Property spotlight: Gatehouses

Gatehouses were often built at the entrances to imposing country estates; the ultimate curb appeal technique. As such, the were often constructed as ‘mini mes‘ of the great houses themselves. These gatehouses are generally characterful and, although often situated close to the roadside, were set in large, sprawling grounds – even if the land doesn’t belong to the gatehouse property itself – it gives a feeling of space.

If you like the idea of owning and living in your own castle, but you only have a bungalow budget – perhaps one of these gatehouses is a good alternative.

Offers over £200,000 – The Lodge, Edrington House, Foulden, Berwick upon Tweed TD15 1UF

The Lodge, Edrington House is the perfect countryside bolthole, offering characterful accommodation amongst the stunning countryside of the Scottish Borders and close to the attractive village of Foulden. Presented in good order, this pretty Category C listed cottage offers contemporary living in a wonderful home that oozes charm and character and offers peaceful country living in fantastic scenery with beautiful walks straight from the doorstep.
As the former gate lodge to Edrington House the (1 bedroom) cottage has an imposing entrance by the stone gate piers and decorative iron gates leading to the driveway of Edrington House.

£350,000 – Hilltop House Lodge, Spen Lane, Gomersal, Cleckheaton, West Yorkshire BD19 4LS

Hilltop Lodge is a truly unique opportunity to own a beautiful and characterful home with tremendous potential.
Externally, the home sits on a lovely sized plot. As you enter through the gates from Spen Lane the property is flanked by original stone walls and stone pillars with timber gates to the driveway.

• Grade II listed gatehouse
• Three double bedrooms
• 30ft beautiful orangery
• Large gardens and driveway
• Heart of Gomersal
• Sun room, garden room and utility
• En-suite to master

Lodge for the Grade II listed Hilltop House

£1,500,000 – Old Gate House, Sydenham Hill, London SE26 6TH

A sensitively restored Arts and Crafts gem… at the entrance to a secluded private estate on the edge of Sydenham & Dulwich Woods.

• 3 bedrooms
• Reception room
• Kitchen
• Breakfast room
• 2 bathrooms
• WC

Gate house for the Grade II listed Beltwood House

Property spotlight: Homes with swimming pools

I had this post planned ages ago. Little did I know that homes with swimming pools would be all in the news by the time it came to publishing. Well, one home in particular!

You’d think that pools in the UK wouldn’t be that much of a popular thing. But with indoor pools and heated pools, it can be a pleasant thing in this climate. I even know of home-owners with cold water plunge pools in their garden; wild swimming in your own back yard!

We’ve picked 3 homes with swimming pools – ranging from half a million to £15 million – so you don’t have to be a millionaire to have one… but it helps!

£500,000 – Clare Road, Ystalyfera, Swansea SA9 2AJ

A desirable feature of the garden is a recently installed endless outdoor swimming pool. The pool features a resistance wave setting, ideal for building up stamina in exercise. The pool also benefits from a weather shelter and is temperature controlled. All the mechanics of the pool are housed safely within the pool summer house and there is a useful outside shower area.

• A very well presented and lovingly maintained detached family home
• 5 bedrooms
• 2 bathrooms
• Situated in grounds totalling approximately a third of an acre
• Located in the quiet village of Ystalyfera close to local amenities
• Three reception rooms, five bedrooms and two bathrooms
• Impressive sized cellar and garage
• Beautiful landscaped gardens to front, side and rear
• Ample scope to build an additional dwelling subject to obtaining planning permissions
• An outdoor endless swimming pool with wave resistance and shelter cover
• Newly installed gas combination boiler
• Roof mounted solar panels generating income in the region of £800 per annum

£950,000 – The White House, Cosby Road, Broughton Astley, Leicester LE9 6PA

Indoor Swimming Pool (12.19m x 7.62m) with bi-folding doors to the rear and side elevations enjoying views over the rear garden, tiled walls, tiled floor, fully heated swimming pool with steps and roller cover, LED wall features.

• Stunning detached family home
• Five bedrooms
• Two bathrooms & three shower rooms
• Two reception rooms
• Games room
• Indoor pool & gym/music room
• Renovated throughout
• Field views
• Close to schooling

£15,000,000 – Flag House, 123 Banks Road, Sandbanks, Poole, Dorset BH13 7QQ

Outside this gorgeous home continues to shine with the stunning pool, hot tub, landscaping and tropical planting creating a vista that would more commonly be seen in up-scale Miami or LA.

• Stunning waterfront position with direct beach access
• Beautiful landscaped grounds including a gorgeous infinity swimming pool
• Elegant and luxurious interiors throughout
• Approaching 8,000 sq ft of accommodation
• Opulent designer kitchen
• State-of-the-art cinema/games room
• Beautifully presented wine room
• Palatial principal bedroom suite with exquisite dressing room and en-suite bathroom
• Double garage and private driveway
• Detached gym studio with en-suite and kitchenette

Property spotlight: Windmill conversions

Mill conversions aren’t a rare occurrence. However, windmill conversions aren’t… well… run of the mill!

I found at least a dozen windmill conversions currently for sale online. Most of them are on the market at over the million pound mark. But a couple of them are less than half that amount.

We’re highlighting one windmill property located on the Isle of Man that’s on at £425K and move-in ready.

The next, is in Holyhead in Anglesey, Wales. This too is ready to move into; however, the windmill and granary buildings are currently derelict – and ripe for restoration and renovation.

The ‘blow the budget’ windmill complex is in Bedfordshire (very close to Whipsnade Zoo) and boasts 7 bedrooms. The circular windmill building offers 5 floors of living accommodation. The ponds on the property cover an area of 2.4 acres and a ¾-mile-long stretch of the River Ouzel runs through the grounds.

£425,000 – Castletown Windmill, Arbory Road, Castletown, Isle of Man IM9 1HA

The mill was built in 1828 which was only one of seven wind powered mills on the Isle of Man. At that time, included a number of other additional outbuildings and a dwelling. The mill was worked until 1848. The current owners acquired the mill as a new conversion in 2001.
The communal pavioured driveway and gardens consisting of lawned areas, mature trees and pond are maintained by the management company.

• Unique opportunity to acquire a fully refurbished former windmill
• Sought after central location with 360 panoramic views over the south coastline and beyond
• Lounge
• Kitchen diner
• 4 bedrooms (2 en-suite)
• Conservatory with mezzanine and dome glass roof
• Maintained communal gardens
• Allocated car parking, visitor parking and single garage

£725,000 – Penfor, Rhydwyn, Holyhead LL65 4EY

A detached 3 bedroom cottage with a project – a derelict windmill & granary.
A unique opportunity to purchase a delightful detached cottage with its own derelict 19^th Century windmill and granary each with individual planning permission. Occupying a high coastal vantage point on a bluff overlooking Church Bay and the surrounding countryside the property benefits from panoramic unobstructed sea views and sunsets. With easy access to the rugged coastal path and beach by either footpath or quiet country lane the location is amongst the best on the island.

• Unique opportunity In magical location
• Amazing far reaching sea views
• Renovation project – windmill & granary
• Detached cottage currently successful holiday let
• Planning permission granted
• Cottage with 3 bedrooms
• Beautiful Anglesey location

£3,850,000 – The Windmill, Edlesborough, Dunstable, Bedfordshire LU6 1RU

Constructed of mellow red brick under a pitched pitched clay tile roof, Edlesborough Mill was built in the early 19th century and was last known to have been sold by auction in 1917.

• 7 bedrooms
• 4 reception rooms
• River frontage
• Windmill with secondary accommodation
• About 23.39 acres

Property spotlight: Listed tower block flats

One of the properties that we featured in this series last week – Embassy Court – is a listed block of purpose-built flats.

This week, we’re focussing on three, listed tower block flats that are currently up for sale. Tower blocks often get a bad press; back in the post-war years when they were a new idea for high-density, affordable housing. Many of these developments were ill thought out and badly constructed. A fair few have long since been demolished.

However, there are a few tower blocks built during that period that have become highly desirable addresses. Trellick Tower in London is probably one of the most famous. Park Hill flats in Sheffield have recently undergone a regeneration phase by Urban Splash.

Unlike most other residential houses, flats are usually sold as leasehold properties and incur fees such as maintenance and service charges and ground rent. If you’re interested in buying one of these homes – carefully research the length of the lease and what these costs will add to your monthly outlay.

Offers over £58,000 – 39 Seamount Court, Aberdeen AB25 1DQ

• Immaculate maisonette
• 2 Double Bedrooms
• Lovely City Views
• Central Location
• Sold As Furnished

Seamount Court contains 126 maisonette flats laid out on a crossover section: flats are entered on the ground floor at either the bedroom or living area and cross up and over to the bedroom or living area providing a dual aspect on two levels.
These buildings were designed and built in a selected redevelopment area and were part of a comprehensive building programme that was initiated by the City of Aberdeen Housing Committee to re-house residents into modern, healthy homes throughout the city centre. The Gallowgate development (including Seamount Court and Porthill Court) is the second of a total of five inner city housing developments ranging in date from 1959 to 1978.

£220,000 – Long Henry Street, South Street, Park Hill S2 5AW

• Triple aspect
• Two bedrooms
• Open plan lounge / dining
• Full length balcony plus Juliette balcony
• City views
• Amazing design
• Listed building
• Lift to all floors
• Communal green areas
• Walk over to the city

The apartment entrance is on the 9th floor
Leasehold: 235 years left
Annual service charge: £1,908

Forming part of the first phase of the Grade-II listed Park Hill renovation is this wonderful two bedroom City view apartment. Originally built between 1957 and1961 to a design by Jack Lynn and Ivor Smith under the supervision of John Lewis Wormersley, the flats have been the subject of an extensive refurbishment project, shortlisted for the 2013 RIBA Stirling Prize.
Externally, colourful anodised aluminium panels replicate the coloured brick tones of the original façade and reflect the ‘streets in the sky’ heritage. Internal accommodation combines aluminium-framed floor-to-ceiling glazing with engineered oak flooring and exposed concrete structural elements faithful to it’s original Brutalist heritage.

£625,000 – Trellick Tower, 5 Golborn Road, North Kensington, London W10 5PA

Leasehold: 88 years left
Annual ground rent: £10 (2022)

• 2 bedroom flat in this famous iconic building
• Designed by eminent architect Erno Goldfinger
• Amazing views
• Large balcony
• Spacious accommodation
• Close to amenities
• Near the fashionable Golborne and Portobello Roads

This excellent 2 bedroom flat is set within a sought-after purpose-built block with porter and lift and benefits from a balcony, spacious kitchen and reception room and two double bedrooms.

H is for Home Harbinger

Category: Property spotlight