A former fire station in Papworth Everard, Cambridgeshire, will go under the hammer as part of the final Cheffins property auction of 2022, hosted on Wednesday 7th December.
The late 1950s building is a rare freehold opportunity, with residential development potential, and has come available following the relocation of the fire service from Papworth Everard to Cambourne in March 2022. The building is over 1,900 sq ft in total, and has a large, tarmacked yard. Internally, there is the main fire appliance hall, an office, stores and staff facilities. It is offered with a guide price of £250,000.
Another unusual property available at the auction is the Mepal Union Chapel. This large former chapel dates from the 1850s and has a kitchen, cloakrooms, school room and vaulted ceilings in the main chapel of over five metres high. It has the potential for a range of other uses, and is offered freehold, in this popular village a few miles west of Ely. It has an estimate of £150,000.
In Cambridge is a Grade II listed former blacksmith’s shop, which dates from 1814 and has seen several uses, most recently as a car workshop. The Old Smithy is on Mill End Road in Cherry Hinton, and is an attractive building with a workshop area, former kitchen, cloakroom and a storeroom, as well as being on a corner plot on the junction of Mill End Road and Forest Road. Only two miles from the centre of Cambridge, the building has a range of potential uses, and is available with a guide price of £150,000.
The highest value lot within the auction is a development site of 0.48 acres in the village of Elmswell, between Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket in Suffolk. The land has outline planning consent for six dwellings and has an estimate of £450,000 - £500,000. Being sold on behalf of investors, the site is offered freehold. Another residential opportunity is Vine Cottage in Royston, which is offered with an estimate of £275,000. This three-bedroom Victorian terraced property has a large garden, is offered freehold and is offered in good condition but would benefit from some upgrading.
In addition, there are six different land lots offered from throughout East Anglia. These range from a small single parcel of 0.058 acres in the centre of Mattishall, near Dereham, Norfolk, which has a guide price of £5,000 and 25.4 acres of grassland, offered in four parcels, in Witchford, near Ely, with a guide price of £165,000.
Ian Kitson, Director, Cheffins comments: “The final sale of this year sees a diverse catalogue, full of quirky opportunities for property investors. The market for investment properties and doer uppers continues to be strong, despite the rumblings in the property market of declining house prices. Private investors and end users continue to head to auction to try and find a bargain, and this has increased as global uncertainty continues to make property and land even more attractive as assets.”
“The fire station in Papworth Everard is an attractive opportunity and could lend itself for uses as offices or even as a residential property. It has come available to buy since Papworth Hospital was relocated to Cambridge, following this, the fire station became surplus to requirements, and the fire service struggled to encourage enough volunteers. The service moved to Cambourne in March and the Papworth Everard site is being sold on behalf of the fire service. The chapel in Mepal is also a good find and could suit a range of uses, including creating an amazing private home, subject to gaining the necessary planning approvals. There are a number of smaller, boutique property developers currently in the market for more unusual opportunities, so I would expect these to be of interest for these buyers.”
Cheffins’ property auction grossed over £10,000,000 in 2021, throughout the East Anglia and Mid Anglia regions.
The auction will take place on Wednesday 7th December, from 2pm, online at www.cheffins.co.uk
For further information, contact Cheffins Property Auction team on 01223 213343, property.auctions@cheffins.co.uk