The recent acquisition of the former American consulate in Mumbai set the record for the most expensive residential property sold in India's housing industry. The former U.S. consulate building was sold for Rs7.5 billion or around $113 million.
The sprawling Mumbai mansion, named the Lincoln House, was bought by businessman and pharmaceutical mogul Cyrus Poonawalla, reports the Financial Times. The Indian mogul reportedly has plans to use the 50,000 square foot property as a family residence. Apart from the US government, the Mumbai property was previously owned by the Maharaja of Wankaner, a minor aristocrat, who sold the mansion back in 1957. At that time, the property was known as the Wankaner House.
According to the same Financial Times report, the Lincoln House marked the Poonawalla family's latest attempt to secure prime real estate to add to their portfolio. Adar Poonawalla, son of Cyrus Poonawalla, was the one who spearheaded the Lincoln House negotiations. He described the deal as "by far the most expensive" for a single residential structure in India. He also mentioned that properties similar to Lincoln House may be prevalent in London, but there "has been nothing like it for years" in India. Adar even said that the Mumbai property was "worth the money" given its location, size and history.
"Whether it is London or Mumbai, prime property is always worth it," added Adar. "And anyway, almost everyone who matters in Mumbai knows this building, because we've all had to go there to deal with getting visas to America. So it is iconic for that reason too."
Meanwhile, the past week was a busy period for India's luxury property market. According to India's The Economic Times, two large South Mumbai real estate properties were nabbed by some of the biggest names in India's corporate world. One of this was Poonawalla's Lincoln House purchase, while the other was industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla's Jatia House acquisition. Birla, chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, bought the 30,000 square feet bungalow in Malabar Hill for Rs 425 crore or approximately $64 million.
The Economic Times report also cited that analysts expect a few more similar luxury property deals to happen in India's property market. The appetite to secure such private residences seems to be growing, states the Economic Times.
