It has recently been renovated, with a new kitchen and bathrooms, and redecorated throughout with upgraded fixtures.

The house is located in a quiet cul-de-sac, but is close to a new tram stop due to open next spring.

All of which might go to explain why – in a stuttering housing market – number 15 has attracted more than 20 viewers in the week it has been on the market, and goes to a closing date today.

15 Smith’s Place, Leith. Image: Agnus Behm

Owner John Forsyth thinks he understands the attraction. “It was built in 1825 with a classic Georgian layout and features.

“You don’t get many Georgian houses in Leith, this little row must have been built for wealthier dock owners.

“It is very like the townhouses in Great King Street and Northumberland Street. But this house in the New Town would be upwards of £2 million.”

John certainly knows the market, he works for Savills while his wife, Yasmeen, is a kitchen designer with Riddle & Coghill, based in Leith. They bought number 15 in 2017, relocating from the New Town with a plan to start a family. John recalls: “We really liked the house – it has a fantastic open-plan kitchen and sitting room, and a lovely first -loor drawing room but in interior style it was really quite traditional.”

Over the last five years, the couple have methodically worked their way through the townhouse refurbishing from top to bottom, while highlighting original features.

John says: “Both fireplaces are original, the terrazzo tiling in the porch and the cornicing are too, and both are in remarkably good shape.”

The cabinetry in the house is another impressive feature, with bespoke radiator covers, window seats, shelving, fitted wardrobes and in-built storage.

And the curved stair is simply spectacular. John says: “Just choosing the right colour for repainting the three levels of hallfelt like our biggest decision, because of the size of the space and the work needed. Once the scaffolding comes down you can’t change your mind.

“We landed on Farrow and Ball Mizzle, which by day is a soft grey and then in the evening light takes on a slight green colour.”

The ground floor contains the open-plan kitchen and sitting room, plus a handy home office. Yasmeen, according to John, claims not to have totally replaced the kitchen, but has changed the cupboards, worktops, splashbacks – everything, piece by piece, so essentially it is brand new.

On the first floor, the drawing room opens up via double doors to a master bedroom, with a smaller room off, currently the bedroom of the couple’s son, Ruben, who is two.

The ensuite from the master is another highlight and one of the pair’s last projects. John says: “It is a really versatile house, we have used Ruben’s room as a study before he came along, but that whole floor of the house is really flexible and can act like a huge principal bedroom suite with its own drawing room.

Upstairs are three more bedrooms, and a home office in any one of them would make the best of the views.

A garden flat at the lower ground level is no longer part of the house, but number 15 has retained a private patio to the front which is south-facing and the street is quiet.

One quirky feature, which is a bit of a leftover when the house was split, is a tiny room at lower-ground level. In lockdown the decision was to turn it into a home bar. John says: “It’s where we will have our farewell drinks when we move out, but it will have to be a small gathering as it can only fit four people!”

Number 15 Smith’s Place, Leith, is priced at offers over £725,000.

For more information, contact Savills on 0131-247 3770. The closing date for offers is today, 8 December, at 11am.

Prestige property: Last chance to act on this fine Georgian townhouse