Sherford dream comes true for military couple

- 30 Oct 17

Weapons engineer Alex Ferrier and his wife Samantha, a Royal Navy writer, had thought that they couldn't afford their ideal home.

But with the help of Bovis Homes' Armed Forces Discount Scheme, specially designed for military personnel, their dream move came true and they are now settled into life at the bustling new Sherford community near Plymouth.

"We had been looking for about 12 months, and had even had an offer accepted on a flat in Plymouth. But it wasn't really right for us so eventually we decided to pull out and save for something better," explains Alex, who is based at HMNB Devonport.

"We were looking for somewhere with lots of space, minimal work to do and within our budget, and at first this was quite an issue as our budget wouldn't stretch far enough to tick all the boxes, while still being close to our work at Devonport."

It was at this point that Alex and Samantha visited Bovis Homes at Sherford, near Plymouth, where the first phase of 600 homes is currently being built of a new sustainable community which will eventually house more than 12,000 residents.

"Sherford made such an impression on us," says Alex. "But to begin with it had seemed so far out of our budget!

"We loved the houses, the style and the amount of space with no work needed. When we found out about the scheme we were amazed at how affordable it actually was. And because it was a new build, we could use Help to Buy to borrow more money, while accessing cheaper mortgage rates," he adds.

The couple heard through word-of-mouth about Bovis Homes' Armed Forces Discount Scheme and how it could be combined with the Government's Help to Buy equity loan.

The discount scheme sees Armed Forces personnel (including reservists) receiving £500 off every £25,000 spent on a Bovis Home, as well as £500 towards legal costs and a package of extras including carpets and flooring.

With Help to Buy, the Government lends buyers up to 20% of the cost of their newly-built home, so they only need a 5% cash deposit and a 75% mortgage to make up the rest.

"When we heard about Bovis Homes' scheme, and how it could be used with Help to Buy, we did some careful research and spoke to an independent financial adviser. It was then we realised what a massive difference it could make to us," explains Alex.

After looking around the four-bedroom, three-storey Heybrook house type, the couple decided they had found the home for them and made a reservation. 

The Heybrook is an elegant home with high ceilings and wooden Georgian style sash windows. The fully fitted kitchen includes integrated appliances and there are also two reception rooms, two en suite bathrooms, a garage and allocated parking.

"The process is slightly nerve racking whilst you are waiting to reserve a property, but once we got an offer on our sale using Bovis Homes' Smooth Move service, everything seemed to be done for us, there was no need to get involved at any stage," says Alex.

With Smooth Move, Bovis Homes instructed an estate agent to sell the couple's old property and paid the fees when it was sold.

The couple have now been settled into their new Sherford home for a couple of weeks and they've had time to reflect on their move.

"I would definitely do it all again and will most likely buy another new-build should we decide to move in the future," says Alex. "As for the Armed Forces scheme, I would definitely recommend it, in fact I've already suggested it to three of my colleagues!"

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