Prime Central London can feel very grown up and a bit on the grand, serious side, Chelsea is its slightly naughty little sister – full of on-trend restaurants, art galleries, and hangouts for the capital’s bright young things. It is also a neighbourhood made up of tiny micro-neighbourhoods, which locals say give it a villagey feel unlike anywhere else in central London.
The riverside village of Chelsey was owned by King Henry VIII, and it was King Charles II who went on to the Royal Hospital Chelsea in 1682 to provide a home for aged soldiers.
Its royal credentials meant Chelsey was a fashionable spot for wealthy Londoners to own a “country” house. As London grew and spread outwards Chelsey became Chelsea, and by the 19th century it was a bohemian artists’ colony, home to Joseph Turner, James McNeill Whistler, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
Chelsea’s King’s Road grew to global fame as the epicentre of Swinging London, but from the 1980s onwards Chelsea became synonymous with Sloane Rangers, crews of ex boarding schoolboys and girls who had come to London to build careers and/or find husbands (before her marriage Princess Diana lived at 60 Coleherne Court, close to King’s Road). Today’s crop of socialites have ditched the big hair and shoulder pads, but Chelsea remains a favoured spot for the young and wealthy to hang out.
Beyond its central location and buzzyness, Chelsea’s housing stock is gorgeous and very diverse. You can choose from the tall and elegant redbrick townhouses on Pont Street or Cadogan Square, live by the river on Cheyne Walk, where you will find everything from mansions to modern flats, or opt for a pretty painted cottage on Bywater Street or Smith Terrace.
For families, the prep schools are another big draw, ranging from Garden House School, where a young Winston Churchill learned his letters, to Hill House, alma mater of both Prince Charles and the actress Anya Taylor-Joy.
The Saatchi Gallery is the heart of London’s contemporary arts scene and the most obvious Chelsea cultural institution. But the lesser known Chelsea Physic Garden is an oasis of calm right by the River Thames, and Carlysle’s House, home of the 19th century historian Thomas Carlysle, is a time capsule of Victorian London.
The reinvigorated King’s Road as a fabulous array of boutiques, restaurants, and things to do: catch a movie at the Everyman Cinema, visit Chelsea Old Town Hall, which has a busy calendar of art fairs and foodie festivals, or browse Peter Jones, where you may just bump into the Princess of Wales who is regularly spotted there.
The Royal Court Theatre is a breeding ground for new writing talent, and is dedicated to new work making it a cutting edge experience for theatre buffs.
Each May Chelsea erupts with colour and fragrance for the annual Chelsea in Bloom festival. Dozens of shops, restaurants, and hotels create lavish floral installations to celebrate the start of summer, while the annual Chelsea Flower Show is a fabulous display of the very best in garden designs.
International showjumping in the centre of London might sound unlikely but the Royal Hospital Chelsea is the venue for the Longines Global Champions Tour London, a chance to see some of the world’ greatest horses and riders compete against the backdrop of the Sir Christopher Wren-designed old soldiers’ home.
Summer Lates at the Saatchi Gallery is a chance to visit the gallery out of hours, to enjoy exhibitions like the current Beyond Fashion showcase of global fashion photography, attend workshops, and have a drink at the bar.
Small it may be but Chelsea is divided into several distinct areas. The most prestigious – and expensive – is Old Chelsea, peaceful, close to the Cheyne Walk and the river, and charmingly pretty.
With our help one of our clients recently acquired a three bedroom pied-a-terre on Old Church Street, Old Chelsea. The flat was not on the open market but we got our clients in to see it first, and then negotiated a competitive price for it £3.337m, shaving £158,000 off its original asking price: https://www.black-brick.com/expertise/case-studies/waldron-house/
Chelsea’s garden squares north of the King’s Road are also hot property, particularly on sought after Markham, Carlisle, or Chelsea Square.
Then there is Chelsea Green, set around Chelsea Common, where locals have a good parade of shops on Elystan Street. Black Brick recently helped a French couple who wanted to upsize, secure a rare double fronted house on Burnsall Street, close to Chelsea Green, beating off competition from another buyer. Their bid of £6.3m was fractionally above the asking price, but secured the property for a competitive £2316 per square foot: https://www.black-brick.com/expertise/case-studies/burnsall-street/
Fans of modern homes could opt for one of the 400-plus homes at the £3bn Chelsea Barracks site, ranging from flats to substantial townhouses. Buyers love its on site amenities, proximity to the River, and easy access across the river to Battersea. The barracks is not the only apartment option in town, however. Chelsea is full of glorious redbrick mansion flats, which appealed to a Black Brick client who was after a London flat close to their children’s school in South Kensington. We helped them buy a two bedroom garden mansion flat on Redcliffe Street for their £1.25m budget, and as an added extra we negotiated to get all its furnishings thrown in: https://www.black-brick.com/expertise/case-studies/redcliffe-street/
Homes around Pavilion Road are also getting more popular thanks to the Cadogan Estate. It has been busy curating an exciting new mix of restaurants, artisanal food shops, and boutiques, creating what it calls a “15 minute neighbourhood” with everything you could possibly need is within a short walk.
Unless you happen to know it like the back of your hand, Prime Central London’s property market is hard to navigate. Homes on one side of a street may, for example, get better light, some apartment buildings are better run than others. Prices will vary accordingly.
Black Brick can guide you through the streets of Chelsea, find you a best in class home at your budget, negotiate the best deal, and help with everything from finding a surveyor to selecting an interior designer.
According to data from house price analyst LonRes average prices in Chelsea stand at a competitive £1,503 per square foot. This is far less than Mayfair and St James’ where average prices weigh in at more than £2,400 per square foot, or Knightsbridge and Belgravia, at just over £2,000 per square foot. Chelsea’s prices are also a little less than Kensington (circa £1,600 per square foot) and roughly the same as South Kensington.
Prime properties will, of course, be more expensive. Homes at Chelsea Barracks, for example, go on sale at around £5,000 per square foot.
If you’re looking to buy, sell or invest in Chelsea property, our expert negotiators are on hand to manage you seamlessly through the process. Simply enter a few details and your requirements on our contact form, and our Chelsea property agent will be in touch.
We would be delighted to hear from you to discuss your own property requirements. For a non-obligatory consultation, please contact us.
