The other day a colleague and I were having a conversation about how people look for houses. There are dozens, if not hundreds of things that go in to the nature of how we choose, with location traditionally at the top of the list in most cases.
It’s not always location that is the starting point, however, particularly in these days of people move from city to country. When you’re flexible on where you go to begin that dream life, the first step is rather different: setting your price bracket. Almost all of us have a rough idea of a maximum and minimum when we set the sliders on the search pages at countrylife.onthemarket.com (other property portals are available). For some, that might be £400,000; for others it might be two or three times that; and for some, ten or even twenty times that price.
Anybody setting their maximum price to £7 million will be spoilt for choice. There’s everything from a breathtaking penthouse flat at the most iconic building in St Andrews to a 13-bedroom castle to an extravagant Cheshire mansion to a three-bedroom flat in one of London’s smartest streets. And sitting among those places will be the house we look at today: Tullybelton House on the Tullybelton Estate, in Bankfoot, a few miles off the A9 just north of Perth, and on the market via Rettie at £6.75m.
This grand and handsome Victorian mansion dates to around 1850, not that you’d know it to step inside. Every inch of the place has been completely refurbished in exacting detail, so much so that it’s almost got a touch of top-end new build feel about it — something that will help ease buyers’ minds about the potential for maintenance costs when buying a 170-year-old property.
While it loses out on presenting a cosy, lived-in feel, it has a smart finish that brings to mind a freshly-opened country house hotel.
That hotel-style feel extends to the bedrooms and bathrooms, which mix modern design with traditional architectural features.
The main house is huge. It’s not far short of 14,000sq ft, sitting within 250 acres, and boasts three main reception rooms and six bedrooms, all en-suite.
There is a wealth of other spaces, from an eyecatching orangery to a billiards room with a full-sized snooker table.
There is also fine swimming pool — indoors, of course, given that we’re in Perthshire — that has a glass wall to one side, so that you can take a dip while enjoying the sight of red squirrels gambolling though the grounds.
As well as the main house there’s also the coach house, which has been fitted out very much as a working area: it includes the office spaces, gym, garaging and laundry, as well as the boiler rooms that power the house. There are also three cottages, each with two bedrooms, elsewhere on the estate, as well as woodland and a loch.
While the Tullybelton Estate is an ideal secluded country retreat, it’s very well connected: Perth is less than ten miles away, while you can be crossing the Forth Bridge in under an hour. Yet the Tay Forest is almost on the doorstep, and the Cairngorms National Park just half an hour away.
Spectacular Scottish castles and estates for sale
A look at the finest castles, country houses and estates for sale in Scotland today.
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
-
The transformative renovation of a Grade II-listed property with an 'unusual footprint'Having inherited this fine London townhouse, the new owner asked Sims Hilditch to help refresh the interiors, resulting in a youthful, yet elegant kitchen.
-
‘One of the most effective pieces of propaganda ever made’: the Bayeux Tapestry heads to Britain for the first time in almost a millenniumA historic agreement between this country and France sees the 225ft-long tableau — which may have been made in Britain but has been in France since 1077 — arrive at the British Museum in Autumn 2026.
-
The Good Life 2025? A development promising 'Britain's greenest homes' blends zero carbon, organic allotments and a touch of luxury in the Kent countrysideHartdene Barns, sitting on a disused dairy farm in Kent, is a vision of what sustainable living one day mean for all of us.
-
Breathtaking views and gardens that run down to the water's edge at this delightful home in CornwallThe Garden House in Polruan sums up the appeal of waterside living. Penny Churchill steps inside.
-
A 500-acre estate that spent 11 centuries in the same family, for sale for only the second time in its historyIn the beautiful hills of north Wales the Garthewin estate has come up for sale, including a great country house once restored by the architect who created Portmeirion. Penny Churchill takes a closer look.
-
'The city has always held an important creative space within our design studio': A luxury townhouse in Tokyo, courtesy of Aston MartinA new four-storey property in the Omotesandō district is the first single home private residence by the British ultra-luxury performance brand.
-
The Mediterranean Magic of MaltaWith historic charm, picture-perfect beaches and a welcoming approach to newcomers, Malta represents an appealing option for Mediterranean property hunters. Holly Kirkwood reports.
-
Four country houses with their own tennis courts, as seen in Country LifeIf Wimbledon has put you in the mood for more tennis, Annunciata Elwes is here with a selection of homes with their own tennis courts.
-
The majestic New Forest estate formerly owned by a billionaire adventurer — famous for driving 'the world's fastest kettle' — has come up for saleGreat estates in the unspoilt setting of the New Forest are always a welcome sight on the market, and Newton Park is a wonderful example with a sad story to tell. Anna White tells more.
-
A Hampshire Manor for sale that dates back to the days of Alfred the Great, with the most beautiful staircase we've seen in yearsThe ten bedroom property features an indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi, spa complex and stables, and it was restored by the same architect who worked on Downing Street.
