No phone line, no mains, no water - but farmhouse has broadband to die for
It has no phone line, no mains electricity and no running water, but strangely this remote farmhouse comes with one of the fastest broadband speeds in the country.
Lower Foel Farmhouse, four miles from the nearest hamlet and a mile down a private stone track, might not be where you would expect to be able to get high speed wireless broadband.
But the farmhouse can receive up to 25Mbps through a wireless broadband connection provided by a local firm specialising in rural areas in Mid and North Wales where wired access to the internet is difficult or slow.
The farmhouse, near of Dolfor in Powys, was built in the 1850s but uninhabited after the winter of 1947. Renovation has taken place over the past10 years and it has now been put up for sale for £295,000, marketed as the perfect rural bolt hole.
What it lacks in utilities, it makes up for with its broadband connection.
It also boasts a decent mobile phone signal where other areas struggle.
Owner Michael Halsey, who currently lives at the farmhouse with his wife Claudi, and five-year-old daughter, said the house had been a challenge to renovate.
"I came to Mid Wales looking for a property that was out of the way a bit. I visited the farmhouse after being told about it. I walked down what was a mud track and saw the property and instantly realised its potential," he said.
"It hadn't been lived in since 1947. There had been animals living in it and ivy was coming through the roof. But the property was mainly intact along with the adjoining 90ft stone barn."
Mr Halsey moved into a caravan at the property in July 2004 and began restoring the two-bedroom home.
"We have full mobile telephone coverage here but we were aware of a local wireless broadband network. We spoke to the provider and after siting an aerial on a new telegraph pole on the highest part of our land we can now tap into fast broadband," he said.
The house has its own water supplied from a private well, purified by ultra-violet filtration, and electricity supplied by a diesel generator charging batteries.
It has 10 acres of grounds and a stream at the boundary.
Andrew Turner of agents Morris, Marshall and Poole said: "Lower Foel Farmhouse is perfect for anyone wanting to live in the countryside and still be able to connect with the outside world.
"The combination of being self-sufficient in an amazing location and with a good broadband connection provides a rare opportunity for someone who might want to escape the urban life but still keep in touch for work or pleasure through the communications enjoyed at the property."
