For firefighter and business owner David Beards (50) and his wife Anastasia (33), the uncertainty of the past year ignited a fire to buy their first home as a couple. Rather than continuing to rent a home in Windsor, the couple decided it would be a better to invest in their very own two-bedroom apartment at Shanly Homes' Waterside Quarter in Maidenhead.
David and Anastasia, a commercial manager for popular retailer Zara, had previously been renting a two-bedroom house in Windsor for three years. Explaining the couple's decision to buy an apartment at Waterside Quarter, David comments: "We had originally decided that renting was better for us as we were considering moving to Europe, and weren't sure how long we were going to be staying in the area. With Brexit and the pandemic causing increasing uncertainty for people looking to move abroad, we took the decision to stop wasting money on rent, and invest our money into buying our own property instead."
David continues: "Even with a shorter mortgage term, our repayments are only around £1,350 a month. This is a big difference compared to what we were paying every month in rent at £1,500, and we now own our own property instead of giving money to someone else. I think moving to Maidenhead will be a great investment too, because the regeneration of the town centre and the introduction of Crossrail in the near future means that the area is greatly improving. Maidenhead will be amazing when it's all finished!"
Discussing the local area, David comments: "I've lived in both the city and the countryside before during my time in the Royal Marines, and I just really like being in a buzzing town location. The fire station I work at is in Reading, so the commute from Maidenhead is around half an hour. Maidenhead has a huge selection of restaurants and bars too, so that's great for socialising with our friends that live nearby. Coppa Club is literally opposite the development, and because I'm so busy during the day with work, it's a great place to go in the evenings. I'm looking forward to an even larger selection of bars and restaurants becoming available when all the regeneration works have finished."
David continues: "Waterside Quarter has a real community feel, and we love that. We've got a rooftop communal garden which we can access from our front door, from which we can see the waterway that runs through the development. Shortly after we'd moved in, we had a good spell of weather and we ended up meeting up with some of our neighbours for a drink out there. They're great and we've set up a WhatsApp group with all of them, so we're always chatting on that."
David comments: "When we came to view this apartment, we'd only been looking for three or four weeks, but we loved it and decided to put an offer in straight away. We especially love the large terrace - we've decorated it and put a sofa out there, and we can't wait to enjoy the summer weather sitting outside. In the past when I've bought properties, I purchased resale homes which needed a lot of work doing to them. This time around, I just wanted a finished product so we didn't have to worry about any DIY - it's all done for us! The finish here is really good, and the bathroom is lovely, so all that we really had to do was dress the space and put our stamp on it."
David and Anastasia were able to take advantage of the Help to Buy scheme. Reflecting on the process, David comments: "We used Help to Buy because we wanted to take advantage of the smaller deposits that it provides. As I'd owned properties before, we needed to act quickly to find a home because we knew they were changing the eligibility criteria to first time buyers only. I think that really encouraged us to focus on our search. Using Help to Buy was absolutely brilliant, and all the people that we dealt with were amazing."
David concludes: "I would highly recommend buying with Shanly Homes. They were excellent, and we couldn't fault their service. From beginning to end, the sales team were fantastic, and we are just so in love with our apartment. We are looking forward to hosting a house warming party once all the restrictions have lifted, so that we can show-off our home to our friends and family."
Benefitting from its location within the focal point of Maidenhead's regeneration, Waterside Quarter is a stylish collection of one and two-bedroom apartments. All apartments feature stunning open-plan living areas, spacious kitchens and contemporary bathrooms. Every apartment has access to private outdoor space, in the form of a terrace or balcony, offering additional space to unwind in.
The new homes are perfectly placed within easy reach of Maidenhead's restaurants, bars and shops, as well as plentiful green and blue spaces, providing the ideal blend of convenience and tranquillity. Located just an 11-minute walk from Maidenhead train station, London Paddington can be reached in as little as 26 minutes.
With 70% of properties at Waterside Quarter now reserved, prices start from £270,000. For further information, please visit /developments/berkshire/waterside-quarter/ or call 01628 673046.
