Developer’s latest move is to refurbish next door
9 Sycamore Lane, Barlborough, near Sheffield, Price: £625,000 Contact: Saxton Mee, 01246 290992, www.saxtonmee.co.uk HIS first taste of property development may have been refurbishing a bungalow but Arthur Fox has since taken selfbuild to a new level.
After buying a derelict farmstead, he has slowly worked his way round the farmhouse and barns before progressing on to a clutch of new-build homes more recently.
The first part of this project was to install the essential roads and lighting before building number 7 Sycamore Lane seven years ago.
He lived there while building number 9 and is selling that to move into number 11.
Arthur, who is semi-retired from the motor trade, says: “I love property and I enjoy planning the design and layout. I’d rather do this than anything else.
“It obviously helps living on site as I am on hand. I act as project manager and I have a great father and son team who do almost everything from laying drains to building.
“Number 11 is the last house and it’s a big place just for me and my wife, so ideally my next build will be something half the size, if I can find the right plot.”
Arthur and his wife Kathy, who is responsible for the interior design, are keen to stay in Barlborough.
He says: “It’s a fantastic place to live but this area doesn’t seem to be on anyone’s radar. The village is technically in Derbyshire but it is close to junction 30 of the M1 and you can be in Sheffield and Nottingham very quickly and you can be in Leeds in 50 minutes.”
Number 9 Sycamore Lane is a detached property and has an entrance hall, a cloakroom, dining room and sitting room with log burning stove and French doors that lead to the 24ft long breakfast room. The kitchen is 27ft long and has a Rangemaster oven and wine cooler. The ground floor also has a utility room with heated cloak cupboard plus steps leading to a self-contained studio with en-suite.
The first floor has a master bedroom with en-suite dressing room and en-suite bathroom. There are two further double bedrooms, both with en-suites. On the second floor, there are two bedrooms and a bathroom.
Outside, off-road parking leads to an integral garage and rear garden. The energy efficient property is powered by a Viessmann boiler with underfloor heating on the ground floor and zoned areas that can be separately controlled. Water is partly heated by solar panels.