Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman buys the world's most expensive home

AAP

18 Dec, 2017 07:07 AM3 mins to read

The Chateau Louis XIV. Designed by Cogemad. Photo / Supplied

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been revealed as the owner of a French chateau described as the world's most expensive home, according to a report in the New York Times.

The purchase of the vast property west of Paris for US$300 million ($427 million) would be the latest in a string of extravagant purchases by the powerful prince, who has been waging a sweeping anti-corruption campaign.

The newly-built chateau was sold to a mystery buyer in 2015, and though its ownership is concealed through shell companies, advisers to the royal family have confirmed the prince is its ultimate owner, the Times reported Saturday.

The underwater room in the Chateau Louis XIV. Photo / Supplied

Saudi officials have declined to comment on the report, which comes after French investigative website Mediapart similarly pointed to the prince as the owner in July.

Fortune magazine reported at the time of the 2015 sale that the Chateau Louis XIV - which has fountains that can be controlled by iPhone - had smashed records to become the world's priciest home.

On the outside, the mansion looks like a 17th-century chateau in the style of the palace at nearby Versailles, but it is in fact a new-build that went up after its Saudi developer bulldozed the existing 19th-century property.

Its antique facades hide modern facilities including a cinema, deluxe swimming pool and a moat with a transparent underwater chamber so that visitors can enjoy the sight of koi carp swimming past.

The 57-acre plot includes manicured gardens, huge fountains and a maze, while the interiors are lavishly decorated with gilding and fresco ceilings.

He also owns a 620-acre estate in Conde-Sur-Vesgre, known as "Le Rouvray," an hour outside of Paris.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman poses while meeting with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Photo / AP

Corruption crackdown

The Times report comes after the prince had dozens of members of the Saudi elite including princes, ministers and tycoons locked up in Riyadh's 5-star Ritz-Carlton hotel as part of an anti-corruption campaign.

Many have since agreed to hand over allegedly ill-gotten gains in exchange for their freedom, Saudi attorney general Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb said earlier this month.

In an interview with the Times in November, Prince Mohammed described as "ludicrous" reports equating the crackdown with a political purge to eliminate rivals before he becomes king.

The home was constructed in three years by developer Emad Khashoggi. Photo / Supplied

The Times reported that he bought the chateau through a firm managed through his personal foundation, Eight Investment Company, which also handled his 2015 purchase of a US$500 million ($712m) yacht.

The 440-foot yacht, even more expensive than the house, has two pools and a helipad, and was bought on impulse from a Russian oligarch after the prince spotted it while holidaying in France. He was outed for that extravagantly pricey purchase thanks to leaked legal firm documents from Bermuda known as the Paradise Papers.

Along with the chateau and yacht, the Times also reported earlier this month that a Leonardo da Vinci painting sold for US$450.3 million ($641m) in November was sold to a Saudi prince acting on behalf of the crown prince.