House harks back to its 60s Heyday

The 60s were the heyday of Richard Dimbleby, Cliff Michelmore, the Ford Cortina, and Liverpool pop music, and a house that’s very much a 60s time warp has come onto the market in the centre of Ropley, presenting new owners with a fantastic potential range of opportunities.

Hardwick, in Vicarage Lane, has hardly changed since it was believed to have been built in the 60s. As a result, it has features that today would be regarded as interesting and unusual but which are nonetheless attractive.

Its new owners could regard it as ideal the way it is or could wish to make several changes, subject to obtaining the necessary consents. And its plot, more than a third of an acre, might also mean part of the land could be split off into a separate building plot without detracting from the overall setting of Hardwick itself.

The house has a large footprint and immediately below its catslide roof with eyebrow windows, very much reminiscent of a thatched style, is a large landing area that forms a huge room with windows offering excellent views. This space could easily be subdivided into more conventional living space and leading off it are two bedrooms and a bathroom. Both bedrooms have wardrobes and one comes with dressing area and vanity unit.

On the ground floor, the principal living space is an immensely attractive area, divided into living and dining rooms by double curved steps with stone planters at each end. The sunken sitting room has a feature stone fireplace with copper canopy while the dining room and steps have a parquet finish very much in keeping with the era of the house.

There are two bedrooms at this level, one with en-suite shower and vanity unit and both with wardrobes. There’s also an integral garage with potential for inclusion into the main house. Leading off a corridor is the family bathroom with separate w.c. and a large kitchen / breakfast room that also has a door back into the dining room.

French doors from the dining room open into the conservatory, from which another set of French doors opens into the garden. The south and west facing rear garden, although now neglected, easily shows traces of what was once there with its many mature shrubs, heathers, herbaceous plants, and trees. Beyond it, to the south, is a pasture field.

“Hardwick is an amazing place with such a variety of options that every potential buyer who views it will be able to come up with different but equally inspired ways of breathing new life into it,” says Carol Ferrier, of the Winchester office of Dreweatt Neate.

“The house has a quiet location but it’s in the centre of the village in the Settlement Policy Boundary defined by East Hampshire District Council, so there could be potential for additional development.

“But my bet is someone will love this house for its character – almost its eccentricity when viewed by modern standards. It would be possible to update it without spoiling it and that will probably be at the heart of its appeal.

“There is glorious countryside surrounding the village and, on a more practical note, good local facilities in Ropley and also at Alresford, about three miles away. Winchester and Alton both offer quick and convenient ways of getting to Waterloo by train.”

For further information, visit dnproperty.co.uk.