Waterside Heights offers a choice of apartments from affordable homes developer Be West, with two Shared Ownership blocks and one rental block as well as a one-off house at its entrance. All three blocks are along the curve of the Grand Union Canal, and it’s been designed so that residents get a view of it from at least one angle.
We spoke to sales consultant Lauren Parfitt about features of the development which will most impress house-hunters.
Reason 1: Private outdoor space
“Every apartment here has its own private outside space. Everyone on the ground floor has a wraparound terrace and on the higher floors we have a handful of wraparound balconies on two-bed flats, and all one-beds have their own private balcony too. They are an above-average size and a comfortable outside space.”
Reason 2: Amenities for residents
“There’s going to be a landscaped courtyard, the space between Block B and Block C. This is for residents only, as is the underground parking, which is secure with fob-entry only. There are 58 spaces for the 65 Shared Ownership properties. So far, for every five people who have taken a parking space, there is one who hasn’t. In addition, each block has its own secure bike storage.”
Reason 3: A real ‘plus’ for every unit
“Every property here has a direct view of the water or is south-facing, making all of them really light and airy. The development has been planned so that instead of having a one-bedroom home on the first floor with no parking – which you may never be able to sell for those reasons – first-, second- and third floor apartments all have parking but the fourth floor doesn’t, but has the best view. So you can choose, would you like the better view or the parking space? No-one has the worst of all worlds.”
Reason 4: Wide appeal
“We’ve had two generation mixes of buyers. The first is ‘my generation’, people 25-35 years-old just starting out, fed up with renting and wanting something that’s theirs. The other bracket of buyers is people looking to downsize, looking for bright, sunny open space – maybe their kids have moved out and now they want something just for themselves. We’re not restricted to just first-time buyers.”
Reason 5: Pets are very welcome
“We are very pet-friendly here. Any of the flats here can have a pet and we are in partnership with the RSPCA, so there’s responsible ownership too. Pets are microchipped and registered, and we’ve prepared a document which talks about how to properly look after a pet. And if you don’t have one yet and are thinking getting one, are you sure you can handle the responsibilities, can you really afford it? There are some limits, so you can’t have a Great Dane in a one-bed!
“We have people contacting us and asking about our homes because they have been turned away by other HAs who don’t allow pets, which pet owners know, are part of the family.”
Reason 6: Design, specification and accessibility
“We have one-beds which vary from 51sqm to 57sqm and two-beds vary from 67.9sqm to 87.1sqm. Even things like bathrooms are significantly large. Ceilings are higher than average here, which makes everything feel better and airier and the floor-to-ceiling windows bring in extra light. The entrance halls are also very spacious and welcoming.
“As standard, all the kitchen units are soft-closing and all the appliances are AEG, including a double oven, larger-than-average fridge/freezer and a dishwasher. As far as I’m concerned, fitting a utility cupboard and a separate storage cupboard with shelves should be standard, as it is here in all the flats. Even in the one-beds, you’re not losing out. So much so that one of our buyers is thinking of taking the door off the storage cupboard and putting her desk there. She can step away from it when her work is done, rather than having to work from a kitchen table.
Fitted wardrobes also come as standard. In the case of two-beds, those with two double bedrooms have them fitted in both, those with one double and one single have them fitted in the larger room.
“Accessibility is a big feature. The lifts from Block B and Block C go down to the car park, which also gives a feeling of safety, especially for female buyers. Wheelchair users can access the blocks very easily for the car park or off the street.”
Reason 7: A choice of interiors
“There’s an option of two interior finishes, a light palette and a dark palette, which I think makes people feel it’s more like a private purchase and more than most other Shared Ownership developments offer. One has the light brown Karndean flooring and the bright and airy white gloss finish and a diamond-white stone kitchen worktop. Then there’s the warmer Quartz Noir finish with flooring in of a walnut brown colour with matt grey cabinets and dark grey worktop. The brochure specifies which home has what palette but there are always two flats next door to each other with mirrored layouts, one with the light finishes and one with the dark.
“One buyer came down on an overcast, rainy day and went for the light finish because it made the flat feel brighter, a one-bedroom property on the top floor, without parking. Then she came back again to see it again before she signed on the dotted line, walked in a said, ‘the dark one doesn’t feel so dark now!’. It was a sunny day and felt completely different. We went next door and back, from one flat to the other for an hour just to help her feel which we was the most comfortable. At the end of the day, my priority is to make the purchasers happy.”
Reason 8: A budget-conscious development
“The roofs to all buildings are angled, and each side angle is fitted with solar panels, which significantly lowers the service charge now, and will do in future years. Also, these homes come free of ground rent, which doesn’t seem much in a year, but adds up significantly over a lifetime. It can make the difference between a person buying or not buying at Waterside Heights. Buyers aren’t restricted in their choice of utility suppliers either, except for water, and are therefore able to utilise the best energy providers.”
Reason 9: Transport connections
“We have some people not commuting right now but who need to know it’s easy to commute when they start to again. Part of that is having Crossrail just three minutes from here. It’s 20 minutes into London and only about five minutes to Heathrow. There are three different bus routes from stops just outside here.”
Reason 10: A great location
“We’ve had interest from a lot of NHS workers, as there is a hospital just down the way [Hillingdon Hospital a seven-minute drive away, 16 minutes by bus, 10 minutes cycle ride].
“The canal is well lit and popular with walkers, runners and cyclists, and there are gyms in every direction.
“It’s a good catchment area for schools, and with this being part of a major regeneration, the more families that move here, the more new schools will open. There may not be an abundance right now but that doesn’t mean they won’t be coming here. The high street here is all open and even with the pandemic, there’s not one ‘to let’ sign out, which is a very good sign. Uxbridge town is close by and there are big shopping centres there, and that’s only ten minutes away.”
At Waterside Heights, 45 of the 65 Shared Ownership properties are currently under offer. Be West will pre-qualify people interested in buying here to make sure they get one-to-one attention from the sales team.
Prices currently start from £74,375 for a 25% share of a one-bedroom apartment (full market value £297,500), requiring a deposit of £7,438 and with minimum monthly rent of £511 and estimated service charge of £111. Find out more at bewest.co.uk.
Find retirement homes in the London Borough of Hillingdon
Find Help to Buy homes in the London Borough of Hillingdon
Find new homes in the London Borough of Hillingdon