These are the lavish, empty mansions that have turned part of Britain’s most exclusive residential area into a ghost town.
The luxurious multi-million properties are located on the pristine Wentworth Estate in Surrey, home to the rich and famous but many have been left in a state of neglect with their owners not even bothering to live in them.
One stunning property on the wealthy estate called Straidarran previously belonged to Sir Bruce Forsyth, where he spent his final years but has now fallen into a sorry state after it was sold by his widow Wilnelia for £5.7 million in April 2020.
In recent months, neighbours claim that the main gates have remained closed while moss and weeds have grown over the tennis court and surrounding lawns, a far cry from the days when Sir Bruce, a keen tennis fan, would be out enjoying his favourite pastime.
The house features a ten-seater cinema room, ten reception rooms and bedrooms, library, gymnasium and swimming pool, spa area and a wine cellar.
Wilinela sold it to a Bermuda-based businesswoman and decided to move to a smaller property nearby.
She revealed at the time: ‘It was hard to leave a place with so many happy memories for me and my family, but I think they all understand.
‘It was sometimes sad to be in such a home without Bruce.’
England captain Harry Kane purchased a six-bedroom mansion for £6.6 million in September 2021, starting a major project to renovate it for his family.
But before it was completed, Kane moved to Bayern Munich last year, meaning it has remained locked up and empty with the striker, his wife Katie and their four children unable to enjoy the luxurious property, which comes with a swimming pool, spa area, tennis court and is set across two acres.
Nearby Lily Manor is located on a three-acre plot and is made up of six bedrooms, eight bathrooms and comes with an outdoor heated swimming pool, tennis court, triple garage and a two-storey annex.
It was sold to the head of a major international investment fund for £19.5 million in October 2022.
The mansion has four reception rooms, five en-suite bedrooms, an indoor leisure complex, including a swimming pool, plus a cinema and entertainment lounge.
It comes with a garage for five cars, landscaped gardens and accommodation for live-in staff while the interior also has a lift that can take up to six people.
But its imposing black gates have remained mainly locked with nearby residents claiming that the new owners have rarely been seen.
One local who did not want to be named told MailOnline: ‘This is just one of many empty homes on the Wentworth estate, which is a real pity because this is a fantastic place to live in.
‘It seems that a lot of people have just bought them for investment purposes or are having second thoughts about living in the UK. It just goes to show how rich they must be if they can have such a large property and choose not to live in it.’
Photographs of a mansion called Copthorne show a broken greenhouse and piles of debris scattered across its three-acre garden while the roof of the six-bedroom property appears close to falling in.
Overgrown bushes surround the iron gate at its entrance, which has remained padlocked since the property was bought by a couple based in the Far East for £6 million in March 2019.
Land Registry records show that many of the empty homes on the Wentworth estate are owned by offshore companies or wealthy individuals with strong overseas connections.
Estate agent Trevor Abrahmsohn, head of Glentree Homes, which specialises in selling homes to wealthy clients claims that expensive properties becoming vacant is part of a growing trend in London and the South East following the Government’s decision to scrap non-dom status in the UK.
As part of the March 2024 Budget, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced that the non-dom tax regime will be phased out. From April 2025, people who move to the UK will not have to pay tax on money they earn overseas for the first four years.
But after that period, if they continue to live in the UK, they will pay the same tax as everyone else on their global wealth.
Mr Abrahmsohn told MailOnline: ‘Expensive empty homes is consistent with a pattern of many non-doms leaving the UK because of these fiscal changes.
‘Other changes are being trumpeted by the Labour party and these wealthy people know that they are likely to win the next General Election. So, they’re now making provisions to live elsewhere.’
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