In 2006 Brian Robertson emigrated to France with his wife Amanda and their two children. They had sold their house in Buckinghamshire and used the equity of that sale to purchase a buy to let property in Bicester.
The family spent five years living in the sun near Cannes before returning to the UK in 2011. On their return, their plan had been to sell the buy to let and buy a new family home.
Unfortunately, as Brian discovered, you cannot apply for a mortgage for two years if you have just come back to the UK after emigrating: Brian says it obviously put their plans on hold:
“We had no choice but to rent for those two years and so we found a house in North Stoke outside Wallington. In 2013 we were able to start the process of looking for our own home. We went to Cholsey Meadows, Linden Homes’ development at Cholsey, but at that time we couldn’t find a property to suit us. However, we had been sufficiently impressed with the site to return and a few months later – in January of this year – we went to have another look.
“We particularly liked the homes with a south facing balcony. We thought that was really interesting. The living room was upstairs and the balcony was attached to that.
“We liked the layout; the storage is pretty good and the garden is manageable – which is just what we wanted. It was a real advantage too that Cholsey Meadows is close to my daughter’s school.”
Brian says that once they found the house they really liked, they began working out the finances and began to investigate Linden Homes’ Part Exchange Scheme.
The scheme means that Linden Homes buys your property from you freeing you up to buy a new Linden Home. You don’t have to get involved with viewings or estate agent fees - Linden Homes takes care of those for you.
Brian says that, because they wanted to move quickly, it was the logical choice:
“Because we had our buy to let home in Bicester, we were able to look at Linden Homes’ Part Exchange scheme. We realised it would be quicker, easier and in the long term cheaper if we used Part Exchange and, crucially for us, we also wouldn’t have to worry about the property chain breaking. We didn’t have time for that.”
As it turned out, the timing did work out well for the family:
“In January, when we first saw our house at Cholsey Meadows, we also discovered that our landlady wanted to move back into our rental home so we knew time was tight. As luck would have it, we’d chosen a house that was ready to move into straight away.”
Brian and his family moved in earlier this year and are really enjoying life at Cholsey Meadows:
“We have countryside, good walks, the River Thames close by and the cricket pitch within the development. The motorway is within easy reach and you can get to London by train in an hour and to Reading in 15 minutes. Homes here are bound to go up in value – it is a unique place.”
-ENDS-
For further information, contact Claire McCowan or Emma Cox at Remarkable Group on 01962 893893.
References to “we”, “us” or “our” are to the part of the Vistry Group (including Linden Homes, Bovis Homes, Countryside Homes, Drew Smith, Vistry Ventures or one of Vistry’s joint venture companies) from which you are intending to purchase a new home. References to "you” and “your” are to the prospective buyer or buyers of a new home from us.
All images are used for illustrative purposes only and are representative only. They may not be the same as the actual home you purchase and the specification may differ. Images may be of a slightly different model of home and may include optional upgrades and extras which involve additional cost. Individual features such as windows, brick, carpets, paint and other material colours may vary and also the specification of fittings may vary. Any furnishings and furniture are not included in any sale. Please check with our sales consultants for details of the exact specifications available at the development(s) for each type of home and the associated prices.
