Estate of mind

Country estate buyers can mix and match to produce their ideal property, finds Kirsty Mcluckie

Set above the River Tweed in the heart of glorious Scottish Borders countryside, close to Melrose, is Ashiestiel, a Grade A listed house that dates back to the 17th century.

Sir Walter Scott spent eight years here, writing The Lady of the Lake, Marmion and a good chunk of Waverley, and it has been suggested that, had he been able to buy the estate, he would not have taken on the ambitious project of nearby Abbotsford.

The house was painted by Turner in the 1830s as an illustration for Marmion.

Nowadays it is a comfortable and stylish home, having undergone a complete refurbishment in the last decade.

It also represents a fantastic opportunity for those interested in buying a Scottish estate.

The main house, with seven bedrooms and four reception rooms, is offered with ten acres of land and a gardener’s cottage. But there are further cottages available, plus quality equine facilities, so a buyer could mix and match depending on how they wanted to use the property.

Evelyn Channing, director of Savills rural agency, says that Scottish estates divided into lots this way offer a flexible product which appeals to a diverse range of buyers.

She says: “As long as you retain the core of the estate together, then selling in lots is a good idea as some buyers do not want to be burdened with hundreds of acres of land or secondary properties.

“It helps buyers tailor the estate to their budget, but it is also a good way of illustrating where the value lies.

“If you just quote a total price, that is likely to be several million pounds, and it can be difficult to see where the value lies. But broken down into land, buildings and other assets, it illustrates the value.”

The key guidance is not to sell off part of an estate, to a developer for example, which will then affect the integrity of the whole.

Channing says: “Those in the market to buy an estate will want control over their views and privacy so anything that might impact those will reduce the overall value.”

The Glenstriven Estate in Argyll is being sold in five lots, which offers opportunity to buy the whole, or a much more modest purchase of one of the waterside houses.

Glenstriven House is an impressive tenbedroomed refurbished period property, with features such as a private pub in an outbuilding.

The land encompasses 79 acres of woodland, 59 acres of grazing, 834 acres of hill and 69 acres of gardens, grounds and shoreline.

Highlights include Pier Cottage, which sits on the shore of Loch Striven, and the Old Smokehouse, previously used for fish smoking, which offers a single bedroom and bathroom annexe.

Other properties include Glenstriven Lodge, Invervegain Farmhouse and the chalet- style Flagstaff Cottage, all of which have been used as holiday lets.

Auchinellan Estate in Argyll is an attractive residential and agricultural estate of 760 acres. The property includes a traditional seven- bedroom estate house, a five- bedroom farmhouse, additional holiday cottages, woodland, agricultural land, hill ground and a range of outbuildings which offer the potential for development.

Just one of the cottages is offered as a second lot, with three acres of land, or it could be bought as part of the estate.

Buyers of an estate will want control over their views and privacy so anything that might impact those will reduce the overall value