Living in Old Town: terraces, mansion flats and the market square

Old Town is the part of Halbourne that was here before the railway: the market square, the brewery streets behind it, and the Victorian mansion blocks that went up along Cowdray Street when the station opened in 1871. It is where our office is, and it is the area we sell fastest.

What there is to buy

Most of the housing is small. The brewery terraces on Pelham Row, Malt Lane and Cooper’s Yard are two-bed cottages with walled yards; they come up four or five times a year and rarely last three weeks. The mansion blocks give you high ceilings and a balcony for about the same money, with a service charge instead of a roof to look after.

There are almost no family houses with gardens inside the old walls. Buyers who need three bedrooms and a lawn usually end up in Kellen Park, a ten-minute walk north.

What it costs

Over the last twelve months the homes we sold in Old Town went for an average of £342,000, and agreed in 19 days. Two-bed terraces sat between £310,000 and £365,000 depending on the kitchen and whether the loft had been converted. Mansion flats sold for £265,000 to £320,000.

Rents are firm because of the station: a two-bed flat lets for about £1,350 a month and we rarely have one on for more than a fortnight.

Day to day

The Saturday market runs the length of the square. There are two primary schools within the old town, both rated good, and the secondary is a bus ride away on the Ashcombe road. London is 52 minutes on the fast train, twice an hour at peak.

Streets we get asked for

Pelham Row for the terraces. The Cowdray Street side of the mansion blocks for the balconies (the rear flats are quieter and cheaper). Chapel Walk, if anything ever comes up there: it has not in four years.