Cowell’s £2m profit on £18m home he never even lived in

MUSIC mogul Simon Cowell has put his second home on the market for a staggering £18million – without ever living in it.

After paying £15million for the seven-bedroom property in Wimbledon, South West London, in 2019, the X Factor judge spent an estimated £1million on renovations to create the perfect family home that he could share with his girlfriend Lauren Silverman, 44, her son Adam, 15, and their sevenyear-old son Eric.

But before moving in, the couple attempted ‘trial’ school runs of the 14-mile round trip from the house to Eric’s school and, on at least one occasion, it took more than two hours.

The controversial closure of Hammersmith Bridge made the problem worse, and with no plans for it to be reopened, the couple have now decided they will remain in their six-bedroom mansion in Holland Park. A source said: ‘Simon and Lauren fancied a change. They wanted to get out of central London and go somewhere a little more leafy. They wanted clean air and to make it their long-term family home. They spent a lot of time and money on it, but things just didn’t work out, so they have decided to put it on the market and stay put.

‘Eric is settled in his school and they didn’t want to move him, so they tried the journey and it was a nightmare.

‘There was one particular trip that took more than two hours and it was at that point that the family decided not to go ahead with their plan to move.’

The Wimbledon house is close to the official London residence of Pope Francis and the £21,000-ayear King’s College School, which Eric had been tipped to attend. The renovations included removing ceilings, floors and fireplaces and even stripping down some of the walls to brickwork.

The property is on the market though estate agent Fuller Gilbert.

The 62-year-old tycoon, whose new show Walk The Line launches on ITV next month, was looking forward to starting afresh after more than two decades at his Holland Park address.

While it provided the venue for numerous showbusiness parties, the old house also held some unhappy memories, including a burglary six years ago when £1 million of jewellery was taken.

It was also where Cowell suffered injuries when he fell down the stairs in 2017.