A farm recently put up for sale near the seaside town of Whitehead in Co Antrim offers 122 acres of good quality land and, for any farmer interested in scenery, fine views of the Irish Sea and Belfast Lough.

The farm was put on the market last month by Belfast-based auctioneers Pooler Country. The guide price is £10,000 per acre and consideration is being given to bids for both the whole farm or separate lots.

The farm compromises of two blocks of land divided by a main road. The largest block is 80 acres in size and has mostly free draining soils.

Around a third of the 80-acre block is taken up by one large field which was formed when the previous owners merged a number of smaller fields. However, the drinkers from when it was several smaller fields are still in place, so it could be easily subdivided again.

The rest of the largest block compromises of 10 fairly even-sized fields. All the fields have access to large concrete drinkers that are supplied from a private well on the farm. Some fields at the edge of the farm are steep in places, although all land can be accessed with machinery.

Fields are well fenced for both cattle and sheep and all fields have hedgerows that have been well maintained and provide good shelter for livestock.

Lower side

The remaining 42 acres of the farm is situated on the lower side of the main Carrickfergus to Larne road. The block is divided into four evenly sized fields, with two fields situated on either side of a quiet back road.

This block of land is also well fenced and has adequate drinkers and water supply. However, the land is flatter and soils are slightly heavier than the upper side of the road.

The whole farm is currently in grass and appears to have been well managed by a single tenant under a conacre arrangement.

There are two wind turbines on the farm also. However, the plan is to not include these in the sale but to grant access to them, which will be included in an agreement with the property’s new owners.

House

Separate to the sale of the land is the substantial dwelling house adjacent to the farm. The six-bed house has five reception rooms, an indoor swimming pool and well laid out gardens.

The house was originally built in the 19th century and has been renovated and extended several times since. The asking price for this lot is £500,000.

This includes five acres which covers the main five-bedroom house, the gardens, a detached two storey cottage and a farmyard with traditional stone buildings.