Boxer Shane hits home at Churchill Gate
When champion Colchester boxer Shane Steward and partner, Louise Anderson, started the search for a first home together, they were after a knockout property.
Armed with a list of criteria – including a garden, spacious rooms and in a good area close to where they both work – they checked out a range of contenders, before finding their perfect match at Bryant Homes’ Churchill Gate development close to the Abbey Fields in Colchester.
“The three-bedroom house we chose had everything we were looking for,” says Shane (23), an engineering lecturer at Colchester Institute and the reigning Independent Boxing Association European Heavyweight Champion.
“The back garden is about 50ft by 25ft, and because of the fantastic outlook, directly across Abbey Fields, we feel like we’ve got one of the largest front gardens in Colchester!”
The couple’s two greyhounds, RSPCA rescue dog, Valerie, and retired track racer, Scooby – which Shane describes as ‘40mph couch potatoes’ – are also enjoying having plenty of open space right on their doorstep, plus a comfortable new place in which they can put up their paws and relax.
It was thanks to Bryant’s assistance for first-time buyers that Shane and 24-year-old Louise, who also works at Colchester Institute, could tick all the boxes on their new home wish-list without going over budget.
Explains Shane: “We had been looking for a first home together for about six months but nothing had met our criteria or, if it did, it was out of our price range. But with Bryant’s help we doubled our deposit so we could put down a larger amount.
“This enabled us to afford the home that we really wanted, and it’s a very good feeling to know this is ‘our house’. We could have ended up spending similar money each month on renting a place, which would never feel like our own, no matter how long we lived there.”
To ensure their new place truly reflected their own styles and tastes, the couple chose their carpets, flooring, bathroom tiles and kitchen from Bryant Homes’ Options range of finishing touches, helping to make their new house feel like a home when they moved in.
“We never felt out of our depth as a first-time buyer with Bryant,” adds Shane. “All the choices we were presented with to make it feel like our own from day one were made easy. It’s been a good experience for us, which I’d recommend to others who are keen to step onto the property ladder in Colchester.”
First-time buyers, like Shane and Louise, have a superb opportunity to own a new home at Churchill Gate, where a range of apartments has been recently released for sale with prices starting from just £99,995 for a stylish one-bedroom design with the living/dining area and the bedroom opening through French windows to a large balcony.
Selected two-bedroom apartments have a handy en-suite to the master bedroom in addition to a main bathroom, while each new home comes with a fitted kitchen complete with built-in oven, hob and hood, plus an allocated parking space within the attractive grounds of the development.
To make it easier to step onto the property ladder in Colchester, Bryant Homes offers a range of special incentives for first-time buyers on selected new apartments, including its new Family and Friends Advantage.
This incredible investment opportunity offers friends or relatives providing a deposit up to 20% of the price of a selected brand new home at Churchill Gate a guaranteed 5% return on their outlay every year for the next five years.
For example, a £10,000 deposit on a one-bedroom apartment, priced £99,995, would guarantee a return of £500 each year and a total of £2,500 over the five-year period – that’s a quarter of the overall investment amount!
Full details on the range of incentives and their terms and conditions are available from the Homes Consultant at the development.
Homes at Churchill Gate enjoy a prime position in Colchester, with fantastic views over the Abbey Fields and only half a mile from the town centre – ideal for those seeking a home within walking distance of work, plus a wide range of leisure pursuits, including pubs, restaurants and sports facilities.
The coast at West Mersea is only 10 miles from the development, while commuters will appreciate good rail and road links to Chelmsford, Brentwood and London, and to Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge and the Midlands. For those travelling further afield, Stansted Airport is 35 miles away by road.
Further information on first-time buyer incentives and the full range of homes at Churchill Gate is available from the Homes Consultant on 0845 026 5584. The Marketing Suite is located off Circular Road South, Colchester, and open Thursday to Monday from 10am until 5.30pm.
