Opportunity Knocks

Beauchamp Estates has been instructed as sole selling agent for the £15 million, 40-acre Ockenden Park estate in Virginia Water, Surrey, and has worked with the vendor and award-winning consultants ADAM Architecture, Katharine Pooley Design Studio, Richard Miers Garden Design and Richard Aldridge Lighting Consultants to devise proposals for a new-build 32,515 square foot Palladian mansion on the site, providing a buyer with the opportunity to acquire the estate and work with the team to create a bespoke mansion on the property that could be worth north of £50 million.

This unique opportunity to undertake a new-build mansion project at Ockenden Park will allow the buyer to create a totally bespoke residence exactly tailored to their personal tastes, living requirements and lifestyle needs.

Marcus O’Brien, Head of Beauchamp Estates Private Office says: “Ockenden Park provides a discerning buyer with the opportunity to purchase a large estate in Surrey and create a mansion on the site using a self-build route which offers significant cost savings and tax benefits. The award-winning consultants who have devised the proposals would work with the new owners to help ensure the highest standards of project management and execution, delivering a country house designed and built to world-class quality, significantly enhancing the value of the estate.”

The spectacular landscape design scheme for the 40-acre estate is by Richard Miers Garden Design, recognised as a leading light in the profession and ‘People’s Choice’ award winner at the Chelsea Flower Show 2022.

Imposing entrance gates flanked by gatehouses open onto the dramatic entrance driveway bordered by long reflection canals, formal gardens and topiary inspired by the Highgrove Estate, leading to the main house. There are terraces, parterre gardens and reflection pools with fountains to the rear façade. Beyond the main house the landscaped estate would allow for a large lake with boathouse, pond, amphitheatre, folly, paddock with stables, deer park, parkland and woodland.

Richard Miers says: “Our aim with the landscape design was to provide a suitably stunning vista as you approach Ockenden Park; to nestle the property within a romantic English naturalistic landscape of woods, lakes and parkland; and to create a timelessly beautiful garden around the house itself.”

The architectural approach for Ockenden Park is no less spectacular and will include a magnificent Palladian mansion designed by Robbie Kerr, a director at world-renowned architectural practice ADAM Architecture. Providing substantial accommodation over basement, ground and first-floor levels the proposed mansion has a Neo-Classical brick and Portland stone porticoed main façade with copper-domed rotundas and east and west wings.

The accommodation includes a galleried entrance hall, five grand reception rooms, family kitchen and living room, with separate pantry and servery, with the east wing forming a large orangery style function/ballroom with cocktail bar and the west wing providing garaging. There are six VIP bedroom suites on the first floor.

The basement provides a vast health and leisure complex including two entertaining rooms, a games room, cinema, humidor room, cocktail bar and display wine cellar alongside a 5-star health spa with swimming pool, plunge pool, Hammam, sauna, gymnasium, treatment rooms and changing rooms. The floors are connected by main staircase, oval stairwells in the two rotundas and passenger lift, with back-of-house stairwells and passages to allow discreet staff access, with dedicated staff accommodation, commercial kitchen and facilities in part of the basement.

Robbie Kerr of ADAM Architecture says: “This truly remarkable estate offers the rare opportunity to create a home at a scale and style worthy of its generous and secluded setting. Ockenden Park combines the finest architectural elements of the English country house with all the requirements of modern living, making it a home unlike any other.”

The interior layouts and design of the mansion have been created in collaboration with Katharine Pooley of Katharine Pooley Design Studio, one of the most respected and original British luxury interior designers, named ‘British Interior Designer of the Decade’. The lighting scheme for the estate has been designed by Richard Aldridge whose clients include the Louvre and Holkham Hall.

Ockenden Park has an existing planning consent for residential development and although the ADAM Architecture proposals will need a fresh application it is anticipated that they would be looked upon favourably. A detailed planning assessment has been undertaken which supports the scheme’s deliverability within the context of the fully implemented existing residential consent.

Beauchamp Estates say that buying Ockenden Park and working with the consultants to create a new-build mansion on the estate offers the purchaser significant cost savings, mitigates Stamp Duty, and has other tax benefits and advantages compared to buying a large estate in Surrey with an existing period country house.

Beauchamp Estates highlight that purchasing Ockenden Park will trigger Stamp Duty of circa £750,000 (5% for agricultural land). The building of the mansion will cost around £15 million to £20 million, with the completed mansion and estate being worth up to £50 million. If the buyer had instead purchased an existing £50 million property, the Stamp Duty would be £5.91 million, creating a potential saving of £5.16 million.

In addition, undertaking a self-build project on the estate for a principal private residence is highly tax efficient. The labour costs, connecting utilities and civil engineering works on the project are all zero-rated for VAT, any landscaping costs can be reclaimed and the buyer will be able to claim back VAT spent on building materials.

An intention to live at Ockenden Park for three years or more allows exemption from paying Community Infrastruture Levy/tax.

Beauchamp Estates say that the volume of sales of £15 million-plus homes in London and surrounding commuter region rose by 30% in 2022, compared to 2021, with the volume of deals anticipated to rise by another 30% during 2023. Sales of super-prime country houses and estates outside London hit a 15-year high last year with almost 170 luxury homes outside of the capital selling for between £5 million to £50 million.

Beauchamp Estates add that the Surrey country estate market is being driven by UK buyers alongside overseas purchasers from India, America and the Middle East.

Ockenden Park is for sale for £15,000,000.

+44 (0)20 7499 7722

marcus@beauchamp.com

www.beauchamp.com