“Despite the rollercoaster journey we’ve been on to move here; we knew this was the right place for us.”
Making the decision to downsize to a new home in a different location is a daunting process, never mind doing so during a global pandemic; however, two of our latest homeowners at Scalesceugh Hall & Villas did just that. Despite experiencing some challenges along the way, David and Christine Sammans were determined to make the move to their new villa, and thanks to the help of our team, are now settling into their new home and look forward to enjoying their new life here.
David and wife Christine are originally from the small hamlet of Crow Edge near Holmfirth in West Yorkshire. After living in their large detached home for almost 20 years, they made the decision 3 years ago to downsize and start their search for a new, more suitable future home.
Christine explains: “We initially started our search 3 years ago, looking for a new home in the Scottish Borders around the town of Berwick. Our daughter lives near Bridge of Weir and we wanted to be closer to her - the 500-mile round trip to visit her from Crow Edge was getting too much for us both. We also wanted to downsize in preparation for the future. We knew that our current home would be too large for us to manage in the coming years, especially when one of us is no longer here.”
“We weren’t having much luck with our home search and our daughter decided to step in to help. After searching online, she found Scalesceugh Hall & Villas. I remember her sending us the email with a link to the website – “Wow – this looks perfect for you both!”. We had a look ourselves and were delighted by what we saw. We then booked our first visit in March this year.”
At the point of their first visit to Scalesceugh Hall & Villas, David and Christine had an offer on their home and so were looking forward to being able to soon make their move once they had made their final decision on their next new home. However, when the Covid-19 pandemic first reached the UK and the country went into lockdown in March, the housing market came to a standstill, and after then having some issues of their own, their buyers later made the decision to pull out.
David explains: “We were hugely disappointed when our buyers made the choice to pull out of purchasing our home, because after visiting Scalesceugh, we had found a new home that suited us. We liked the community aspect it offered, as our neighbours in Crow Edge tended to keep themselves to themselves and didn’t socialise much. But every time you step out at Scalesceugh, you always bump into someone who says hello and likes to have a chat.”
“We also liked how tranquil it is here and the fact it’s in the countryside. We’re “rural people” and so couldn’t picture ourselves living in a town or city. The villa we saw had its own garden which was appealing, as we enjoy sitting out in the warmer weather and like being able to hang our washing up outside. Another reason we chose Scalesceugh is because we already had some familiarity with the area. We had a friend in Carlisle whom we visited and have been on many walks in the Lake District.”
Another reason David and Christine chose Scalesceugh as their next new home was down to their love of walking. David retired from being a walking holiday baggage courier, picking up and collecting walkers’ luggage along various walking routes along the Pennine Way. Christine often joined him on his trips and they both took the chance to enjoy various walks when they could stop on their journeys. Our countryside setting, situated beside Wreay Woods and the River Petteril, along with our close proximity to The Lake District and Scottish Borders, offers endless opportunities for scenic walks.
Christine said: “Walking is a big part of our lives. We walk every day. We used to come up to Keswick in The Lake District every year with a walking group, and we’ve also been on walks in the nearby Eden Valley and in Scotland. Here we have plenty of places we can enjoy different walks which is great.”
Despite their buyers pulling out from purchasing their home, our team knew how much David and Christine wanted to move to Scalesceugh and so didn’t give up on helping them get here.
David explains: “Sales Manager, June, has been like a lifeline to us. She has been the only one on the ball when we were having issues with our estate agents and solicitors. She would continually chase them for updates and ensure things were progressing as they should be. She has kept us sane throughout the whole process.”
“Owners Bruno and Anita have also been very kind and patient, and even offered to Part Exchange our home to get us moving quicker. Because of the delays with the sale of our home, we missed out on the opportunity to buy the original villa we had chosen, as understandably, they had interest from other clients who were able to meet the agreed timelines.”
“Nevertheless, the team kept in touch with us and arranged for us to view the apartments in Scalesceugh Hall. Because we really wanted to move here, we were prepared to downsize further and agreed on reserving one of the apartments. But then our luck took a turn in our favour and another villa became available again in October - we were delighted! And because the property market really picked up again in the summer with the help of the government’s stamp duty holiday, we earlier received an offer on our house which meant we could get moving straight away. From reserving our villa, we were moved in within 2 weeks!”
Both David and Christine have quickly settled in to our community and are looking forward to getting to know their neighbours in the coming weeks.
Christine explains: “Since moving in to our new home here only two weeks ago, we’ve already met most of our neighbours. They couldn’t have been more friendly and welcoming. Our next door neighbours brought us some homemade soup the weekend after we moved in, and we’ve also been on a walk with one of them to the nearby village of Armathwaite. I’ve also been on a walk with another of our neighbours, and so I think we could soon be starting up our own walking club here at Scalesceugh!”
“When we used to live in Crow Edge, I enjoyed taking a walk to a local farm where I could buy some fresh eggs and since being here I’ve actually found somewhere nearby where I can do the same. It’s already starting to feel like home. Despite the rollercoaster journey we’ve been on to move here; we knew this was the right place for us.”
Read more residents' stories here.
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