With the rise of the £6 million house, is Wimbledon now the capital’s most fashionable suburb?
The London suburb of Wimbledon wears its fame lightly. It is a very understated Victorian village that reflects the unflashy middle-class nature of its residents — the sort of people who like a knockabout game of tennis on a Sunday but are slightly ill at ease with the media circus due to descend on Monday upon the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. There is some compensation, however. Rather than jostle with sportsmen and paparazzi during the tournament, the homeowners of Wimbledon can escape down the A3 and rent their homes to players and fans for £6,000 a week (though they should be aware that Revenue & Customs currently has its eye on undeclared income from lucrative short-term lettings). Houses in SW19 and SW20 are typically red-brick Victorian piles arranged along wide tree-lined streets dotted with traffic-calming paraphernalia intended to preserve a gentle pace of life. Prices have risen in line with the buoyant London market, says Dominic Pasqua, of Knight Frank’s local
