Pottering around in the Suburb

Hermione’s house is for sale. Harry Potter fans will be in the queue to buy this house in Hampstead Garden Suburb, north-west London. On sale for this first time in nearly 60 years, it was the house of Hermione Granger, played by Emma Watson, in the blockbuster film series.

The Grangers would have rattled around in the house had they really lived there. In the story, Hermione’s parents are dentists and Hermione is an only child, while 9 Heathgate, NW11, is a 2,490 sq ft, three-storey home with six bedrooms.

As proud parents, the Grangers would have fitted in well as residents of the Suburb, a fine place to bring up a family. Hermione herself is a certain kind of suburbanite: an overachiever who excels academically, and is described by author JK Rowling as “very logical, upright and good”.

The house is less than half a mile from Golders Green tube station, which is just six stops from Kings Cross station, a journey the Grangers would have made many times to see off their daughter on the train to Hogwarts school which departs, of course, from platform 9¾. By platforms 9 to 11 on the west side of the station today, you will find a trolley disappearing into the magical realm through a wall with the sign “Platform 9¾”. So it must be true.

In a cul-de-sac just a few metres from the entrance to Hampstead Heath, the house has a large garden — certainly large enough for Hermione’s friends to hold Quidditch practice, if not for a full game — and, unlike a number of houses in the street, it is not a listed building. Agents Arlington Residential and Glentree are asking £2.4 million.

The house is unlikely to sell to a follower of Voldemort but it could easily appeal to an overseas buyer. Aree Rand of estate agent Knight Frank in Hampstead has produced a report showing the strength of the market in the area, post Brexit.

While he admits that the strength of demand from overseas buyers has declined since 2015 and the beginning of 2016, he says Chinese buyers are new to the market. They are attracted by the area’s large, secluded houses and good schools and are happy to spend more than £15 million on the right property. The local market remains strong, too, with local buyers paying £3 million to £10 million for their ideal home.