High earners like living together too.
There is an unwritten rule in British society that sharing a rental property is the province of students and adults on low incomes. It’s something you do because necessity dictates, and it’s definitely not something to continue with for any longer than is absolutely necessary. If you want to be taken seriously as a grown-up then it’s designer isolation you must strive for and not voluntarily living with other adults as if it were, well, normal.
That does seem rather a shame though, doesn’t it? We’re all hard-wired for some level of community – there’s nothing in our DNA that says we’re all supposed to live alone in a box in order to feel mature and successful.
So it’s been heartening to have some recent encounters with groups of high-earning professionals teaming up to rent a unique home to enjoy with each other, rather than renting a small one-bedroom flat each and meeting up every now and then.
Of course, if London property prices were less than they are we may not be experiencing this. Much has changed in how people rent and buy property today (soon the average age of a first-time buyer will be 92), but whenever the result is community and togetherness, I think that’s a good thing.
At The Cricketers, a four-bedroom house opposite the Regents Canal on the edge of Victoria Park, a group of four friends who’d studied at the LSE together took the whole house, reuniting to live together in London some years after graduating and building their international careers. That’s a nice story, no?
Meanwhile at Highland Tower, a converted church tower in Crystal Palace, we rented the whole thing to a group of friends, but this time a couple and two singles. The massive living kitchen on the ground floor made a fantastic common room with plenty of room for a couch and dining table, with everyone getting a luxurious bedroom on the upper floors.
We suspect it might happen again at this newly available apartment in Bankside Lofts which has two double bedrooms and one single, so a good option for a couple of friends who wouldn’t mind an office space at home that’s away from the bedrooms and living area.
Or how about this vast and epic three bedroom, three bathroom penthouse loft in the Shoreditch Triangle with exposed timber vaulted ceilings, grit-blasted brick walls and a location that’s as where it’s at as where it’s at can be!
So here’s to community, friendship and living together: in a unique and luxury home, of course!
