County with a climate all of its own

Kirsty Mcluckie considers the property market from all angles

The Perthshire property market exists in climate all its own. The county is a diverse area, with the gentle rolling hills of the south contrasting with the more dramatic countryside of Highland Perthshire giving a wide array of landscapes from lochs to hills to farmland as well as towns and the city of Perth.

Homebuyers consider Perthshire for lots of reasons, from working professionals looking for the best value properties with easy commuting to the cities, to families attracted by the quality of schooling and those approaching retirement relocating for a better quality of life.

The area also attracts buyers looking for a rural home business opportunity and those high net worth individuals lured by Perthshire’s unparalleled country sports reputation.

Fortunately the area offers a wealth of choice when it comes to properties on the market.

At the very top end are the sporting estates whose global prestige comes with a price tag to match.

Their continued popularity among the super rich is probably best illustrated by the closing date set later this month for the £11 million Bolfracks Estate near Aberfeldy.

The 4,000 acres estate includes a working organic farm, salmon fishing on the River Tay, a sustainable forestry business, ten self catering holiday cottages and a historic Gothic main estate house with nine bedrooms.

If a Scottish castle is more your thing, there is usually a choice on offer, from the historic ruined battlement to enhance the grounds of a historic house, to the luxury multimillion pound incarnation.

Orchil Castle at Braco not far from Gleneagles, for example, sold last winter having been priced at offers over £1.475m. On the plus side it came with 56 acres but it did require upgrading in parts .

Perthshire is a county of self-builders. With so many stunning viewpoints in which to place a new house there is something of a scramble to secure the best plots however, and those on a limited budget might be better off thinking again. The best plots are among the highest priced in the country.

Ready-built contemporary homes are a good consideration, either from developers as a brand new home or purchasing a property that was a self build and both have all the advantages of economic running and technology to tackle the harshest of Perthshire winters.

For those buying in Perthshire this year, the market is reported as stable, with the £300,000 to £600,000 sector particularly active.

While buying and selling used to be seasonal, this appears to be no longer the case, with last year seeing market activity well into November.