Ben Bentley, of The Country House Department estate agency, says: “The Cotswolds is very much a brand and if someone is considering moving here, they think: if it’s good enough for these high-profile people, it’s good enough for me.”
Behind those doors – if you ever make it past the electric gates – you’ll find some astonishing homes. The finest examples have two kitchens: a smaller one for staff and a larger, showy one for eating and entertaining. Many people will also want two home offices; Harry Gladwin, of buying agency The Buying Solution, says: “Having just one certainly doesn’t cut the mustard these days.”
Outside, there will likely be an outdoor kitchen as well as a natural swimming pond and ice bath. Party barns are popular, while padel tennis courts are increasingly springing up.
Some of the finest pads are second homes. The Lakes by Yoo, an 850-acre estate, offers the wealthy the chance to rent or buy an exclusive holiday home; demand is such that it is now extending into a further 110 neighbouring acres to create Cotswold Waters, which will have 77 lakeside homes and 63 lake fronted apartments, with prices on request.
Oxbarns, another developer, is creating six high-end holiday properties near Whichford; according to Emma Barkes, of Stacks Property Search, they cost £4m-£5m and are fully furnished by RH, the American luxury homewares company which recently opened a lifestyle shop at Aynhoe Park.
“They also offer a concierge service – picking you up from the station, lighting your woodburner in advance of your arrival, taking in the Ocado delivery and maintaining the garden,” says Barkes.
This takes care of one of the main problems currently faced by the wealthy in the Cotswolds: finding staff.
“It can take three months to find a housekeeper, poaching is rife and trying to find a groom is impossible,” says Jess Simpson, a buying agent.
“I had a client who had a row with their neighbour because they inadvertently poached their groom.” Finding experienced gardeners and tradespeople such as roofers is also a struggle, according to Jerome Lartaud, of Domus Holmes Property Finder.
The ‘real’ Cotswolds
Of course, there’s plenty of normal life here too and pandemic movers have, in some places, boosted local schools and shops. Diana Findlay, who moved last summer to a rented flat in Stow-on-the-Wold and is part of the team running atelier8, a creative workshop and event space in the town, says there’s a great community “of interesting and creative people”.
However, the extreme gentrification of parts of the Cotswolds has led to a backlash from locals being priced out of an area where holiday homes can earn more than they do. Here, the average two-bedroom holiday property makes an average income of £24,700 a year, rising to £46,300 for a four-bedroom holiday let, according to a new report by Sykes Holiday Cottages.
Not all of the Cotswolds are the same – this is, after all, a huge area of almost 800 square miles that runs through five counties: Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire, Wiltshire and Worcestershire.