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While most people would accept a quarter of a million pounds as the price of a house in the UK, you’ll probably be hard-pressed to find many who would also think it reasonable to spend that sum putting a roof over their car.
A whopping £250,000 is exactly the price of one parking spot in Knightsbridge though, which estate agent Knight Frank says is ‘ideally located opposite Harrods’ and is also almost as much as the average house price in the UK.
Space K28 of Basil Street underground car park comes with 24-hour security coverage, as well as round-the-clock remote access, private pedestrian access via lift, and separate entrance and exit driveways. It’s also ‘moments away from the world-class hotels, restaurants, luxury boutiques, shops, amenities and museums that the area has to offer’.
Unfortunately, though, it’s also on the small size. At 2.5m x 4.2m, it won’t fit the big, fancy cars you might deem worthy of spending thousands of pounds to park. Nor will it fit even a humble Prius, which is 4.5m long.
To add insult to injury, once you’ve shelled out £250,000 on the space, you’ll also have to pay £780 a year in service charges. If you kept the spot for the entirety of its 82-year lease, that would add an extra £63,960 to the cost.
Speaking to the Guardian, Johnny Thalassites – Kensington & Chelsea Council’s lead member for environment, planning and place – said: ‘We’re in desperate need of housing and, as a borough with some of the most expensive land and property in the UK, it’s very frustrating to see a six-figure price tag on a parking space and disheartening for those looking to get on the property ladder.
‘It’s a major challenge for us as a council as we look to build new homes. Despite the challenge, we’re making progress, with the first of our 600 new homes – 300 at social rent – now under construction.’
There’s a campaign to get London car owners to pay by-the-mile.
This map shows plans to make London the biggest car-free capital in the world.