Guardian Australia editor Lenore Taylor and reporter and novelist Paul Daley list Canberra home

Acclaimed journalists Lenore Taylor and Paul Daley have made the difficult decision to part ways with their old family home in Canberra, listing the property for sale after moving to Sydney for work.

The four-bedroom Red Hill house holds many pleasant memories for the pair, from parties with the powerful to the more usual family milestones, Mr Daley said.

“We had two sets of grandparents staying there when the kids were there too, and there’s only one grandparent left now, but that’s life I suppose. There are lots of memories,” Mr Daley told Domain.

“We did a lot of entertaining there so you know there were always journos and politicians coming through. We used to do a regular Wednesday night dinner party during sitting weeks.

“One of them left his ministerial briefcase there one night. That was pretty funny, we had him back there in about three seconds when we told him we were opening it, which we weren’t.”

Records show the home at 19 Beagle Street in Red Hill was purchased in 1997 for $330,000. At the time recently ousted Prime Minister Paul Keating was one of their neighbours.

“Keating was diagonally opposite and this was just at the end of his prime ministership,” Mr Daley said. “We didn’t see him socially but we’d see him walking the dog, looking kind of forlorn.”

Ms Taylor is the editor of Guardian Australia and has won two Walkleys and the Paul Lyneham award for excellence in press gallery journalism twice. She recently attracted attention from around the world for an article pointing out Donald Trump’s incoherence during a trip to the US. She is the former chief political correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald.

Mr Daley has received two Walkleys, the Paul Lyneham award and two Kennedy awards. He also works as a novelist and playwright. One of his books, a memoir of his time in the capital city, was written in the Red Hill home.

Given the choice, the couple would have never parted ways with the property despite moving to the harbour city for Ms Taylor’s job, Mr Daley said.

“It was our ideal house. If we could have picked it up and moved it to Sydney we would have,” he said. “We were letting it out and we bought in Sydney but really hung on to it for sentimental reasons.”

Selling agent Simon Richards of Berkely Residential said the owners renovated in 2006, adding new living areas and transforming the double-brick home.

“For its time, in 2006, it was quite high end. [The kitchen] had Caesarstone bench tops and soft-close doors, 12-foot ceilings and plenty of skylights,” he said.

“Sometimes you don’t even have to turn the lights on at all. It’s got a lot of positives.”

Mr Richards said the home, listed since Friday, had already proven popular with young families looking to upgrade or take advantage of the school zones.

“We’ve had a good response straight away,”  he said. “We’ve had a lot of positive feedback. It’s hard to get a really good family home in the area for about that $2 million mark.”

The home is listed for sale by negotiation, with its high-profile owners named in the listing. Mr Richards is quoting a price of $1.9 million to $2 million.