More than two years ago, when an estate agent told me that the wealthy were willing to pay a premium for hotel services without other hotel guests, I thought his buyers were a little precious. Today, as another Covid variant takes a hold, it seems more than a little prescient.
“People at this end of the market understand the privacy element. They don’t want to share their facilities with hundreds of people — sharing the lift, pool and spa with the public,” Rod Taylor, the head of international residential sales at Savills told me as we stood on top of the building site that is now the Mandarin Oriental Residences at the top of the Passeig de Gracia, Barcelona’s luxury shopping street.
In 2019 the Catalan capital was recovering from an independence vote and a terrorist attack. Today it is emerging from one of the most stringent lockdowns in Europe. Then, marketing a high-end luxury apartment block (prices start from €2.3 million for a one-bedroom flat) seemed optimistic. Today, with cities around the world reporting strong rebounds in luxury property sales, it seems entirely reasonable.
A 20-storey office-to-residential conversion — even if it is the first stand-alone Mandarin Oriental Residences in Europe — might not seem ideal in a world focused on fresh air and green space as it emerges from a pandemic. But Rosie Terry, 42, a fashion designer from London, can reassure would-be buyers that there are “plenty of outdoor activities” close to Spain’s second largest city.
Terry, who moved to Barcelona shortly before the first lockdown, says: “Just 30 minutes by train and you can be on some lovely beaches, or you can hire a car and go into the hills to hike.”
Advertisement
She says that during lockdown it was the kindness of Catalan colleagues that kept her going, inviting her into their homes while following the six-people lockdown rules.
“I moved to the Gothic Quarter to a two-bedroom flat, next to the cathedral, in the centre of the city. It is touristy, but as a single girl I wanted to be right in the centre of things. When lockdown came it was very odd to see Las Ramblas completely empty.”
Slowly, though, the city is coming back to life and the streets are busy with walkers, e-scooters and cyclists. Charlie Clark, 30, founder of Minty Digital, a marketing agency, moved to the city from the Isle of Wight almost six years ago. He lives in Gracia, a neighbourhood northwest of the centre. “It’s a nice area, a bit hipster, it’s got a community feel. I was living in the centre but it was noisy. It’s quieter and cleaner here.”
He says: “Barcelona has been a good place to grow a business. There are lots of international start-ups that operate in English from all over the world: France, the Netherlands, Germany and the US. Sadly, though, I still have what I call ‘cafe con leche’ Spanish — I can get by and order a coffee but I’m nowhere near fluent, although I am having lessons. You can easily integrate without Spanish.”
Milla Jupp, 27, originally from Bristol, who set up her catering company, Milla’s Lunch, after moving to Barcelona four years ago, agrees that it is a good place to run a business and an easy place to live. “I would recommend it. There is no social pressure to earn lots of money, you can live here very cheaply. When I first moved here I had to pinch myself. It was idyllic — like being on the set of Vicky Cristina Barcelona every day.”
Advertisement
However, Jupp, like others, bemoans the bureaucracy and noise of the city. “It is very busy and very noisy but everything is a stone’s throw away [in Eixample, where she lives].” She is keen now, though, to live somewhere with more green space after recently having twins.
Alex Vaughan, co-founder of Lucas Fox estate agency in the city, says that during the pandemic families like Milla’s have been heading to the neighbourhoods of Zona Alta, where they can get large apartments with a terrace, or Pedralbes, for houses with gardens.
In the past year only 10 per cent of his clients have been British, and he believes that those put off by Brexit making it more problematic to move are missing an opportunity. “The prices in Barcelona have been fairly stable since 2017, it still feels like quite good value. You can get a decent apartment for €8,000-€10,000 per square metre,” he explains. “Our average deal size is just under €1 million, which will get you a very good three-bedroom apartment in the city centre.”
Buyers with €5 million or more who want a beach location half an hour from the city head south to Castelldefels, Gava and Sitges or north to Maresme. In the city they buy in Francesc Macia 10 (known as FM10), which claims to be the city’s first super-prime residence, although there are only a few apartments left, or the Mandarin Oriental Residences. The price of the duplex penthouse with its spectacular double-height windows looking out across the city is a closely guarded secret, although it is rumoured to be in the region of €50 million.
