Value of Rishi Sunak`s estate rises by 593% above average price
The prime minister is ‘sitting pretty’ with his constituency pad in North Yorkshire, which has a price tag of more than £2 million — a 37% increase on when he and his wife bought the property eight years ago.
In 2021, he was granted planning permission to build an L-shaped leisure complex with a gym, heated swimming pool and outdoor tennis court in a paddock within the 12-acre grounds.
The Georgian manor is now priced at £296,422 more than the national average, according to estate agents Barrows and Forrester.
The Grade II-listed home, which lies near Northallerton in the parish of Hambleton, was purchased by the Sunaks for £1.5 million in July 2015.
Since then, the price has increased by 37%, putting £555,500 on the value, according to the property group’s analysis.
The uptick has been revealed as millions of householders face rising rents and mortgage interest rates this year.
Mr Sunak’s estimated £730 million fortune, which he has amassed along with his wife, Akshata Murthy, is in sharp contrast to the budgets of those caught in the cost of living crisis.
MPs have also had their donations for campaigns and causes thrown into the spotlight by a Sky News investigation this week, showing he received £546,043 in 2019.
James Forrester, managing director of Barrows and Forrester, said: ‘While the rest of the nation faces an increased cost of living, higher mortgage rates and a reduction in the value of their home, Mr Sunak is sitting very pretty, with his Yorkshire bolthole commanding over £2 million in current market conditions.
‘Although a £2 million price tag won’t set the world alight within the London market, it’s a world away from the average homebuyer in North Yorkshire and the property itself is likely to remain impervious to any wider market downturn.
‘This is largely down to the fact that it sits so far outside of the regular market. Once you reach such dizzying heights in any pocket of the property sector, it’s very much about quality over quantity with potential buyers unphased about the wider health of the sector.
‘It’s also a listed building and the level of grade-listed stock available is finite in itself, with their unique nature also adding a heightened degree of prestige and appeal for potential buyers.
‘Then there’s the Sunak effect. Such a high-profile homeowner is likely to attract interest when he does finally come to sell and buyers are likely to pay a high price to secure the bragging rights of owning a PMs former home.’
The MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire is said to typically spend weekends at the property, where work took place last year on the pool house, which also includes a hot tub, utility and changing area and plant room.
In October, the Guardian reported that he would need to pay £14,000 a year to heat the pool at the manor in the village of Kirby Sigston.
Compared with the average £284,164 house price in North Yorkshire, the difference rises further to 623%, the property experts found.
The couple bought the manor, a former vicarage dating back to 1826, before Mr Sunak became an MP.
The prime minister’s ability to connect with struggling families will undergo a stern examination as he has made tackling the cost of living crisis one of his key aims in 2023.
He has pledged to halve inflation, reduce debt and grow the economy.
Mr Sunak also said in a keynote speech on January 4 that £26 billion of support has been provided to alleviate the cost of living crisis since he entered No10 in October.
