Want a hotel for the price of a house?
HOUSEBUYERS know they are on their way once they get their name on the door. But getting your name on the walls? Well, that shows you have finally arrived. Sir Thomas Wedderspoon left visitors to his property in no doubt as to the ownership of Castleton House.
The knight of the realm had his initials carved into the stonework of his Angus mansion, along with those of his wife, Mary.
And, the old romantic that he was, he insisted masons position the letters and the date 1902 just above the couple’s bedroom.
The ownership of Castleton House is up for grabs once more, though a new proprietor would be ill-advised to replace the Wedderspoons’ initials. In any case, the planners wouldn’t allow it.
For 20 years, the mansion near the historic village of Glamis served as an award-winning hotel. Since 2010, it has operated as an exclusive country house holiday let.
But the fact that this Edwardian gem is being offered for less than the cost of an Edinburgh New Town flat demonstrates the crazy economics that have distorted the Scottish market in the 114 years since the house was built.
At the turn of the 20th century, Sir Thomas would have been the master of all he surveyed.
Castleton House is located in nine scenic acres of the Vale of Strathmore, a rich and fertile valley that runs north of the River Tay from Perth to the Montrose basin. There were historic precedents for building here. It had been the site of a medieval fortification and is surrounded on three sides by a deep defensive ditch.
These would have been filled with water to repel invaders and a burn on the other side ensured unwanted guests would not arrive without getting their feet wet.
The legacy of its time as a hotel means there are a few niggly institutional accessories such as illuminated exit signs and fire doors.
However, the upside is the plethora of entertainment possibilities in the form of the bar and billiards room. There’s even a table tennis table in the floored loft.
In addition, there is a handsome porch and hallway, dining room, sitting room, cloakroom, kitchen with utility and larder, laundry, boiler room and two WCs. There are six en suite bedrooms in another throwback to the hotel.
Separate accommodation is provided by the attached cottage, with living room, kitchen, en suite bedroom, two more bedrooms and a bathroom. Ruaraidh Ogilvie, a director of selling agent Savills, said: ‘Castleton House is an ideal purchase for a prospective buyer who is looking for a handsome property with a commercial element, such as an exclusive country house B&B.
‘It would also make a marvellous family home exactly as it stands, especially with its lovely gardens and grounds protecting what is a fine and well-built Edwardian mansion in a lovely part of Scotland.’
Offers over £665,000 to Mr Ogilive. Tel: 01356 628628 or email rogilvie@ savills.com.