A NEW chapter is set to begin for a derelict market town hotel after being sold at auction.
Bromyard’s Hop Pole Hotel went under the hammer with agents, Savills, this afternoon (June 9), and initially struggled for bids, with bidding opening at £90,000.
The Grade-II listed building had originally been put up for auction last month. However, when eager buyers failed to stump up the cash to meet the undisclosed reserve price, the lot was voided.
Today, the former hotel’s price was initially raised to £95,000, with the auctioneer then asking for bids in £2,500 increments, with two bidders bidding the price up to £120,000 before bidding stagnated again, and increments of 1,000 were offered.
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The hammer eventually went down at £121,000, with the hotel selling to an internet bidder.
The hotel has been closed since 2019, and was initially taken over by ‘Gypsy millionare’, Alfie Best, who planned to transform the Market Square building into a boutique hotel and restaurant, but he sold up in 2024 after being met with problems in the development process.
An application was submitted to Herefordshire Council by the new owner in July 2025, and sought permission to build seven new apartments at the Hop Pole, while keeping the ground floor for commercial use.
A decision has not yet been published on the application.