Swapping Surrey for Living by the Sea
For more than 40 years, London black cab driver Les Beale and his wife Barbara lived happily in their beautifully-tended mid-terrace home in the ancient North Downs parish of Coulsdon in Surrey, while Les drove paying customers around Central London...
As bills mounted and heating costs soared, they decided it was time to downsize from their four-bedroom, two bathroom extended property, but they could not find a two-bedroom home in their local area which did not carry an extortionate price tag.
Then, as they searched further afield, they were invited to an Open Day at the stunning new Castle View Court development on the sun-soaked Sussex coast at Pevensey Bay, to the north of the elegant Victorian resort town of Eastbourne.
“We thought at first that it would be a nice day out,” said Les, who was a service manager in a print machine manufacturer before taking to the road, “but Castle View was a revelation. It was quite unreal. We could not believe how fantastic the location was.
“The village is off to one side, the Harbour shopping centre to the other and the beach is just across the road. Barbara and I knew right away that this was the answer to where we wanted to live.”
Les, who still commutes to the capital five days a week to work in his taxi, bought a fully furnished 40x20 Omar Regency park home, featuring a traditional exterior and a fantastic modern kitchen with all appliances, and moved in in May this year.
With help from developer EKOS Homes, he and Barbara customised their home, choosing a south-facing site and adding a utility room and patio doors which lead out onto decking. “David and the EKOS team, including Joe and Lisa, were great. They helped Barbara and I design it,” he said.
Les, who took five years to learn The Knowledge – the black cab driver’s great skill, which includes learning 465 complex traffic routes by heart.
“Everyone around here is lovely and I’m more relaxed knowing that should Barbara need any help whilst I’m in the city there are plenty of people around the park she can ask. They are like-minded people and Castle View is developing into a really great community. I have two sons and they and their grand-children visit regularly.
“They say we’ve made the right choice – and the grand-kids just can’t get enough of the beach and historic sites.”
The next Open Days at Castle View Court are Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th October, 10am to 4pm.
ENDS