Developer Newby has seen a surge of interest in some of its North
Yorkshire-based sites as the UK’s property market gets back up and running.
The housing market was given the green light to restart on 13th
May, with sales and building work having been in limbo since lockdown first
began. However, Newby is reporting that interest in new builds doesn’t seem to
have been affected in the short term.
The developer saw a 166 per cent increase in enquiries during May for
its Glasshouses Mill development, which even resulted in further sales on the
development. Situated on the banks of the River Nidd, Newby is regenerating this
historic mill, near Pateley Bridge in Nidderdale, into 32 high quality homes,
apartments and cottages.
Newby’s West House Gardens development of 33 luxury family homes in the
village of Birstwith near Harrogate has also seen enquiries increase by more
than 50 per cent so far in June, when compared to the three months previously
combined, many of which have stated that they require a house with a garden or
countryside views.
Homebuyers interested in any of Newby’s developments are encouraged to
take a virtual tour in the first instance and are then able to visit in person by
appointment only, following social distancing and hygiene guidelines to minimise
any risks.
Stephen Maskill, Sales & Marketing Director for Newby said: “We’ve
been delighted to see the surge of interest in our developments since the
industry was able to re-open. We have noticed particular interest in our rural
developments – lockdown has definitely made people re-evaluate their priorities.
Yorkshire’s beautiful countryside, with access to nature and open spaces, seem
to be ranking highly on the wish list for many people. Although town and city-based
developments, such as Ryedale House in York city centre, or Springfield Court
in the spa town of Harrogate, will always prove popular, there’s certainly some
people who have decided they want to escape to the country.
“We’ve been interested to see that enquiries have come from a wide
spectrum of homebuyers too – from people downsizing or planning retirement, to
those looking for more space for their family and even first time buyers,
although there was concern that sector would be heavily impacted in the wake of
Coronavirus. We can offer the Help to Buy scheme on our Glasshouses
development, which has also helped. We’ve also continued to see people
interested in buy to let, which is a positive sign. Hopefully this level of
interest will continue over the coming months and we can get the market moving
again.”