More than £400million was poured into just ten London homes in 2025 as the capital’s super-prime property market continued to attract billionaires, global tycoons and household celebrities.
The top ten most expensive property deals of the year alone accounted for around 40 per cent of all sales in London’s £15million-plus bracket, underlining how a tiny number of ultra-wealthy buyers continue to dominate the market despite higher taxes and increased scrutiny.
In total, more than £1billion was spent on homes costing over £15million across the capital last year.
Among the buyers and sellers were Star Wars creator George Lucas, one of Donald Trump‘s business partners and the heir to a powerful Italian dynasty, with several transactions shrouded in secrecy through offshore companies and trusts.
The single most expensive sale – and the second priciest home ever sold in the UK – was the £139million paid for the palatial Holme in Regent’s Park by a mystery buyer.
Despite new transparency rules, the true owner remains unknown and Land Registry records show the property was bought via Zedra, a Luxembourg-based wealth management firm that operates trusts on behalf of clients.
Similar secrecy surrounds a £26million mansion on Avenue Road in St John’s Wood, sold by a British Virgin Islands-registered company whose owner was granted a rare anonymity exemption.
Chronic delays at the Land Registry have further obscured the picture, meaning that in several cases homes have changed hands but buyers cannot yet be publicly identified.
Estate agents say the market has been heavily shaped by wealthy non-doms exiting the UK to avoid looming tax bills, with many relocating to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Milan, Monaco and Geneva.
They have largely been replaced by ‘bargain-hunting’ Arab, American and Chinese multimillionaires, snapping up vast London mansions to use as occasional holiday homes.
A terraced townhouse in Belgravia owned by Greek shipping tycoon, Evangelos Pistiolis was bought last May for £15 million
Greek shipping tycoon Evangelos Pistiolis
£15million, Belgravia
Seller: Evangelos Pistiolis
A terraced townhouse in Belgravia owned by Greek shipping tycoon, Evangelos Pistiolis was bought last May for £15 million.
The home had been bought via a British Virgin Islands firm back in 2013 but the new owner is unknown.
Another property on the same street was also bought for £26.5million but the sale is yet to be registered.
£21million, Mayfair
Seller: Kishore Lulla
Kishore Lulla, a billionaire Indian producer who helped to export Bollywood films around the world, bought a luxury flat in Mayfair in 2017.
Back then the London-based celeb bought the apartment for £22million and last year sold it to an unknown buyer for roughly the same amount.
Kishore Lulla, a billionaire Indian producer who helped to export Bollywood films around the world, bought a luxury flat in Mayfair in 2017
In 2017 Kishore Lulla bought a luxury flat in a new development in Mayfair for just short of £22 million and last year sold it to an unknown buyer for roughly the same amount
American venture capitalist Matt Cohler and his wife Pia paid £22million for an impressive four-storey detached home in the heart of Notting Hill
£22 million, Notting Hill
Buyers: Matt and Pia Cohler
American venture capitalist Matt Cohler, a close ally of Mark Zuckerberg, and his wife Pia paid £22million for an impressive four-storey detached home in the heart of Notting Hill in April.
Cohler, 48, is a heavyweight in Silicon Valley circles, having been one of Facebook’s earliest employees before going on to play a key role in the rise of some of the world’s biggest tech firms.
Over the years, he has helped nurture start-ups including Snapchat, LinkedIn and Uber, cementing his reputation as one of the most influential backers in the industry.
£28 million, Hyde Park
Buyer: Hussain Sajwani
One of the biggest deals of the year took place last spring when Emirati billionaire Hussain Sajwani snapped up a grand townhouse with sweeping views over Hyde Park for around £28million.
Sajwani, the founder of Dubai-based property giant Damac and a long-time business associate of Donald Trump, completed the purchase via high-end estate agency Beauchamp Estates.
The prestigious street has proved popular with ultra-wealthy buyers, with another townhouse on the same stretch changing hands just months later for a similar sum – although the identity of that buyer remains unknown.
DAMAC Properties CEO Hussain Sajwani listens as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump speaks to members of the media during a press conference at the Mar-a-Lago Club on January 07, 2025
A five-bedroom house off Eaton Terrace was sold by Tony Buckingham
£28 million, Belgravia
Seller: Tony Buckingham
A smart five-bedroom home tucked away just off Eaton Terrace delivered a hefty windfall for its seller last year.
The property had been owned by British businessman Tony Buckingham, the former boss of oil and gas firm Heritage Oil, who originally paid £8million for it back in 2012.
In May, the house was sold on for £28million to a buyer whose identity has not been made public.
£35 million, Belgravia
Seller: Oleksandr Yaroslavsky
A vast Belgravia townhouse once owned via an offshore company linked to Ukrainian billionaire Oleksandr Yaroslavsky changed hands at a sharply reduced price.
The banker, who previously owned Ukrainian football club Metalist Kharkiv, had acquired the property through a British Virgin Islands-registered firm for £55million in 2013.
In August, it was sold for £35million to an unknown purchaser.
Oleksandr Yaroslavsky sold a property for £35 million to an unknown buyer in August
Hollywood royalty George Lucas was also among last year’s biggest buyers
£40 million, St John’s Wood
Buyer: George Lucas
Hollywood royalty George Lucas was also among last year’s biggest buyers. The Star Wars creator, now aged 81, quietly snapped up a sprawling mansion in St John’s Wood for £40million in September in an off-market deal.
The film-maker is understood to have secured a sizeable £9million reduction from the original asking price.
£41 million, Holland Park
Buyer: Tatiana de Pahlen
A member of one of Europe’s most famous industrial dynasties was behind another eye-watering purchase.
Tatiana de Pahlen, the 35-year-old granddaughter of late tycoon Gianni Agnelli – the influential figure who once presided over Fiat, Ferrari and Juventus – bought a large detached house close to Holland Park in July.
She completed the £41million purchase with her husband, media and technology investor Charles Lorenceau.
Tatiana de Pahlen, the 35-year-old granddaughter of late tycoon Gianni Agnelli – the influential figure who once presided over Fiat, Ferrari and Juventus – bought a large detached house close to Holland Park in July
UK, London, Aerial view of rows of Victorian townhouses in Holland Park
A luxury flat overlooking Hyde Park once owned by a self-made Chinese billionaire was sold at a significant loss last year
One of London’s most famous mansions, nicknamed the capital’s ‘White House’, was at the centre of the year’s biggest and most mysterious property deal
£45 million, Knightsbridge
Seller: Liu Jianmin
A luxury flat overlooking Hyde Park once owned by a self-made Chinese billionaire was sold at a significant loss last year.
The property had been bought in 2011 for £60million by Liu Jianmin, who rose from modest beginnings in China’s Sichuan province to amass a vast fortune.
Purchased through a British Virgin Islands-registered company, the flat was sold in November for £45million to a buyer whose identity has not been disclosed.
£139 million, The Holme, Regent’s Park
Seller: Abdullah bin Khalid Al Saud
One of London’s most famous mansions, nicknamed the capital’s ‘White House’, was at the centre of the year’s biggest and most mysterious property deal.
The Holme, a vast white stucco residence set within four and a half acres of private grounds in Regent’s Park, spans around 29,000 square feet and boasts 40 bedrooms. It was originally built in 1818 as part of John Nash’s masterplan for the park.
The palatial home had previously been owned by Saudi royal Abdullah bin Khalid Al Saud, who put it up for sale in 2023 with an eye-watering £250million price tag.
Although it ultimately sold for £139million – a staggering £111million below the original asking price – the deal still ranks as the second most expensive residential sale ever recorded in the UK.
Only one transaction has surpassed it: the £210million paid by a Chinese billionaire for a mansion near Hyde Park in 2020.