Calling all Grand Designs fans: ramshackle west Sussex barn for sale with land and plans for a three-bedroom home

If you've always dreamed of building your own Grand Designs home, this dilapidated barn could be well worth a look.
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Lizzie Rivera16 January 2018

A ramshackle barn in West Sussex could be the perfect New Year opportunity for buyers dreaming of a rural, self-build Grand Designs-style home.

Tompsetts Barn near Haywards Heath is set in just over a quarter of an acre of land, and is being sold by a local farmer for £400,000.

Similar homes in the area typically sell for just shy of £800,000. A two bedroom cottage with a detached annexe recently sold for £925,000, while a Victorian semi-detached house was bought for £645,000 just before Christmas.

The farmer gained planning permission to convert the oak-framed barn into a three-bedroom home more than 20 years ago.

Although not a lot of progress has been made, this permission still stands because work officially began in 2002.

The original plans are for an open plan living-dining-kitchen area on the ground floor, plus a cloakroom and bedroom with en-suite shower room.

Two staircases lead upstairs to two double bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms.

Keen buyers will have to get in quick because a potential buyer has already expressed interest and is speaking with the local council to find out whether it is possible to submit new plans to rebuild rather than renovate.

“A similar plan was approved in the next village so hopefully there’s precedent,” says Strutt & Parker manager Ken Roberts, who is handling the sale.

Location, location, location

Stairbridge Lane is a country lane that’s home to two working farms, and a mix of farmhouses and Victorian properties.

Once complete the home will have views over open countryside.

Roberts says: “It’s very rural but only four miles from Haywards Heath station, which has fast links to London, and has good access to the A23, so it’s great for commuters.”

The local village, Bolney, has two pubs and there’s a Tesco superstore very close, on the outskirts of Burgess Hill. Trains from Haywards Heath station to either London Bridge or London Victoria take about 50 minutes.

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