Lindsay and Scott Graham’s move to Bovis Homes’ Hamble View development on the outskirts of Southampton has an Escape to the Country feel about it.
The couple and their two miniature schnauzers, Mylo and Dexter, have swapped city-centre living for a more rural lifestyle in the village of Bursledon, on the banks of the River Hamble – and they love it.
“We’ve only moved six miles but it is just far enough to give us a rural feel in nice surroundings,” says Lindsay. “We’ve found so many lovely walks and it’s great to have so much choice of where to go along the river and to lots of different parks. It’s really nice.”
Their previous home was a new-build flat close to the centre of Southampton, which they bought under the Government’s Help to Buy scheme.
“We wanted to move to a bigger house and initially we weren’t sure we wanted another new build so we started looking at older properties,” says Lindsay. “However, we quickly realised that actually they need a lot of work and a lot of money spending on them!”
They decided to take a look at Hamble View and were instantly smitten with the four-bedroom Canterbury house type.
“We were blown away by how nice it is and how much space there is,” says Lindsay. “We like the kitchen dining area; we love how it flows and we love the patio doors out into the garden. Both the living room and our main bedroom have bay windows, which we love, and all the bedrooms are a really good size too.
“It’s really pretty from the outside; really good kerb appeal, and now I drive home and think ‘Wow, that’s my house’. It’s perfect.”
Once Scott and Lindsay, who are both 32, had found their dream home, they were keen to move quickly, so they opted to buy using Bovis Homes’ own Home Exchange scheme. Bovis Homes bought their flat in Southampton; they reserved their new home in October 2016, and moved in just before Christmas.
“The sales team were really helpful,” says Lindsay. “They handled everything calmly and efficiently right to the last minute. They were really good.”
The development is really convenient for Scott’s work in air traffic control at nearby NATS and Lindsay’s job as a visual stylist for Marks and Spencer is just a 20-minute journey into Southampton.
“As soon as I came into the house I felt at home,” says Lindsay. “It was such a nice feeling, and now we’re in, we absolutely love it.”