Blackmore

About this property

An exciting opportunity to acquire a detached cottage for total refurbishment and a former service garage with fuel forecourt.

What the Zoe Napier Group Say

These premises are probably amongst the last comparable in the region in such an untouched condition, and were also home to an operative business until late 2023. The equipment and interiors are a veritable vintage time warp, and the scope to improve, refurbish and re-develop in such a fabulous location is vast. No planning permissions have been sought, but the outbuildings offer the footprint for similar size replacement buildings, where residential might be preferred over commercial (subject to planning).

History & Background

An exciting and unique opportunity to acquire The Barge and Wakelins Garage in Blackmore village. The property and premises are available for the first time in nearly 100 years and over the decades (until recently) has been run by the same family as the village fuel station with an MOT test station and workshop garage. Alongside is the family home, a quaint Grade II listed Two/Three-bedroom period cottage which overlooks the village green and duck pond.

The cottage is timber frame and timber weatherboarded beneath handmade red clay roof tiles on its gambrel roof which is half-hipped at the left end. The house is reported to date back to the 17^th century or earlier in part, with 19^th and 20^th century casements in the dormers. The house occupies a visually important position at the east end of The Green. The front door is orientated onto The Green making it a popular picture postcard for the village. The cottage has also featured in books and calendars due to its idyllic setting and aesthetic appearance.

The yard and forecourt face onto Ingatestone Road with expansive concrete and forecourt with an in and out access alongside two large workshops extending to 1025 sq ft. While no pre-app or application has been made, it is considered that the workshops could be replaced with a single residential dwelling, subject to the usual consents. There are a number of underground fuel tanks that may need to be professionally removed, dependent on the purchaser’s intentions. Please refer to agents notes.

Setting & Location

The premises are situated in the heart of the picturesque village of Blackmore, near Ingatestone, occupying a plot of 0.18 of an acre. Blackmore is an historic village, well positioned 3.9 miles to the west of Ingatestone and 4.7 miles to the east of Chipping Ongar and just 6 miles from the Elizabeth Line at Shenfield Station.

The village has always offered a thriving community atmosphere, enjoying the village green for village activities and events, while there are two pubs and two tearooms (one of which is also an antiques shop), a village shop with post office, an historic village church, village hall and primary school (Ofsted Good). Wakelins Garage was until recently part of that hub as villagers and customers would sound their horns as they drove past the popular late owner.

Blackmore is largely surrounded by open farmland with a good network of public footpaths for country walks.

The Barge (Cottage)

This quaint cottage has barely been touched for many years. The front door faces the green directly overlooking the duck pond and access leads straight into the kitchen/breakfast room that features a solid fuel AGA (untested). At the rear of the kitchen is a hallway currently with a minimum ceiling height of 5’ 9” measured from floor to beam. Ladder steps lead up to part of the first floor where there are a pair of interconnecting bedrooms divided by the chimney stack. A door from the rear hall leads out to the forecourt. There is a further long utility room with a sink. Either side of the kitchen are two reception rooms, each with a view across the green. A door provides access into the stairwell with a step down to the ground floor bathroom. On the first floor is the main bedroom, also built into the attic with dormer windows. The cottage has small grass and garden areas which immediately adjoin the former business premises.

Wakelins Garage

The sizeable forecourt with fuel pumps provides an expansive area of concrete with an in and an out carriage drive up to the covered fuel pumps alongside the cashier shed and with access to an outside w.c. There are underground fuel tanks and we hold a quotation for the removal of these tanks for the buyer’s consideration when making an informed offer. There are two main barns/workshops. Workshop 1 measures 360 sq feet and this unit was used for servicing vehicles. There is a four-post lift in this building. The MOT workshop provides 665 sq ft, and has a deep inspection pit. The equipment to remain includes a hydraulic lift, brake rollers, brake configuration, a wheel balancer, emissions tester and a beam tester. All equipment is untested and may or may not be operative and will be left as a fixture for the buyer to retain or dispose of at will. The MOT barn has rear double doors and vehicle access from the track located via the Green.

 Agent’s Notes

• The property is unregistered. First registration of title will be with the buyer
• Probate has been submitted to HMRC October 2024. Probate has yet to be granted (anticipated approximately 16 weeks from submission but varies)
• There are a number of underground fuel tanks. The selling agent holds an estimate (July 2024) for the removal works, which may need to be renewed with the buyer and pricing can vary, hence this is for guide purposes only. (£44,000 + VAT). The estimate is valid for 12 months. Please request details from the selling agent.
• Cash buyers only. Due to the nature of the property the sale is part commercial and part residential. The property itself requires total refurbishment.
• Due to the nature of the premises, for health and safety children will not be permitted on viewings. All viewers must be aware of the very deep inspection pit in the MOT workshop and also other obstacles. Viewers MUST stay at least two feet from the edge of the pit at all times and also be aware of other obstacles in the workshop. Sensible footwear MUST be worn and care exercised at all times.
• Some of the outbuildings have mixed asbestos composite corrugated roofing. Due to the age of the premises, there may also be concealed asbestos in places.
• Historic England Listed Building entry 1197179

Services

Mains Water

Mains Electricity

Solid Fuel for AGA

EPC rating: Exempt. Council tax band: E, Tenure: Freehold,

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