As an 11-year-old, I tried to convince my mother that we should sell our Victorian farmhouse in the rolling English countryside and pour nearly every dime into a brand-new Jaguar XJ220, which was capable of speeds up to 212 m.p.h. and cost nearly $700,000 at the time. We would live simply inside this low-slung, two-seat supercar, parked at a rest stop with a washing line hung between the car and any nearby tree.
Now a much more comfortable alternative has arisen. Prestige-car manufacturers are racing to build luxury residential towers in moneyed enclaves around the world.
