Twin sisters bought a property on a new development in Arnold – without even seeing the showhouse.
Sophie and Bethanie Beldham, 26, will be the first to move into the Eagles Edge development at Redhill.
Such has been the popularity of the superior-specification 72-home Barwood Homes site, off Mansfield Road, that more than half of the homes were snapped up before the marketing suite was unveiled in late April.
Sophie, a midwife, and Bethanie, a civil servant, got the keys at the end of April and moved into their two-bed home in May.
Sophie, who is originally from Arnold, described why the sisters acted so impulsively in buying their home off-plan at the site, which consists of a mixture of one, two and three-bed houses and one-bed apartments.
“I felt it was a good opportunity – I had been waiting for new-builds to come up in my area that were in my price range. I felt a new-build had lots of benefits.
“I’d been looking on the market for a while and the housing market is really difficult.
“But I felt that once you have put down a deposit on a new-build, you can’t get gazumped.”
Sophie lived at home with her parents before moving in with Bethanie in her rented accommodation, ahead of their purchase.
She added: “I like that the design is open-plan, modern, it’s got a good-sized garden and that it’s on the edge of Arnold – the location is good for walks in the countryside.”
Mandy Soames, sales and marketing director for Barwood Homes, said the speedy sale of the homes was down to high demand combined with a lack of supply.
“We had many people enquiring through our own website as well as that of our marketing agent William H Brown as far back as last autumn,” she said.
“Eagles Edge has been one our most successful developments selling off plan, with nearly 50 per cent reserved or sold before the marketing suite opened in April.
“There is a huge demand for the two-bedroom homes, which are being snapped up as soon as they are released.
“There is a healthy demand for new-builds in this location and our product suits any type of buyer. We have a range of different types of buyers from first-time buyers to second movers and down-sizers.”
Mandy added: “People like new-builds as lifestyle is so important these days. Buying a new home means low maintenance, they don’t want huge gardens that take up all their spare time. Our gardens are just the right size – big enough to enjoy yet small enough to manage. Running costs are also lower due to using modern methods of construction that we use.”
Johanna Tatt, senior site sales executive for William H Brown, said: “These are lovely homes, due to the quality of the build, and they suit so many people on the market, such as down-sizers, first-time buyers and investors, offering a really nice range of properties in a very nice location.”
