White fences and red roses: the iconic Capricorn Park Stud is on the market

Mention ‘Capricorn Park Stud’ to Canberrans and they’ll picture white fences streaming for hundreds of metres along the Barton Highway, with rambling bushes of red Dublin Bay roses dotted between them.

The property, located about 15km north of Canberra, on the way to Murrumbateman and Yass, is a bit of a Canberra icon. Established in the late 1960s (that explains the old sign with the retro orange font - who remembers it?), the property was originally a cowboy-style Quarterhorse training and breeding facility.

In the early 1990s, new owners changed it to a first-class Thoroughbred training facility. Those same owners recently subdivided the huge parcel of land to create multiple properties that now comprise ‘Capricorn Estate’.

And the most stunning piece of it — the original homestead and 50-acres — is looking for a new owner.

The beautiful six-bedroom, three-bathroom home at 84 Capricorn Place, Springrange, is heaven for humans, but the property is also purpose-built for horses. The equine infrastructure on the property includes eight covered tie-up stalls, a fully enclosed sand roll yard and heated wash bay.

MARQ Property licensed agent Sam McGregor says Capricorn is a property Canberrans feel a real affinity for.

“Travelling along the Barton Highway speaks to road trips with the family, visiting relatives in Yass, Wagga, Tumut and Melbourne,” Sam says.

“There isn’t a Canberran out there that hasn’t driven past property at one time or another and been impressed by its position along the road, the racetrack and the immaculate gardens.

“As we’ve watched Canberra and the region grow, the property has never changed. It’s always been a staple of white fencing, green lawns and red roses.”

In an attention-grabbing twist, Sam’s marketing the property using lines from classic Aussie movie The Castle (think “How’s the serenity?” and “A man’s home is his castle”).

“The property is as iconic to the Canberra region as that movie is to Australians,” Sam says.

“The movie is about family, love, community and road trips — and travelling down the Barton Highway is about long weekends spent with family at Wee Jasper, Good Hope and Lake Eucumbene, the local equivalent of Bonnie Doon.

“That mixed with the juxtaposition of a grand home in a grand location.”

It’s a clever marketing strategy but Sam knows the Capricorn homestead will likely sell to “equine enthusiasts and/or people with a desire for a country lifestyle with no closer proximity to Canberra”.

Number 84 Capricorn Place, Springrange, backs onto Jeir Creek and overlooks a privately established and maintained 12-hole golf course.

The price guide for the property is $2.8 to $3.1 million.

View the full listing.