The Glorious Twelfth, as August 12 is known, marks the start of the shooting season for grouse, a real highlight of the rural calendar and one of the busiest days for shooting in the UK. There might not have been a better time to find a sporting estate of your own, especially as buyers are currently benefiting from increased availability in Scotland, according to search agent Saint Property.
Director Matthew Sinclair said: “There are an increasing number of sporting estates becoming available, including dear forests and low-ground estates focusing on pheasant and partridge shoots.
“We expect this trend to continue particularly in the Highlands and west coast of Scotland.
“The ‘best in class’ will sell, but secondary properties will struggle. All will remain extremely price sensitive.”
Currently, almost 40% of buyers on Saint Property’s books are looking for estates. These buyers are from the UK, Europe and the Far East. Mr Sinclair offers this advice to those looking to buy a sporting estate: “The most important factor is the quality of the preferred sport, but other factors include public access, accessibility to the area, rainfall and climate, prevalence of disease such as ticks, diversification potential, conservation potential and attractiveness of the area.
“Housing is very much a personal preference; however the focus will be on quality, number of cottages, employee requirements and the situation of the house in relation to the land.”
Considerations for each type of sport include:
Grouse – historic record; current management; collaboration with neighbouring estates and their management; accessibility to hill, general infrastructure and flexibility, given changing weather conditions.
Shooting – layout of coverts; terrain; orientation and age structure of woodlands; ability to adjust drives; position of release pens; accessibility and management plan.
Stalking – previous record; the lie of the land; accessibility to hill; level of challenge.
Fishing – catch record; number of pools and runs; ease of fishing and how well maintained the river, fishing huts, boats and banks are.
Tags: Matthew Sinclair, Pheasant shoots, Saint Property, Sporting Estate, Stalking, The Glorious Twelfth
