When it comes to moving, the term ‘location, location, location’ is used a lot but Jonathan and Susan, 61, explain that it was definitely the main driver for their pre-retirement move.
The couple moved from Bracknell, where Susan managed a haberdashery shop and Jonathan stills works in the pharmaceutical industry and is also a diving instructor.
They moved to Bovis Homes’ Blackmore Meadows development in Stalbridge in November with their dog, Oscar, and cat, Zippy – and they have fallen in love with the area.
Speaking about their experience, Jonathan said: “We’d been planning a pre-retirement move for a while. We have three grown up children and were approaching retirement and thought we’d really like to move somewhere more tranquil and Dorset has always been a favourite place of ours. We had a holiday home in Weymouth and really got into diving so it’s a very special place to us. We wanted to put down some roots, after moving a lot in the past, and enjoy our future retirement without having to spend our time renovating a property.
“We took the brave move to sell our house and were renting a four bedroom townhouse so we could keep our options open and be in a strong position for when the right property came along.
“One day, after seeing a few adverts, we popped in to view the show home at Blackmore Meadows and we knew instantly that we’d found our place – we reserved before we even left that day!”
He added: “The Aspen house suits us perfectly and it’s situated on a nice, small development. It ticked lots of boxes for us as we needed a study and also wanted additional bedrooms for when family and friends came to stay. It has a double garage and a good-size garden.
“We thought buying a new property was a sensible decision, as everything has been done, and the 10 year warranty gave us peace of mind. There’s also something really nice about the fact that we’re the only people to have lived in the house before.
“We’ve been so impressed with Stalbridge, it’s a fantastic place to live! There’s an arts centre, stunning surrounding scenery, and lots of great dog walks into town and around the area. It’s a very social place to live, with a good local pub and it has so much village charm, although I know it’s technically a town! It’s just a lovely place to live and we feel very lucky to call it home.
“Our daughter spent six weeks pet sitting for us while we were on holiday in New Zealand and she loved the location too – it really does deliver!
“Overall, we’re very grateful we made the move when we did. The sales team has been brilliant, especially Amber, and Gary and Eddie have built a great house – the quality is excellent and we’re so happy.”
Yasmine Willcox-Smith, field sales manager, commented: “We’re delighted Jonathan and Susan are so happy. It’s a wonderful location, with lovely amenities and incredible surroundings.”
Blackmore Meadows features 120 new homes, a play area, green open space, an attenuation pond planted with wildflowers, and a circular path for cycling and walking – with connections to the existing public network.
References to “we”, “us” or “our” are to the part of the Vistry Group (including Linden Homes, Bovis Homes, Countryside Homes, Drew Smith or one of Vistry’s joint venture companies) from which you are intending to purchase a new home. References to "you” and “your” are to the prospective buyer or buyers of a new home from us.
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