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Steel tycoon buys third property on Billionaire's Row
Mira Bar-Hillel, Property Correspondent23 Jun 2008
Lakshmi Mittal, Britain's richest man and a prominent Labour Party donor, has bought his third property in London's most expensive street for £70 million.
The steel tycoon, whose fortune is estimated at £27 billion, already owns two large homes in Kensington Palace Gardens, where Princess Diana spent her last years.
It has now emerged that the Mittal family has bought another home on the street - nicknamed "Billionaire's Row" - from the Crown Estate.
The purchase comes just a month after the 58-year-old bought Britain's most expensive home for £117 million. Hedge fund tycoon Noam Gottesman sold him a house on Palace Green, an extension of Kensington Palace Gardens, next to the Israeli embassy.
Before that, a flat in the Candy brothers' One Hyde Park had been the country's priciest home when it sold for £115 million in March.
The £70 million price tag for Mittal's latest property is all the more remarkable as the former Philippine Embassy is in need of modernisation. The 16,250 square feet home is also not the largest in the road but it looks on to Kensington Palace.
Mr Mittal himself lives in a home in Kensington Palace Gardens which he bought for £57 million four years ago and is three times bigger than his latest acquisition.
Noel de Keyzer, a director at Savills which specialises in the top end of the London market, said the tycoon had already raised the value of his main property on the street. He said: "The Mittals have carried substantial improvements to their main home, which is probably the largest private house in central London after Buckingham Palace. I would put its current value at close to £250 million."
Mr Mittal is believed to have offered £200 million for the home on the street owned by Foxtons founder Jon Hunt. That property, which is being enlarged underground, was thought to have been the first choice of home for Mr Mittal's son Aditya.
The 32-year-old finance director for Arcelor Mittal moved to Noam Gottesman's mansion instead, when the estate agent refused his bid. He, his wife Megha and their two daughters, wanted to be closer to his parents.
The latest buy joins Mr Mittal's ever-expanding property portfolio including a £40 million home on The Bishops Avenue in Barnet.
In March 2008, Mittal was named as the world's fourth wealthiest person by Forbes Magazine. His family owns 44 per cent of steel giant Arcelor Mittal. A spokesman for Arcelor Mittal declined to comment.
Reader views (9)
when some one is rich and successful he gets criticized
by poor peoples like us..if any of us where in his foot steps we would have been the same,,dont argu we would be that's what money does to humans.And ask BORIS JHONSEN why he begged money for the ENCLOR MITTLE tower for the Olympic specials?to all the people on this blog look in the mirror what have you donated towards good cause peanuts i think.Mittal has donate for many good causes.its not the task of the riches to feed poorer people its every ones job to give what you can miss.....so stop crying help the poor people STARTING BY YOUR SELF.
- raz, london, 26/11/2010 12:38
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The purchase of this house has no effect on poor people. Both the money and the house exist before and after the purchase; they have just changed hands! On the contrary, "stopping" people from getting rich harms poor people by removing incentives to build businesses which create wealth which ultimately benefits poor people.
- Rob Fisher, London, UK, 13/02/2010 20:05
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Shutup Ali, there will be a lot of people dying of hunger and poverty everywhere. What do you expect all the riches to donate their money to them.
Ali you are simply jealous or may be you do not need any more money
- Billionaire, Australia, 10/09/2009 06:23
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He has the money to buy, so he buys it. If I had money I would do the same...Someone said so many people starving in his country...Ok, There are people starving everywhere, so let's everyone stop using cars, have a three bedroom flat, dress nice clothes until world starvation stop...This is hipocrisy.....Everyone would like to be in his place
- Marcio, London, UK., 09/08/2009 15:30
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Its ok for some!
Isn't life a dream at the top.
Get rich or die tryin, good advice i say!
- Farhan, manchester, england, 23/04/2009 21:44
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So many people die of starvation in his home country, and yet he buys not one, not two, but 3 of such houses. Ridiculous. And not to mention the controversy surrounding his business practices.
- Ali, Toronto, Canada, 14/02/2009 23:02
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Also, whilst he is buying all these houses, the loyal football fans of the club that he has recently purchased shares in have faced rises up to 180% depending on where they sit in the area of the ground. The most vulnerable hit have been OAP's and families.
- Tracy, London, UK, 27/06/2008 10:30
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You Brits need to wake up and stop these people from buying England, lest there be no more England.
- James, USA, 24/06/2008 08:02
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While he is buying houses his workers go unpaid in Bulgaria.
- Anon51, dobrich bulgaria, 24/06/2008 06:03
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