KEYS TO KNOW

Kirsty Mcluckie drops anchor on a beautiful city home with a romantic past

The phrase “hidden gem” is overused in property, but Claremont House could hardly be described as anything else.

Secreted away in a walled garden off the green space of Leith Links and less than three miles from Edinburgh city centre, it is a late Georgian detached house that most people would never suspect was there.

The house, which was built in 1820 and is B listed, has a romantic past, according to the current owner Sarah Burnet who moved here 16 years ago with her husband.

She says: “We understand that it was built for a sea captain, who only had one leg, hence it being quite a grand house but all on one level.

“At the time there would have been nothing between the house and the sea.”

The couple moved from a twobedroomed city flat when their daughter, Olivia, was born. Looking for a family house with a garden, they were unwilling to move too far out of the city. Olivia’s brother, Jamie, was born two years later.

Sarah says: “I think it was the value for money that it offered and the chance to live in a proper family house in such privacy, but in a great location within walking distance of the city.”

The couple have added substantially to the house in their time here.

One of their first projects was to convert the outbuildings into a detached cottage.

Sarah says: “It had been the original stable block serving the house, so it was big enough to convert into a onebedroomed cottage and leave a garage as well.”

The cottage now has a open-plan dining kitchen and living room, a double bedroom and a shower room and could be extended further.

It would be ideal for an elderly relative or grown-up children. The Burnets have offered it for short-term lets, and it generates a generous income.

Sarah says: “A couple have taken it for three months over the winter for the last eight years and there are plenty of returning guests for holidays.

“It has a separate entrance so guests don’t encroach on our privacy.”

Highlights of the main house include an elegant bay-windowed drawing room with open fireplace and a remarkable painted wall frieze showing rural scenes from South Queensferry to East Linton.

Its origins are somewhat mysterious but Sarah says they have been told that it might have been painted by one of the Glasgow Boys. “Whoever it was, it is a unique feature and a real conversation piece.”

The house has been sensitively extended by the couple.

They have added bathrooms and a glassrich, contemporary open-plan kitchen, dining and living space in which the family spend most of their time.

There is an additional sitting room or study which would also make a fifth bedroom if required, along with four principal bedrooms.

The master bedroom has a dressing room and luxurious bathroom with a door to the garden and there is a guest bedroom with ensuite shower room, and a family bathroom which serves the two remaining bedrooms.

The cellar, wine cellar and attic maid’s room ensure there is plenty of storage.

The walled gardens measure just under an acre and make for a rare oasis, considering that this is essentially a townhouse.

The outside space includes lawns, mature shrubs and trees and a landscaped area to the south which extends from the extension. The couple have added a treehouse and there is a doocot.

They have a gardener to keep it looking its best, but Sarah says the garden offers real potential to anyone a little more green fingered.

Ben Fox of Savills says: “Claremont House is an architectural historian’s dream, nestled in the green enclave of the vibrant urban area of Leith.

“The sellers have done a magnificent job in restoring and improving this deceptively spacious Georgian gem, and the additional cottage, which is lucratively let out for holiday rentals, is an added bonus.”

Sarah says: “It has been exactly what we were looking for and hopefully it will suit a family again. It is a quiet spot, walled and secure for children and pets. You can hardly believe you are so close to the city.” Claremont House and Cottage, Leith Links, Edinburgh. Five bedroomed Georgian house on one level with a one-bedroomed detached cottage. B listed, it has features such as an original wall frieze in the drawing room. Contemporary extension of glass housing a dining kitchen.

Extensive walled grounds.