Kidbrooke Village: Offering the Best of Both Worlds for New Homeowners

36-year-old events and marketing manager, Hazel Waite, and psychologist, Simon McNair, are celebrating three years as members of the Kidbrooke Village community. Reflecting on their journey to home ownership, the couple talk about their experience purchasing their first property, a one-bedroom home in Loder House.

The Journey to Home Ownership

Before buying, Hazel and Simon were renting in Clapham. Like many young couples, they wanted a more secure future, but were unsure whether they would be able to turn their dream of owning a home into a reality - until they found Kidbrooke Village.

“We did not want to carry on renting and dealing with an unreasonable landlord so we decided to apply for a mortgage. We didn’t realise how quickly the mortgage in principle would come through. Within a matter of days, we had received it and our dream of buying became a reality.”

For Hazel and Simon, their purchase was made possible through a combination of savings and family support: “We had a deposit that came mainly from our own savings and our ISA which was around £26k – we were also fortunate to be gifted some of the deposit from family to assist us, which also helped us cover some of the legal costs.

“The Berkeley team was so helpful throughout the whole process and explained everything so clearly to us. Buying a home can be stressful, but the sales agent put our mind at rest and things didn’t take too long – we were in the property within a few months.”

The Best of Both Worlds

Located in Zone 3, Hazel and Simon can enjoy the best of both worlds and enjoy easy access to the lifestyle and culture of Greenwich and beyond, making everyday life convenient.

“One of the deciding factors for us was that the train station was so close by, which was one of our requirements when looking for a home. Kidbrooke Village is an easy commute to the centre of London and there are at least four trains an hour every morning which can get me to London Bridge in seventeen minutes.”

“It has made life much easier as our home is literally across the road from the station. How many people can literally walk out of their home and into the station and vice versa at the end of the day?”

An Oasis of Calm With Unrivalled Green Spaces 

Kidbrooke Village is home to 86-acres of award-winning parklands offering residents views of water features and wide-open green spaces, plus access to amenities including children’s play areas. The park is rich with biodiversity, with Cator Park winning the prestigious 'Sir David Attenborough Award for Enhancing Biodiversity'.

“Green space in London is not something you would often associate with housing developments, but Berkeley have broken the mould. When we first came here, we recognised that it just seemed greener and better developed than the other places we looked at.

“You can really see the attention to detail and how everything has a purpose. In addition to Cator Park, you have also got Sutcliffe Park which has Green Flag status. They have got a lovely duck pond which provides additional places for wildlife in the area to gather.”

A Tight-Knit Community With Everything You Need on Your Doorstep 

Since moving in Hazel and Simon have enjoyed the sense of community that Kidbrooke Village fosters, as well as having close access to all the things they love and need. 

This includes a resident’s gym on site, The Village Centre, and easy access to buzzing neighbouring areas including Blackheath which has Sunday farmers’ market, as well as organic food retailers, wine bars and shops.

“If someone was to ask me what I think of Kidbrooke Village, I would say to them that they need to come and experience it for themselves. There is an ever-growing community, and it is without doubt one of the hidden gems of London.” 

“Blackheath is also fantastic – it’s a nice local area to visit and they also have farmers markets on a Sunday which are really lovely. There is always nice organic food and specialist products, as well as wine bars and shops. It’s only a 15-minute walk away so it’s great to have so much close by.”

“We quite like walking and it only takes us 45 minutes to walk into Greenwich from here, so we often walk across the park and you get a lovely view of Canary Wharf.”

Peace of Mind 

Buying a Berkeley home gives people the peace of mind that they have a quality home for life, from a trusted developer. Certainly, for Hazel and Simon, the shift from renting took some getting used to:

“It feels fantastic. From the moment we picked up the keys and walked in we felt a sense of relief. We’ve been living here for three years now and only just painted the walls which we’ve never been able to do before in rental properties. It’s taken us a little while to realise that we can do what we want to the home now and really make it our own. It’s been nice and freeing.” 

Read Hazel and Simon’s full interview featured on Metro’s ‘What I Own’ series here: We swapped a difficult landlord for our vibrant £460,000 London flat | Metro News.