Hawk-eyed househunters spot £2million property comes with birds of prey neighbours

A bloke is using his unusual 'neighbours' as a sales feature to flog his high-rise £2.2million London apartment - showing off the peregrine falcons who live outside his window in his Rightmove listing.

The three bed flat is in one of London's most famed buildings, The Barbican, and is advertised on Rightmove with photos showing stunning views of London's skyline including St Paul's cathedral and The Gherkin.

But house hunters were quick to spot photos showing peregrine falcons, the world's fastest bird, peering into the flat's windows. Owner Carlo Resta had made the unusual decision to include in the listing photos taken from his windows of birds of prey sat staring into his flat.

Carlo said the birds of prey moved into The Barbican around 15 years ago and that every year during the spring and summer, they return to nest on top of the tower blocks. The property is on the 27th floor of the Shakespeare Tower, and over the years Carlo said that because some of the hawks would visit him repeatedly, they became 'part of the furniture'. In fact, he got to know them so well he even fondly named one 'Romeo'.

Carlo said: "The family of peregrine hawks are now kind of part of the furniture. Around six years ago Romeo came around. Romeo was kind of funny because one morning I tried to feed him. He basically behaved in a way that said you know 'I'm not interested, I need to hunt for the food'.

"I think it is possible that they enjoy the city because they find food and they find little animals or rats. We do try to do the best to make them at home. We have a family that comes back, the birds are creatures of habit so they do come back."

Carlo's flat is approximately 100m from the ground, and he said he thought the birds liked the drop of the tower blocks because they were used to heights in the mountains. The financial consultant also said that some residents of the listed building liked having the peregrine falcons around because they help to scare pigeons away.

After living in the flat for 25 years, Carlo has decided to sell it because he no longer needs to be in central London all of the time. He said that although this has not been an easy decision for him, he is ready for the next step in his life.

Carlo said: "It's a very special place in the heart of the city of London. Sometimes even though it's not an easy decision to take, you've got to move to the next step. I wish as well that someone good is going to take care of the place going forward.

"The beauty of the flat is that you're in the middle of the city but it's quiet and it is almost like you're in the sky and the view of these birds makes it really special. Mine is possibly one of the best flats because when I purchased it I could choose the view which is right in front of St Paul's. Even though you can't see them, you can hear them, they're flying around going by so that's very nice.

"It's strange because you're in the city of London but at the same time you've got these unbelievable creatures. The Barbican is like a little microcosm of peace. There's parks, there's lakes, there's some ducks in the pond. The beauty of that flat is that it's been kept as it was originally and that is a value for another who appreciates a classic.

"It's like if you have a classic car, you want to keep it as it was when it was built. For me my flat in Shakespeare Tower is a 'trophy asset' and whoever lives in it in the future will be lucky."

Renowned for its brutalist style architecture designed by architects Chamberlain, Powell and Bon, the estate was built following the Blitz and now has 2,000 flats, maisonettes, and houses. It boasts itself online as 'one of London's most ambitious and unique architectural achievements' and houses 4,000 residents in properties surrounding schools, a church, a library, a lake and an arts centre.

House hunters were quick to notice the listing and suggested the bird of prey would make a great neighbour for the new owners. One user wrote: "The flat is worth £200,000. The neighbour is worth £2million."

Another Reddit user wrote: "The falcon could provide quite the diversion if it eats its dinner out there. I like this apartment."