Idyllic canalside cottage on Rightmove....your thoughts on this one?

catt_2

Bank Mill Lane,BERKHAMSTED,Hertfordshire HP4. Guide Price £225,000 3 bedroom detached house for sale.
REFURBISHMENT OPPORTUNITY** A rare opportunity to acquire this detached canal side cottage set within approximately 3/4 of an acre. The property is in need of total refurbishment and lends itself to extensions or new builds subject to the necessary planning permission. The current home consists of: sitting room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, two bedrooms, large landing area, outhouse building, storage units, off road parking and mature gardens.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?locationIdentifier=OUTCODE%5E1095&minBedrooms=3&maxBedrooms=3&minPrice=220000&maxPrice=230000&displayPropertyType=houses&secondaryDisplayPropertyType=detachedshouses&oldDisplayPropertyType=houses&includeSSTC=true&_includeSSTC=on

I came across this one while browsing and dreaming.:o Just wondering whether it's the idyll I imagine. So have any of you lived in something similar? What are the pros and cons of being waterside? I've google mapped this one and a multi-rack railway runs alongside...What about flooding? Canals don't do they? I'd keep some chickens in that big garden...:p

poppysarah

Our canal won't flood unless the whole of Manchester does. There's a wier just across from the nearest bit so when it gets fuller it empties itself...

Same with that - there's the lock and downstream for the water to go...

Lotus-eater

I love it, the gardens seem private enough to make up for all the traffic and people going past your front door.

Railway runs next to it???? Run away

Mamabear

I'm not very familiar with the are, but you could check here:

http://maps.environment-agency.gov.uk/wiyby/wiybyController?x=498500.0&y=208500.0&topic=floodmap&ep=map&scale=3&location=Berkhamsted,%20Hertfordshire&lang=_e&layerGroups=default&textonly=off

Wickedkitten

absolutely tiny

tbs624

There seems to be a "sold STC" triangle on the pic..................

PasturesNew

It looks OK to live in to me. It's more modern than my parents' house and more modern than most places we all used to live in before EAs started marketing to pwoperdee wannabes.

planning_officer

Through knowing the area quite well, and from having a quick glance at the local council's website, the house is in the Green Belt, so only limited extensions will be allowed. I wouldn't say it has quite the redevelopment potential the estate agent seems to think it has! It's sited next to a lock on the Grand Union Canal and although the railway line is the other side of the canal and separated by a belt of trees, it is the main line connecting London to Milton Keynes and the Midlands, so is quite a busy line with about 5 or 6 tracks! Nice old lock keepers cottage though!

Here's a link to the Local Plan Proposals Map from the local council - http://www2.dacorum.gov.uk/eggp/custom/shell/launcher.asp

It's within an area subject to occasional flooding according to the Environment Agency flood risk map on their website - perhaps not surprising, but it's something to consider - there's lots of guidance on the EA website - here's a link to some guidance produced by the Environment Agency regarding responsibilities of people owning properties next to waterways - http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/31626.aspx

Debt_Free_Chick

planning_officer wrote: »

although the railway line is the other side of the canal and separated by a belt of trees, it is the main line connecting London to Milton Keynes and the Midlands, so is quite a busy line with about 5 or 6 tracks!

Yup - that's the West Coast main line. The trains from Bham/Wolverhampton tend to be "fast" from Rugby into Euston (occasionally stopping at Watford), so it won't be quiet, local trains only.

Swipe

Why go after somewhere already SSTC? You'll probably find that the EA won't be doing viewings on it anymore.

JayZed

Apart from the fact that it's SSTC, it's worth noting that it's "in need of total refurbishment" and that despite the headline description it actually has two bedrooms, not three. It's also quite small.

The only way to tell is to go and view it... but since it's SSTC, that may not be an option