For those with vertigo, a swimming in a pool wedged between two buildings, 10 storeys off the ground, would not be their idea of luxury.
Yet this is just one of many features that developers are using to lure millionaires and billionaires to invest in affluent London pads. The suspended pool is part of the Embassy Gardens design part of the Nine Elms development project.
Last month saw luxury property developer DICO UK Property Holdings Ltd. announce London’s first fashion branded residences, with Versace at the helm of the flat interior design. Also in the Nine Elms area, the 50 storey, 360 unit project will have views over the River Thames and come with price tags from £700,000 to £4 million.
Rather than mansions, those that can afford it are banking on luxury apartments and ‘super flats’ with stunning views and a prime location. But what other unique features do these affluent London pads have that could be the norm in the future of luxury living?
Takeaway & delivery lifts
Takeaway delivery is the epitome of lazy – collapsing onto the sofa after a long day at work and ringing for a well-deserved delivery. But for some, walking to and accepting the delivery is still too strenuous.
A problem recognised by developers of London’s latest luxury super flats - who have installed a pizza lift into the £2.9 million - £5.5 million properties. These lifts will enable the resident to have deliveries sent directly to their bedroom or dining rooms.
Biophilic designs
Tony Dowse, chairman of Environ Communities, predicted that biophilic designs would be the luxury design of choice for 2015 last December. Reflecting the current healthy living craze, biophilic designs aim to feature elements of the natural world, for example plants and natural daylight, within the interior design.
Biophilic designs are not only necessarily visual – they have also been said to reduce stress. Rather than luxury ‘party pads’ fitted with gadgets and luminescent lighting, there is likely to be an increase in designs incorporating plants and greenery into their design.
Wine rooms
For wine lovers, the downside to owning a flat would usually be the inability to have a cellar to store their prized bottles. However, implementing wine rooms into their design could be the solution to their woes.
Primarily it is two-storey+ properties which have had wine rooms installed, but it looks like the next must-have for luxury flats too.
Some are designed to look like art galleries, showing off their jewelled, cylinder ‘paintings’ in a lit, stylish room. Others are more about the experience; an ornate table surrounded by wine, glasses and decanters, maybe even a marble sink.
Endless luxury concierge services 24/7
Many of the super-rich decide to own or rent a luxury flat due to the number of services available at their fingertips in central London, 24/7. Though this is nothing new, with the decrease in supply, increase in demand and price, billionaire owners will expect more and more from the luxury concierge services that come with the properties.
While they may be used to this kind of service on holiday (watch BBC documentary ‘Billionaire’s Paradise: Inside Necker Island’ about Richard Branson’s billionaire holiday resort and you’ll understand), the same is now expected at home.
Zoe Dare Hall, writing for The Telegraph Luxury website, described the numerous requests staff have been given in the past.
NEO Bankside apartments, where penthouses sell from £5,950,000, have had concierge staff asked to play cricket on Christmas day. Those at Rhodium, a residence management company who work with a number of luxury developers, have had to arrange having 18 tropical fish brought over from the Maldives and organise a private Boeing 747 for a family trip to Fiji.
Takeaway lifts, biophilic designs, wine rooms, sky pools, luxury concierge 24/7 and Versace interior design – what do you think will be next for luxury London living?