Island of Gigalum

For Sale. Now Has A £100,000 Price Reduction To £450,000

Island Of Gigalum, By Gigha, Argyll

Seriously, there is such an island with this name. Thirty years ago the writer of this Bulletin edition was lucky enough to visit the Island of Gigalum one beautiful summer’s day. The sea was flat calm and the small clinker built fishing boat ended up making a detour from a day’s fishing to this little green gem at the start of the Atlantic for a look-see. An amazing place. Plus beautiful views of the islands of Islay, Jura and Gigha, whilst the Republic of Ireland can be seen to the south. All from this verdant drop of sanctuary in a turquoise bed of sea.

Gigalum House, Island Of Gigalum, By Gigha, Argyll

On the island there is a home – Gigalum House – built around 1980, with a central large octagonal living space, kitchen and three en-suite bedrooms.

A Jetty provides easy access to the Isle of Gigha and its attractions and to coastal fishing and the next door island of Cara.

Originally Gigalum Island was placed for sale in early 2014 for £550,000, but has since had a lump knocked off – the price, not the edges of the island. Although if you look at an aerial shot you will see several lumps, or small islets that come with the main island. Technically you would be buying your own little archipelago.

Island Of Gigalum, By Gigha, Argyll

There may be potential for further development subject to planning consent.

The island extends t approximately 19.3 acres (7.69 hectares).

Landing Pier, Island Of Gigalum

Location: Island Of Gigalum, By The Isle Of Gigha, Argyll, PA41 7AD

Guide: £450,000

Further Details: Click Here

Original Details: Click Here

May 2014 Details: Click Here

Contact Rettie & Co. Tel: 0131 624 4074 – Chris Hall

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Dickensian Farmhouse, Bedfordshire

Elm Farm, Beeston Green, Bedfordshire

This may not seem Dickensian in the contemporary understanding of the word. But it is understood to have been the home of the great writer’s great-great grandson.

Elm Farm originally dates from the early 1600s and has been refurbished and enlarged. The property retains period features including exposed beams and timbers, inglenook and old stock fireplaces, ledge and brace doors and leaded light windows. There are two reception rooms, an open plan kitchen/breakfast room, four/five bedrooms, two en suites and a family bathroom. There are also walled gardens and a double garage. The roof has been recently thatched and the boiler was replaced approximately 2 years ago.

Near Dickensian Beamed Interior

Summary

Four/five bedrooms
Two reception rooms
Open plan kitchen/breakfast room
Gas to radiator heating
Driveway, parking area and double garage
Walled gardens of approx. 0.27 acres
Views over open countryside and the village green

Location: Elm Farm, Beeston Green, Bedfordshire, SG19 1PF

Guide: £700,000

Further Details: Click Here

Original Details: Click Here

Contact: 01234 220000

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Failed To Sell At Auction

Low Cost In Lancashire – Time To Negotiate A Little?

Former Alma Street Chapel, Bacup, Lancashire

Update on an earlier Bulletin – this is a detached two storey former chapel with development potential subject to gaining the necessary consents plus additional parcel of land. The whole of the property is offered with vacant possession.

Location: Former Alma Street Chapel, Bacup, Lancashire, OL13 9JA

Guide: £90,000

Further Details: Click Here

Original Details: Click Here

Contact: Pugh Auctioneers Tel: 08442 722444

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Unique Property Competition

For September + October 2015, the Unique Property Bulletin competition prize is a modest £20 of jingle coins:-

Please Give The Name & Location of This Unique Building…

The winner is the first drawn from our Competition Box at close of competition on 31st October 2015.

Competition Hint

“Squamata Lifesavers”

We are hoping to encourage the property sleuthing abilities each and every reader has with this edition’s competition. Best wishes and good luck from the Unique Property Bulletin Team

Email free entries to Unique Property Bulletin:-

Click Here For Competition Entry Contact Page

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Try Before You Buy

The property included within the try-before-you-buy section of the Unique Property Bulletin – is NOT for sale. Our endeavour is to provide a sample, and actual experience of what it would be like to live in any particular genre of unusual abode. This specific listing is for a short-stay break. Our offering for this edition:-

Lake District Boathouse

Duke Of Portland Boathouse, Pooley Bridge, Penrith, Cumbria: Holiday Destination

It’s strange where fate takes you. In 2010 I was lucky enough to stay at the picturesque Inn On The Lake Hotel. This waterside building had prominently featured in the television series The Lakes (clock the photo on Wikipedia – it was an exceptionally memorable day by Lake Ullswater). Anyway I just found some other photographs of that visit, but there were a couple missing. Those of an interesting old boathouse which was nearby and happened to be for sale at that time. It was a fascinating building and I was like a Labrador dog with two tales wagging at the excitement of maybe buying such a desirable place. Unfortunately, efforts to purchase this amazing boathouse came to nought as other projects had cash tied up and the price tag seeking offers beginning with a “4” rather than a “3” for the building that was needing renovation work put the bidding in the balance. The high price was also impacted by the proximity to the Lakes. In fact this was “on” the lake! It would be much more economical to build a new boathouse in a part of the country where tourism and “Escape To The Country” fever had not already put property prices into orbit.

Whilst compiling this edition of the Bulletin and remembering the old boathouse I was wondering what happened to that truly unique building. Delight of delights, it turns out to have been renovated to a wonderful standard and can now be rented for holidays.

No guessing where a 2016 destination will be marked on the calendar.

At the Bulletin, we are fair taken with the ethos of community and sharing on the Youtube. This delightful video presentation was filmed, edited and uploaded by Alan Starkie so others could have a look-see at how delightful this boathouse is….

Click The Photo Above To Watch The Video

 

Location: Duke Of Portland Boathouse, Pooley Bridge, Penrith, Cumbria, CA10 2NN

Guide: From £225

Further Details: Click Here

Original Details: Click Here

Contact Lakes Cottage Holidays Tel: 0176 883 8173 – Please can you consider letting the agency know you found their details on the Unique Property Bulletin website. Thanks.

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Click Here For Unique Property Bulletin On

Facebook

IT IS PERHAPS AN IDEA TO BOOKMARK THE TWO WEBSITE PAGES FOR THE BULLETIN ON TWITTER AND FACEBOOK SO THAT YOU DON’T MISS THE REGULAR MID-BULLETIN UPDATES, ESPECIALLY FEATURING EXCERPTS FOR THE NEXT BULLETIN EDITION.

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Architecturally Unique

Please note, each edition we feature the work of a unique architect. These properties are usually NOT currently for sale, but are included to help inspire readers as to the talent that abounds when a good architect’s mind meets the imagination of a unique property person, and something that little bit special is created by the synergy.

So Our Top & Commended Architects/Designer For This Unique Property Bulletin Is:-

Hugh Braughton Architects

AND

Faber Maunsell Architects

Websites: Hugh Brougton: www.hbarchitects.co.uk and

Faber Maunsell – Now Aecom- www.aecom.com

Halley VI Antarctic Research Station Cross Section of Design

The writer of this Bulletin edition just received a very welcome present. A fascinating book illustratng the evolution and building of the Halley VI Antarctic Research Station….

The Creation of Halley VI; Britain’s Pioneering Antarctic Research Station
Click Here To See Halley VI Book Details

There is a purity of a pristine white Antarctic panorama that contrasts with this visually striking design of a project that has had to overcome so many ergonomic and environmental design requirements.

This unique structure consists of 8 modules, each on skis. The Halley VI Antarctic Research Station became operational from 28th February 2012.

Halley VI Antarctic Research Station

The Summer Team – Photograph Courtey of Luke Collins

This amazing ice station abode is the result of an architectural design challenge launched by RIBA Competitions and the British Antarctic Survey in June 2004 to provide a new design for Halley VI. Several very interesting entrants submitted proposals.

Halley VI Antarctic Research Station Made Real

The winning design was by Faber Maunsell and Hugh Broughton Architects and was chosen in July 2005. Thereafter the Halley VI structure was built in Cape Town, South Africa. Servaccomm supplied modular accommodation pods for the new station through Galliford Try International. The contract was for the manufacture of 26 pods in total, installed in eight modules. Serviced accommodation for 32 people in total. The first sections were shipped to Antarctica in December 2007.

Click Here To View Photo Montage of Halley VI

British Antarctic Survey Website: Click Here

Location: Halley VI, Brunt Ice Shelf, Weddell Sea, Caird Coast, Antartica – nice address – ice address!

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Antarctic Video Presentation… 

Please Click On The Picture Above To Watch This Excellent Video Presentation

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This Edition’s Unique Property Feature:-

Time For A Unique Property Syndicate?

Old Paper Format Version of The Unique Property Bulletin

In 1995 the old fashioned paper version of Unique Property Bulletin started what was to become a regular adventure: Unique Property Syndicates. During the mid 1990s to the point where the financial crisis hit the UK 12 years later, we were lucky enough to enjoy 18 of these unique adventures. However the chilling experience of the UK banking crisis meant that these syndicates went into hibernation.

Fortunately in 2011 the Unique Property Bulletin went online and has been gathering a healthy level of readership ever since. By 2014 this helped us assemble two new syndicates – Dunnet Head and then Kinfauns Tower – to the point where funding and due diligence requirements were fulfilled and we were able to make a formal legal offer. Unfortunately, and this occasionally happened in the pre-financial-crash era, the offers made were less than the final bids. Hence the recent unique property efforts have yet met with a unique property in the bag. We don’t give up that easily and have been looking for suitable candidate properties to look at for the next unique property syndicate 19 ever since.

To assist with this, we are asking those with an interest in unique property syndicates to consider our quick survey and send us your views please….

New Unique Property Syndicate Interest Survey – Please Click Here

For readers new to Unique Property Bulletin and also the occasional syndicate property adventure we go on, we first show what type of property earlier syndicates included – here are some examples…

Close-up of An Older Syndicate – Purchased: Ailsa Craig Lighthouse Compound 1995-2006

Wider Angle Photograph of Ailsa Craig Island. From Earlier Successful Syndicate 1995-2006

Other syndicates from the 1995 to 2006 period included…

1999/2000 Strathy Point Lighthouse Compound Syndicate
Bought This. Enjoyed The Adventure. Sold Each House Separately. 
The Result? This Syndicate Received Over £2 For Every £1 Put In.

Not just dry land and coastal properties, but one of the first syndicate purchases was very unusual. Indeed it was more of an accidental acquisition…

1998/1999 MV Southsea Ship – Isle of Wight Ferry Syndicate

Bought This. Enjoyed The Adventure. Saved The Ship From Scrapping (at least for several years). 

The Result? This Syndicate Received Over £3.24 For Every £1 Put In.

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Again, for newer readers to the unique property syndicates, here are some earlier figures to give an idea of what the financial side of things look like…

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Unique Property Syndicates Late 1998 to Early 2000

Gross Profit £133,500

Profits Shared Amongst Syndicate Members Directly By The Solicitor

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Unique Property Syndicates 2000 to 2001

Gross Profit £125,172

Profits Shared Amongst Syndicate Members Directly By The Solicitor

Source: Click Here

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Fast forward to the 2014 and beyond era and candidate properties studied for syndicates included…

A Recent Example of A Possible Unique Property Syndicate

We did NOT proceed to the offer stage on Ingleborough windmill, but it illustrates the type of property that is suitable.

3 Parts: (1)A Windmill + (2) A Granary + (3) A Miller’s House

Granary/Bakery

Miller’s House

Whilst we decided not to bid on the old windmill and buildings at Ingleborough, we did go for another lighthouse compound. These are well established and relatively safe with tried-and-tested paths. A full compound of five lighthouse buildings either needs a buyer with very deep pockets to buy cash, or because there are five houses, any mortgage provider requires a huge deposit and a commercial mortgage. We have an advantage in all syndicates are 100% equity driven with no bank finance. This means we can negotiate a very competitive price. The bonus is that when the lighthouse keepers dwellings are sold individually the economies-of-scale on purchase mean the syndicate has bought each at a discount. In these lighthouse themed syndicates we have managed a resale of the individual elements at significantly higher than the buy-in price. Plus one or two syndicate members of the past have simply forgone the resale profit and bought one of the buildings for their family, thereby securing a very nice unique home at a discount, whereas it has proven very difficult to buy the whole compound and sell parts off in any other manner. Lateral thought really works for any style of property that has three or four component buildings (Ingleborough windmill was a case in point to show that it isn’t just lighthouse buildings this methodology applies to).

After a few quiet years following 2006, there is now a definite defrosting of the chilled financial concerns many of us had.

So much so that in the past 18 months we have put together two unique property syndicates. The first got right up to the point where the members had the funding in place; the new title plan subdivisions had been drawn up and prepared for the Land Registry. Pretty much everything was in place, and the formal, legally binding offer was presented for this, the most northerly point of Britain – an iconic place in and of itself. The fact there is an interesting lighthouse compound atop this dramatic location is a bonus…

2014 Dunnet Head Lighthouse Compound Syndicate
Fully Subscribed.
But Our Offer Was Overtaken By A Higher Bidder

Dunnet Head Lighthouse Compound: Magnificent Photo Montage – Click Here

Alas, as happens, when we manage a syndicate we need to make sure NOT to get carried away and overpay for a property. So with Dunnet Head Lighthouse Compound we were pipped to the post and someone else ended up with this wonderful place by paying somewhat more to buy it.

Undeterred, we moved to the next property. By popular demand – from a flurry of emails – we looked for a more modest property that had an entry level in financial terms which could act as a relatively safe starter point. The tower at Kinfauns filled that requirement. Four floors each at £6,000 meant we could run the syndicate as per the pre-2006 protocol. Each member owning a part. That is in the circumstances that a fairly quick resale was not secured. Most of the original 18 syndicates went the way of a resale within 6 to 12 months.

2015 Kinfauns Tower. Proposed Unique Property Syndicate Number 19
Oversubscribed.
But Our Offer Was Overtaken By A Higher Bidder

With a little frustration, the tower at Kinfauns ended up being sold to a higher bidder. We believe the fact that Kinfauns was publicised in the media increased the buyer pool. So the interest in this property spiked. Our bid was raised slightly from £28,000 to the £32,500 mark. Even so, we were outbid again.

Since the tower at Kinfauns we have a dilemma. There is a scarcity of smaller “entry level” unique property projects. Many newer members would like to dip a modest financial toe into the water first (£500 to £5000). This is something we encourage until folk get used to how these projects are run; how they work and importantly, whilst there is much fun and frequently a big surplus it is critical to understand that there are risks to be managed as well. So far 14 of 18 older syndicates recorded a large profit (1995 to 2006). However, with the aforementioned element of risk 2 syndicates have recorded a loss (the remaining 2 broke even). Fortunately the risk element is offset by the asset-backed nature of each adventure. But it is important to become familiar with balancing risk and reward.

So what is the current dilemma? We had over 23 folk wanting to join at the £5,000 level. In addition our unique property syndicate email “alert” list is over 100 strong where we are unsure at what level folk would like to join. A key issue is for us to run syndicates in the a manner as required by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Between 1995 and 2006 the rules were more “relaxed”. Since the financial crash of 2008 the rules governing many types of project, including those of the style we ran between 1995 to 2006 have been refined and updated. Rightly so, as 2008 has been painful for many. However, the new FCA rules impact on how we conduct the unique property syndicates, and we must abide by the new statutes.

Either we have candidate property such as the tower at Kinfauns that each member can own a definitive part of (same goes for larger lighthouse compound or windmill projects), or we have to consider a public share issue (plc). Creating a public limited company along with a plc share issue brochure. The plc route enables smaller amounts to be put into any syndicate (£500 to £5,000 for example). This overcomes the problem that we have had in trying to find another tower style project of the Kinfauns style.

However a full plc share issue – even if just for one project, still carries a fair cost in legal, accountancy, audit, RICS survey and auctioneer resale fees. Marketing costs are shouldered by the Unique Property Bulletin. Plus a little help from national press who have an interest in unusual properties: click here for an example of Unique Property Bulletin national media coverage. The subsequent publicity costs are nominal, but the plc share issue fees will add up to around £7,500. These too would also be underwritten by Unique Property Bulletin.

So prior to committing to a Unique Property Syndicate plc share issue here is the big question for this Bulletin and our readers who have an interest in partaking.

For those who would like to study joining the next syndicate, please can you let us know that you have an interest?

Also if you could help indicate a guideline entry figure you are comfortable with, this would help?

Most will be between £500 and £5,000. Though some of our established syndicate members will be wishing to look at a significantly higher number.

The next Unique Property Syndicate based on a plc approach is likely to be in the £125,000 to £400,000 ballpark. If we can gauge a level of interest that slots into that total range, then it will be game-on.

The next step will be to put a formal plc share document together and let folk study this to see if they would like to join in.

Readers’ answers to the two questions on the undernoted…

UNIQUE PROPERTY SYNDICATE SURVEY

…are gratefully appreciated…

Please Click Here To Assist In Unique Property Syndicate Research

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Please note this is NOT an offer to subscribe to Unique Property Syndicates plc – but a research effort to gauge whether there is sufficient interest and at what guide levels prior to us embarking upon a public share issue for this enterprise. Folk replying are NOT obliged in any way to subscribe, should a plc share issue prospectus be published in the future. We just need to assess at what level the current interest is in unique property syndicates amongst our readers and website membership. Thank you.

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Unique Property Manual

Helping You Find Your Ideal Home

If you would like some hints on how to lateral thinking can help your Sherlock Holmes-esque search for wonderful property, perhaps consider acquiring a copy of…

Unique Property Manual

Our Friend Marius Ciocanel (Click Here) Kindly Says…

 “Ordered this yesterday and it was delivered this morning. Faster than Amazon Prime. Thanks”

To consider purchasing a copy: Click Here

If you have any questions about unique London property, please feel free to get in touch with us: Click Here

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Unique Property Bulletin On Social Media...

For our readers – whichever media way you might like to keep an eye on unusual property for sale – here on the main website, or via our Twitter and/or Facebook pages, we shall do our best to keep you informed and up to date. As always our job is to ensure you have many tasty morsels of unusual lifestyle and unique homes to look at…

Click Here For Unique Property Bulletin On Twitter

OR…

Click Here For Unique Property Bulletin On Facebook

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