It is still only halfway to being completed, but locals are predicting that this rural development in the heart of the Wye Valley will be Prince William's first home.

　　Under the careful eye of Prince Charles, who has visited the estate several times and closely supervised the design plans, Harewood End has been transformed over the past five years. He views the scheme as one of his most exciting rural projects, and it has been likened to his development in Poundbury, built in the 1990s in Dorset as a model community for 550 residents.

　　Others see it as a likely base for Prince William, 22, who in a few years time will have finished his university studies and completed an expected stint in the Armed Forces, and be seeking somewhere to live.

　　Frank Davis, 69, a retired farmer who has lived on or close to the estate for more than 50 years, welcomed the prospect of a regal neighbour. "I am sure a member of the Royal Family will come and live in the main house - whether it is Prince William or someone else could depend on the succession. But it would make a wonderful family home for Prince William once he gets married." The Telegraph can reveal that the Prince has already visited the estate and is taking a close interest in its development, while Prince Harry spent a week's work experience there during his extended gap year.

　　Within two months, Harewood End, which has 900 acres of arable land, will see its first residents for more than 25 years as the end of the first phase of a scheme to bring a "ghost village" back to life is announced.

　　Last week this newspaper became the first media organisation to be shown around the Herefordshire estate, which is undergoing a ?5 million-plus restoration programme over 10 years.

　　The estate has changed from a collection of dilapidated farmhouses, cottages and barns into the beginnings of a vibrant community, which will provide homes and jobs for up to 100 people.

　　The man Prince Charles has entrusted with the task of delivering his latest rural vision is David Curtis, a cheerful, barrel-chested land steward who, in a broad West Country accent, talks with enthusiasm of what has been achieved and what still needs to be done. "HRH [the Prince of Wales] has been extremely hands on and totally committed to the success of the new project," said Mr Curtis, 49. "He chose the architect - Craig Hamilton - and has been closely involved in all the decision-making. When we took over most of the farm buildings were derelict - many had not been used for upwards of 25 years. We want to inject a new lease of life into them."

　　Harewood End became part of the Duchy of Cornwall, the Prince's estate which provides him with an annual income of more than ?12 million, in 2000, as part of a larger deal in which the Duchy paid the Prudential finance group ?50 million for a total of 22,000 acres of prime agricultural land all over Britain.

　　The Harewood estate had belonged to the Hoskyns, a landowning family who, by the end of the 19th century, found it impossible to maintain. Harewood End fell into ruin, and in 1959 the main house was regarded as so worthless that it was blown up by the Army as part of a military exercise.

　　Mr Curtis, who has worked for the Duchy for 27 years, said: "In consultation with local people, we produced a masterplan to renovate the buildings so we could restore the estate to its former glory. Since the turn of the century, Herefordshire has lost 40 or 50 of its largest homes and parklands.

　　Will Prince William eventually live at Harewood End? Mr Ross declined to speculate. "Prince William will make up his own mind where he wants to live when the time comes."

　　There are certainly clues pointing to Harewood End, however. The new main residence is far grander than it would need to be for an ordinary tenant. Furthermore, Prince Charles insisted on keeping and renovating a stable block, rather than converting it into homes. Prince William, after all, loves equestrian pursuits of all kinds: he is a keen polo player and huntsman.