Historic London Apartment on Sale for a Record £150 Million

One of the world’s most expensive apartments, inside a landmark London building once used by wartime prime minister Sir Winston Churchill, has been put up for sale with a £150 million ($197 million) price tag.

Once completed, the 15,000-square-foot home in Admiralty Arch on The Mall in central London — known as the gateway to Buckingham Palace — will have 12 bedrooms and 12 bathrooms as well as some of the most impressive views of the city, including Trafalgar Square, according to the Evening Standard.

It once belonged to the British government and was used as workspace for some officials, but the property was sold in 2012 to Spanish developer Rafael Serrano on a 250-year lease for £60 million as part of a scheme to reduce the country’s debt.

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Developers of the Arch, which was built in 1912, are now reportedly starting to market the apartment to wealthy buyers, offering the option of owning one vast apartment or dividing it into four condos.

Mr. Serrano plans to transform most of the rest of the building into a luxury hotel, according to the Evening Standard. The apartment itself will have a private entrance and elevator, 24-hour concierge service and security, and lifetime membership to a private members’ club for the owners.

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"This property will appeal to a business tycoon from Asia or Europe, or to an oil Royal from the Middle East or Asia,” said Peter Wetherell, chief executive of Wetherell, a London-based real estate agency. “It's a real trophy asset."

Brokers in London told the Evening Standard that they expect the price tag to range from £8,000 to £9,000 per square foot, pushing the price for the whole apartment up to £150 million.

If this materializes, it will surpass London’s most expensive apartment sale to date, a penthouse at One Hyde Park that sold for £140 million in 2014.

At just over $100 million, an apartment at One57, near Central Park, is New York’s most expensive property sale to date. However, a penthouse at 220 Central Park South, currently being developed, is being marketed for around $250 million.