THE BSPC PROPERTY GUIDE / WWW.BSPC.CO.UK
Focus on the Hawick Area Beverley Brown takes a closer look at what this part of the Borders offers as a lifestyle location
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THE BSPC PROPERTY GUIDE / WWW.BSPC.CO.UK
The Heritage Hub, Hawick
Overlooking Hawick
The largest town in the Scottish Borders, Hawick is renowned the world over for its knitwear and textile industries, which began as long ago as the 13th century and continue to flourish today, one example being Lochcarron of Scotland, established in 1947 and now the world’s leading manufacturer of tartan, among other things.
Hawick has merged the old and the new with great success. While many historical buildings are there to admire, like the Public Library and Town Hall, some have found a new lease of life – most notably the former Tower Mill, the centrepiece of a £10 million regeneration project that incorporates a striking two-storey glass entrance and terrace overlooking Slitrig Water.
But while tourists come to Hawick to pursue the textile trail, others are looking at the regenerated town through fresh eyes as a place to live.
Now a modern civic arts centre, this landmark building houses a cinema, theatre, cafe and exhibition area – quite a contrast to the original water wheel, which has been retained as a tangible link with the past.
There’s no doubt that Hawick fits the bill as a lifestyle destination. All the essentials are here – including good shops and restaurants, a diverse property market, schools, wide range of sports and leisure facilities – but so too are things you can’t put a price on, like history and culture and spectacular scenery. While the last few hundred years of Hawick’s economy has been based on the textile industry, the 21 st century reality is very different for the largest town in the Borders. The historic town boasts perhaps less well known features, including over 100 acres of parkland, tree-lined walks, children’s play areas, mountain bike trails, craft workshops and an exhaustive list of leisure opportunities.
Also enjoying a renaissance, the former Corn Exchange is now a major attraction renamed the Heritage Hub. It houses a state-of-the-art family history centre and regional archive providing climate-controlled storage for thousands of local manuscripts and records dating back to the 1500s. The Heart of Hawick project also included the construction of a metal footbridge across the Teviot and the refurbishment of Drumlanrig’s Tower, now a visitor centre and museum with period rooms interpreting the history of Hawick. History runs deep in this part of the world and Hawick’s location, close to the English border, made it a frequent target for cross border skirmishes between the two countries during the 1300s, 1400s and 1500s. Today the English come in peace, either to shop as day visitors, or to find a lifestyle destination that offers spectacular scenery, a wide variety of sports and leisure facilities, and a property market that has something to suit every taste, from period buildings, conversions and traditional flats, to rural cottages and modern housing developments.
Wilton Lodge Museum, Hawick
Overlooking Selkirk
The biggest attraction is the great outdoors. South of Hawick, almost on the border, Newcastleton Forest is a mecca for walkers and nature lovers. It also has mountain bike trails and pony trekking – and you can cross the border into Kielder Forest. Founded in 1793 by the Duke of Buccleuch as a hand-loom weaving centre, Newcastleton occupies land that was once known as Border Reiver country, home of the Armstrongs and Elliots. The Liddesdale Heritage Centre and Armstrong Clan Trust reflect the area’s past, as does the nearby fourteenth century Hermitage Castle. Other attractions include award-winning Wilton Lodge Park, which boasts over 107 acres of riverside and tree-lined walks and Teviotdale Leisure Centre, which includes a swimming pool, flumes, squash, and indoor bowling. For golfers, there’s a challenging 18-hole golf course with panoramic views of the surrounding countryside, plus a parkland course in the Teviot Valley. Hawick also caters for alternative leisure pursuits, with the Eastcote House Archery Centre and the Scottish Academy of Falconry and Related Studies at Bonchester Bridge. And the past is celebrated annually in the Common Riding, an event that commemorates a victory in 1514 for the town’s younger boys or ‘callants’ who fought off a raiding party of English troops and captured their flag in the process.
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Hawick High Street
Overlooking Hawick
All of the above, in addition to a varied property market, makes Hawick and the surrounding villages a very desirable place to live. It also helps that Hawick’s proximity to the A7 makes it easily accessible to Selkirk, Galashiels and Melrose, while Newcastle Airport is around an hour’s drive – add an extra 15 minutes to Edinburgh Airport. The opening of the Waverly rail link from Edinburgh to Tweedbank is likely to further boost this area as a base for commuters. According to Dee Elliot, property advisor at BSPC member firm Bannerman Burke based in the High Street in Hawick, prospective buyers within the local area are currently spoilt for choice. “There is a vast selection of properties available in Hawick at present across all price ranges, from budget-priced one bedroom flats to large houses at the very top end of the market,” she says. “Recently there has been an encouraging increase in activity and movement within the town across a mix of property sizes and styles. We have also completed a number of part-exchange transactions of late, which involve matching up two separate sets of vendors who are trying to sell in order to subsequently purchase properties of the type owned by the other. Where these matches can be found it’s an ideal way of speeding up the sale and purchase process and avoiding some of the usual issues with chains.”
She adds: “The rental market has really picked up in the last year or so possibly due to the difficulties potential first time buyers face in obtaining a mortgage. Younger people are increasingly happy to rent, and as a result, any rental properties that come up are usually snapped up pretty quickly, which is obviously ideal for landlords.” Twelve miles from Hawick - and less than 40 miles from Edinburgh - the town of Selkirk isn’t just old, it’s officially ancient – an Ancient and Royal Burgh. But what sets this Border town apart from its neighbours is its dramatic elevated setting high above the Ettrick and Yarrow valleys. While Hawick made hosiery, Selkirk built a reputation for glassmaking and gave its name to the buttery-tasting Selkirk Bannock. The town is also known for its associations with Sir Walter Scott (who served as sheriff for 33 years and whose courtroom is now a museum) and with William Wallace, who was declared Guardian of the Kingdom of Scotland in Selkirk. The Ettrick Valley was also the birthplace of poet and writer James Hogg, otherwise known as the ‘Ettrick Shepherd’.
Wilton Park Gardens, Hawick
Wilton Hill, Hawick
The Scott Monument and Selkirk High Street
Walled Gardens, Hawick
As a place to live Selkirk has much going for it apart from spectacular scenery – good schools, shops, hotels, restaurants, and sports and leisure facilities that include rugby, swimming, angling, golf (with both nine and 18-hole courses), horse-riding, walking and cycling. Bowhill House and Country Park, the Borders home of the Duke of Buccleuch, is another major attraction in the area. There’s also a creative vibe in Selkirk that can be seen in Rob Elliot’s handcrafted furniture and the award-winning Twists Glass Studio. Residential property in and around the town caters for every conceivable size and style including modern estates. Halfway between Hawick and Jedburgh, Denholm is a conservation village laid out around a village green, a planned community that dates back to the 17th century after the original hamlet was destroyed as a result of cross-border skirmishes. Again this village offers buyers a range of house styles from traditional to modern family housing.
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Denholm Village Green
Selkirk Town Centre
One development currently attracting interest is The Croft Field in this picturesque village, where Cruden Homes currently has a niche development of four bedroomed bungalows and five bedroomed detached villas, all with integral garage, large garden and a design and finish in keeping with the rural location.
Once again, higher value properties are faring better overall, particularly those houses that offer something unique or special, such as fantastic views a location that fits buyers’ needs to be close to facilities – or for niche buyers, a setting that offers privacy, or a large garden or paddock.
There are now only two properties remaining in the first phase of this development; plot 16 is a Duncan four bedroomed bungalow style, now for sale at £238,500, while plot 19 is a Leyden, the last of the five bedroomed detached villas, now for sale at £305,000.
In terms of house style, generally traditional is in greater demand than modern but much depends on location, presentation and marketing, as attracting buyers from outwith the Borders can make an appreciable difference.”
Buyers who reserve either of these two properties can choose one of two valuable incentives – either a brand new top-of-the-range Volvo S40 family saloon car worth £18,000, or a 100% market value part exchange.
With regards to the letting market, Hastings reports strong activity and potential, although there’s a tendency for investors to focus on tourist hot spots and ignore the sound investment value of buying in an area that has strong rental demand.
BSPC executive member Ron Hastings, of Hastings Property Shops has an office in Selkirk and lives in this area of the Borders, so he fully appreciates all that it has to offer. Commenting on the current property market, he says: “The market in Hawick and Selkirk is holding up and the key word is ‘flexibility’. Sellers who are prepared to be flexible on the date of entry and who will accept the need to make modest adjustments to their marketing to reflect current conditions, are rewarded with a sale – and plenty of choice for their onward move, whether buying or renting.
LOCAL BSPC MEMBER FIRMS Bannerman Burke (BB) PO Box 17, 28 High Street, Hawick, TD9 9BY Tel. 01450 372750 Fax. 01450 378525 Email. hawick@bannermanburke.co.uk 28 High Street, Hawick, TD9 9BY (Property) Tel. 0800 1300 353 Fax. 01450 378525 Email. property@bannermanburke.co.uk 32 High Street, Selkirk, TD7 4DD Tel. 01750 700026 Fax. 01750 725672 Email. selkirk@bannermanburke.co.uk Website. www.bannermanburke.co.uk
He concludes: “What is needed in these more challenging times is a sensible asking price, a sensible approach to any reasonable offers, and good advice from the selling agent. Across the country we are still facing difficult times but the prospects for the Borders – and the Hawick and Selkirk areas in particular – are good, being soundly based on community. People who are proud to live in their towns, seldom move very far, and who buy locally, recognising the importance of connections and the fact that both towns offer a lifestyle that is hard to beat.”
Collie & Co (COL) 26 High Street, Selkirk, TD7 4DD Tel. 01750 723868 Fax. 01750 723866 Email.selkirk@collieandco.com Website. www.collieandco.com
Douglas Gilmour & Son (DG) 20 Market Place, Selkirk, TD7 4BL Tel. 01750 720271 Fax. 01750 722686 Email. mainoffice@douglasgilmour.co.uk
Geo. & Jas. Oliver W.S. (GJO) 13 High Street, Hawick, TD9 9DH Tel. 01450 372791 Fax. 01450 377654 Email. solicitors@gandjoliver.co.uk Website. www.gandjoliver.co.uk
ANDREW HADDON & CROWE W.S.
Views from Ruberslaw Golf Course
Andrew Haddon & Crowe W.S.(HC) 3 Oliver Place, Hawick, TD9 9BG Tel. 01450 372738 Fax. 01450 372786 Email. info@ahcsolicitors.co.uk Website. www.ahcsolicitors.co.uk
Haddon & Turnbull W.S. (HT)
Mungo Park Statue, Selkirk
55 High Street, Hawick, TD9 9BP Tel. 01450 372336 Fax. 01450 377463 Email. solicitors@htws.co.uk Website. www.haddonandturnbull.co.uk
Hastings & Co. (HAS) Hastings Property Shop, Selkirk 22 Market Place, Selkirk, TD7 4BL Tel. 01750 724160 Fax. 01750 725673 Email. enq@hastingslegal.co.uk Website. www.hastingslegal.co.uk
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Overlooking Selkirk
Images courtesy of Visit Scotland Borders, Hastings & Co and Digital Image