Does it, though, make economic sense to invest in a court? Will it add value to your property, or will it put some buyers off?
- A tennis court can add 50% more than its cost to the value of a country property, as long as it doesn’t consume the majority of the garden. A plot less than an acre and a half runs the risk of the court dominating the garden and that may detract from your home's value rather than adding to it.
- The approximate average cost is between £15,000 and £30,000 depending on how complicated the ground is to prepare, the type of surface you choose and the cost of fencing and lighting.
- Planning rules vary widely. Contact your local planning authority for their rules on fence heights, change of land use (you can't just put a court on land defined as agricultural), and drainage. Broach the subject of floodlights carefully, they can be a minefield.
- Positioning is key: ideally away from the house and screened by trees or shrubbery. Trim overhanging branches as you won't want to spend time clearing leaves from the court. If you have the luxury of choice, opt for a north-south position rather than east-west to avoid sun in your eyes in the evenings.
- Playing surface. Bad bounces aside, grass courts may be the dream, but they are high maintenance and require constant mowing, rolling, feeding, weeding, moss control, scarifying and aerating. You will need to pay a professional or invest in the paraphernalia to do it yourself, including a lawnmower that cuts down to 6mm. For all those reasons, most people opt for an all-weather porous surface for easy drainage. Rain may still stop play, but you won’t have far to go when the sun comes out again. Anyone for tennis?
Would you choose a tennis court or a swimming pool? We’d love to hear your views. Find us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. See below for some of our properties with tennis courts
