surprise that homes in Villa Montmorency command high prices. Four-hundred-square-metre properties requiring renovation have sold for between €7 million and €9 million, and those above 1,000 square metres can reach into the tens of millions of euros, according to Chpilevsky.
Notable residents
The area is home to some of Paris’ most famous residents. The former president of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, and his supermodel wife, Carla Bruni, own a home in the enclave. Billionaire industrialist Vincent Bolloré lives there, too, as do members of some of France’s wealthiest families; Vuitton, Taittinger and Dassault are among the high-profile names.
For sale today
Property for sale in Villa Montmorency is exceptionally rare, owing to the limited number of homes available in the community. A 1,100-square-metre, detached mansion is available for sale with Daniel Feau Paris Auteuil. It features private terraces, a swimming pool, a wine cellar and staff accommodation. Perhaps most notably, the property has a 1,400-square-metre garden – something which comes at a premium in tightly packed Paris, where outdoor space is a luxury in itself.
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New York: 57th Street
While New York City’s elite once gathered tightly around Park Avenue, Fifth Avenue and the Upper East Side, some UHNWs now look to other parts of the city when buying an apartment. On the south end of Central Park on 57th Street, monolithic glass skyscrapers have been built over the past decade to house multimillionaires and billionaires high above their fellow city dwellers. Penthouse apartments over 50 stories above ground command global attention due to their exceptional views and layouts, and access to Michelin-dining and luxury shopping, say Howard Morrel and Leslie Hirsch of Christie’s International Real Estate.
Notable residents
In a city with such a high proportion of famous residents, it should come as no surprise that some of the wealthiest have chosen 57th Street as their home in the Big Apple. Buildings such as One57, 220 Central Park South and 111 West 57th Street are home to the rock star Sting and technology billionaire Michael Dell, who is currently one of the richest people in the world with a net worth of $140.7 billion. Citadel founder Ken Griffin bought a $238 million apartment in 220 Central Park South in 2019, which is the most expensive home ever sold in New York.
Not all is high in the sky
One tower in New York’s Billionaires’ Row, 432 Park Avenue, has seen water seeping through the ceilings, lifts break down and cracks form on the building’s veneer, according to a report from the New York Times. Similarly, residents of these notably slim skyscrapers have reported feeling the building sway on especially windy days. However, these issues are not experienced in every building, and the apartments are still selling for high prices – one apartment with Central Park views in the building at 157 57th Street recently sold for $24 million.
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Singapore: Nassim Road
A calm, spacious street set within densely packed Singapore, Nassim Road offers a sense of peace amid the hustle and bustle of the south-east Asian financial hub, according to Harmeet Singh Bedi, head of Christie’s International Real Estate’s Singaporean division. Home to a number of ‘good class bungalows’ (GCBs), the highest classification under Singapore’s strict planning laws, the road has long been associated with wealth and status. Bedi notes that it attracts international tycoons, diplomats and investors, all of whom are drawn to the large plots with substantial redevelopment potential.
A rare opportunity for expats
While Bedi notes that non-Singaporeans are generally not permitted to buy GCBs on Nassim Road, developments nearby offer a similar level of luxury. One example is a townhouse at the Oxley Residence – a rare freehold opportunity for non-Singaporeans. At a price of 15.8 million US dollars, this enviable property boasts almost 9,000 square feet of living space, including five bedrooms, a wine cellar and designer kitchen. (It should be noted that there is a 60 per cent stamp duty on property purchases for non-Singaporean buyers.)
Hong Kong: Deep Water Bay
Set among a tranquil, coastal environment outside of the cramped city, Hong Kong’s Billionaires’ Row, Deep Water Bay, offers its residents privacy, luxury and security. Some of Hong Kong’s most important business dynasties have called the neighbourhood their home, says Samson Law, executive director of Christie’s International Real Estate Hong Kong. The road is close to amenities popular with HNWs, including Hong Kong Country Club and the Hong Kong Golf Club, adds Law. According to Forbes, 19 of Hong Kong’s billionaire families have lived in the area, such as business magnate Li Ka-shing and the Kadoorie family, who own the Peninsula Hotels.
Law notes that the popularity surrounding the recent sale of 6 Deep Water Bay Road by Swire Properties shows the enduring popularity of the neighbourhood as a whole. There were multiple HNWs involved in the bidding process, which ultimately saw a record-setting transaction valued at HK$147,010 per square foot, he points out.
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