One of Ilkley’s most historic buildings has been put back on sale with a reduced price of nearly £2.5 million.

The Grade I listed Myddelton Lodge, north of the River Wharfe, dates back to 1260 and was home for centuries to one of the town’s most famous families, the Middletons.

It was on the market a year ago for about £3 million, but failed to sell. Now, the lodge, complete with six bedrooms, four reception rooms, four bathrooms, two kitchens and a library – all set on almost six acres of land – is expected to attract plenty of interest, according to Patrick McCutcheon, of estate agents Dacre, Son & Hartley.

Hot on the heels of the imminent sale of another Ilkley landmark, the Sir Edwin Lutyens-designed Heathcote, which was also on the market for £2.5 million, Mr McCutcheon says the demand for high-end properties is strong in Ilkley.

He said there was a “core group of affluent individuals” keen on unique properties like Myddelton Lodge.

“We found last year that the upper sector of the market was the strongest of all and we sold into double figures of properties over £1 million last year,” he said.

“The Middleton family who used to live there owned the whole of Ilkley effectively, or the land that became Ilkley. Its history is very much entwined with the town we live in today.”

Myddelton Lodge was purchased as a spiritual retreat in 1922 and later sold to the Diocese of Leeds, which put the property on the market 11 years ago with a guide price of £750,000. Neglected in the 1990s, it was later restored by Mark and Janet Sayer, who won a conservation award from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. It was then put on the market in 2007 for £2.85m.