Tilehouse Street, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG5 2DY

A Grade II* listed brick and tile seven bedroom house with a walled garden, parking and a double garage in the centre of Hitchin within walking distance of amenities. The house is listed as a late 18th century remodelling of a much earlier house, with the original Tudor timber framed structure behind the Georgian Façade. The listing describes the two stone steps leading up to a panelled door and fanlight with elaborately carved wooden surround of pilasters and broken pediment with modillions. It once belonged to John Sturgeon (c1430-94) a Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire and Master of the Ordinance under King Edward IV. It also has a plaque which commemorates George Chapman (1559-1634) son of a Hitchin Yeoman, a poet and playwright and a friend of both Shakespeare and Bacon. His most famous work was a translation of Homer’s Iliad which is still in print today. His brother Thomas purchased the house in 1591. George lived here from 1614-19.

Overview cont'd The present owners purchased the house nearly 30 years ago and carried out a full renovation of the property at that time. The house now has seven bedrooms, five bathrooms, four reception rooms and a bespoke kitchen/breakfast room. There is private parking and a double garage. It is situated on what was described as “the most fascinating and attractive of all our town’s streets” by the Hitchin historian Reginald Hine whose memorial garden the house faces onto.

Ground Floor On the ground floor there is the formal entrance hall, a study, dining room, a sitting room and a snug leading through to the kitchen/breakfast room. There is also a rear lobby, and a cloakroom. The snug also has steps down to the cellars which are divided into three areas.

Reception Rooms The dining room has wooden floorboards, a decorative fireplace with a gas fire, and access to a large under stairs butler’s cupboard. There are two sash windows to the front. The sitting room also has wooden floorboards, another decorative fireplace and a wall frieze. Doors lead out to the garden. The study has wooden floorboards, low level wall panelling, sash windows to the front, and a fireplace (not used). The snug has an open fireplace, panelled walls, a quarry tiled floor and a window to the side with shutters. There are built in book shelves and a door to the back stairs.

Kitchen/Breakfast Room The kitchen area has a Rayburn gas fired range set into the fireplace with a mantelpiece over. The fitted units are hand painted and there is a central island and a combination of granite and wooden work surfaces. Appliances include built-in Neff ovens, one with a warming drawer, and a separate induction hob. There is a window to the side and French doors to the garden and doors to a store cupboard. There is a rear lobby with a cloakroom and door to the garden.

Cellars The main dry cellar has wooden flooring and a radiator. It leads through to the laundry room which has a stone floor, butler sink and a water heater. There is a door to the store room which leads out under the driveway.

First Floor The main landing has an airing cupboard which has the gas fired boiler and a linen cupboard, stairs to the second floor, and access to four bedrooms and four bath or shower rooms.

First Floor Bedrooms and Bathrooms Bedroom two has two sash windows to the front with secondary double glazing, wooden flooring and an en suite shower room which has a window to the front, a vanity unit with inset washbasin, a shower cubicle and low-level WC. Bedroom three was formerly the ladies’ lounge, when it used to have a canopy to the rear, and has built-in cupboards and windows to the rear. Bedroom four has two sash windows to the rear and an en suite shower room with a window to the rear, a low level WC, a vanity washbasin and a shower cubicle. Bedroom five is used as the guest room and has a fireplace, built-in cupboards and a sash window to the front. There is a door to the main shower room which can also be accessed from the landing and has a vanity washbasin, a shower cubicle and low level WC.

Second Floor The stairs lead up to a small landing which has steps up to bedroom six and other steps to an upper landing which gives access to the principal bedroom suite, and a seventh bedroom which is currently used as a dressing room/walk-in wardrobe.

Principal Bedroom Suite The principal bedroom has exposed ceiling beams, built-in cupboards, a built-in fireplace and windows to the rear. The expansive en suite has a freestanding bath with mixer taps, a shower cubicle, twin washbasins set on a vanity unit, a WC and a fireplace. There are two Velux windows.

Bedroom Six The sixth bedroom has a window to the side, wooden floorboards and a storage cupboard. There is a door to a dressing area which leads through to an en suite bathroom with a window to the front, a free-standing bath with a shower over, a vanity washbasin and low-level WC.

Gardens and Grounds The garden is enclosed by a combination of walls and fencing and there are wrought iron gates from the street leading to a shared road at the side which is jointly owned by several properties which have right of access to reach their property. There is a courtyard area with a raised pond, and steps leading up to the main garden area which has a block paved patio and a range of fruit trees including pears, apples and plums. An opening from the road leads to a block paved private parking area which has space for three cars and leads to the double garage which has an up and over door, power and light connected, and an electric car charging point. There are further raised beds and a grapevine.

Locality Hitchin has a wide range of amenities with regular markets, and independent cafes, restaurants and boutiques in the town centre. Leisure facilities include a swimming pool and the Queen Mother Theatre. Hitchin has a great community spirit, with a variety of community groups and events operating throughout the year, and sports clubs, including football, rugby, cycling, tennis, badminton, fencing and running. Hitchin railway station is on the Great Northern Line and journeys to London and Cambridge both take around 30 minutes. Thameslink trains have direct routes to stations including Kings Cross, St Pancras, Blackfriars and London Bridge and onto Gatwick and Brighton. Hitchin is about 9 miles from Luton Airport with a direct bus service linking the two. The A505, A600 and A602 roads intersect in Hitchin, which is about 3 miles from junction 8 of the A1(M) and 10 miles from junction 10 of the M1. There are several primary schools in Hitchin and secondary schooling at (truncated)

Purchaser compliance Purchaser Compliance & Administration Fee To comply with the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, Michael Graham is legally mandated to conduct compulsory Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) checks on all property buyers. While we do not charge a commission fee to the property vendor, a mandatory compliance and administration fee of £54.00 (inclusive of VAT) per person is payable by the purchaser(s). This non-refundable fee covers the cost of third-party electronic identity verification, source of funds auditing, and the associated regulatory administration. This fee becomes payable upon an offer being accepted in principle and must be fully cleared before a Memorandum of Sale can be issued or solicitors instructed. The payment of this fee does not guarantee the completion of the transaction, and Michael Graham reserves the right to request further verification documentation to (truncated)