A 25-bedroom grade II-listed stately home has been put up for auction with a guide price of just £220,000.
Otterburn Hall in Northumberland National Park could be snapped up for £50,000 below the average UK house price for a reason – it needs full-scale renovation.
An hour from Newcastle and two hours from Edinburgh, Otterburn Hall is set in 16 acres of grounds and comes with woods, lawns, a lake and fishing rights on a river.
Built in 1870 for Lord James Murray, the neo-Elizabethan brick and stone hall was requisitioned by the military in the Second World War, was used as a Christian education centre, and was a hotel until 2012.
Since then it has been closed and has fallen into disrepair.
Images from the sale details show broken and boarded-up windows and warning notices on the entrance.
Inside, a smashed piano can be seen in the drawing room, with lewd graffiti on the walls, presumably written by vandals.
Andrew Parker, of SDL Property Auctions, said: “The ideal buyer would probably be an investor or developer who’s able to commit to the extensive renovation, restoration and modernisation project that would be needed to transform the very faded grandeur of this amazing building and estate back to the stunning property it once was.
“There are a wide range of options, both commercial and residential, subject to planning consent, and it would be fantastic if this magnificent property could gain a new lease of life in the hands of an imaginative new owner.
“Needless to say, there is scope for a significant increase in the value of the house once the renovation was complete.”
The auction takes place on March 27.
