Dreaming of country living? You’re not the only one.
In September 2020, right in the middle of the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics revealed that one in ten city dwellers working from home planned to move to rural areas or the coast.
And who can blame them!
The pandemic has made people reassess their living space and lifestyle choices. They’re prioritising their mental and physical health. City life doesn’t seem as appealing when you’re stuck indoors with no access to space, fresh air and a garden.
Location location location
There are so many fantastic UK locations beyond the South, South East and London. Take areas like Rutland, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Cambridgeshire, for example.
Charming towns such as Stamford, Bourne and Melton Mowbray offer quintessential country living that’s highly sought after. From spectacular scenery to independent shops and rambling walks, it’s these benefits that are enticing people out of the concrete jungles.
Many of us are also benefitting from remote or hybrid working. Not having to commute into a city office every day is hugely influencing where people live. Moving to locations that provide easy access to major cities when needed is becoming far more appealing. Good rail and road links are being added to ‘must-have’ lists when people are looking to relocate.
And it’s not just the south that has access to high achieving schools either. According to Ofsted, in Lincolnshire alone, there are over 50 ‘outstanding’ schools.
People are recognising that a slower pace of life for themselves and their families is beneficial for their mental and physical health. Not only that, you definitely get more bang for your buck ‘up North’ too.
Spend less, get more
According to Rightmove, the average price of a property in Lincolnshire is £222,057. In comparison, people in London pay an average price of £766,549 for a semi-detached house.
House hunters who purchase a Towngate Development property invest in our unique designs, quality build and attention to detail. From barn conversions to bungalows, our detached properties all come in under £1 million. People relocating from the South and South-East either spend slightly more and gain significantly more indoor and outdoor space in prime locations. Or, they come away with change in their pockets.
Investing in your future
Towngate Development Properties are currently developing high-quality new builds in Helpston (Cambridgeshire) and Ab Kettleby (Leicestershire)—villages located in the heart of the English countryside.
Here’s an overview of each area:
Helpston is a quaint village situated six miles northwest of Peterborough—not that far from the A1. This makes it roughly 78 miles from London. Peterborough has a regular train service that gets you directly to Kings Cross in under 60 minutes. With Peterborough and Stamford within easy reach, there are lots of amenities right on your doorstep.
Ab Kettleby is a pleasant village with an ancient past. It’s roughly three miles from pork pie town-Melton Mowbray and about 15 miles from Nottingham. It’s a 35-minute drive to the A1 and 50 minutes to the M1, so it doesn’t have quick road connections to the south. However, Nottingham has a regular train service to St Pancras every 10 to 20 minutes.
All areas have swathes of outdoor space that coveted slower pace of life and excellent travel connections to the south. Relocating to the country might not be a pipe dream after all.
Take a look at our current developments or get in touch if you’d like to talk to us about relocating to one of our properties.