Fantasy House Hunt, #5
A weekly round-up of the internet's best homes to buy, rent or renovate.
Hello! Welcome to Fantasy House Hunt, a weekly round-up of the internet’s best homes to buy, rent or renovate.
My name is Rebecca MacNaughton and I’m a journalist and editor from the UK.
I write about homes, the people who live in them and - increasingly - the art of ‘making house’.
This week I’m sharing details of a country manor in Gloucestershire, Ivana Trump’s Manhattan townhouse and a five-bed, five-bath home dubbed Norfolk’s most expensive rental.
Edgeworth, Gloucestershire, UK
Edgeworth Manor is, hands down, one of the finest country houses I’ve ever seen.
And it turns out, I’m not the only one who thinks so, as Country Life magazine has also called the Grade II, star-listed property one of the finest privately-owned country houses in the area.
For starters, its setting is nothing short of idyllic, nestled as it is in 56 acres of Cotswold countryside and overlooking an enchanted wooded valley.
Within the grounds are several other properties - including a lodge, coach house and cottage - but it’s the manor house itself that really steals the show. Even the entrance hall is one of the most impressive I’ve ever seen - it’s baronial, in fact, with a barelled ceiling and ornate and detailed carvings.
The oldest part of the house dates back to the late 17th century, although records show that there’s been a manor at Edgeworth since 1358 and the parish itself pre-dates that. In 1086, it was mentioned in the Domesday Book.
Savills, which is marketing the property for £20m, describes it as being “unrestrained” in its scale, yet it somehow still feels homely and lived in. It’s ultimately still a family home, just amplified.
In total, the property offers nine bedrooms, six bathrooms and five reception rooms, as well as a cinema, games room and an indoor swimming pool, all finished to an exceptional architectural standard.
And with those grounds, what more could you need?
Manhattan, New York, USA
This six-storey home was, until fairly recently, owned by the late Ivana Trump - and it’s just as lavish and maximalist as you’d expect it to be.
With its stately double doors, luxe red carpets, damask wallpapers and crystal chandeliers, it feels more like a stately home than a Manhattan townhouse - apart from the views, which look out over East 64th, and its wider location, which places it between 5th and Madison Avenues on the Upper East Side and within walking distance of Central Park. In other words, in one of the most coveted parts of the city.
The property is listed for sale for $26.5m with J. Roger Erickson at Douglas Elliman. Among its features is its sweeping, curved staircase - which features a mural of a romantic garden - and gold-embossed living spaces that wouldn’t look out of place in Versailles.
The first floor houses a media room, office and kitchen while the second floor is designed for entertaining and includes a separate parlour, living room, dining space and another kitchen.
The master suite occupies the entire third floor and includes an enormous south-facing bedroom with a private terrace, a marble-clad en suite bathroom, walk-in closet and a private office.
There are six further bedrooms on the floors above, including a particularly large guest room with a full en suite, and a shared bathroom.
Unusually but not unexpectedly, the property also comes with a modest-sized garden and there’s a private Swedish sauna in the basement.
Hethersett, Norfolk, UK
On the surface, it might not seem like a £6,000 a month property qualifies for Fantasy House Hunt - at least not when compared to some of the other rentals I’ve featured, like Old Conduit House.
But pricing depends on the local market, and knowing the market as I do, I know that this five-bed, five-bath home is one of - if not the - priciest in the area.
It’s not that difficult to see why.
Every inch of this contemporary-designed home has been meticulously designed, from its dramatic, full-height entrance hall to its beautifully fitted kitchen, which has been hand-built and finished with large glazed panels to look out over the garden pond.
Most of the living space is open-plan and is all the better for it: it’s light-filled and free-flowing, and ideal for gathering with family and friends.
Upstairs, the master bedroom takes up an entire wing of the first floor, complete with an en suite bathroom, dressing room and countryside views, and four further bedrooms are arranged over the two floors above, where there is also a designated games room.
The property also offers plenty of off-road parking, a self-contained annexe, studio and a swimming pool. Beautifully encased in glass, it offers the best of both worlds: the peace and warmth of swimming indoors, plus amazing garden views.
It’s available to rent with Sowerbys for £6,000 a month, or to buy for £2.35m.
That’s all from me for this week, as I’ve got a weekend of nesting ahead of me. Do remember that I’m on Instagram, too - you can find me at @rebeccamacnaughton. I’ll see you again next week! 🏡