More people are using live, one-to-one, personal video tours to view their potential new home in the South West as the third national lockdown continues, according to housebuilders Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes.
As interest in buying new homes continues, with the Stamp Duty holiday currently due to end on 31 March 2021, many customers are now reserving properties having only toured the site virtually.
Prospective buyers can book a virtual appointment with a sales adviser at any Barratt or David Wilson Homes development throughout the South West. The adviser will give them a live, personalised video tour around the show homes, new home plots and wider development using a smartphone mounted on a gimbal, a hand-held stabilising device that reduces shake in video calls and footage.
The award-winning housebuilders’ sales centres and show homes remain open by appointment only, in line with the government's official guidance, and with a full range of safety and social distancing procedures in place. However, the live, virtual tours offer people the reassurance and convenience of viewing the new properties from the comfort and safety of their current home and without the need to travel. In addition, 360° videos of the homes and virtual flythrough tours are also available for each development.
Chapel Gate
At Chapel Gate in Launceston, Cornwall, Barratt Homes is offering a number of three- and four-bedroom houses from £234,995 to £289,995. There’s an offer on selected plots of a contribution of Up to £12,000 towards your deposit.
At Ladden Garden Village in Yate, Barratt Homes has some one- and two-bedroom apartments for sale, with a deposit contribution to selected plots Prices start at £171,995. On the same development, David Wilson Homes is selling two-, three- and four-bedroom houses from £267,000 to £467,000.
At Canalside @ Wichelstowe, David Wilson Homes has two-bedroom homes for sale from £210,000, while Barratt Homes has one- and two-bedroom apartments starting at £157,995, with three- and four-bedroom houses planned for the next phase to be released.
Moorland Gate in Taunton currently has David Wilson Homes offering two- to four-bedroom homes from £237,500 to £385,000. Buyers can enquire about the new Help to Buy scheme for first-time buyers and Part Exchange for those with a current home to sell.
Birds Marsh View near Chippenham has a range of apartments and houses from Barratt Homes priced between £176,995 and £290,995.
Barratt has just a few homes remaining for sale at Minerva, its development in Exeter. Two- and four-bedroom houses cost from £189,995 to £329,995, with incentives on selected plots.
At Raleigh Holt in Barnstaple, David Wilson Homes’ three- and four-bedroom houses start at £385,000.
Barratt Homes is offering a number of incentives on its selection of two-, three- and four- bedroom houses at Charfield Gardens in Wotton-under-Edge, where starting prices range from £259,995 to ££449,995.
Lay Wood in Devizes is now 90% sold, but David Wilson Homes currently has a three-storey, four-bedroom detached house for sale there at £387,500, which includes two en suite bedrooms, an upgraded kitchen, private garage and parking.
The last few homes at Patch Meadows in Somerton are priced from £298,000 to £460,000 and house-hunters are invited to ask David Wilson Homes about special offers worth up to £10,000.
Patch Meadows
Last month, interest in buying a Barratt home or David Wilson home in the South West was up almost a third (32%) on the same period last year, even through the traditionally quiet pre-Christmas period.
One couple have even bought a new home on the edge of Bristol without ever having visited the new community. The buyers, who currently live in Guernsey, have recently exchanged on a house at Blackberry Park in preparation to relocate to Bristol for their retirement.
Ian Menham, West regional director for Barratt Developments, said: “Whilst our show homes and sales centres remain open by appointment in line with government guidelines, people are rightly reducing their travel and staying at home as much as possible. So our sales teams are offering one-to-one, personalised tours via smartphone, when they can literally walk people round our stunning show homes and developments, showing them each room, answering questions and giving customers the chance to look at whatever detail they wish, from storage solutions to the views outside.
“Recent research we carried out across Wiltshire and the South West showed that the Covid pandemic has actually made people more likely to make big life decisions, like moving house, in order to take back control. We've seen sustained and growing interest in our developments across the county, so we're really pleased that our sales staff can offer these personal, digital tours to give people a real feel for our homes and communities as safely and conveniently as possible.”
Find out more about current Barratt Homes developments in the South West of England.
Find out more about current David Wilson Homes developments in the South West of England.
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