Farming condition on £620,000 house should go says March Town Council

March town councillors agreed that a restriction limiting the use of a property to those working in agriculture should be lifted.

Members discussed the application by Mr K and Mrs T McCurry to have the condition of occupancy lifted from Ravens Haven in Grange Road, after hearing how despite being on the market for well over 12 months it had not attracted on single viewing.

That said town clerk Sarah Lemmon, as she outlined the application, was despite the property being on the market at 25% less than the property’s valuation. It was being marketed with a guide price of £620,000.

The property was originally granted permission to Mrs Raven in 2010 with the proviso of the agricultural occupancy. Ms Lemmon said it was not an issue at the time as the family was farming the land around it.

However, she had since died and the property was sold to its current owners two-and-a-half years ago, but the people who bought it had tried and failed to make the property, which has five acres a success as a smallholding.

Now they want to sell the property and move to something smaller.

Despite extensive efforts to market the property there had been little interest.

Councillor Gary Christy questioned why the four-bedroom house and the five acres had been removed and sold separately to the rest of the farmland.

Councillor Martin Field suggested the property could potentially be made into a house of multiple occupancy and let out to farm workers.

Councillors agreed they did not like removing such conditions, but under the circumstances, they felt they had to agree to the application.

A vote saw four members in favour and two against the application.