A report from Strutt & Parker reveals that the average price of arable land sold during the first nine months of 2022 increased by 4% to £9,800 an acre, the highest it has been since 2015. Over the same period, the average price of pasture rose by 6% to a record-breaking £8,000 an acre.
‘The strength of demand reflects the broad spectrum of buyers who are interested in buying land,’ says Matthew Sudlow, head of estates and farm agency for Strutt & Parker, adding: ‘We have a combination of farmers with rollover money, lifestyle buyers and private investors, along with individuals and corporate companies looking at land for carbon sequestration or conservation projects.’
Given the current turmoil in the global economy, Strutt & Parker believes that competition for rural assets can only intensify. Fortunately, although land ownership is undoubtedly a serious business, farming can also be fun, as a fine country estate have on the market amply demonstrates.
Will Matthews of Knight Frank quotes a guide price of £9.75 million for Pockford House and Farm near Chiddingfold, Surrey, described as ‘a rare and unspoilt, principally Georgian house set at the heart of a 264-acre sporting estate’.
Pockford Farm sits 1½ miles from this quintessential English village with its green and pond surrounded by historic buildings, including the Grade I-listed Church of St Mary and The Crown Inn, said to be one of the oldest hostelries in England.
Built in 1805 around an earlier mid- to late-16th-century dwelling, Pockford House stands on high ground at the end of a long gravel driveway with wide verges flanked by mature trees and far-reaching views over the surrounding countryside and down to Pockford Brook.
Behind its classic Georgian front, the house offers 4,855sq ft of comfortable living space, including three main reception rooms, a study, a kitchen/breakfast room, two bedroom suites, three further bedrooms and a family shower room.
Next to the house, a large conservatory is linked to the stable block, staff cottage and estate office. Away from the house, two semi-detached three-bedroom cottages are both currently let.
Behind the walled garden, a lower courtyard houses a heated indoor pool and plant room, with a tennis court and a Grade II-listed party-barn nearby. Equestrian facilities include four loose boxes with paddocks close by, a sand school and an all-weather turnout area.
The land at Pockford Farm comprises 140 acres of pasture and 114 acres of woodland, of which 55 acres along the southern boundary are leased by the Forestry Commission as part of the Chiddingfold Forest SSSI. The land has been farmed organically and would be ideal for regenerative farming or rewilding, given the large areas of ancient woodland.
Once part of the Chiddingfold estate that was assembled over time by the Sadler family, who were lords of the manor of nearby Prestwick, Pockford House and its historic farmland were reunited in 1996 by the present owners, following the sale of the estate on the death of the last remaining Sadler.
The family is commemorated in a portrait of Thomas Sadler (1835–1915), which hangs in The Crown Inn, and bears the inscription ‘Presented to Thomas Sadler Esq of Pockford House by the Members and Friends of the Chiddingfold Hunt for his untiring zeal in hunting the Hounds for twelve seasons. May 15th, 1872.’ It previously hung in the dining room at Pockford House until the mid 1960s, when it passed to Lord Egremont at nearby Petworth.
Pockford Farm is for sale via Knight Frank at £9.75m — see more pictures and details.
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
Credit: Knight Frank
An ‘invisible house’ in Warwickshire that is the first of its kind in the UK — and you’ll either love it or hate it
If there were ever a property to cause contention, Invisible House is surely it.
-
'The watch is Head Boy of men’s accessorising': Ginnie Chadwyck-Healey and Tom Chamberlin's Summer Season style secretsWhen it comes to dressing for the Season, accessories will transform an outfit. Ginnie Chadwyck-Healey and Tom Chamberlin, both stylish summer-party veterans, offer some sage advice.
-
Lewis Hamilton, Claude Monet and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: Country Life Quiz of the Day, April 29, 2025Tuesday's Quiz of the Day looks back at Lewis Hamilton's first win and ponders on the meaning of greige.
-
About time: The fastest and slowest moving housing markets revealedNew research by Zoopla has shown where it's easy to sell and where it will take quite a while to find a buyer.
-
A wisteria clad hall built by one of the founders of the Bank of EnglandCome for the history of Old Hall. Stay for the interesting interiors.
-
A gorgeous Scottish cottage with contemporary interiors on the bonny banks of the River TayCarnliath on the edge of Strathtay is a delightful family home set in sensational scenery.
-
Six rural properties with space, charm and endless views, as seen in Country LifeWe take a look at some of the best houses to come to the market via Country Life in the past week.
-
380 acres and 90 bedrooms on the £25m private island being sold by one of Britain's top music producersStormzy, Rihanna and the Rolling Stones are just a part of the story at Osea Island, a dot on the map in the seas off Essex.
-
A home cinema, tasteful interiors and 65 acres of private parkland hidden in an unassuming lodge in KentNorth Lodge near Tonbridge may seem relatively simple, but there is a lot more than what meets the eye.
-
A rare opportunity to own a family home on Vanbrugh Terrace, one of London's finest streetsThis six-bedroom Victorian home sits right on the start line of the London Marathon, with easy access to Blackheath and Greenwich Park.
-
A tale of everyday life as lived on Britain's most expensive streetWinnington Road in Hampstead has an average house price of £11.9 million. But what's it really like? Lotte Brundle went to find out.
