Globally famous as London’s most upscale shopping district, Knightsbridge also punches above its weight when it comes to Michelin-starred restaurants, fashionable bars, and some of central London’s most beautiful, diverse, and high-specification homes.
The polished streets of Knightsbridge rose out of a tract of marshy open land where highwaymen preyed on unwary travellers.
In the 18th century, as London grew, property developers started building the streets and squares which are today amongst the most expensive in the UK.
Knightsbridge’s retail star began to rise in 1831 when one Benjamin Harvey opened a linen shop on Knightsbridge – it later evolved into the flagship Harvey Nichols store.
Meanwhile, in 1849, draper Charles Henry Harrod opened a modest shop on Brompton Road. When his ambitious son Charles took over the business, he expanded Harrods rapidly – his customers included writers, celebrities, and many British royals. In 1921 the writer AA Milne bought a teddy bear at the store for his son. The boy named his toy Winnie, the inspiration for Winnie-the-Pooh.
In terms of location, Knightsbridge is hard to beat – its northern border is bounded by Hyde Park, central London’s biggest open space at 350 acres, perfect for long walks, running, horse riding, tennis, and even swimming in the Serpentine Lido.
Its main streets, Knightsbridge and Brompton Road are lined with flagship designer stores – whether your taste is Jimmy Choo or more Acne Studios, Knightsbridge has you covered.
It is also a fabulous place to eat and drink. There are new stars like ABC Kitchens, led by Italian super-chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Japanese dining room Clap, alongside old stagers with chefs so famous their names are used as a calling card for fine dining: Dinner by Heston Blumenthal and Pétrus by Gordon Ramsay.
The museums and galleries of south Kensington are a short walk to the west, while a stroll eastward takes you to Mayfair and the West End.
And yet, barring the roar of the odd supercar charging past, Knightsbridge’s residential streets are surprisingly peaceful, and its houses are quite stunning. In very general terms streets owned by the Cadogan Estate are built from mellow red brick, often in the Queen Anne revival style. Some of these tall, slender townhouses, notably on Pont Street, have fabulously ornate gables – a style known as Pont Street Dutch.
Homes owned by the Grosvenor Estate, the other major landowner in the neighbourhood, are reminiscent of Mayfair and built from elegant white stucco.
Buyers looking for a smaller home could consider a pretty mews house on Pont Street Mews or Queen’s Gate Mews, or a period flat. There are also contemporary buildings like 199 Knightsbridge, The Knightsbridge Apartments, and, of course, One Hyde Park, a development which smashed records for both sale price and levels of service when it was completed in 2009 and raised the bar for luxury development in London with its hotel-standard amenities.
You can buy almost anything you want in Knightsbridge but its most extraordinary retail experience has got to be Harrods’ immaculate food halls with its seven restaurants, glorious deli counter, and dedicated chocolate hall.
For a moment of peaceful reflection, Brompton Oratory is worth a visit, whatever your faith. The décor is sumptuous, the choir music sublime, and there is a small garden behind the building.
The Victoria and Albert Museum is possibly the world’s greatest museum of art and design, with an astonishingly diverse collection and captivating exhibitions. The Paradox Museum is a newer addition to the area. Dedicated to optical illusions, and guaranteed to perplex and entertain in equal measure.
Winter Wonderland: the perfect chance to celebrate the festive season with ice skating, fairground rides, bars, restaurants, and live shows and music, all held al-Fresco in Hyde Park pre -and post-Christmas.
The V&A Summer Party is the hottest ticket of the year – this year, supermodel Naomi Campbell, the subject of an ongoing exhibition at the fashion museum, was the guest of honour.
Every summer live music fans head to BST Hyde Park to catch a series of big-name concerts. This summer’s performers included Kings of Leon and Shania Twain.
Understanding how the London property market operates is tricky, especially if you’re not a London native and have no real estate knowledge. There are many factors that can significantly influence the price, including what side of the street it’s on or how well-run it is.
Black Brick property buying agents are here to help you find the perfect home in Knightsbridge; we’ll find out everything you’re looking for, shortlist the properties ticking the boxes, negotiate the best deal and support you throughout the entire process.
Different buildings in Knightsbridge have different pros and cons. We were set a challenge by one of our clients, who wanted a top floor flat in a period building with very high ceilings – at least three meters. We found a 2,050 sq ft duplex penthouse on Pont Street and were able to shave £200,000 from the asking price to buy for just over £2,000 per square foot at a time when other flats on the same street were selling for more than £3,000 per square foot:
Read our Pont Street case study for the full story.
A family looking for a London base came to Black Brick looking for a house in Prime Central London. We quickly isolated a perfect seven–bedroom property on Hans Place but with an asking price of £13.5m it was well above their maximum budget of £10m. Our advice was to hold fire because we suspected it was an ambitiously priced – and we were right. Over the next few months, its asking price was dropped, and we were eventually able to agree on terms at just a fraction over £10m, or £2,385 per square foot:
Read our Hans Place case study for the full story.
The average sale price for homes in Knightsbridge is just over £2,000 per square foot according to house price analyst LonRes.
At the top end, houses on Cadogan Square sold for an average of just over £4.8m in the last year, according to Rightmove, making it the fifth most expensive street in London. Black Brick recently found a stunning lateral flat on the square for a client who was determined to live on a garden square. Several buyers were interested in the property but with our guidance, our client secured it for £4.55m:
Read our Cadogan Square case study for the full story.
Several of the apartments at One Hyde Park, London’s first truly super prime development, have sold for £100m plus, and even parking spaces have sold for up to £300,000.
We would be delighted to hear from you to discuss your own property requirements. For a non-obligatory consultation, please contact us.
