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Madoff chief's struggle to sell £1.75m English home
Mira Bar-Hillel04.02.09
THE man behind Bernie Madoff's London-based trading business may be forced to cut the asking price of his house even further, experts say.
Steven Raven, 70, put his five-bedroom home on the market after his boss confessed to the world's biggest personal fraud in December.
Mr Raven lost his job as chief executive of Madoff Securities International when the business was placed into provisional liquidation after details emerged of Madoff's alleged $50 billion (£34 billion) fraud.
The home in Esher, Surrey, has already dropped from £2million to £1.75million but experts say Mr Raven could be forced to accept a lower offer if he wants a quick sale. He is also offering to let the property for £7,500 a month as an alternative.
Liam Bailey of estate agent Knight Frank said: "For much of last year it was assumed that the most expensive streets in the world's most expensive city would remain unscathed by falling prices.
"But following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September the entire market went into sharp decline and no part was immune, even the £10million-plus segment. Every area and type of property was hit by price falls and rapidly diminishing sales volumes.
"Prices in the important £1-2.5 million market have fallen the most since March - by 25.3 per cent."
The Standard has learned that Mr Raven and his wife Felicity bought the newly-built house at the height of the previous property boom, in 1986.
They paid what was then a record-breaking £400,000 for one of the first ever homes to feature Jacuzzi bathrooms and a Poggenpohl kitchen. But the high price paid then - just before the crash of 1989 - means that the Ravens's gain will be smaller than it might be.
The house is on the market with Savills, who are guarding their clients' privacy and refused to answer questions.
However, other local agents point out that there are at least two other properties for sale in Esher at the same price, and they are of similar size and one has a swimming pool.
Madoff is under house arrest in New York as his alleged $50 billion fraud is investigated by the American financial authorities. The London end of the business is being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office.
Mr Raven has stated publicly that he had no knowledge of any fraud and his friends deny he has invested any money with Madoff himself.
But the former UBS executive will have lost a six-figure salary with no chance of compensation. He also remortgaged the Esher house in July 2004 with the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Mr Raven joins a rapidly growing list of distressed sellers from the financial sector who are trying to offload homes they bought at the height of the boom.
