Upstate

Restored Former 'Curated Farm Stay' Homestead in Ghent, Yours for $750K

You will have to do your own farm labor on this scenic property but the house itself, a circa 1850s wood frame, was renovated with a modern country vibe for use as part of a rentable rural experience.

by Susan De Vries

02/25/2022 0

The just over nine acre property on the market at 1100 Harlemville Road in Ghent, N.Y., was known as ‘Homestead’ when it was part of Farm and Field. The service offered the house for rent along with its “curated farm stay” experiences like collecting eggs, milking goats and heading out on farm tours to learn about the importance of small, local agriculture.

While county records give a 1900 date of construction, the listing date of circa 1850s, with some later additions and alterations, seems a bit more accurate. The silhouette of the main section of the house with its five bay-wide facade, two stories and modest bracketed porch aligns with the period.

Inside, the roughly 1,800-square-foot house was renovated into a bright, minimalist farmhouse with all white walls, trim gray-painted floorboards and a bit of a graphic punch in the kitchen.

While there isn’t a floor plan, there are quite a few listing photos, and more images can be spotted on the Farm and Field website and Instagram. According to the listing, in addition to expected living and dining rooms and kitchen, the first floor has a mudroom, library, full bath and laundry while upstairs are three bedrooms and the other full bath.

Flanking either side of the main entry are the living and dining rooms, with windows looking out to the front porch. There aren’t any mantels or fireplaces but there is a wood stove in the dining room.

The house’s painted floorboards give way to a bolder checkerboard tile floor in the kitchen, located in the one-story wing of the house. The room also has the one burst of color with a bright red counter across the bank of cabinets. Providing some pattern, the kitchen’s walls are covered in painted tin with vertical geometric bands, crowned by an egg-and-dart-molding.

Painted floorboards and white walls reappear upstairs in the three bedrooms. The two full baths have some vintage-inspired details, including pedestal sinks outfitted with modern hardware.

The surrounding acreage can be enjoyed from a deck off the kitchen. The deck can also be reached via French doors from the first-floor library.

A small barn near the house provides some more living space; the listing suggests it can be “reimagined” as a studio, office or gym.

For those who would prefer not to grow their own crops or tend chickens, the house is less than a mile from the Hawthorne Valley Farm Store — a name that might be familiar to those who shop the greenmarkets in the city. It’s a bit further, about five miles, to central Gent and the baked goods of Bartlett House.

Farm and Field sold the property in 2020 for $585,000, according to county records. Listed with Annabel Taylor and Raj Kumar of Four Seasons Sotheby’s International Realty, it is now asking $750,000.