881 Harrow-Balmoral Road

Balmoral VIC 3407

A unique farming holding known as Bellevue located at 881 Harrow Balmoral Road and about ten kilometres east of the Balmoral township in the Southern Grampians Shire is to be auctioned by Rodwells Ruralco Property via Auctions Plus on Friday 6 November at 1 pm.
Due to the COVID-19 restrictions on public auction numbers interested bidders on this attractive opportunity must register with Auctions Plus twenty four hours before the auction date which will be Friday 6 November at 1 pm.
Rodwells Ruralco Property selling agent Max Brown says that the sale process presents a unique opportunity to acquire a flexible and highly productive sheep and wool grazing operation with a well located position in a scenic district where the majority of farms are family owned and rarely become available on the market.
"The unique feature of this property is that there have only been four owners, all holding Bellevue for long periods, since its original selection in the mid eighteen hundreds.
"The vendors Neil and Ann have farmed this property for thirteen years running a successful family farm as essentially a fat lamb operation."
Max says he also features the location being within an hour of Horsham, where the vendors have traditionally offered their fat lambs, within an hour of Hamilton, and another hour to Naracoorte across the border in South Australia.
"Only ten kilometres to Bellevue's west is Balmoral - a rural service centre on the Glenelg River with a population of 300 and most retail facilities including the local K12 secondary school that services the region."
Bellevue has a long kilometre and a half frontage to the Harrow Balmoral Road while the property has been progressively farmed, including a regular fertilizer program, to be a fully functional sheep and wool enterprise.
The carrying capacity now is 1400 ewes and lambs, plus 160 replacement ewes and thirty rams. The approximate DSE is 2500.
The rectangular shaped holding has two entrances off the main bitumen road and has a rolling land form that rises to a plateau like formation for most of the farm.
There are important belts of established red gum and box trees especially along fence lines.
Bellevue is fenced 27 paddocks with a central laneway for easy stock movements.
Water resources are another feature as the property has a double frontage to Scabbing Station and Bellevue Creeks with several small tributaries, plus there are fifteen dams, four spring fed, with tank and trough systems in place.
The original and first selector of Bellevue was John Bolan a native of County Cork in Ireland who arrived at Portland in March 1854 and settled on Bellevue some years thereafter when most of the surrounding district was held by stations of the Armytage family.
Underlining Bellevue's historic significance are the several state Heritage overlays of significance that confirm the historic and architectural importance of the buildings on Bellevue.
Firstly, the homestead, outbuildings and garden area are of listed significance as reflecting "a series of buildings built at various dates in the mid-19th century" and reflect three stages of an early homestead development.
The citation reads that the first homestead is a single storey horizontal timber board and batten building with a substantial brick bakers' oven with the building having some later additions in horizontal corrugated iron.
A second more substantial homestead is perpendicular to the first with a hipped roof and of vertical timber board and batten type with an encircling veranda.
The third homestead is a later single storey brick eight room dwelling built in 1870 with a linear plan used in other historic rural homestead types.
These buildings are all set in a well-established garden of a later origin and it includes a well which the vendors say is a reliable spring fed water source
The historic and listed three stand woolshed that is still in use is located about 250 metres distant from the homes and it is built of horizontal or drop slabs with rough-hewn timber uprights.
It is regarded as "reflecting an early vernacular form of construction" with one wall subsequently replaced with corrugated sheeting.
The vendors say they have maintained the buildings to their original style with the main homestead having afforded their family a comfortable and convenient lifestyle.
They also say from time to time they have thought about creating an accommodation or Airbnb type opportunity for the extra spaces although they have used them for guest accommodation.
There are also subsequent farm buildings of hay and machinery sheds with two sets of yards for efficient farm operation.