Its Neighbours Bombed or Razed—the Last in a Row of Thames-Front Townhouses Heads to Auction

A unique riverside home in London with panoramic views of some of the city’s most famous landmarks is headed to auction on March 1.

The property, directly on the River Thames in Rotherhithe and overlooking Tower Bridge, The Shard and Canary Wharf, will go under the hammer with a guide price of £1.5 million (US$1.8 million) with estate agency Savills.

Today, the detached home, known locally as The Leaning Tower of Rotherhithe stands unusually isolated in jam-packed London, but that wasn’t always the case.

The industrial-style, waterfront residence was once part of a row of buildings, and is the last remaining after its neighbours were destroyed by bombs in World War II or sold off and demolished over the years, according to Savills.

As well as its streak of luck, its history also includes a stint as the office of Braithwaite & Dean, a barge company, and as the home of one of the infamous Mitford sisters. The sibling aristocrats became well-known for their contrary political views. The Times newspaper once described them as “Diana the Fascist; Jessica the Communist; Unity the Hitler-lover; Nancy the Novelist; Deborah the Duchess and Pamela the unobtrusive poultry connoisseur.”

It was Jessica, the Communist, who called this place home from 1937 to 1939, along with her husband, Esmond Romilly, Winston Churchill’s nephew.

The house “presents a rare opportunity to acquire a one-of-a-kind riverside property which is a well-known landmark in the local area,” Steven Morish of Savills Auctions said in a statement.

“Offering 180-degree uninterrupted views of many of the city’s most iconic landmarks, including Tower Bridge, and with approximately 2,131 square feet of accommodation over four floors, this is without doubt one of the most unique properties to come to auction in recent years,” he added.

The property, according to the listing, is a “complete blank canvas spread.”

The sellers have called the building home for 28 years, according to Savills. They reportedly first occupied the whole building, but now rent the top two floors and use the bottom two as a live/work space.

The Reserve Bank had little choice but to raise interest rates again this week.

Inflation was already proving stubborn before the latest Middle East instability added further pressure to energy prices and supply chains.

Housing inflation alone has averaged six per cent over the past year, remaining one of the single biggest contributors to CPI.

But while the focus remains on rates, the deeper problem is structural and far more dangerous.

Australia is not building enough homes, and the conditions required to fix that are deteriorating simultaneously.

Construction costs remain elevated. Builders are increasingly unwilling to absorb contract risk. Labour shortages persist.

Capital is becoming more expensive. And as borrowing capacity weakens and sentiment softens, fewer projects are becoming financially viable.

The result is a self-reinforcing cycle.

The RBA raises rates to fight inflation. Higher rates reduce development feasibility. Fewer projects start. Housing supply tightens further. Rents rise. Inflation persists. The RBA raises rates again.

The only long-term solution is supply, yet Australia remains nowhere near the National Housing Accord target of 240,000 new dwellings a year.

Completion continues to lag approvals, meaning many projects approved on paper are simply never making it out of the ground.

That gap matters enormously because housing is not just another sector of the economy.

Around two-thirds of Australian household wealth is tied to property, while the sector underpins millions of jobs and related industries. Weakness here quickly spreads beyond real estate.

We are already seeing signs of stress. Auction clearance rates in Sydney and Melbourne have softened, borrowing capacity has declined, and parts of the market are experiencing price corrections as confidence weakens.

At the same time, policymakers continue to debate tax measures such as changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts, despite fears that such reforms could drive private capital out of the rental market at precisely the moment when supply is most constrained.

This is the paradox at the centre of Australia’s housing crisis.

Demand for property remains extraordinarily high, yet the economic conditions required to actually build new housing are worsening.

The Reserve Bank cannot solve that problem alone.

Monetary policy cannot accelerate planning approvals, reduce construction costs or create more tradies. It can only raise the cost of money until something eventually breaks.

And increasingly, that “something” looks like the development pipeline itself.

Paul Miron is the Co-Founder & Fund Manager of Msquared Capital.

Its Neighbours Bombed or Razed—the Last in a Row of Thames-Front Townhouses Heads to Auction

Rising rates, construction inflation and shrinking investor confidence are pushing Australia deeper into a dangerous housing spiral that monetary policy alone cannot fix.