Losing out on a property they had their heart set on turned out to have a silver lining for one couple who have fallen in love with their new riverside home at Montford Place in leafy Sunbury-on-Thames.
It’s the second address that Lou Trost (47) and Kristian Collard (41) have bought from award-winning Linden Homes after wisely investing off-plan in an apartment at the very popular Sandy Lane collection in Teddington.
Lou, who works for British Airways at Heathrow Airport, said they were inspired to move by the returns being made by neighbours who were moving on, and they didn’t want to miss out on the demand for such a high quality development.
Their search for a fresh apartment took in a wide area of southern England, but after a property they liked in Weybridge fell through it was Montford Place whose location and character stood out.
Hidden in a pretty spot just a short stroll from the River Thames, it’s a quiet, gated community made up of traditional three, four and five-bedroom Georgian-style houses, plus apartments.
Lou said: “We wanted somewhere bigger and a bit more rural. We saw Montford Place as we drove past several times and noticed it was going to launch. We called up before then and found out a few had already sold so we were a bit panicky we’d miss out.
“But now we have a first floor three-bedroom apartment with a balcony where you can see right up the River Thames. It has an open plan lounge, diner and kitchen. The shape is really different too which makes it really nice and homely.”
Lou originally hails from Amsterdam where he lived in a historic renovated warehouse. The thought of buying new had never crossed his mind but after experiencing the trouble-free Linden Homes lifestyle at Sandy Lane and Montford Place he’s been converted.
“If Linden Homes had not looked after us so well we would not have stayed with them,” he explained. “Because of our experience in Teddington we were very happy to go with them again.”
He continued: “The development is in the Georgian style and it’s lovely and is very much in keeping with the rest of the area. It has really nice details and it’s a beautiful place. One of the things we liked about the property was the location.”
Remaining close to London was important for them because of Lou’s job as well as Kristian’s work for Unilever which means he often has to be in Kingston.
Despite its village feel, Sunbury is well connected. Junction 1 of the M3 lies 1.5 miles away and Heathrow is just a 20-minute drive away. Rail routes into London Waterloo from Sunbury train station can take as little as 46 minutes while the direct service from nearby Walton-on-Thames is just 30 minutes.
“Buying off-plan it can be difficult to imagine what it will look like and you have to go with your gut feel,” Lou said. “But the really nice thing is that we had so much input on the finished look and upgrades through the Enhance service. That makes it really, really convenient but also very personal.
“All our friends and everybody love it. I am absolutely in love with it. I like it even more than my last one. I could not think of saying that about new-build before.”
Montford Place rests within a conservation area near a long sweeping bend of the River Thames. It’s surrounded by the friendly atmosphere of Lower Sunbury: a riverside community clustered with green spaces and parks, shops and eateries.
Handily close to bustling Walton-on-Thames, it’s in the borough of Spelthorne and rubs shoulders with the genteel Richmond upon Thames.
Linden Homes Guildford sales and marketing director, Natalie Flint, said: “Congratulations to Lou and Kristian on their new apartment. We’re delighted our quality and careful selection of location meant they chose Linden Homes again.”
In common with all Linden Homes’ developments, each Montford Place property comes with integrated kitchen appliances as standard plus a 10-year NHBC warranty for peace of mind, as well as a two-year customer care warranty.
To find out more, call 0844 417 5318.
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For further information, contact Claire McCowan or Claire Bradley at Remarkable Public Relations on 01962 893 893.
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.
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