Run-down house on Whitefield Road, New Milton, formerly owned by Cllr Alan Rice, listed by Mitchells Estate Agents for £1

A RUN-down town centre house – once belonging to a councillor – that’s listed for just £1 is attracting “huge interest” according to the estate agent.

The home on Whitefield Road, described by Mitchells Estate Agents as “a characterful property”, is in a poor state of repair, with floors in a downstairs room rotted through.

It was once the home of late long-serving town, district and county councillor Alan Rice, who died in 2022 aged 90.

Grimy net curtains hide most of what is inside from public view, but neighbours say it is “in a shocking state” with one saying: “There is stuff stacked up everywhere.

“The floors in most rooms downstairs are completely gone and the kitchen is beyond description.”

The exterior of Cllr Rice’s former two-storey detached three-bedroom home, which is in front of the Quaker meeting house, is as dilapidated as the inside with rotting window frames, missing roof tiles, and chunks of plaster having fallen out.

But that has not deterred buyers, thought to be mainly developers, seeking the chance to buy the home through Mitchells, which has received several offers for it.

A source said: “There has been huge interest in it. The £1 is just a reserve price – it is likely to go for a lot more than that. The building is in bad shape, but it could be refurbished to make it into a lovely family home, or knocked down and something built in its place.

“It could also be turned into flats, or a business, subject to planning permission being granted.”

Cllr Rice was one of the longest serving members of Hampshire County Council, staying on for 44 years.

He also served on New Forest District Council for 42 years and was a founder member of the New Forest National Park Authority.

A commoner, Cllr Rice also served on the Verderers’ Court and, after stepping down as a county councillor in 2017, continued as a town councillor and was granted the freedom of the town in 2014.

The former soldier was a member of the Royal British Legion and also a school governor.

Mitchells describes his former home as a “characterful detached property currently laid out as three individual units and offering excellent potential for re-configuration or for a re-development of the site”.

It adds that the property is in “need of a complete renovation and is situated in a fantastic position in the heart of New Milton”.

A spokesperson for Mitchells said: "The property has got great potential. It has attracted a lot of interest. It does need a lot of work."

The house is for sale by tender, with bids invited by midday on 31st March.

A neighbour told the A&T: “He was such a nice man. But we are looking forward to something being done to the house at last because we have a terrible rat problem because of it.

“It would be nice to see it brought back to a lovely family home.”