BRIGHTWELLS had a number of firsts at their recent farm auction of a 250-acre Herefordshire farm which was sold for £4.7 million.

Amberley Court in Sutton St Nicholas was the first farm sold after Brexit, the first sold in Hereford’s refurbished Green Dragon Hotel and the first private auction conducted by Greg Christopher.

The farm, with its grade I listed farmhouse, several modern farm buildings and hundreds of acres of level, fertile land, came onto the market at the end of 2019.

Auctioneers Brightwells said initial viewings went well and they had three offers in excess of the guide price.

But the firm, established in 1846, felt the best outcome would be to auction the farm.

The process was put on hold whilst the vendors sold their entire Pedigree Hereford herd in Hereford Market with a record breaking £10,200 paid for Greenyards 1 Truelove M314.

Auctioneer Greg Christopher said he thought the farm deserved a decent send off, with the auction held at the refurbished Green Dragon Hotel in Broad Street.

Mr Christopher stood up to start the bidding, opening up at £3.8m the bids rose quickly by £100k, eventually slowing at £4.6m and finally the hammer crashing down at £4.7m to a local farmer.

He said: “I was absolutely delighted with the outcome of the sale, it clearly shows auction is the best and fairest way to sale a farm.

“All three parties bid for the farm, unfortunately only one of them could buy it and very good luck to them.

“Last year was a record year for us at Brightwells in Hereford with over £15m of farms and land sold.

“Our bare land sales averaged £12,841 per acre and equipped farms £14,093 per acre. Even with all the political uncertainty, the value of farms and land has gone from strength to strength.”