Merlin Court guesthouse on the market

A guesthouse in North Devon is on the market due to orders from the bank that provides the owner's mortgage.

The Merlin Court Hotel has previously received help from TV show The Hotel Inspector, with hotel guru Alex Polizzi guiding the owners towards a more positive business direction.

The assistance helped the guesthouse secure around £20,000 worth of bookings for this summer alone, but the Shears family who own the property have still been advised by their bank to sell the property.

Mike Shears told the North Devon Journal: “We were persuaded to put the hotel on the market by the bank with which we have our mortgage.

"But this was always a 'plan B' option for us and we certainly don't want to sell the hotel – we're very happy here and business has really taken off since The Hotel Inspector.”

In addition to renovating a number of the hotel rooms, the family has repaired all the windows on the first and second floors, created an outdoor play area and launched a new website and registered with several online booking sites.

While there may be some work to do in negotiating with the reluctant owners, the guesthouse is on the market for £445,000 with John Smale & Co.