315 High Street, Maitland NSW 2320

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Built in 1887 as the grand banking chamber of the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney, this three-level sandstone landmark on High Street was designed by celebrated architect George Allen Mansfield and built to a budget of £20,000 - one of the most expensive private commissions in the district at the time. Historians place that budget at more than $20 million in today's dollars once you account for the cost of the skilled trades who built it, not just the materials. A century and a half later, Mansfield House remains exactly what it was built to be: the single most architecturally significant building in Maitland.

One thousand tonnes of hand-carved Pyrmont sandstone. Cedar joinery shipped from Paterson. Twin granite fireplaces, black-and-white terrazzo floors, and seven-metre ornamental ceilings that no modern budget would specify - because no modern budget could. The original bank vault still stands. The sandstone urns that once crowned the parapet - shaken loose in the 1989 Newcastle earthquake - still sit in the heritage gardens, a quiet reminder of just how much history this building has carried.

Today, Mansfield House offers 10 rooms across its upper two levels, extensive bathroom facilities, a commercial kitchen with existing DA approval for a function and wedding centre, sandstone-paved courtyards, an ornamental gazebo, rear lane access and on-site parking - all set on a 1,909m² landholding in the heart of the Maitland CBD.

Yes, it needs vision. Yes, it needs investment. But measure that against the only number that matters: building Mansfield House today would cost well in excess of $20 million - and that's before you could even source the sandstone, the cedar, or the tradespeople to carve it. At this price, you are not buying a renovation project. You are buying Maitland's most iconic building, priced at a fraction of what it would cost to create.

Whether your vision is a boutique hotel, a private business chamber, an elevated wedding and function venue, or the finest private residence in the Hunter, Mansfield House already has the bones, the approvals and the presence to get you there. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to own a piece of history - and to be the one who takes it to the next level.

SMS 315Hig to 0428 166 755 for a link to the online property brochure.