Lovingly restored country retreat for sale with successful business

Radiating charm and beauty, this quaint Oallen home has been lovingly restored and curated into an enviable lifestyle retreat with its serene surrounds and successful business operation.

Relocated from its original position on the North Head of Manly Beach, the 1904-built residence found its new home at 297 Burden Drive 25 years ago.

Since then, owner Matt Knight and his partner Kompat have worked diligently to bring the sweet abode to life through a series of well-considered renovations and extensions, and create their lucrative boarding kennel business, Rovers Retreat.

“It’s been a labour of love as renovations tend to be with any old home,” Matt said.

“These older homes never end up being completely perfect and I don’t think anyone would ever want them to be, otherwise you eliminate all of the beautiful character.

“The best thing about living there is the space. You’ve got great views from every window, you’re surrounded by a lot of wildlife, the peace and quiet, the solitude.”

Located a 90 minute drive from Canberra and 50 minutes from Goulburn, the property is home to the couple and their unique business after Matt seized on a gap in the market for premium boarding kennels with a pick-up and drop-off service.

Set on a 44ha landholding with sprawling pastures, the inviting home spans 227sqm of renovated internal living space across three levels with a north-facing aspect that takes in the natural light and capitalises on the stellar rural views.

There are four bedrooms and two bathrooms, brand new hybrid timber flooring, a generous wraparound veranda and deck, air-conditioning and a log burner for the chillier months.

Outside, there is a swimming pool and guest house, hot tub on the back deck with a bar, a chicken coup and a large vegetable garden. There is also a large shed and two water tanks with 60,000-litre capacity.

Windrose Property Principal Sam McGregor said the sympathetic renovation paid respect to the history of the house, with modern flourishes that reflected resort living.

“I think this has to be one of the most unique homes I’ve ever seen,” Sam said. “It’s a style of home that’s in vogue at the moment, especially in the country regions.

“It’s cool to see that even newer homes are taking inspiration from original properties like this. The architectural style has come full circle.

“It’s absolutely faultless. To me, it feels like a resort. The way that it’s positioned on the block is outstanding. It’s got really beautiful views all the way back across the valley. Every part of the house has something to love about it.”

Matt said while he has loved living in the home and Rovers Retreat was extremely profitable, he had decided to call it a day and was seeking a lifestyle change.

“I’m really proud of what we’ve achieved from an empty field,” Matt said.
“My reason for moving on now is that we’ve been here for 25 years, we’ve had the kennels for 18 years, and it’s just time to do something else.
“We only use about 8 acres out of 100. I see that land around us as a bit of a buffer between us and anybody else, so there’s certainly potential if you wanted to have stock, sheep, cattle, horses – it’s grazing land so you could certainly accommodate.”

Windrose Property is inviting offers on 297 Burden Drive, Oallen between $2.1 million and $2.3 million.