Family seeks £5.5m for Finchale Abbey estate
A mixed leisure and agricultural land opportunity has arisen at the site, four miles from Durham.
Having been in the same family ownership for 73 years, Knight Frank has now ben instructed to find a buyer for the estate, which comprises an established mixed residential and touring park, and 211 acres of grade three agricultural land.
The farming land includes arable, permanent pasture, and woodland including full sporting rights.
The estate is described as “set in an attractive rural location bounded by the River Wear among the ruins of Finchale Priory, dating from 1169”.
The park comprises 81 residential pitches, of which 66 are occupied, with asset management potential around developing the remaining 15 plots
In addition, there are 41 touring pitches and two glamping pods with associated facilities, alongside a three-bedroom holiday apartment and on-site café.
Katy Blair, senior surveyor at Knight Frank’s Newcastle office, said: “This is an outstanding opportunity to acquire such a diverse estate with excellent ongoing asset management prospects. The land and business at Finchale Abbey has been owned and operated by the same family since 1951. The site is a very popular tourist attraction and the potential to add value to the site is vast.”
The vendors will consider either a sale to one party, or to divide the lots between the leisure and the farming uses.
Georgie Veale of Knight Frank’s national farms and estates team said: “The land at Finchale Abbey provides a rare opportunity to purchase a significant acreage of agricultural land with mixed woodland and unprecedented access to the River Wear. This sale provides for excellent environmental opportunities and bio-diversity projects alongside traditional agricultural.”
William Rankine, partner specialising in hotels and leisure at Knight Frank added: “It’s not every day you are asked to market a site that is set within the grounds of a grade one-listed, 13th-century Benedictine priory so this is an honour. The asset is a well-located, attractive park with consistent turnover levels and opportunities to develop.”
