London’s property market has reached new levels of absurdity, with a humble storage cupboard going on the market for £7,500.
The five ft by 12 ft walk-in cupboard is within the Brentford Dock Estate, beside the Thames in south west London.
Some of the flats at the post war estate were originally old with a separate storage cupboard and – with the cost of moving to a larger property beyond the reach of many Londoners –owners are now cashing in on their neighbours need for extra space.
“It can only be sold to another resident of Brentford Dock,” explained Jordan Williams, a sales negotiator at Quillam Property Services, who is in charge of selling the cupboard.
“People use them as airing cupboards, or to store suitcases or bicycles or memorabilia – things like photographs which they don’t want to throw away but which they don’t have room for at home. If they have a cupboard they know their things are safe and secure and close by. Everybody loves a bit of extra storage.”
The cupboard currently for sale is within the estate’s Numa Court, where a one bedroomed flat would cost around £265,000.
The cupboard sale is graphic proof of just how many Londoners are trapped in homes which are too small for them. Last month the Standard revealed that the price “chasm” between an average two-bedroom flat and a three-bed house in the capital now stands at just over £135,000 — more than four times the typical London salary.
This hidden housing crisis means many people are living in overcrowded conditions, and the trade up gap has widened dramatically over the last three years, from £104,000 in 2011, as London’s market has soared out of recession.
Williams believes he will have plenty of interest in the cupboard.
He pointed out that renting self-storage units to house surplus possessions has become increasingly popular, at typical cost of £100 per month for a small unit.
“If you add up what you could spend on storage compared to buying a cupboard space you might be surprised,” said Williams.
The cupboard is the most extreme example of tiny spaces for sale in London. A 321 sq ft studio flat in Mayfair is currently on the market for £999,000, while a 250 sq ft shed in Highgate was sold last year at £260,000.
