“I’ve lived here for almost eight years but I still don’t take these views for granted. Whether it’s the constantly changing sea or sky, submarines drifting back to base at Faslane, a film of frost on the lawn or the vivid coppery tones of the trees in autumn, there is always something to look at, whatever the time of year.”
But Matteo, owner of Glasgow’s City Merchant restaurant, and his wife Linda, have decided Aldonaig, their seven-bedroom home near the conservation village of Rhu, is too big now their children have flown the nest. However, the grounds, surrounded by laburnums, azaleas and Japanese maples, are big enough for them to build a smaller home for their eventual retirement in.
The charming 18th-century villa was created on land formerly owned by Sir James Colquhoun and originally formed part of a whisky bond complex that came into the ownership of the Teacher’s distilling family in the 1850s.
It is one of three west of Scotland properties with stunning views on the books of agents Savills, the others being Northcliff in Portpatrick, for offers over £495,000, and Bowmore House on Islay, for more than £460,000.
Aldonaig, inviting offers over £550,000, is likely to prove extremely popular due to its combination of history, original features, accessibility to Glasgow — and a setting that boasts 360- degree panoramas of countryside, water and the hills to Clynder and Rosneath in the west. Matteo is but the latest homeowner to realise that what is outside your window can be just as important as the bricks and mortar.
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With the price boom that began in the late 1990s, astute owner-occupiers turned their attention indoors in the belief that interior additions such as en-suite bathrooms and upmarket accessories would be their passport to profit.
However, most top agents now say a home’s biggest asset is the view from the window.
Peter Gillespie of Savills says: “For anyone looking for an attractive aspect, these three homes stand comparison with anything else in the west of Scotland, and the quality of the views is likely to be reflected in the final selling prices.”
That is also the case in the east of Scotland, especially Fife, where a combination of coastal scenery, golf course vistas, hills and craggy rocks form an unbeatable package for misty-eyed buyers. Indeed, east coast experts such as the St Andrews-based John Bradburne, believes rooms with a view contribute as much as one-fifth to the selling prices.
The quality of views enjoyed by Morven, a villa in Leven built in 1900, were appreciated by none other than the Royal Navy who requisitioned the house during the second world war. The top brass were minded to keep a weather eye on the comings and goings of the fleet — and possibly enemy ships — in the Firth of Forth.
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At offers over £440,000, there is much to recommend the five-bedroom coastal home. As well as its studio, three reception rooms and enormous cellar, Morven has panoramic views over Leven Links, and a local golf course regularly cited as one of Scotland’s most singular golfing challenges. Indeed, as Bradburne suggests, the only impediment to an ultra-premium price is the location. “It’s a shame the house is in Leven. If it was in an East Neuk town it would go for a price well in excess of £500,000 but there is a ceiling on prices in Leven,” he says.
For inland properties, both Bradburne and Gillespie agree Stirling is one of the few central locations able to compete with Fife. Marketed at offers over £995,000 Abbey Craig Park House is now Stirling’s most expensive home thanks to a sale price last month believed to be about £1.2m. This is attributed to its unbeatable location — with the Wallace Monument at the rear and overlooking Stirling Castle to the front. Roy Anderson and his wife Marlene, the owners, can justifiably claim their home boasts the best view anywhere in inland Scotland.
Gary Scott of Regency Estates in Dalgety Bay says, while a good view can boost prices by up to 30%, the converse can easily halve a property’s market value. “I had a Victorian detached house for sale in Burnt- island that would easily have fetched £100,000 anywhere else in the town but, because it looked on to the Alcan factory, I was relieved to get £45,000. I had a similar situation with a house in Linlithgow that had been built back-to-front so the garden looked out onto the railway line. I had to make do with £45,000 for a house worth at least £85,000 anywhere else. A similar property overlooking Linlithgow Loch — but without so much as a bath — fetched £210,000.”
Scott believes his hardest sell was a property overlooking an abattoir in Midlothian. “The property was surrounded by swarming flies and the stench was awful. I didn’t look forward to telling my client that his house, nominally worth £110,000, would be lucky to fetch £60,000.”
The owner treated the news with an equanimity verging on indifference. “He said, ‘I couldn’t care less if you only get me six quid for it. I’ve just won the lottery and I’m leaving the county’. Given his changed circumstances he was hardly the most demanding of clients.”
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If abattoirs and factories subtract from values, Bradburne says coastline, golf courses, beaches, hills, rocks and highland all command premium price tags. Nobody understands this better than the Glasgow architect Alan Dunlop. While views mean profits for homeowners, for architects who do the lion’s share of their work within an urban context, the protection of owners’ existing views are a constant bugbear.
“Thankfully protection of someone’s view can’t form the basis of a legitimate planning complaint,” Dunlop says. “If they could, you’d be unable to build anything within our cities.” Dunlop, hailed as one of the foremost renovators of Glasgow’s tired city-centre grid, says that doesn’t stop people trying to protect their views and, by extension, their property prices.
“Virtually every new building proposed in Scotland’s cities runs the gamut of well-orchestrated protests. Increased traffic, restricted parking and aesthetic objections form the basis of complaints but, if you dig a little deeper, homeowners’ concerns often boil down to one thing — a fear their view will be restricted and their properties’ price will be reduced.”
However, it seems views enjoyed by the wider population may be protected. Edinburgh city council dismissed a plan to build six terraced houses on long-derelict seafront land in Portobello because it would have blocked views of a row of picturesque Georgian cottages from the promenade. The developer’s appeal was turned down last month, with the Scottish executive saying it would be detrimental to the character of that part of the conservation area.
Lawrence Marshall, a Portobello councillor, says: “I am delighted the value of the view of the Georgian cottages has been recognised.”
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Sandy Burnett, a solicitor, says sellers should be wise to what’s happening in their back yards. “They can’t duck questions about planning matters or development during a sale, and lawyers inevitably pick up the information during routine searches.
“I can think of one instance I uncovered where a planned extension would have greatly restricted the views. The seller had omitted to inform us and, before the sale went ahead, the price was reduced by almost 15% on the original offer, although the effect on my client’s quality of life would arguably have been negligible.”