Fire Damaged School Site sells at auction
Fierce bidding broke out for a fire-damaged former school in St Austell before it sold for £262,000 at auction. (THURS FEB 6)
Carclaze Infants School, in Carclaze Road, was listed with a freehold guide price of £50,000 to £70,000 after being placed for sale by Cornwall Council.
There were 76 separate bids for the property before the gavel eventually fell at a sum well in excess of that guide.
The former school was among 177 lots in the first sale of 2025 by one of the top five property auctioneers in the UK, Clive Emson Land and Property Auctioneers.
Auctioneer David Henwood said: “There was keen bidding amongst prospective buyers which mean this lot achieved a price significantly in excess of its guide.
“It offers a range of possibilities for potential renovation or replacement for its new owner. Clearly this could include some form of residential scheme, subject to all necessary consents being obtainable.”
Also placed for sale by the council, were two parcels of land off Burngullow Lane, High Street, St. Austell.
Located next to a terrace of cottages, each had a freehold guide of £500.
One, measuring about 0.13 hectares (0.31 acres) with an outbuilding, sold for £40,050.
The other, measuring about 0.04 hectares (0.1 acres), fetched £15,500.
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A bungalow on the edge of Polperro also sold at auction.
The semi-detached house, which has two bedrooms, fetched £85,000 when it went under the gavel. It had a freehold guide price of £80,000 to £90,000.
It was among 177 lots in the first auction of 2025 by one of the top five property auctioneers in the UK, Clive Emson Land and Property Auctioneers.
Auction Appraiser James Lofthouse said: “This well-located bungalow reached the mid-point of its guide.
“The purchaser now has a number of options before them, including owner-occupation, renovation and resale or letting on the rental market.”
The property is at Langreek Bungalows.
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Popular appeal for Redruth lots
Buyers also snapped up property and land in demand in the Redruth area.
An end-terrace three-bedroom house in Raymond Road with land sold for three times its freehold guide price when the gavel fell at £152,000. It was listed at £50,000 to £60,000.
Auctioneer David Henwood said: “There were a wide variety of lots in our first auction of 2025.
“Land and residential property in the Redruth drew strong interest with demand taking sale prices above guide prices, and significantly so in some cases.”
In Tregea Terrace, Portreath, a two-bedroom terraced cottage sold for £181,000. Listed with a freehold guide of £140,000 plus, it was sold for the first time in many decades.
The house was auctioned in arrangement with MAP Estate Agents.
In Falmouth Road, Redruth, an end-terrace house with three bedrooms sold for £139,000.
It was auctioned in arrangement with MAP Estate Agents with a freehold guide of £120,000 to £130,000.
Freehold land and roads at Barncoose Industrial Estate, Barncoose, sold for ten times their freehold guide.
They fetched £20,250 after being listed with a guide of £2,000 to £3,000 on instructions from Cornwall Council.
The lot comprised separate sections spread across a mixed commercial and industrial area. Part of the road provides access to the well-established Gateway Business Centre.
Clive Emson Auctioneers, which has its regional office in Exeter, was recently awarded Residential Auction Service of the Year in The Negotiator Awards 2024, the Oscars of the UK’s residential agency sector.
The next auction of eight this year by Clive Emson Auctioneers concludes on 20 March, with bidding live 48 hours beforehand. Lot entries close on 24 February, with the catalogue online from 27 February.
See https://www.cliveemson.co.uk for more details.