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when comparing house prices in the northwest region, you’d be forgiven for thinking that any first-time homebuyer couldn’t afford to live in cheshire. With an overall median price of £317,300 compared to £260,500 in Greater Manchester, property costs in the prosperous county have risen 14 per cent in recent years.
But a couple looking to get on the property ladder managed to find an affordable house in a quaint town located in the cheshire countryside, which turned out to be much cheaper than the properties in his hometown of Altrinchamsouth manchester.
Lottie Bown, 28, and her boyfriend Ant bought their first home in Mobberley, a pretty chocolate box town that sits between Knutsford and Wilmslow. Despite houses in the area selling for an average price of £496,100 over the past year, the couple managed to purchase a three-bedroom house for £275,000.
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Lottie talked to him. Manchester evening news as part of our Where I live series, where each week we chat with a different homeowner from across the Northwest about their buying and renovation journey; and check out how they’ve made his home their own.
Lottie and Ant lived with their parents and later rented before deciding it was time to jump on the property ladder.
“After finishing university, my boyfriend and I rented a flat together in Altrincham. We rented there for a year and then decided we wanted to get on the property ladder as soon as possible,” Lottie told the Manchester evening news.
“Before that, we had both been very lucky to be able to live at home. We had a small deposit ready to go and we just didn’t want to keep spending dead money on rent.”
Lottie said: “We started looking for houses in late summer 2019 and couldn’t really afford anything in Altrincham so we decided to look a bit further afield. We saw around four or five houses in different areas, a couple of were in Knutsford but we were too far off the asking price.
“I have family in Wilmslow and Knutsford, so I knew those areas, and Mobberley was in the middle of the two. Most of the properties there were still out of our price range, but then one came along at the higher end of our budget. “.
First-time buyers came across a three-bedroom, three-storey townhouse on the market for £280,000 that they ‘fell in love with’.
“I had a good feeling just looking at the Rightmove ad. I thought it was very well made, it was clear the previous owners had really cared for it,” Lottie said.
“It was in a very quiet square with lots of communal green space set back from the road, so I had a really good feeling when we got there.
“When we entered the property, the previous owners had just torn down the entire floor below. It was previously a separate dining room, kitchen and utility space, but it was all open, and I think we totally fell in love with that.
“Going in and seeing the new kitchen and knowing that it wasn’t a job we would have to do ourselves was very appealing. We also loved that it was set over three floors and had a decent sized garden.
“After seeing it, we both got in the car and we were so excited that we talked about it all the way home until we made an offer.”
The house was on the market for £280,000 and the couple decided to make an offer of £270,000.
“Our offer was turned down but we ended up getting it for £275,000 because luckily the sellers wanted a quick sale so we managed to get it at a lower price,” Lottie explained.
“I have always been very enamored with period properties, but there was nothing on the market within our price range that met our other requirements in terms of location and size.
“This is new construction that I’ve never really considered, but I actually love it. It’s been so much easier to move in, no major renovations or structural issues. It’s actually been quite nice for our first property just being able to move right in and start to put my stamp more in terms of style”.
The couple got the keys to their first home just before Christmas 2019 and began making it their own.
“We still had our apartment and the lease didn’t expire until the end of January, so we had a month where we could move things around casually, which was very helpful,” Lottie said.
“Before we even moved in, we painted what we now use as a studio. It was the only room in the house, other than the bathroom, that hadn’t been touched since the house was built.
“She was painted Barbie pink and it just gave me a headache, so we immediately painted her white.
“The bathroom was pretty dated as well. It’s a small space and had a big tub and very orange wood. It just wasn’t my style, so we immediately started planning to strip the bathroom down and put it back in plaster.”
Lottie and her partner did most of the work around the house apart from some work done by laborers.
“The biggest expense was in the bathroom because we did it professionally, but aside from installing a media unit, we’ve really tried to do as much of the renovation as we could ourselves,” he said.
“The first time we picked up a paint roller was when we painted that studio when we first got our keys. We’ve just been watching YouTube videos, watching what other people are doing on Instagram, and learning ourselves.
“We tore up the entire floor and repainted and resurfaced the living room. We are now half way through redoing the study, we have added cornices, paneling and wallpaper and will be laying a new floor.
“We’re also in the middle of doing the hallway right now, including paneling and painting it.”
Speaking of her interior style, the owner said, “I think it has changed quite a bit since I moved in. I used to be more drawn to modern interiors, but now I’m starting to love mixing the old with the new.
“I love browsing antiques and finding beloved old pieces to give the house a little more character.
“I think that’s a little bit due to having new construction, I really wanted it to feel cozier and give it a little more character.
“I still love neutrals, but now I’m trying to bring more color and pattern to it. I think my house now is a bit of old and new and I’m really starting to find my style now.”
“I get a lot of inspiration from the Instagram starter accounts I follow. I also love Pinterest, Pinterest is great.”
Giving a tour of her house, Lottie explained: “You walk through the front door into a hallway and to the right you have the stairs that go up to the first floor.
“The whole ground floor is open plan so to your left you have the dining room leading into the kitchen and then to the right we have an open plan pantry. The back door leads out to the garden.
“Under the stairs is a ground floor bathroom and then up the stairs to the first floor is the living room and our third bedroom, which we use as a study.
“Going up to the second floor, you have the main bathroom, the main bedroom and the second bedroom which we use as a dressing room and then has an attached bathroom.”
Lottie says she has no immediate plans to move and is very happy with her first home.
“I am very happy with how everything has gone together. I think there’s always something on my list that I want to do next, fixing up your house is kind of a never-ending chore, but it definitely feels like home,” she said.
“Right now my favorite room is the kitchen dining room because we love to cook and have family friends over and it’s such a nice entertaining space. Now that the weather is sunny we only have the back door open and it becomes a large open space with the garden which is lovely.
“Our house is in the perfect location, we both work 10 minutes away and it’s semi-rural so we have fields for the dog. It ticks all of our boxes right now, so I think we’ll probably be here for at least another two or three years.”
Giving advice to any first-time buyers trying to save, Lottie advised using a government scheme.
“We both opened the Lifetime ISA when we started saving, which means we got 25 percent on top of everything we save as a bonus to put toward our deposit,” he said.
“That definitely sped up our savings process and was a big help to us. I would advise first-time buyers looking to set one up. Just be strict and commit to saving a set amount each month, even if it’s a small amount it all adds up.
“Don’t be afraid to look for a project house. We’ve only done little things here and there, but I’m learning that DIY can be doable even if you don’t have any of the skills – it can be learned and can actually be a lot of fun too.
“You don’t have to move into a finished and polished property, you can often make a place your own.
You can see more of Lottie’s house on her Instagram account @lottiebownhome.
Do you want to show your house where I live? If so, e.g.lease send an email with your details to phoebe.jobling@reachplc.com.
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