Just because something is new doesn’t mean it has to look new. Indeed, one of the great benefits of modern refurbishments is that they often offer a way to preserve historic sites. A fine example cropped up in Richmond-upon-Thames came up at the Star & Garter a few years ago; and in Oxfordshire, there's presently the example of Parklands Manor, near Besselsleigh.
The building was constructed in Victorian times as a manor house and school, but has now been converted into a variety of apartments and homes, on the market through Savills from around £415,000.
The properties are all brand new on the inside and benefit from the latest fittings and appliances, yet retain various period features from the original structure, such as fireplaces, windowsills and balconies.
Parklands Manor is surrounded by 23 acres of parkland, offering true rural comfort, but the development is well positioned and close to an array of charming villages, as well as being only 10 minutes from Oxford itself.
In Edinburgh, there's a similarly eye-catching building in an even more central location that has had the same sort of treatment. The Playfair building is one of the most recognisable in Edinburgh city centre and the former college now offers a variety of apartments within 16 acres of gardens and grounds only moments from Haymarket station.
Sale prices start at £275,000, but some of the more incredible apartments are going for far more: this penthouse suite, with a rooftop terrace that incorporates pillars and chimneys, has an asking price of £1.55 million.
The Victorian property, designed in the style of an Elizabethan palace, now conceals a variety of living and communal spaces that took three years of work by heritage developer City & Country to restore.
Apartments are a mix of the old and the new, with original windows, fireplaces and cornices working alongside modern kitchens and bathrooms, and come in various shapes and sizes, from studios to penthouse apartments.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
Spectacular Scottish castles and estates for sale
A look at the finest castles, country houses and estates for sale in Scotland today.
-
Can't you hear me S.O.S? Our treasured native dog breeds are at risk of extinctionDo you know your Kerry blue terrier from your Lancashire heeler? A simple lack of publicity is often to blame for some of the UK's native dog breeds flying dangerously low under-the-radar.
-
'There are architects and architects, but only one ARCHITECT': Sir Edwin Lutyens and the wartime Chancellor who helped launch his stellar careerClive Aslet explores the relationship between Sir Edwin Lutyens and perhaps his most important private client, the politician and financier Reginald McKenna.
-
If heaven is on earth, it might be in this home with a converted chapel that is now a swimming pool5 Wood Barton Town House is part of an exclusive 80-acre development in Devon that also comes with fishing rights on the River Avon and four bedrooms.
-
The sounds of spring and stained glass in an Arts-and-Crafts masterpiece in DorsetWith 35 acres, more than 10 bedrooms, a swimming pool and tennis court, Winterfield has it all.
-
An eight-bedroom wonder in East Sussex where the outdoors are an adventureThe interiors of Old Middleton are pretty good too.
-
A lakeside farmhouse on the market in the beautiful heart of PembrokeshireA lake, streams, 15 acres and five bedrooms. Rogershook might have it all.
-
An idyllic countryside home that's light, spacious and comes with a Grade II-listed follyHagg House is a gorgeous family home that just happens to have a miniature castle in the gardens. Annabel Dixon explains more.
-
A historic villa for sale on the Via Nomentana worthy of Rome's rich historyThree floors, lots of balconies, and a private garden in one of Rome's loveliest neighbourhoods.
-
Eight bedrooms of unlisted Edwardian elegance with sweeping views of SomersetAshton House sits near the market town of Chard and comes with a wealth of amenities both inside and out.
-
A waterside cottage in Devon with a private quay, idyllic views and the prettiest summerhouse we've seen in yearsRight beside the picturesque Yealm Estuary, No 1 Noss Mayo is an idyllic home that feels like an escape from the world. Annabel Dixon takes a look.
