Live in a WWII-Era U.S. Embassy in London for £21.5 Million

In the heart of London, a duplex apartment within the city’s former U.S. Embassy, which has been recently transformed into super-prime residences, has hit the market for £21.5 million (US$26.9 million).

The unit, which has been given the presidential moniker of the “Oval Residence,” is within No. 1 Grosvenor Square, and is the last sponsor unit available from developer Lodha UK. The building, on Mayfair’s uber-posh Grosvenor Square, served as the U.S. Embassy from 1938 until 1960, and then as the Canadian High Commission from 1962 until 2013. After being restored brick by brick, quite literally , it reopened as residences in 2022.

Some of the prominent figures of the 20th century have passed through its doors, including John F. Kennedy, who called it home when his father was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. in the 1930s, Winston Churchill and Eleanor Roosevelt, who was loaned an apartment when she visited London during World War II.

The three-bedroom home spans 4,400 square feet and was designed by Blandine de Navacelle, creative director of Studio Lodha, the developer’s interior design practice.

“No.1 Grosvenor Square is one of the capital’s most iconic addresses, and the design of the Oval Residence needed to reflect this,” de Navacelle said in a news release. “With large, open-plan living spaces and floor to ceiling windows, the residence offered the perfect backdrop for statement artwork and eclectic, sculptural furniture.”

The home also boasts a sleek kitchen, a home theatre, a dining area, wood-panelled walls, fireplaces and a 576-square-foot terrace.

“I regularly visit French galleries and furniture ateliers and am drawn to their art-centric approach to design and interiors,” de Navacelle said. “I wanted to bring a touch of this Parisian eclecticism to No.1 Grosvenor Square, creating a sophisticated and elegant private residence that blends both the classic and the contemporary.”

The turn-key flat is being sold with all of its furnishings.

Future occupants will also have access to the building’s amenities, including an in-house concierge team, a private health club and spa, a pool and a cinema.

Grosvenor Square has been one of London’s most-famed addresses for centuries. Currently in the middle of a dramatic remaking, No.1 Grosvenor Square is just one the enclave’s storied buildings to be undergoing, or to have undergone, a complete transformation.

The former U.S. Naval Building at No. 20, has been transformed into the first solely residential project from the Four Seasons, and the iconic Eero Saarinen-designed U.S. Embassy that spans the entire western side of the square, is set to become the Chancery Rosewood hotel by 2025.

London has no shortage of diplomatic buildings that have been transformed into luxury homes. In February, and for the first time in more than a century, the former Italian Embassy, now a lavish mansion, hit the market for £21.5 million . The former Cypriot Embassy, meanwhile, sold in March for £25 million to a buyer seeking a grand family home in the city.

The $11.3 billion Homes for Australia plan unveiled in this week’s Federal Budget includes an additional $1 billion in funding – on top of $500 million previously pledged – to help the states and territories fast-track the building of ‘enabling infrastructure’ such as new roads, sewers and energy, water and community infrastructure to create more areas for buyers to build their new homes.

Treasurer Dr Jim Chalmers handed down his third budget this week (Photo by Martin Ollman/Getty Images)

To support this goal, the Federal Government has also committed $90.6 million to grow Australia’s construction workforce, including 20,000 new fee-free places at TAFE and VET vocational colleges, as well as more skilled migrant visas. CoreLogic research director Eliza Owen commented: “This could add to labour supply to the tune of 22,000 workers, representing 1.7 percent growth in an industry where employment had an average quarterly increase of 0.7 percent over the past decade.”

More construction workers are desperately needed not only to help the Federal Government reach its target of 1.2 million new homes within five years, but also to offset the impact of construction company insolvencies. Ray White economist Nerida Conisbee points out that construction insolvencies continue to rise, with the latest ASIC figures showing 2,758 construction companies entered external administration over the 12 months to 31 March 2024.

Ray White economist Nerida Conisbee says insolvencies remain high in the building industry

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the budget encouraged the states and territories to “kick start building”. He commented: “This Budget means more tradies, fewer barriers to construction, less talk and more homes. This isn’t about one suburb or one city or one state. It’s a challenge facing Australians everywhere and it needs action from every level of government.”

The Federal Government is also seeking to reduce demand in the private rental market following a 43.5 percent surge in the national median rent from $437 per week in August 2020 to $627 per week today, according to CoreLogic. The budget provides money for more social housing, plus a plan to make universities build more student accommodation, thereby removing some demand in the private rental market from low-income workers and domestic and international students.

Budget measures include an additional $423.1 million for the National Agreement on Social Housing and Homelessness, taking total funding to $9.3 billion over five years, under which more social housing will be built and existing housing repaired. REA senior economist Paul Ryan said: “All up, the government expects to support the building of 55,000 new social and affordable homes by 2029 – representing a 12 percent increase in the total number of available homes across the country.”

The plan to legislate new requirements for universities to build more accommodation follows a huge surge in immigration, with an almost 550,000 net increase in migrants over the 12 months to 30 September 2023, the bulk of which were international students and temporary workers.

Commonwealth Rent Assistance is being increased for the second year by 10 percent this time, following a 15 percent increase in last year’s budget. The two boosts represent about a $35 per week increase in assistance to almost one million Australians. The Budget also includes $1 billion for crisis and transitional accommodation for domestic violence victims and youth in distress.

AMP chief economist Dr Shane Oliver said the budget’s housing measures were unlikely enough to meet the goal of building 1.2 million new homes over five years. Dr Oliver said the supply shortfall was set to remain “unless immigration plunges”. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says net overseas migration next year is expected to be half what it was this year.

Dr Oliver said the budget’s housing measures were also unlikely to alter the outlook for home prices. He expects modest growth this year. Median dwelling values have already risen 2.2 percent between January 1 and April 30, following an 8.1 percent lift in 2023.

Live in a WWII-Era U.S. Embassy in London for £21.5 Million

The three-bedroom, duplex apartment in the notable Mayfair building spans 4,400 square feet

The Albanese Government is initiating a range of measures to tackle the housing crisis, but experts fear it’s not enough