A family from Churchdown were the first residents to move into Ashberry at Pirton Fields, after seeing their home being built from the ground up.
Charlotte Nourse, manager of a sports club, and Michael Morris, a business manager, used the housebuilder’s Assisted Move scheme to sell their old home in the village and buy a brand-new four-bedroom ‘Camellia’ detached house at the development, off Cheltenham Road East. They moved into their new home in May 2021 with their two daughters, seven-year-old Maria and three-year-old Lara.
Under the scheme, Ashberry Homes’ chosen assisted move provider, The New Homes Group, liaises with the chosen local estate agents to market the buyers old home and paid the couple’s estate agent fees.
Charlotte said: “We were already living in Churchdown, so we knew and loved the area. Therefore, as soon as we saw houses going up at the development, we just had to look around the show homes. We were recommended the Assisted Move scheme by Ashberry themselves and we are really glad we used it.
“New Homes Group were the middleman between us and the local estate agents that were appointed to value the house. The team coordinated everything, from logistics to viewings, and we only had to communicate with one person. We were kept in the loop the whole time and we were kept up to date with how the sale was progressing.
“We were actually the first residents to move onto the development and lived here for a few weeks without anyone other than the Ashberry staff on site.”
The family’s new ‘Camellia’ home is a four-bedroom detached property, featuring an open-plan kitchen, family and dining room, a separate living room, a utility room and a study, while upstairs, three of the four bedrooms are doubles and the master bedroom benefits from an en suite shower room.
Charlotte said: “Once we’d seen the properties available at Ashberry Homes, we were pleasantly surprised and couldn’t find another property which compared. We hadn’t intended on buying a new build but never found a property for sale which fitted our specifications quite like the ‘Camellia’. We loved the good room sizes and wanted a double garage as well as a home office.”
Michael said: “We had a list of specific things we wanted, and this house ticked all those boxes. I had to work from home during the pandemic, so I wanted to ensure we had a home office just in case that happened again.
“I have subsequently got a new job in Stroud which is about a 20 to 30-minute drive away but we still thought it was important to have a separate working space at home. I also wanted a spare room. I’m not originally from this area and liked the idea of my family staying with us when they came to visit.
“We liked the thought of everything being new and picked by us from scratch, while having the warranty is also a bonus.”
By buying off-plan at an early stage of the development, the couple were able to personalise their new home with fittings and fixtures as it took shape.
Charlotte said: “We were able to see our house change over the weeks and even documented it on our house Instagram page, ‘ournewbuildGL3’. We picked everything out by hand, from the furnishings to the bathroom tiles and are so happy with how everything turned out.
“The girls also love having their own rooms and the youngest loves the fact that the fire station is opposite the development, or as she calls them, the ‘nee-naws’.”
Michael and Charlotte were also pleased with the customer service they received from the Ashberry Homes team. Charlotte said: “We had a really good experience overall with the customer service from Ashberry. Everyone had great communication, were really friendly and approachable and we would definitely recommend them to a friend."
“We were also really impressed with the community work Ashberry are doing with the local primary school. The site manager Colin and his team have been a part of developing the play equipment at Parton Manor school. This benefits both of our children directly as Maria already attends and Lara will when she’s old enough.”
Ashberry Homes is building a range of two-, three- and four-bedroom homes at Pirton Fields in Churchdown. Prices currently start at £298,995 for a three-bedroom semi-detached home.
Find out more at ashberryhomes.co.uk.
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