Couple partial to countryside find space they need in new-build Bellway home

New homeowners Nathan Doran and Max McKay now reside within Bellway's Fern Hill Gardens development in Faringdon.

When Nathan Doran and Max McKay were thinking about buying their first property together they said a new-build home was not on their radar, until they found Bellway’s Fern Hill Gardens.

Nathan, 36, and Max, 23, were previously living in Nathan’s two-bedroom property in Abingdon during lockdown when they started to look around the surrounding areas to find somewhere with more space for working from home.

The couple said they were only two weeks into viewings when they found the four-bedroom detached Wycliffe at Fern Hill Gardens, which they reserved in January and moved into in July this year.

Finance business partner, Max, who’s originally from Helensburgh in Scotland, said: “We have done a full 180 since we first started looking for houses.

“I was adamant I didn’t want a new-build property as I thought they would have small, stuffy rooms but Bellway has definitely proved me wrong. As soon as we walked into the property, we were sold. We knew straight away this was the one for us.

“We love the layout of the house. The open-plan aspect with the French doors opening up to the garden really sold it to us. The back of the house is in an L-shape and incorporates the kitchen, dining room and snug, making it a really spacious area.”

Risk director Nathan, who’s originally from Oxford, added: “We needed the bedrooms to be a good size as we both work from home and wanted two of the rooms to double up as offices.

“All the rooms in this property are big enough to do that and we have a big open space downstairs at the back of the house, which is great for having family over so we can entertain.

“I bought my first property about eight years ago and I have never seen a new-build property with such big rooms. Bellway has really well-designed houses.”

Since moving into their new home, the couple say it has more than lived up to their expectations, with its proximity to both open fields and the town centre another benefit.

Nathan said: “The master bedroom is our other favourite room. It has a big box bay window that looks out into the countryside.

“Directly in front of our house is a park on the development and past that is a single track road which leads to a farm and then just fields. On a clear day you can see across the hills.”

Max said: “There is such a relaxed way of life here which is great and really suits our lifestyle. We really love being so close to the small town of Faringdon which has little shops like the local butchers, whilst also being on the edge of the countryside.

“It only takes about 15 to 20 minutes to walk into town, or just a two-minute drive. Equally we have a large supermarket only five minutes away.”

The couple said they are really excited to have been able to take the next big step in their relationship.

Max said: “Buying a house together is a big milestone, both individually and as a couple. It’s something we will always remember.”

Nathan added: “This isn’t my first property, but it feels really good to have something that is ours as a couple.

“We lived in each other’s pockets during lockdown, in my two-bedroom house for 12 months. It feels liberating being somewhere with so much space and being able to walk around knowing that this is all ours.”

Max and Nathan used Bellway’s Express Mover scheme to help sell Nathan’s previous property with ease. The scheme sees Bellway work with a local estate agent to help sell a customer’s existing property and the housebuilder also picks up the estate agent fees.

Nathan said: “Within three days we had two well-regarded estate agents appointed, the house was on Rightmove and then three days later it was sold. It removed the extra cost and all the hassle.”

The pair also spoke highly of Bellway sales advisor, Mel.

Nathan said: “Mel supported us from the first day we visited. She tolerated all of our silly questions and was really accommodating. It felt like we were talking to a friend rather than a salesperson. We never felt pressured – she was there to support our decisions.

“We didn’t live that far away so we visited the house at every stage of construction. We saw the house grow from the bottom up. Ali, the site manager, was also great and is always on hand when we need him.

“We honestly can’t fault any of the Bellway guys, and we would absolutely recommend them.”

All homes are now reserved at Fern Hill Gardens, which comprises a mix of one, two, three, four and five-bedroom homes.

Bellway South West is also building properties in Wiltshire, Somerset and Gloucestershire. To find out more information about the properties available at these sites, visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/south-west.