WHEN Kate Blackall sold her management consultancy in 2007 and walked away with £1.7m at the age of 38, she had the immediate dilemma of what to do with her large mountain of cash.
A year on and the matter had become increasingly more pressing. The banks were wobbling and no longer looked a safe haven; sterling was in free fall and the housing market was on the brink of collapse. Kate felt it was a good time to shop around for a property bargain.
In Christmas 2008, she spotted Dunsmore House, a stunning Grade II listed Tudor-Gothic mansion on the Internet.
Set amid the gentle, undulating hills of Warwickshire and exuding the grandeur and elegance of a bygone age, the property still retained many of its original features, including carved woodwork interiors and mullioned windows.
But best of all it was in the hands of the receivers and on the market for a shade over £1m.
Arriving at the tiny hamlet of Clifon Upon Dunsmore, just outside Rugby, the house looked beautiful but was in a very sorry state – it had been standing empty for years and had fallen victim to thieves, fly tipping, burnt out cars, and had become a hangout for local youths. The cellar was six feet deep in water and all of the copper rain water pipes had been stolen.
‘My friends thought I was mad, she laughs. ‘Here I was buying an enormous, derelict mansion, with no property development experience, no little black book of tradesman contacts and no local knowledge of the area.’
‘I was utterly blind to the disarray and deterioration that had put every other potential buyer off – I simply saw what it could be.’
Built in 1881 for the Birmingham industrialist Sir Joseph Muntz, Dunsmore House eventually became a nursing home before closing its doors in 2000 and slipping into disrepair.
Over a decade the house was bought and sold by 3 consecutive property developers, all of whom started work on the property, and then fell into bankruptcy. Undeterred by its troubled history, Kate snapped it up for the asking price.
The first hurdle Kate needed to over-come was raising a mortgage to cover the restorations costs, estimated at around £1m.
Kate was shocked when the Halifax refused to loan her the £500,000 she needed.
‘I’d banked with Halifax for over twenty years and had £1m in my account but it would only loan me a sum based on my earnings, she says.
‘My salary was low – like many entrepreneurs I’d found it more tax efficient to pay myself the minimum wage and an occasional dividend over the years.
‘Luckily, Nat West took the time to examine my company accounts in detail, establishing my turnover and it loaned me the full amount.’
It was a steep learning curve for Kate who needed to get to grips with electrical, plumbing and design issues – knocking down 23 bedrooms to install 12 suites and a self-contained apartment.
She says. ‘One of the lows was discovering all the taps in the bath were faulty and leaking, but sadly that was only after we had fitted the bathroom suites and floors.
‘We were forced to rip out all of the baths, smash up the tiles and cut out the flooring to get to the connectors to fix them. It cost us time and money.
Restoring a Grade 11-listed building to its former glory was not without difficulty. The property’s heritage status meant Kate needed to seek permission before making any changes to the houses.
‘I’d foolishly expected the local council to be pleased that I was prepared to pour my own money, time and energy into Dunsmore House, but this did not deter them from making life more difficult than it needed to be.’
‘English Heritage was horribly emotive and illogical at times. It would say ‘that’s original you can’t change it’ – even if it was falling to pieces and disappearing under 6ft of water. The worst part was waiting for approval to arrive; it was torturous and set us back weeks.
‘Restoring an old property was also terribly exciting, she adds. ‘In the cellar we found an old safe and sent photos off to experts to find a way into it. We held our breath as we opened it up with a diamond drill, only to discover a couple of elastic bands!’
Living in St Albans, Hertfordshire, Kate made the two hour return trip to Rugby daily. A journey she found gruelling, especially as she was working full time and often needed to be in other towns and cities.
‘I’d sold my business but continued to work as a consultant, says Kate. ‘Trying to be in two places at one time was tough but I quickly realised that I needed to be on-site every single day. If I wasn’t there, someone would make a decision on my behalf – often the wrong one and it would set me back days.’
It took Kate 13 months to complete the project and it was only after she had finished she hit a brick wall, overcome with exhaustion.
‘Knowing what I do now, I would be terrified to take on another project like this, but I don’t regret it, she laughs.
‘The garden looks wonderful – thanks to my parents – and I feel proud that I have breathed life into a beautiful old building and given it a heartbeat.
‘It’s now warm and welcoming and ideal for family to live, it needs lots of children and parties. It would also be an ideal venue for conferences or weddings.
Dunsmore House is on the market with Hamptons International for £3m. It has 14 bedrooms, a magnificent galleried landing, a self-contained apartment on the first floor and a charming lodge house in the grounds.
‘Property development is like running a business, says Kate. ‘You need energy, drive and enthusiasm. You must be good at man-management, encouraging people to work hard for you.
‘But it’s not for the faint hearted and you can’t do it half-heartedly – you’re either in it or you’re not.’
Christopher Scott, Regional Sales Director at Hamptons says: ‘Dunsmore House would appeal to a large family or anyone wanting to entertain on a grand scale in a stunning country house.
It is close to Rugby and one of England’s oldest and most prestigious public schools. There is a quaint lodge house in the grounds and an apartment on the first floor, which would provide excellent independent living accommodation for a nanny or au pair.
Dunsmore House also offers excellent commercial possibilities, either as a stunning corporate HQ, a nursing home or hotel.
There are good motorway links to Birmingham, the city centre can be reached within an hour and Birmingham City airport is 23 miles away.
The grounds at Dunsmore house are small (6.8 acres), however, there is an option to buy a further 20 acres for £300,000.
Key Facts:
Price: £3 million
Bedrooms: 14 bedrooms
Agent: Hamptons International: Telephone: 01295 275 885 www.hamptons.co.uk
The house benefits from a self-contained flat on the first floor and 1
bedroom lodge house in the grounds.
This post has been commented 2 times
1
July 4th, 2011 at 1:06 pmJ A Last says:
The owner of Dunsmore was SIR PHILIP ALBERT MUNTZ, M.P. – NOT ‘Joseph’.
He bred Shires on the estate – some for the then Prince of Wales.
2
August 25th, 2011 at 9:26 pmali says:
Is the property still available for sale? if so which agent has the property?