Entertainment

'Downton Abbey' Has Sparked This Sale

by Emma Goddard

Get your tea and crumpets ready, because Season 4 of Downton Abbey is back, and I expect to hear cries of joy and heartbreak throughout the nation as the clock strikes nine. Truly, despite the fact that everyone else is pondering Lady Mary Crawley’s existence without (spoiler alert) her deceased husband Matthew Crawley, I just can’t wait to hear the beautiful sound of John Lunn’s beloved theme song, “Did I Make The Most Of Loving You?” Whether throwing a season premiere party or wrapping themselves in a Snuggie to watch the show alone, fans everywhere are taking their love for the show to the extreme. The craziest thing, you might wonder? There’s a high demand for Downton Abbey-style homes this year.

Yes, toward the end of 2013, the interest in country houses (or, to many of us, a fancy term for something that looks like a castle) in England is seeing a rise in its numbers. The values for these country homes are expected to rise 3.5 percent from the 1.4 percent rise seen in the final quarter of 2013, and demand has gone up by 16.1 percent, according to Forbes. However, before you decide to ship off to England to live out your dreams of living like Violet Crawley, hilariously snarky and well-attended to, do make sure you’re ready to pay the bills.

Lower-value country houses are below 2 million pounds while the priciest houses cost closer to 5 million pounds, as reported by Forbes. And by below 2 million, we’re talking something similar to those $50 below sales at Urban Outfitters where you think you’ll find something between $20 and $30 but then everything is actually $49.50.

Knight Frank, which labels itself as “the world’s leading independent real estate consultancy,” reports that houses ranging within the lower-value prices and country homes in the South East should expect more successful sales in the market.

On the other hand, the average price of “super-prime” houses, which are typically priced at 5 million pounds or above, saw a 0.3 percent drop when houses between 2 million pounds and 3 million pounds, and those between 3 million pounds and 4 million pounds saw a small increase between October and December, according to Knight Frank.

Basically, if you are so blessed as to be able to call even 1 million pounds (remember, that’s .61 pounds to our $1) pocket money, then by all means wander off to the English countryside to make your purchase. Yet for the rest of who will be sipping on some Earl Grey and potentially munching on burnt, homemade scones, that’s a distant dream. Instead, we’ll just have to marvel at the exquisiteness of Downton Abbey from afar like the Anna Bates and Thomas Barrows we all are. Honestly, though, I'd prefer it.