Nice and easy does it! Couple find assisted move makes for stress-free life

Moving house can be an extremely stressful experience, but retired school SEN Administrator Glenys Bowyer and her wife Nic decided to make life as simple as possible when they bought their new home at The Grove in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire.

Rather than have all the bother and paperwork of finding a buyer for their large house in nearby town Thame, the couple trusted independent developer Dandara to do the job for them through its Assisted Move scheme. “It meant that we were able to move really quickly,” says Glenys, 66, “and the whole process was virtually stress free.”

Glenys and Nic, 53, who is a primary school head teacher, had originally intended to downsize as both of them would soon be enjoying their retirement; but in the end, they found themselves unexpectedly going up the ladder, after falling in love with the four-bedroom detached York.

The couple had decided they wanted to move to the maintenance-free convenience of a new build, and as soon as they saw The Grove, they were impressed. “We were originally planning to downsize, so we had gone to The Grove to look at the bungalows there,” says Glenys. “However, as soon as we looked around the four-bedroom show home, we thought it was just so fabulous that we had to have one!”

So rather than ending up in a small bungalow, Glenys and Nic moved into the spacious York, with its dual aspect living room with a bay window and open-plan kitchen diner with French doors to the garden. Upstairs they now have three double rooms, two with en-suites, a single room and family bathroom, giving plenty of space for family to visit.

They used the £475,000 proceeds of selling their house in Thame as a large deposit for the £585,000 property at The Grove, and are now happily settling into their new home after moving in October 2021. “We love everything about it,” says Glenys. “We live opposite a small green, with lots of nice grassy areas that are lovely for walks. There is a new cricket pitch planned to be just around the corner and there’s a good playground for older children, with an exciting zipwire, that our granddaughter will enjoy when she visits.

“There’s a mixture of all ages here, which makes it a nice community to move into, and we have already got to know the next door neighbours who are lovely – we’re planning on a get together for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, which should be a real community celebration. The area is very peaceful as well, with the Chiltern Hills and interesting towns like Aylesbury close at hand.”

The Grove is less than two miles from Haddenham & Thame Parkway railway station, which has direct services to London Marylebone, something theatre fan Glenys appreciates as it makes getting to London shows quick and convenient. “I can zip up to London whenever I like, in only around 40 minutes,” says Glenys.

Glenys and Nic are not alone in deciding that the typical retirement bungalow is not for them – in fact they are ahead of the trend. Research by Merrill Lynch and Age Wave in the US found in a study of 3,600 respondents, that 49% of retirees didn’t downsize in their last move, and 30% actually ended up moving into larger homes1. Similarly, another survey of those in their fifties to sixties found that 22% were looking to upsize and 43% wanted to move to a different home but with comparable space2.

In total, The Grove will feature 280 new homes, including two-, three- and four-bedroom properties, all with garages, carports or allocated parking and turfed gardens, along with contemporary fitted kitchens and stylish white bathroom suites. The development features 23 acres of open space, with play areas and a pond as well as the cricket pitch.

Simon Pendlebury, Sales and Marketing Director at Dandara commented: “The Grove is a development that appeals to upsizers and downsizers alike – the area has so much to offer, from country pubs and beautiful walks, to good schools and a convenient commute, and with the range of different house types available, there is something to suit every family at every stage of life.”