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An absurd illustration of Britain’s housing problem | Letters

Readers respond to an article about what was once the UK’s most expensive house, which has lain empty for yearsGrand properties lying empty when we’re in the midst of a housing crisis is ludicrous. Sam Wollaston’s article about a homeless person sleeping in the portico of a £200m palace, which used to be terrace houses, is the most apt and absurd illustration of the UK’s housing problem (It was Britain’s most expensive house. Why is its only resident a homeless man who lives on the porch?, 10 Ju

An absurd illustration of Britain’s housing problem | Letters

An absurd illustration of Britain’s housing problem | Letters

Published June 15, 2026 · Category: Markets

Overview

Readers respond to an article about what was once the UK’s most expensive house, which has lain empty for years

Grand properties lying empty when we’re in the midst of a housing crisis is ludicrous. Sam Wollaston’s article about a homeless person sleeping in the portico of a £200m palace, which used to be terrace houses, is the most apt and absurd illustration of the UK’s housing problem (It was Britain’s most expensive house. Why is its only resident a homeless man who lives on the porch?, 10 June).

Details

For a long time, my partner and I lived in the affluent town of Henley-on-Thames. There, behind the famous Leander club, sat a sizeable disused property. Most days I’d drive past it on my way to work and lament that the pigeon-filled building wasn’t occupied. It took over a decade before it was knocked down and the area finally developed; presumably somebody owned it for all that time and sat on it for whatever reasons.

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Source

Originally published at www.theguardian.com.

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