Victorian Gatehouse
A move abroad for work meant that Angus and Candice Hart had to put the breaks on their property renovation, but now back in their refurbished home, they appreciate it all the more
Anyone who has tried to buy a house when the market is especially hot will understand the pain and frustration of seeing properties snapped up in minutes. In 2013, when Candice and Angus Hart decided to leave London for the Home Counties, no amount of viewings, offers or flexibility around location was getting them anywhere near a new home.
‘We decided to rent instead and settled on Haslemere in Surrey,’ explains Angus. ‘I love the fact that it feels a long way out of London but the fast train gets you there so quickly,’ adds Candice.
It was while they were celebrating their daughter’s third birthday that a call came from a local estate agent to say an old gatehouse was coming onto the market and they needed to get in early. ‘Angus saw it on the Saturday morning and phoned me straight away saying: “You had better come and look; this is the one.” I was there in 20 minutes and he was right. There was never going to be another house for us,’ recalls Candice.
Angus thinks that its awkward configuration and a lot of stairs might have dampened the competition. ‘It wasn’t a house to retire to, and, with bedrooms at opposite ends of the property, it wasn’t really for families with small babies, either,’ he says. ‘There is not a straight wall in the house but it was absolutely bursting with character and the location is lovely.’
The home had been well cared for but it was tired. Lights flickered, the boiler was more than 30 years old and it lacked proper insulation. ‘It was floral wallpaper head to toe,’ laughs Angus. Then plans to renovate hit an obstacle. ‘A year after moving in, I got an opportunity to work in India and we ended up staying there five years,’ says Angus. ‘Luckily, we found a good tenant who stayed the whole time.
