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Highly Desirable: Tales of London’s super-prime property from the Secret Agent
'A hugely fun tale of how the super-rich buy their super-prime lairs - I was absolutely boggled throughout. Toto, I have a feeling we're not on Rightmove anymore . . .' - MARINA HYDE
'A gloriously entertaining glimpse behind the closed doors of the high-end house market. I never knew property could be so riveting' - PRUE LEITH
Spanning the course of a year, Max - the alias of London's most exclusive property agent - guides us through the unimaginable highs and bank-breaking lows of his business, where houses sell for up to £170 million and discretion is key.
With a client list that includes a Booker Prize winner, several Oscar nominees, a stadium-filling musician, an HRH, two national treasures, a supermodel, a Duke, a Duchess, and untold FTSE board members and titans of business, there is never a dull moment for Max and his team - John, Damien and Natasha - as they negotiate both huge property deals in the office, and their complex personal lives outside of it.
Offering an insider's view into the hidden machinations of this exclusive market, Highly Desirable sees Max attempt to balance his team, his own needs and, of course, the books against his ever-demanding clients, as he showcases the good, the bad, and the downright bizarre nature of the real-estate market of the super-rich.
'If you want to read a gossipy and witty book about buying and selling houses for the rich, then you're in it's wickedly delicious!' - NIGELLA LAWSON
'A gloriously entertaining glimpse behind the closed doors of the high-end house market. I never knew property could be so riveting' - PRUE LEITH
Spanning the course of a year, Max - the alias of London's most exclusive property agent - guides us through the unimaginable highs and bank-breaking lows of his business, where houses sell for up to £170 million and discretion is key.
With a client list that includes a Booker Prize winner, several Oscar nominees, a stadium-filling musician, an HRH, two national treasures, a supermodel, a Duke, a Duchess, and untold FTSE board members and titans of business, there is never a dull moment for Max and his team - John, Damien and Natasha - as they negotiate both huge property deals in the office, and their complex personal lives outside of it.
Offering an insider's view into the hidden machinations of this exclusive market, Highly Desirable sees Max attempt to balance his team, his own needs and, of course, the books against his ever-demanding clients, as he showcases the good, the bad, and the downright bizarre nature of the real-estate market of the super-rich.
'If you want to read a gossipy and witty book about buying and selling houses for the rich, then you're in it's wickedly delicious!' - NIGELLA LAWSON
318 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 22, 2023
7 people are currently reading
142 people want to read
About the author
Anonymous
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Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
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* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author
Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
See also: Anonymous
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 15, 2023
3.5*. An easy, enjoyable and insightful read.
December 15, 2024
It is not easy to write a review for this book because I find it hard to separate the content of the book with the judgemental.
Overall it is a book that is easy to read, finished over two days on the weekend. At the higher level the book is dramatised and conversations and events hyped up a little to create a content that is presentable. It is hard to think had the events happened chronologically the dialogues would have happened exactly as they were. There were obviously some forward looking bias so the dialogues were tweaked that it makes sense to look backward to narrate a string of events that just naturally seem to connect logically and rationally. In this respect the book has lost some of its authenticity.
Second the events in the book just happen to make a very good story that spans over 2022. The year the book covers. As a reader one does not doubt that the events took place but at the same time it is a very special year for such a large number of deals to have completed and the various personal lives to have turned out the way they did. Therefore it does not represent a typical year in the life of prime property estate agents. The author is very fortunate to have had an eventful year that is not to be repeated.
It is indeed fascinating for a glimpse into how this people business works amongst estate agents and the rich. The inter personal dynamics. What I find interesting is to see that the estate agents get to travel and hang out with their clients. The boundaries of business and friendship are blurred at time. The fact that the rich lets the estate agents into their lives and seek/give life advice is a reflection of their own loneliness in the world of the rich.
What one can not help but to reflect throughout the book is that the estate agents are nothing more than freeloading off the rich people. There is without a doubt that the friendships described in the book are not 100% genuine, and they are kept and maintained because of business. So in fact the relationships are very fake. Often in the book you will find examples when the client gave the business to the author's competitor and as a result the author immediately questioned the "friendship", and that he even wrote a letter to say how hurtful it was to one of his clients who did not give him the business he felt he deserved.
There is much rich worshipping in the book. At the end of the day it is freeloading and leeching off the rich. It is an easy and lazy life without the need to work hard in a genuine career that contribute positively to society. They are flown off to exotic locations by their clients on their holidays, parties, and provide an attentive ear to their personal problems and never utter it seems any words of controversy. Always a yes man, there to say things the rich wants to hear and filling the void of their empty/lonely lives. It is a way to live, and live and let live so we should not be too judgemental. Yes I find the existence unethical. It is also a life/career that is not permanent. As one finds out in the book when one's personal circumstances changes colleagues can quickly drop out of such a temporary team of agents.
Finally how the book is being marketed is as if the agents are serving the extremely wealthy rich and famous. But you will quickly find that there are only a few deals that went through during the year and the agent is nothing special but just happen to know a few anonymous rich clients. It is not the super exclusive agents for the world's super wealthy. Overall there are nuggets of truth and content that one can factually pick out from the book and to make up of our own judgements of that it's like being an estate agent. I found the interpersonal dynamics between agents and clients in particular quite interesting.
In the end, the rich still rules the world and the average person on the street ends up working for the rich one way or another.
Overall it is a book that is easy to read, finished over two days on the weekend. At the higher level the book is dramatised and conversations and events hyped up a little to create a content that is presentable. It is hard to think had the events happened chronologically the dialogues would have happened exactly as they were. There were obviously some forward looking bias so the dialogues were tweaked that it makes sense to look backward to narrate a string of events that just naturally seem to connect logically and rationally. In this respect the book has lost some of its authenticity.
Second the events in the book just happen to make a very good story that spans over 2022. The year the book covers. As a reader one does not doubt that the events took place but at the same time it is a very special year for such a large number of deals to have completed and the various personal lives to have turned out the way they did. Therefore it does not represent a typical year in the life of prime property estate agents. The author is very fortunate to have had an eventful year that is not to be repeated.
It is indeed fascinating for a glimpse into how this people business works amongst estate agents and the rich. The inter personal dynamics. What I find interesting is to see that the estate agents get to travel and hang out with their clients. The boundaries of business and friendship are blurred at time. The fact that the rich lets the estate agents into their lives and seek/give life advice is a reflection of their own loneliness in the world of the rich.
What one can not help but to reflect throughout the book is that the estate agents are nothing more than freeloading off the rich people. There is without a doubt that the friendships described in the book are not 100% genuine, and they are kept and maintained because of business. So in fact the relationships are very fake. Often in the book you will find examples when the client gave the business to the author's competitor and as a result the author immediately questioned the "friendship", and that he even wrote a letter to say how hurtful it was to one of his clients who did not give him the business he felt he deserved.
There is much rich worshipping in the book. At the end of the day it is freeloading and leeching off the rich. It is an easy and lazy life without the need to work hard in a genuine career that contribute positively to society. They are flown off to exotic locations by their clients on their holidays, parties, and provide an attentive ear to their personal problems and never utter it seems any words of controversy. Always a yes man, there to say things the rich wants to hear and filling the void of their empty/lonely lives. It is a way to live, and live and let live so we should not be too judgemental. Yes I find the existence unethical. It is also a life/career that is not permanent. As one finds out in the book when one's personal circumstances changes colleagues can quickly drop out of such a temporary team of agents.
Finally how the book is being marketed is as if the agents are serving the extremely wealthy rich and famous. But you will quickly find that there are only a few deals that went through during the year and the agent is nothing special but just happen to know a few anonymous rich clients. It is not the super exclusive agents for the world's super wealthy. Overall there are nuggets of truth and content that one can factually pick out from the book and to make up of our own judgements of that it's like being an estate agent. I found the interpersonal dynamics between agents and clients in particular quite interesting.
In the end, the rich still rules the world and the average person on the street ends up working for the rich one way or another.
May 5, 2024
I’d like to thank Joe at Headline for kindly sending me a copy of this book to review. As soon as I read the blurb I knew I’d love it!
And I did. What an engrossing read. As well as giving us a glimpse into the super-prime multi million pound property market it also has plenty of laugh out loud moments and takes us into the lives and loves of this small exclusive estate agency.
I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know ‘Max’ - and despite my Googling I can’t work out who he is - and his three staff who are like a family.
The Secret Agent known as Max writes the book over the course of a year in a diary format. We meet some of his (secret) clients including The Billionaire, rich uncle Fortesque, the Oscar Winner and the National Treasure to mention a few of the main ones.
We get to know roughly how these homes are valued and the dances which are done around valuing and getting the best price for his sometimes difficult clients!
A very addictive read which I couldn’t put down.
And I did. What an engrossing read. As well as giving us a glimpse into the super-prime multi million pound property market it also has plenty of laugh out loud moments and takes us into the lives and loves of this small exclusive estate agency.
I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know ‘Max’ - and despite my Googling I can’t work out who he is - and his three staff who are like a family.
The Secret Agent known as Max writes the book over the course of a year in a diary format. We meet some of his (secret) clients including The Billionaire, rich uncle Fortesque, the Oscar Winner and the National Treasure to mention a few of the main ones.
We get to know roughly how these homes are valued and the dances which are done around valuing and getting the best price for his sometimes difficult clients!
A very addictive read which I couldn’t put down.
August 10, 2023
Exhausting
"It's all very Tom Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities" the author says. Oh how I wish this book were. Instead the only vanity we get throughout is that of the author, who uses several hundred pages to self aggrandize, humble brag, and not so secretly shout out to his no doubt amazing but so misunderstood because rich mates, who this book seems to have really been written for. If you're instead considering picking this up as a work of non-fiction, any insights are drowned out by the writer's emotional drivel.
Quote: "And I see the old Zar back, the one who was confident about life and its possibilities [...] 'Thank you Max.' 'I haven't done anything.' 'You've been here for me.' 'Always.' I say".
Bleurgh.
"It's all very Tom Wolfe's The Bonfire of the Vanities" the author says. Oh how I wish this book were. Instead the only vanity we get throughout is that of the author, who uses several hundred pages to self aggrandize, humble brag, and not so secretly shout out to his no doubt amazing but so misunderstood because rich mates, who this book seems to have really been written for. If you're instead considering picking this up as a work of non-fiction, any insights are drowned out by the writer's emotional drivel.
Quote: "And I see the old Zar back, the one who was confident about life and its possibilities [...] 'Thank you Max.' 'I haven't done anything.' 'You've been here for me.' 'Always.' I say".
Bleurgh.
June 30, 2023
2.5
A good read and I enjoyed it, but there could have been a lot more logistics of buying and selling for the extraordinary premise the book relies on.
The author believes a little too much that rich people are just a better class of people rather than acknowledging that rich people succeed more due to being rich.
A lot of shameless namedropping but that’s all in good fun.
A good read and I enjoyed it, but there could have been a lot more logistics of buying and selling for the extraordinary premise the book relies on.
The author believes a little too much that rich people are just a better class of people rather than acknowledging that rich people succeed more due to being rich.
A lot of shameless namedropping but that’s all in good fun.
September 6, 2023
Written by anonymous made this book very intriguing for me. It is about a man who is a property agent for the rich and famous and all the personalities he needs to deal with plus dealing with his own personal problems. Luckily everything is sorted in the end while he takes us across a journey from London , L A and Italy.
A very insightful read!
A very insightful read!
June 1, 2024
If you like selling sunset and other similar programmes then definitely pick this up. Its a year in the life of an estate agent to the elite in London and it was fascinating. Mind boggling the cost of the property but fascinating all the same.
The book also gives an insight into the writers life and that of his colleagues, all big characters.
Very easy to read in monthly sections.
The book also gives an insight into the writers life and that of his colleagues, all big characters.
Very easy to read in monthly sections.
June 26, 2023
I absolutely loved this book. It was funny and warm and really was a joy to read. The perfect summer read.
August 9, 2023
Fun. Entertaining. Whether it's a penthouse overlooking the Thames or a Georgian mansion nestled in a hidden corner of Mayfair, this real estate agent gives you a taste of everything.
September 18, 2023
An unexpected delight. Charming escapist stuff, with a strong narrative, believable 'characters' and laced with authenticity. Recommended.
January 7, 2024
Fun! Rather vapid, a very easy read, perfect for mindless entertainment.
August 26, 2025
很有意思的一本书，讲的是一个豪宅房产经纪人的生活琐事，没想到我竟然能看完。可能是书中形形色色的人给我读下去的兴趣吧。总之，这本书是一个窗口，帮助窥见不同国家，不同阶层人的生活。
January 17, 2025
Think Selling Sunset, Buying London. Right up my street
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews