The $1 billion house

Yeah, you read correctly, the $1 billion house, that’s not Rupee or Yen. MSN released news today (MSN has taken the article down for some reason) that India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, is in the process of building a new home in Mumbai that currently has an estimated value of $1 billion.

Forbes estimated Ambani’s net worth at $43 billion in March, making him the 5th richest person in the world. Reliance Industries was founded by Mukesh’s father, Dhirubhai Ambani, in 1966, and is India’s most valuable firm by market capitalization.

£70 million is what currently The Most Expensive House In The World was purchased for. There’s no doubt that this property will completely smash that record when or if it ever gets sold in the future. The home will cost more than a hotel or high-rise of similar size because of its custom measurements and fittings. How swanky, aye?

I recently said, you have to be an idiot to spend £70 million on a house, but I was just being facetious. But I actually mean it when I say that you have to be the ultimate idiot to spend $1 billion on a property for, and I quote, “Ambani plans to occasionally use the residence for corporate entertainment”. I don’t think there’s any justification for spending that much on a house, besides from being an extreme egotist. Even Bill Gates doesn’t have a home worth a fraction of that; $125 million for his home. The only remotely comparable high-rise property currently on the market is the $70 million triplex penthouse at the Pierre Hotel in New York.

I just can’t imagine what you could possibly spend on a house that would make its value $1 billion. One thing is for sure, I’m sure it’s filled with complete unnecessary bullshit like gold toilet paper holders. Ambani’s architect has said the first floors of the skyscraper mansion will be reserved for parking. Immediately above will be lodgings for servants and their families. Eight floors have been reserved for “entertainment,” including a mini-theatre and a number of swimming pools, and several more floors will house a health club and rooms for guests.

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Group is India’s largest private company, with interests in oil, retail and biotechnology. The 50-year-old became the country’s first rupee trillionaire this week. Him and his family currently live in a 14-storey building, while they await to move into their home, which should be ready by next year. Yeah, apparently 14-stories just isn’t enough space for him, his wife, his mother, and his 3 children.

The new $1 billion building, named Antilla after a mythical island, will have a total floor area greater than Versaille: 60-storey palace with helipad, health club and six floors of car parking (who the fuck needs six floors for parking?). Draped in hanging gardens, the building will have a floor for a home theatre, a glass-fronted apartment for guests, and a two-storey health club. As the ceilings are three times as high as a normal building’s, the 173-metre tower will have only 27 floors. Apparently Mukesh and his family see it necessary to have 600 members of full-staff to move into the new home, too. What the fuck would you need 600 members of staff for? I imagine he has people on standby to scrape the toe-jam out from under his royal toes. 1 man for each toe. 600 members of staff in a residential home, unbelievable. Of course, providing 600 jobs is NEVER a bad thing.

This guy has serious problems in my opinion, he could single-handedly fix up living conditions for millions of people in India but instead he builds a playhouse that he’ll never really need, in the middle of a poor country which is populated by 1.1 billion people that live in abysmal poverty, with tens of millions regularly receiving insufficient nourishment. I wonder how many of those precious square feet will actually be touched by his feet.

He’s a wealthy guy, and I’m sure he worked hard to get to where he is, so good for him. Further more, I’m sure his empire has created thousands of jobs for people, which is all very cool. But even if someone has more money than they know what to do with, I don’t think building a $1 billion house is justifiable. Fuck, build a thousand schools for disabled children or something, you crazy, crazy man!!

All financial talk aside, I’m not gonna’ lie, homie, that’s one swish looking crib. Impressive.

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Talk / 68 Comments left so far

Raj wrote this on 2009-10-13 18:43:49 why their isnt' negative approach for Bill Gates. he has 147 mill. house... y? he shuldnt pay to African a Billion dollaR! he will have decrease of a cup of tea and will come to 57$ bill his networth. Indians are blamed! 66

BOB wrote this on 2010-06-24 17:39:04 Think about it, how much money do you earn in a life time? An average American earns about 2 million dollars with a masters degree, and spends about 500-700 thousand dollars buying a house. This is about a half of what you earn in a life time. This guy is building a house that is worth 1 billion and his total is worth 50 billion. He is spending about 1/50 of his net worth which is much less than any american. So his house is absolutely justified in building such a house. 67

jag wrote this on 2010-08-25 22:09:21 this house will be the future development of mumbai in india so do not critisize 68

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