London house hunters try the latest in modern design before they buy

Despite its elegant Victorian heritage and archetypal houses, Crystal Palace is now home to a new development that is re-inventing the traditional floorplan, with a unique approach to open-plan living, designed to suit the lifestyles of today’s families. Pioneered by award-winning developers Solidspace, in partnership with up-and-coming architecture firm, MW Architects, Essex Mews consists of three detached houses, each incorporating the trademark Solidspace form.

The homes are built in a newly-created private mews off Central Hill near Crystal Palace town centre and externally, are sympathetic to their the vernacular, featuring pitched roofs and brick facades; but this is where the similarities to their neighbours end. Inside, the Solidspace form reconfigures the key social spaces of the house, by fusing open-plan and split-level to connect where we eat, live and work, yet also keeping these areas semi-private. This design not only helps to create a feeling of light, volume and space, but also eradicates the traditional areas of wasted space such as hallways; cleverly maximising the 338m³ of internal space.

So innovative is the concept, and so confident is Solidspace about its appeal, that it is offering potential buyers the option to ‘try before they buy’; opening the doors of its show house for a ‘Solidspace Sleepover’ - a chance for buyers to experience and appreciate the benefits of living in a house that truly fits modern lifestyles.

Gus Zogolovitch, Managing Director at Solidspace, comments: “We do things differently at Solidspace; not only do we take a completely new approach to house design from the typical housing stock we are used to – from the traditional 19th and 20th century terraced homes, to the new speculatively-built townhouses and apartments –we also want people to engage with our homes and you can’t do that until you have spent the night there.

When you buy a new car, you expect to take it for a test drive – so why shouldn’t this apply to a new home? After all, buying a home is a very significant and important purchase for everyone.

“We are proud to announce what we believe is a UK-first: we are so confident that people will love our new homes that we are happy to let anyone who is keen on purchasing a Solidspace home or interested in building one for themselves to come and try one out at Essex Mews, with no obligation. We want people to experience the difference of living in a home which has been designed to meet our 21st century lifestyles.”

Ideal as a starter family home or as a great home to downsize to, each house features three double bedrooms, a master bathroom, a shower room, a cleverly combined cloak room and utility room, a study area, a living room and a sunken kitchen that opens out to rear gardens through an almost entire wall of glass. At the heart of the house, and the Solidspace form, is the kitchen. The living room is offset by half a storey, connected to the kitchen whilst remaining a calmer place for reflection. The work area is separate from the living room by a further half-storey and allows for extra privacy.

Finished to a high quality, the Essex Mews homes come complete with contemporary style fixtures and fittings, including solid core timber doors, oak hardwood floors, gas-fired underfloor heating to the main living and kitchen areas, slate floor tiles, solid granite kitchen worktops, fully integrated Bosch kitchen appliances, ceramic tiles, Cat 5e cabling and low energy lighting.

Beyond the design and specification, Solidspace is also committed to creating sustainable, environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient homes. The new houses at Essex Mews far exceed standard environmental regulations, creating a comfortable environment for the occupiers, whilst reducing energy bills more than a third. High-performance double-glazed windows, high levels of insulation and superior air tightness help to eliminate drafts and reduce heat loss, whilst a mechanical ventilation and heat recovery unit offers improved air quality and energy efficiency.

The combination of innovative design and a commitment to build-quality, sustainability and contemporary styling ensures that Solidspace homes make an ideal investment, with previous developments achieving impressive re-sale prices well above the wider market, making them ideal for owner-occupiers and property investors alike.

Prices at Essex Mews start from £589,950. For more information, visit solidspace.co.uk/essexmews.