Situation
Canterbury House lies approximately 5 miles inland from the Moray Firth and occupies a prominent position amongst the rolling farmlands of rural Aberdeenshire. The Moray Coast is renowned for having a relatively mild climate and weather conditions. There are several beautiful and picturesque villages a short distance away such as Cullen and Portsoy, many wonderful long and stretching sandy beaches, and some excellent golf courses.
Portsoy is 3 miles away and has facilities including a small supermarket, a great range of independent shops, restaurants and cafes. The nearest towns are Banff and Keith some 11 miles away. Aberdeen, 48 miles, is the Capital of the North Sea Oil and Gas industry and has all the facilities that you would expect of a major city including 2 Universities, a major airport with regular national and international flights, a mainline rail service with connections to all major Scottish Cities and the East Coast line to London.
Property
Canterbury House was built over 20 years ago by the current owners who designed the property to be in the style of a traditional Victorian granite villa that occupies some of the affluent areas of Aberdeen. The granite stone has been reclaimed from former buildings that were taken down along with other granite features such as circular and bay windows. Internally pitch pine doors and architraves have been used along with plaster cornices and other plaster features. This substantial mansion has been constructed traditionally, with great attention to detail, and with all the benefits of modern building standards.
The three ground-floor reception rooms and the dining kitchen all open from the welcoming reception hallway. The delightful south-facing drawing room has a large bay window with panoramic views over the garden and countryside and sliding doors to a dining patio on the west side of the house. The focal point of this room is a handsome white marble fireplace. Formal dining is catered for with the rear aspect dining room and the informal sitting room has a south-facing box bay window and an open fireplace. The hub of the house is the generously proportioned luxury dining kitchen with a walk-in corner chill room and substantial island. There is an extensive range of cabinets with contrasting work surfaces.
A pitch pine-turned staircase with traditional decorative pitch pine balustrade and mahogany handrail leads to the first floor. The master bedroom suite has an en suite shower room and twin dressing rooms Two further bedrooms share an en suite bathroom and a fourth bedroom is currently used as a study. Also on this floor is a library with oak-fitted book shelving and storage and an ornate Adam plaster fireplace and integrated mirror. A more contemporary, yet stylish feel develops on the second floor. Here there are three further bedrooms, each with an en suite shower room, which gives guests or family a feeling of independence a space.
There is a further guest bedroom suite which has a bedroom with a porthole, a sitting room with a further porthole window, and a bathroom with a separate shower compartment.
In the basement is a fantastic 100 sq metre leisure facility including a games room and cinema with a fitted corner bar. It currently accommodates a full-sized 1895 billiard table, surrounded on two sides by Kirk pews, and has plenty of space for relaxing, watching films, and playing music. A stone fireplace houses a woodburning stove.
A boot room opening off the kitchen connects the main house to the self-contained annex. The boot room also serves as the everyday entrance to the house. The annex has a dining kitchen and a large sitting room, both of which have arched windows incorporating double French doors to the breakfast patio and garden. To the rear are two bedrooms and a shower room.
The annex also has a separate entrance at the side and would be the ideal accommodation for dependent relatives.
External
In total, there are approximately 8 acres of grounds which are accessed through a gateway in a granite wall. There is a long driveway with pillar lights, which splits as it approaches the house, allowing access to the front or the rear and to the workshop building behind the house. Between the two roads is a mature, established rockery, designed for easy maintenance. To the east of the house is a breakfast patio. Along the south-facing front of the house is a balustraded, graveled terrace with a raised island bed, and there is a substantial patio on the west gable, with direct access from the drawing room. The grounds are mainly grassed and edged by trees and shrubs, along with beech hedging for shelter. To the southeast of the house is a large pond with an island. There is a service road with separate access for service vehicles.
To the rear of the house is a 4,500 sq m general-purpose shed which has a workshop section, gym, and leisure area and is currently home to a beloved range of classic cars. There are three electrically operated doors to the storage area and one larger electrically operated door to the workshop. There is a concrete apron around two sides of the building. On the first floor are an office and two store rooms.
A tractor shed lies to the west of the house. Constructed of block-rendered walls with a slated roof and double timber doors, it is of similar size to a large double garage. There is a lean-to PVC greenhouse on its southern wall. The buildings are served by both electricity and water.
Stunning Detached Villa
8 Acres – suitable for equestrian purposes
Further 4 acres of Woodland
7 Ensuite Bedrooms - suitable for B&B opportunity
Leisure Suite and Cinema Room
Idyllic Rural Location
Self-Contained Annexe
4500 sq m workshop
Business
There are a substantial number of business opportunities that present themselves with the acquisition of Canterbury House. The main house has 7 en-suite living rooms and 3 reception rooms. With a private bar and leisure facilities it would make an ideal licensed guest house or boutique hotel. The annex is suitable for conversion to self-catering apartments or could be used as additional letting rooms.
Given its proximity to the popular tourist destination of the Moray Firth and the size of the grounds, the property also lends itself to glamping pods, for which there is a high demand.
The land in front of the house is suitable for use as a paddock and there is ample room for the erection of stables.
The workshop extends to some 4,500 sq meters and is suitable for a variety of purposes, from light industrial to garage services or motor sales. The internal construction of the workshop means that the accommodation can be easily reconfigured to suit the needs of new owners. It is highly adaptable.
The property is currently not used in a commercial capacity and a change of use, or statutory consent, may be required.
To appreciate the commercial potential of the property viewing is highly recommended.
Tenure
The property is held on the Scottish equivalent of a freehold.
Services
Mains electricity and water supply. Private drainage. Oil-fired central heating. Doble glazing
Price
An asking price of offers over £1,100,000 is sought for the premises, fixtures, and fittings.
Summary
Canterbury House is a truly wonderful substantial granite villa in the most wonderful rolling landscape of rural Aberdeenshire. The house, grounds, and outbuildings lend themselves to a multitude of purposes, from a hospitality business, such as a boutique hotel, guest house, or events venue, to professional services or light industrial. Those with an equine interest could easily enjoy the stunning views over a paddock at the front of the property. The flexible nature of this property requires a viewing to fully appreciate what it has to offer.
