A Pastoral Study In Elegant Country Living

Located in the pastoral outpost of Burradoo in the NSW southern highlands, Riversdale House – 15 Werrington Street Buradoo – is a study in elegant country living.

Two hours south of Sydney, adjacent to well-known Bowral and a ten-minute meander on foot to the local township — the luxurious house sits on a manicured 1.6-acres and holds 3-bedrooms, 4-bathrooms, 3-car parking as well as verdant surrounds.

Through the portico entrance, the beautifully crafted home sees lofty 3.9-metre ceilings with Egyptian limestone flooring underfoot, as well as antique stone fireplaces throughout.

The residence is divided into two distinct areas – ground level home to the formal dining, sitting room and deluxe chef’s kitchen (think luxurious European appliances including two Liebherr fridges, Miele induction cooktop with wok burner and Gaggenau oven).

The upstairs features the library and three bedrooms, each with ensuite in either marble or black granite and underfloor heating. The master suite, meanwhile, has timber French doors that open to a long private balcony overlooking the gardens.

Outdoors is where the home comes into its own. Boston ivy-covered walls, paved entertainment areas and large pergolas present a relaxing sense of splendour, matched by the gas heated swimming pool.

The listing is with Harriet France (+61 408 936 373) of Sotheby’s International Realty Sydney, in conjunction with Samuel Lindsay (+61 404 647 609) of Drew Lindsay Real Estate, and is on at $5.9m.

Sydneysothesbysrealty.com

Idaho is not a place that’s often associated with Medieval castles, but a pair have just hit the market for $6.25 million.

The imposing stone structures have towers, turrets, ramparts, arrow-slit windows and even a drawbridge, and might just be the most authentic-looking castles this side of the Atlantic.

“Who expects to see a castle like this in Idaho?” said listing agent Brenda Burk of Coldwell Banker Schneidmiller Realty, who brought the property to the market last week. They are, she said, “extremely unusual.”

Schweitzer Castle and Château de Melusine, as they’re known, stand within Schweitzer Mountain Resort in the Selkirk Mountains and overlook the nearby mountain resort town of Sandpoint. They take in panoramic views of Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho’s largest lake.

The pair of ski-in/ski-out homes each have three bedrooms, two bathrooms and three stories, Burk explained. They are “so authentic,” she said. “Every single stone was handlaid.”

Schweitzer Castle, she said, wasn’t built for “functionality,” but has been modernized and adapted and now has everything a 21st-century residence requires, along with a dungeon, which for some buyers may also be a requisite.

The chateau, meanwhile, has a hot tub room with mountain views, as well as a garage.

The property is being sold furnished, and will come complete with the hand-carved statues, armor, mounted swords, stained-glass windows and a host of antiques dating to the 15th and 16th centuries.

The owner, an antique collector who couldn’t be reached for comment, “is always looking for that hidden jewel and he found that here,” Burk said.

The next custodian is likely to stem from a varied pool of buyers, Burk said, that would include “the trophy-home buyer, someone who can say ‘I own a castle.’”

The property could also appeal to someone looking for a vacation home, or a multi-generational estate, and beyond that “there’s the dreamers,” she said. “We definitely try to market to people who like Medieval history or maybe do Renaissance fairs.”

The seller “really wants it to go to someone with the same passion.”

A Pastoral Study In Elegant Country Living

A luxurious Southern Highlands pile set in lush ‘English grounds’.

The imposing stone structures, with towers, turrets and a hot tub room, lord over the landscape near the mountain resort town of Sandpoint.