Historic Exeter building's asking price set at £1.5million

It could be turned into flats

Plans to overhaul an historic Exeter building could soon materialise as it goes up for sale once again. Last year, permission was granted to turn it into 14 'suites'.

Walnut House on St Davids Hill is being marketed for sale by Savills estate agents, who describe its as a "rare conversion opportunity". In June 2023, Exeter City Council granted permission to turn the Grade II listed building into 14 residential suites with a communal kitchen and living space.

A planning statement produced on behalf of applicants The Trustees of the Tamwade Pension Fund said the homes would be targeted at people who wanted to live with other or who can't afford to live alone.

It said: "The development would deliver high quality shared accommodation and provide an alternative to professional lets for those that wish to live with others or may not be able to afford to live alone. A key feature is the provision of communal facilities (kitchen and living space) to both encourage the idea of a community within the development and to enable the sharing of facilities in a sustainable manner."

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The proposal is described as a house in multiple occupation (HMO), rather than a co-living or student accommodation block. Each room is to be fitted with a bathroom pod which can be removed in the future. Planners say this would allow the house to be turned back into a single occupant home.

The asking price for the house has been set at £1.5million. Savills says potential buyers could implement the approved redevelopment, with the possibility of applying for a fifteenth suite or apply for an entirely different use.

While it is not explicitly stated that buyers should target student occupiers, a large part of the estate agents' brochure is dedicated to Exeter's student accommodation market. It says that students account for 25 per cent of the population of the St David's ward - the largest share in the city.

The brochure also claims that the existing stock of purpose-built student accommodation is "failing to meet rising demand and Exeter has a limited supply pipeline."

In recent years, Walnut House has stood empty after previously being used as office space for the Barristers Chambers. It was first built in the late 18th century as a residential dwelling, with online records saying residents included a wine merchant and his family of eight and a woollen drape with his wife and two children.

In 2022, the building suffered smoke damage after an electrical fire, which planning documents say caused damage to the eastern ground floor. At the time, Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service said the fire was accidental.

Walnut House is also said to have been damaged by water entering the property from the upper floors during heavy rain in early 2023.