Drums of Park House & Kennels, Cornhill, Banff, AB45 2BT

Location & Situation

Drums of Park House & Kennel is located just 11.3 miles to the East of the town of Keith and 12.6 miles to the North of Huntly in the County of Aberdeenshire.

Both towns boast primary and secondary schooling and are served by medical & dentist practices (Huntly has a community hospital) and a range of other services and amenities including mainline railway stations. Primary education is provided more locally at Ordiquill Primary School (1.6 miles) with Secondary at Banff Academy (11.4 miles).

Towards the coast the historic town of Banff (11 miles) is situated on the Moray Firth at the mouth of the River Deveron and has an attractive harbour and marina. The town provides a range of services and amenities including a supermarket, shops, healthcare, primary and secondary education, sports centre and swimming pool. The wider area is renowned for its scenic coastline walks, beaches, wildlife, and picturesque fishing villages and harbours along the Banffshire Coast. For fans of Cullen Skink or those who love to explore antique shops, Cullen village is a short journey away (8.4 miles) and home to a range of restaurants and coffee shops to energise you for onward exploration.

In-land, local attractions include Duff House, a Georgian Mansion House with gardens and an 18 hole parkland golf course, and nearby Macduff Marine Aquarium. For those interested in whisky, Keith is well known for being on the edge of the famous Speyside whisky region and as the birth place of whisky giant Chivas Brothers.

Huntly has an interesting history also and if you are partial to winter sports is home to the UKs only dedicated Nordic Ski facility and for post activities the famous Dean's Shortbread bakers.

Drums of Park House
If you are seeking comfort, beautiful views and a relaxed calming environment, the spacious and well proportioned Drums of Park is the property for you. Comprising a welcoming entrance hall, living room, kitchen with dining area, utility room, three bedrooms and bathroom as per the attached floorplan, the gross internal floor area extends to 110sqm.

Upon entering the property from the parking area you come straight into the utility room where muddy boots can be left and jackets hung. There is ample storage space in wall mounted cabinets and a handy wash basin to wash up before entering the body of the house. An attractive feature of the main door is its stable design, allowing it to be split and fresh air to circulate whilst keeping any pets or small children from wandering too far. Moving into the spacious hall area, taking a left leads into the well appointed kitchen. Here you will find a comfortable cooking area with attractive wooden centre island and stylish fitted base units and drawers providing a range of storage space. The kitchen area includes a snug and dining space with beautiful south facing views over the garden and surrounding countryside. In the corner of the kitchen you will find a multi fuel stove (11kW) which, apart from creating a cosy kitchen environment, efficiently heats Drums of Park via a back boiler system.

Adjoining the kitchen is the well lit and very welcoming living room, sharing similar views to the kitchen out over the surrounding area, however with the added benefit of a superb view of local landmark Knock hill. The living room (like the kitchen) benefits from sliding doors which accesses the wooden deck that surrounds the property, a welcome addition when enjoying relaxed sunny days. In addition to the stove in the kitchen, there is a large 7.5 kW stove found in the living room, sat on an attractive slate hearth, which ensures any cold nights are kept at bay.

Moving through the house (efficiently lit by LED ceiling lights), the bathroom is to the left of the living room where you will find an attractive corner bath with over shower and separate stand alone shower.

There are three comfortable double bedrooms (one currently utilised as a study) with built in wardrobe space in two and amble space in the third for free standing storage options. The main bedroom benefits from its own sliding doors onto the surround decking, with large east facing windows it would be hard not to enjoy waking here and stepping outside into the fresh country air.

External areas
Well maintained grass surrounds Drums of Park, with raised beds and standing stones it creates the perfect environment to relax. If horticulture is of interest there is endless opportunities for growing your own produce with space in abundance for poly tunnels, chicken coops, and raised beds. The network of paths and quiet seating areas provide an attractive reflective space, with the current owners having planted a selection of native trees throughout the property providing an array of food sources for the local bird population.

Located beside the house is a spacious garage/workshop area and parking hardstanding allowing space for multiple cars. The garage benefits from loft space and a concrete floor, there is plenty of room for equipment and machinery such as a sit on lawn mower to tackle the 7.5 acres of grass. There are multiple seating areas surrounding the house, to the rear of the garage in particular is a favourite area, the Sitooterie or sunroom, providing cosy space to sit and relax or potentially bring on young plants or vegetables. Two additional buildings complete the external area, the first an additional shed located to the north west of the property, currently used as storage for gardening equipment and log store. This space could be converted into a summer house or similar if desired to add to the existing seating. The second is a static caravan which is connected to both water and electricity and currently used as studio workspace by the present owners. It provides comfortable accommodation if required and has a kitchen area, two bedrooms and bathroom with shower.

Water & Services
Drums of Park is serviced by a private water supply, a bore hole, located to the side of the kennel. This was installed by the current owners with the pump system serviced by GRC Aquatech (Insch).

The residential property and kennels are both served by separate septic tank, located to the rear of the garage and a suitable distance from the house.

Drums of Park Kennels

In addition to a lovely home, Drums of Park is sold with the established and successful Drums of Park Kennels located c. 60m from the main property. Built by the current owners (APP/2009/4111), the kennels have been operated by them over the past decade, working hard to establish and maintain a loyal customer base and healthy reservations book.

With a licence for 11 dogs or families of dogs, each kennel provides two areas; a spacious and heated main bedding area and secondly an external covered exercise area. Predominantly the kennels have taken families which has allowed for multiple occupancy of the units. The dogs are walked several times throughout the day and are able to utilise two securely fenced outside runs in which play and activity can take place. In addition to the main kennels, there is a separate isolation unit, storage space for bedding, and an area currently utilised for washing facilities,. There is also a welcoming visitor arrival room and food preparation area.

As can be seen from the large social media following and accompanying comments/praise, any new owner would be in a superb position to take on a successful operation with loyal customers.

Trading figures are available for the business and these can be shared with interested parties after an in-person viewing of the property.

Land

The land surrounding the kennels and house extends to 3.04 hectares (c. 7.5 acres) or thereby and is fenced on three sides.

Per the Land capability for agriculture (partial cover) maps of Scotland, Drums of Park land is classified as Grade 3(2) or land capable of average production though high yields of barley, oats and grass can be obtained. Currently the land is used as a walking area but has previously been grazed and housed pigs.

Given the favourable classification the land would be ideal for grazing horses or keeping of small numbers of livestock. If desired the kennels could be repurposed as stables, with ample room within the property boundary to place more buildings or create an arena (subject to permissions).

Property Details & Important Notices

Viewings By Arrangement Only:
To arrange a viewing contact Aberdeen & Northern Estates

Services:
Private water and drainage, mains electricity.

EPC:
Band C

Council Tax:
Band D

Entry: By arrangement

Mineral Rights & Sporting Rights:
Included in the sale, insofar as they are owned. Access: Private road, shared responsibility with neighbours for upkeep.

Local Authority:
Aberdeenshire Council, 23-25, Gordon Street, Town Centre, Huntly AB54 8AL

Note: Prospective purchasers should note that unless their interest in the property is formally intimated to the selling agents following inspection, the agents cannot guarantee that notice of a closing date for offers will be advised and consequently the property may be sold without notice.

Offers:
Formal offers, in the acceptable Scottish form should be submitted, along with the relevant anti-money laundering paperwork in accordance with The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, through a Scottish Solicitor, to the Selling Agent. 

Servitude Rights, Burdens and Wayleaves:
The property is sold subject to and with the benefit of all servitude rights, including rights of access and rights of way, whether public or private. The buyer(s) will be held to have satisfied himself/themselves as to the nature of all such servitude rights and others.

Title: The buyer(s) shall be bound to accept the title as it presently stands in the name of the seller(s) and the conveyance in favour of the buyer(s) shall be subject to all the exceptions, reservations, burdens and conditions presently contained in the title deeds. There shall be excepted from warrandice in the conveyance in favour of the buyer(s) any leases, tenancies, tenants' rights, missives, agreements, rights of possession, rights of way, access rights, and sewerage and drainage facilities, and all other servitudes and other rights without prejudice to the right of the buyer(s) to quarrel or impugn the same on any ground not inferring warrandice against the seller(s).