Wealden Times | WT194 | April 2018 | Garden supplement inside

HOUSE OF THE MONTH
1.
1.
Later living it up
Maggie Alderson is looking forward to the
next of life’s housing stages
Life’s housing stages used to divide up neatly into parental home, first
home and family home… then it all got a bit vague. If you were lucky
there would be a granny flat arrangement with one of the sprogs, if not
there were very few options, especially once the point was reached when even a
retirement bungalow got a bit much to deal with.
How quickly and brilliantly that has all changed, with the dawn of the
appealing concept of ‘later years living’, with the emphasis very much on the
word living. That’s how we think about the stage after the family home years
now, another style of living, not a custodial sentence. Something to look
forward to.
Now there is a whole new genre of retirement living options, with
developments so well designed that, rather than induce regret at the house
and environs left behind, they can inspire a whole new lease of energy, with
an invigorated social life. And not having to worry about roofs, gutters, lawns,
fallen leaves etc ever again. The joy.
I consider myself particularly well versed in this segment of the property
market, having researched it very thoroughly for my mother and being so
impressed with what I saw I was inspired to set a large part of the action in my
most recent novel in a glamorous retirement development (The Scent of You, out
in June).
The apartments themselves, in every later years set-up I visited, are sleek and
thoughtfully equipped to take unnecessary little irritants out of daily life, with
luxuries such as electric windows, illuminated light switches at elbow height
and front doors that don’t lock automatically on closure.
I can also attest to the quality of the social aspect. Lunch with my mum’s
new group of friends is a riot and the wine flows. Here are some of the best
retirement developments currently on the market.
1. Audley Mote
Where? Audley Mote is situated near
the village of Bestead, from where trains are
just over an hour to London Victoria, just
over ten minutes drive to Maidstone.
What?In a development by premium
retirement home specialists Audley
Number 3, The Stables is set within the
Grade II* listed Georgian stable block at
Audley Mote House retirement village.
This two-bedroom cottage has a walkin
wardrobe and en suite in the Master
bedroom and a high quality kitchen with
SieMatic units and Corian worktops. The
kitchen and dining room are open plan
and look out over the sunny courtyard.
The cottage also has a downstairs WC
and main bathroom next to the second
bedroom upstairs. All owners automatically
become members of the Audley Club, with
use of the restaurant, bistro bar, health
and wellbeing centre, fitness suite and
swimming pool.
How much?The apartment is priced
at £414,000. Contact Audley on
01622 297192 audleyvillages.co.uk
wealdentimes.co.uk
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