Happy housebuyer enjoys £1,000 thank you for recommending Persimmon's development
A police worker in West Lothian is embarking on a new life at Persimmon Homes' Princess Gardens development - and her family are following in her footsteps.
Anne McKechnie wanted to downsize from her three-bedroom terraced house after her four children had left the family home. Persimmon's popular development in Bathgate offered the perfect solution - and Anne chose a two-bedroom apartment there.
Set within Wester Inch Village, which is being created on the site of the former British Leyland car factory, Princess Gardens is a small development of just 37 homes. When her son Sean and his wife Vijayata visited Anne at her new home, they were so impressed they decided to follow in her footsteps and buy a property at the same development. Persimmon's 'Recommend a Friend' scheme meant Anne received a £1,000 cash incentive as a thank you for recommending Princess Gardens - which meant she could enjoy a visit to see another of her other children in New York for Christmas.
She has also waved goodbye to the expensive running costs of her old property and is welcoming the economical, low-maintenance lifestyle offered by a brand new home.
"I loved my old house with its traditional features but having lived on my own for five years it had become so costly and difficult to maintain, I decided it was time for a change. I wanted something that didn't need constant maintenance," Anne explains. "I viewed a number of new build developments in the area but Princess Gardens had the best range of apartments, in particular the one I ended up buying. It is just the right size for me, and I've even got a spare bedroom for when any of my children come to visit."
"The fact you can literally just move in and there's no maintenance to worry about is a real benefit! Everything's so fresh and clean - it just makes living here so easy. And I've seen a big difference in my fuel bills."
Having her son and his wife move in as neighbours has been the icing on the cake for Anne.
Speaking of his new home, Sean said: "We're really happy to finally have a home of our own. We get so much more for our money here. We would never have been able to buy a house if we stayed in Edinburgh and living round the corner from my mother is a huge bonus."
The sales and marketing director of Persimmon Homes East Scotland, Lorraine Clelland, said; "We are seeing a rising trend in the numbers of house hunters looking to downsize, whether it be to improve their quality of life or to save money; we can advise house hunters of the options available.
"It has been so exciting watching Mrs McKechnie and her son's family put down roots here. The development has proven to be popular with so many families and a wonderful community spirit is being built within Wester Inch Village."
Only three properties now remain available at Princess Gardens, but also in Wester Inch Village Persimmon has now released 47 new homes at the neighbouring Queensgait development - including traditional terraced, semi-detached and detached three-, four- and five- bedroom homes priced from £210,950.