Dream Home: Take five
A modern family home in Saltdean that raises the benchmark
I watched this house being built. It’s one of a pair sitting on a plot of land close to the sea and near to where I live in Saltdean. The project drew a lot of attention locally as the houses were clearly going to be rather large.
The properties are detached, but prettily designed in butterfly fashion so that left and right are mirror images of each other. The first has been finished and occupied for some time and now the second is ready to be taken to the market. I went along to take a look and it’s certainly been worth the wait.
Built over three floors, the house is reached through a small front garden and drive. The entrance is to the centre with the garage to the right and the front door is protected by a tiled canopy, a traditional feature that is typical of this new build. Inside, a wide hallway leads to all the main rooms. At the front left and opposite the garage is a large and beautifully designed modern kitchen with Smeg and Zanussi appliances. The units are faced in a glossy taupe finish and there are stylish details everywhere the eye can see. It’s not only a kitchen either, but has been well designed to provide a relaxed family dining area.
‘‘A truly modern family home in one of the city’s most desirable locations’’
The next door opens into a large cloakroom and utility with WC. It’s a good sized room, way above average and with ample space for appliances and storage. This is the second glimpse I get of the standard of finish here too. The kitchen is fantastic and this continues at the same standard with modern fixtures and designer radiators used generously where other developers might have gone for ‘plain’ or ‘economy’.
At the rear of the house, double doors lead into the main living area which runs the full width of the house and then stretches into the garden in the form of a fully integrated conservatory. At the far end of the conservatory, a pedestal-style radiator is topped with a black marble bench seat. It’s unfurnished when I view, but immediately I can see endless potential and a huge number of ways that this large space can be configured. French doors lead out onto a sun terrace that will be filled with sunshine for the best part of the day until the sun finally goes down over in the west. Beyond the terrace, the garden is laid to lawn, easy to maintain maybe or just a blank canvas ready for green fingers.
The stairs lead up to the first landing. At the front of the house are two large double bedrooms – the scale is immediately impressive. From the landing, another door leads into yet another strikingly chic bathroom, this time with a Jacuzzi-style bath and beautifully tiled walls and floor, a feature of the bathrooms throughout – as are the stunning designer radiators.
To the rear is the master bedroom suite, again on a large scale and again with a stunning contemporary bathroom with an amazing deep free-standing bath tub and a separate shower cubicle. There is a real sense of luxury despite the fact that other than the bathrooms and kitchens this house is as yet unfurnished.
The stairs rose one more time to the top floor where there are again two large double bedrooms, high ceilinged despite being built into the eaves, but with stunning sea views from a series of Velux windows. Between the front and rear bedrooms, the landing is filled with light, again from a Velux window. A final door opens into an excellent walk-in storage room, typically space gained where others would have not bothered.
The look of the property is classic – banisters,rails and newel posts are traditional, as are the windows and doors. There are, however, some great cutting-edge details. All efforts have been made to make the property as modern as possible, with excellent heat and sound insulation throughout, even between floors, and of course, double glazing throughout as well as a modern condenser type boiler.
The developer has also installed a centrally powered vacuum system that has ports on each landing, which makes cleaning that little bit easier.
It’s easy to fall for this house, the scale alone is a draw, but when you start to add up the details and extras it’s just a clear winner. A truly modern family home in one of the city’s most desirable locations, with excellent local facilities, public transport, beach and down-land walks… who could ask for more?
Bannings Vale, Saltdean
£495,000
David Webb Residential
12 West Street, Rottingdean
01273 300525
www.davidwebbresidential.co.uk
