Brexit house price cuts: riverside chalet shipped to London from Switzerland has £10 million knocked off asking price

An Alpine lodge shipped plank by plank from Switzerland to the banks of the Thames has gone on the market for £2.85 million — three years after it was put up for sale for almost £13 million.

The developer of the 137-year-old chalet near Hampton Court said the “Brexit climate” had made it impossible to find a buyer for the property, which comes with a heated indoor sand beach, a bathroom with gold parquet flooring and a £500,000 kitchen.

It is now being marketed again as an “empty shell”, without the surrounding plots of land, 225 metres (738ft) of river frontage, associated boats and contents of the property such as four cannons used at the Battle of Waterloo.

These can still be bought separately, bringing the total bill to £11 million.

Imported in 1882, the five-storey chalet was intended as a feature for the grounds of a country house called Riverholm which no longer exists.

It was later used as a boathouse and fell into dereliction before architect Myck Djurberg bought it in 2010 and spent more than £3 million on restoration work.

The chalet is now in the hands of receivers; Mr Djurberg is still responsible for maintaining it.

Features include a “beach themed” party level with under-floor heating, wine racks, a cinema room and a spa area.

Guest bedrooms have “Japanese style” pod beds that include a body massage system, and the master suite is accessed by a glass staircase.

Its bathroom has two free-standing copper baths and basins made of marble and 24-carat gold.

Mr Djurberg told the Standard: “The building has historically been used as an entertaining house. King Edward VII himself was here at one time to gamble.

“Lots of famous people have visited — Charlie Chaplin and the likes. So I decided to bring it back to an entertaining home.

"It’s for someone who doesn’t need a house. He or she enjoys the high-life and wants to entertain. I have interested buyers. In the meantime with Savills we’ve agreed to sell this in stages and break it into pieces in order to sell it faster because the very high-end market is not there because of Brexit.”

In 2017, a High Court judge ordered Mr Djurberg to pay back £1.8 million to two couples after he sold them “unlawful” houseboats. The sites did not have permission for residential properties.

Mr Djurberg said he was appealing against the decision, adding that “the damage to my name and professional profile has in a way also contributed seriously with the sale of my property”.

At present, the chalet is mainly used for events and is rented out for about £30,000 for half a day.