MacDonald House London

Flats Coming Next To Grosvernor Square

Canada sold their High Commission in London to Lodha of India

Canada has sold a large embassy building in London’s luxury Mayfair district to Indian developer Lodha Dwellers Pvt Ltd for $530 million, the Canadian foreign ministry said on Thursday. The 150,000 square feet MacDonald House is the headquarters of the Canadian High Commission in Mayfair area and it is near the Grosvenor Square which is one of the prime properties is London. Canada wanted to dispose of the large six-storey building in Grosvenor Square because it plans to consolidate all diplomatic activities in another official Canadian property on Trafalgar Square.     >>  http://sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/lodha-buys-canadian-london-embassy-221014829.html

[LONDON] Foreign embassies are abandoning London's premier addresses such as Mayfair and Kensington as the world of diplomacy changes in the face of security risks and new technology, just as property prices are reaching untold heights.

The trend to move further afield to more secure, functional properties is being led by the US, which on Wednesday marked out its future in a new site south of the River Thames.

Estate agent Wetherell and the Diplomat magazine found at least 20 of the 165 diplomatic missions in London have been sold or explored a sale in the past six months after prices in up-market embassy areas rose by up to 60 per cent since 2007. But the exit from palatial houses in ritzy areas was also seen as reflecting the changing nature of diplomacy, with extravagant displays of nationalism deemed inappropriate in a tough economy and greater security needed.

"Embassies took over grand houses at a time when diplomacy was serving drinks and eyeball-to-eyeball contact which was the way of doing business then," managing director of Wetherell, told Reuters. "Things have changed and nowadays these buildings are not really fit for purpose."

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Bloomberg's Asia's Edge speculated today that the building will be torn down and replaced with high end flats.   Of course?!