Country Place Is Family Attraction

Jul 6 2008 Raymond Hainey

New Homes Smart Move Gives Former Farmers Best Of Both Worlds

Emily and Gavin Watson's grownup children are spread over Switzerland, Wales and Scotland and getting to the family farm in rural Aberdeenshire was a problem.

So the couple, who have also worked in Cameroon and Nigeria, decided to sell up and move south - and bought their new home in a couple of hours.

Emily said: "As soon as I saw it, I knew it was a cut above the rest.

"We drove into the site and two hours later left having bought a new house."

She added: "The house is beautifully laid out - it's spacious and nobody is overlooking you.

"The gardens are large compared to most modern homes and every house also has a detached double garage.

"But the best thing is there are fields across the road so you can look out at crops and cattle. I've always lived in the country and I wouldn't like to be in the middle of a built-up area or city."

Emily, 75, and Gavin, 76, bought a new five-bedroom Munro-style home at Manor Kingdom's Balgowan Mill development in Balgowan, Perthshire, because it gave them the best of both worlds. It's much easier for their family to get to and only 15 minutes from the shops and attractions of Perth but still in the country.

Emily said: "Everything is very high quality and we're delighted with it.

"There are only 52 houses in the development and it's virtually a new village.

"The house itself is very well planned.

There's no wasted space and we have two en-suite bathrooms, a bathroom and a cloakroom which is great when the family descends on us.

"There's also a large utility room and plenty of storage space."

Emily added: "And there's absolutely everything in the kitchen - a dishwasher, fridge freezer and a great cooker. The only thing we had to buy was a tumble drier."

She said the benefits of modern building methods were highlighted by the fuel bills.

Emily explained: "We used to say we were heating the garden in our old farmhouse - this is well insulated and keeps the heat in."

New homes are scheduled for release at the site, with the added bonus of Manor Kingdom stumping up for the stamp duty on selected plots.

Prices for three and four-bedroom houses and townhouses at Balgowan Mill start at £245,000, five-bedroom properties range from £360,000.

For more details, call 01738 730477 or visit www.manorkingdom.com