World’s oldest bungalow up for sale for $1.9M

By Millie Bowles & Alice Clifford via SWNS

The world's oldest bungalow is up for sale with a £1.5 million ($1.9 million) price tag.

The six-bedroom seafront property in the Kent coastal village of Birchington, England was built by train station architect John Taylor in 1874.

The house was one of the first bungalows to be built in the UK and according to Historic England is now the oldest in the world.

Dubbed "Fair Outlook," the Grade II Listed property was originally built as a holiday home for the architect himself.

Directly overlooking the sea and standing on a cliff edge, the house boasts a 60ft hallway and a separate annex.

Its main reception room has an open fireplace and large windows overlooking the back garden and its sea views, while its Manston room has a bar for evening entertaining.

The kitchen has a built-in Aga and there is a separate utility room. Two of its double bedrooms have en suites, plus there is an L-shaped garage.

When it was built, it soon caught the eye of the Victorian elite.

English surgeon Professor Erasmus Wilson, who was knighted by Queen Victoria in 1881, nicknamed the style of building "bungalow," a name that came from the Bengali region of India.

The name literally meaning "house in the Bengal style."

He wrote at the time: "The idea of Bungalows seems to take people's minds immensely. They are novel, quaint, pretty and perfect as to sanitary qualities. The best sanitary home for a family is a Bungalow."

The single-storied dwellings were initially considered a symbol of bohemianism and the building type became a popular choice for second homes.

The dermatology pioneer also wrote that he felt Birchington air, in Kent, was unequalled anywhere along the whole of Britain's coastline.

The surgeon calculated that "during a period of 24 hours a person would consume twice as much air at Birchington-on-Sea as he would given the same time in London."

But while the Victorian medic raved about it, prohibitive financing was used to keep the area exclusive.

Prices for the bungalows were originally around about 1500 guineas, roughly £190,000 ($244,926) in today's money.

That was a time when experienced clerks only received about 100 guineas a year and most of the working class made as little as 25 guineas a year.

The bungalow was listed for sale two years ago but for £500,000 ($644,542) over the current price.

Lee Thomas, from Fresh Estates, said: "While it has the benefit of a rich history, this substantial family home has six bedrooms, an annex as well as the uninterrupted sea views - all of which makes this bungalow so unique."