Winchester Hot Spot

Ever since Alfred the Great, people have been dying to get into Winchester,

and "the city's expansion really took off during the last century," says

estate agent Paul Hellard. "That is why most properties are Victorian,

although the housing stock is diverse. Character is probably the single most

desired quality that property hunters ask for."

And character is what they get in properties, some pre-dating the nineteenth

century, in Winchester itself and in the surrounding villages, some of which

are in walking distance of the town centre. Winchester's location is

exceptional in several respects. "It is wonderful for commuting to London,

which is less than an hour by train, and it is also convenient for the

Midlands and, with the A303 being improved, to the west," says Michael

Dunning of Lane Fox. "Winchester has very good schools, both public and

state, and it is surrounded by nice countryside that is not spoilt, as much

of Surrey is."

Mr Hellard notes that the attractive countryside combined with good access to

both Gatwick and Heathrow have enticed many airline employees to the area.

"Most people identify communications as Winchester's main attraction, but the

countryside runs a close second," he adds. "We are blessed in this area with

three river valleys: the Meon to the south, the Itchen at Winchester, and the

Test to the west. This is a plumb spot."

Winchester's plummiest properties consist of enormous country homes some

carrying appropriately stratospheric seven-figure price tags but others

surprisingly modest. In addition, flats and houses were built in Winchester

during different periods since the 1950s, resulting in various styles, types

and prices, from post-war skimpy to contemporary luxurious. On the cheapest

end, "large council estates were built in the 1950s and 1960s and many units

are now in private ownership," says Mr Hellard.

Demand far outweighs supply, but Mr Dunning is heartened in that "while

potential sellers are deterred because there is not enough for them to move

to, a steady stream of properties come onto the market from divorces, death

or job relocations."

Another Winchester booster is Christopher Neve of Hamptons International:

"Winchester has fast trains, good schools, virtually no crime, is close to

the south coast for sailing, is surrounded by green hills, and many

properties are close to the station."

Mr Neve believes that Winchester's property market dances to tunes sung 70

miles away: "London prices are strong compared to Winchester. A house

selling for £400,000 in Putney sells for half here." Given its manifold

attractions, Winchester attracts many buyers who are priced out of London or

enjoy a windfall when they sell. If his economic theory is correct, the

recent surge in London prices will have a powerful knock-on effect in his

city.

ROBERT LIEBMAN

THE LOW-DOWN

Transport:

Winchester has good road access to London, Basingstoke, Poole, Southampton

and the ferry port of Portsmouth, the New Forest, and Bournemouth. London,

the Midlands, the north and Scotland are accessible by rail. Southampton

International airport has UK and Continental destinations. Heathrow is 55

miles.

Prices:

Paul Hellard says that location and property condition are so variable that

it makes sense only to think in terms of starting prices: some two-bed flats

start on £70,000, and others on £140,000. Three-bed Victorian houses start on

£140,000-160,000. Lane Fox is selling mansions for seven figures, but also an

8-bedroom Victorian house on two-thirds of an acre for £595,000. Large

detached houses are also available near the city centre.

New Luxury Flats:

Linden Homes is building 29 two- and three-bed flats at Queens Court,

Peninsula Barracks, in the city centre. Prices are £165,000 to £255,000,

which includes car parking, en suite to the master bedroom, and either a

balcony, terrace or roof terrace (except for one flat which is already sold).

Some flats have two balconies.

Gurkha-free Zone:

A local resident recalls that the Gurkhas and Green Jackets were housed in

Peninsula Barracks until the facility was closed a few years ago. The huge

courtyard remains, surrounded by flats, houses and military museums. Queen's

Court backs onto the museums.

The Alfie and Arnie Show:

A statue of Alfred the Great dominates The Broadway, and a large Round Table

hanging from the wall adorns the Great Hall, the only extant part of the

original Norman castle. The former can't, and the latter shouldn't, be

missed, more for the vast room itself than the table which has hung in the

Hall for more than 600 years, according to the Visitor's Guide. .

The Compleat Cemetery:

Jane Austen, Isaak Walton and King Canute R.I.P. in Winchester Cathedral, as

do various Anglo-Saxon kings in mortuary chests.

The Wayfarer's Dole is Alive and Well:

The Hospital of St Cross, founded in 1132, is still home to 25 Brothers, and

the Wayfarer's Dole is still dispensed. Don't accept substitutes. The

original recipe calls for bread and beer served in a horn.

Clubs, Societies, Associations and Events:

Winchester Winemakers' Circle; Alresford Historical and Literary Society;

Winchester Magical Society; Flower Arrangement Society; Aero/Autojumble, Fly

In & Classic Car Rally; Psychic Fayre; Mid-Hants Watercress Line Special;

Grandma's Attic Antique Fair.

Estate Agents:

Hamptons International, 01962 842030; John D Wood, 01962 863131; Lane Fox,

01962 869999; Paul Hellard & Co, 01962 842166.

END