On average 368,000 people in the UK search Google every month for the phrase “buy a house”, spending hours hunting for that perfect property.

Now, in celebration of their 25^th anniversary and in response to ever growing visitor numbers, award-winning house builder, Millgate has launched its new website – www.millgatehomes.co.uk.

Attaining to the old adage that a picture says a thousand words, Millgate has adopted a heavily visual approach to the site with focus on large, high quality, professional images of their stunning homes. The new site incorporates bespoke image galleries for each house with full size interior and exterior photographs and interactive features including full social share functionality.

In keeping with the latest technology and commitment to positive user experience, the new Millgate website includes extensive HD video footage of each development enabling prospective buyers to explore the wonder of a Millgate home from the comfort of their armchair.

As well as touring the properties themselves, visitors can also get behind the scenes through a video entitled “Vision, Design, Craftsmanship” which takes the viewer on a journey with the team from the very start of construction to completion of a Millgate home.

Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director at Millgate, comments,

“Over the past year we have seen a vast uplift in the number of people searching online for a Millgate home and also visiting our website. As a progressive, market leading house builder, we pride ourselves in embracing new technologies and listening to what our clients’ want. Our new website reflects perfectly the highest standards that we at Millgate adhere to, both on and offline.”

So take a look for yourself and visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk today!

*Coldwell Banker report 2012

Oxford, a city steeped in tradition which runs deeper than its ancient walls, with history and heritage at every turn, attracts people from all walks of life, from all over the globe.

With a population of approximately 140,000, Oxford is certainly one of the most captivating cities in the UK and without a doubt the most intellectually charged, so it’s little surprise that 1 in every 5 people in Oxford is a student.

Living in Oxford however with the quaint streets swarming with tourists and students can be a tad frustrating at times which is why people looking to settle in the area lean towards the delightful villages that surround the city.

Philip Turner, Director of Thomas Merrifield, one of Oxfordshire´s largest independent estate agents with high profile offices across the county explains the wisdom of choosing a village rather than the city centre,

“We are seeing an increased demand for homes with large gardens as more buyers seek to move out of Oxford city centre in search of a quality lifestyle within which to bring up their families. For instance a new development built by luxury home builders, Millgate is attracting great interest at the moment. Each of the four country houses in the boutique Rothermere Place development benefit from gardens in the region of half an acre but each has individual characteristics.

“In Rushton House, the show home is set in mature gardens born out of the original grounds and contains stone Italianate balustrades. Kingsley House and Hertford House both have particularly extensive gardens to the rear that are ideally suited to family use and Latimer House has gardens to three sides to enable creative landscaping. All gardens have large patio areas for home entertaining, gazebos and are fully turfed and planted. With a woodland backdrop this is a stunning setting. Prospective buyers have been very impressed to find a brand new home with such generous gardens!”

So how important is having a garden today?

In 2007 Mind published a report on the benefits of gardening and being outside for assisting with mental health issues. Horticultural therapy is well-established in the UK across a variety of health and social care specialisms with more and more people picking up gardening as a hobby and reaping the benefits of improved ‘vigour’.

Working in your garden also builds strength, endurance and flexibility.   Simple tasks such as edging, raking the lawn, pulling weeds and planting seeds all use major muscle groups. And finally there is stress reduction; Horticulture Therapy found that just viewing nature can have stress-reducing benefits.   Gardens can be planted with stress reduction in mind using soothing colours and scents and studies have found that working the garden helps the recovery of sickly and ailing people.

Indeed a recent survey from the Yorkshire Building Society found that having a garden was a top priority for first time buyers. Owning your own patch of greenery ranked above all other drivers – even above transport links or proximity to restaurants.   

Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director at Millgate, comments on the important of gardens to each of their luxury new developments,

“All too often with new build homes, the developer will cram as many houses as possible on a piece of land. We take a view that we want our clients to live in a perfect house in a perfect environment and to achieve this goal we try and ensure our houses have some as much land as possible.

“We employ a Chelsea Flower Show award winner landscape. As we have done at the houses at our latest development at Hinksey Hill. With half acre gardens they are truly fabulous and offer a generous amount of space for all the family to enjoy.”

Accessed via a private Lane, Rushton House at Hinksey Hill is a superb three storey, five bedroom, arts and crafts style detached house set in half an acre plot of mature gardens.

Designed for modern family living, the perfectly balanced floor plan divides the formal rooms on one side with the more relaxed rooms on the other. There is an elegant drawing room with high ceiling, a limestone fireplace and French windows onto the garden terrace. Of note is the magnificent kitchen/family room that extends the full length of the house with an orangery flooded with light while an informal dining area off the kitchen offers views over the garden.

Upstairs the expansive master suite provides a serene sanctuary featuring a walk-in fitted dressing room and luxurious en-suite, along with a large private timber decked terrace. Also on this floor is the guest suite and a further two double bedrooms and family bathroom. On the second floor bedroom five has its own en-suite shower room, whilst the large media room offers flexibility of use.

Rushton House is priced at £2,300,000. For more information contact Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit their new look website at www.millgatehomes.co.uk.

Topping off a fantastic year, quintessential British house builder, Millgate has been awarded two prestigious accolades at this year´s What House? Awards.

Commonly thought of as the ‘The Oscars’ of the house building world, Berkshire based Millgate picked up a silver award for “Best Luxury House” and bronze award for “Best Interior Design” last Friday evening at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Now in its 31st year, the What House? Awards is regarded as the most prestigious New Homes event in the UK unveiling exciting and innovative projects of the industry’s most influential UK housebuilders.

Jonathan Cranley, Sales & Marketing Director at Millgate comments,

“After celebrating our 25th anniversary this year, these two awards have been the perfect way to end 2012 at Millgate.

“Since day one, we have focussed our attention on building beautiful high quality homes, priding ourselves on innovation, design and craftsmanship and ensuring that we tend to every little detail – I believe this is what sets us apart from other house builders and it’s wonderful to have been acknowledged by our industry peers for our commitment and passion.”

Cranley continues,

“At Millgate we like to ensure that our homes are just as stunning on the inside as they are on the outside and our collaborative efforts with award-winning interior design team Alexander James has allowed us to do just that. For this, I thank them.“I must also congratulate all the team at Millgate for their untiring efforts. Their dedication, passion and professionalism are what ensure Millgate succeeds. It’s a pleasure working with them.” 

The “Best Luxury House” and “Best Interior Design” awards were awarded to Millgate’s stunning country home, Beech House, located in Boars Hill, Oxford – a house that combines the prestige of a traditional country home and the luxury of modern contemporary elegance.

The recently sold private six bedroom country house is set over three floors and benefits from over two acres of gardens swimming pool, a shared tennis court, summerhouse, a four car garage and courtyard.

For more information contact Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk.

Wargrave, a charming village in the heart of the quintessential English county of Berkshire where the River Loddon merges with the River Thames, is a growing community crying out for new family homes.

The first documented evidence of a settlement at Wargrave dates back to 1061 with the Doomsday Book recording a population of just 250.  Since then, the village has grown considerably and has proved especially popular with commuters working in west and central London as well as the local area.

Today Wargrave has a population in the region of 3,000 and with its terrific position in the M4 corridor and only 7 miles from Reading, it is easy to see why people aspire to live there.  The village affords very good access to the A4, leading in turn to the Thames Valley Park in East Reading, home to Microsoft, Oracle Software and BG as well as Maidenhead, Slough and Heathrow via the M4.

It is also ideal for families, as there is good provision of state schooling in the village with infant, junior and secondary schools all within walking distance of the new Millgate development. Close to Henley on Thames, the home of the Royal Regatta and Henley Festival of the Arts, Wargrave retains its attractive village character with numerous societies and local activities and the High Street has a number of inns and antique shops. 

Due to its obvious appeals, demand for housing in Wargrave remains high with demand exceeding supply. Indeed the latest research from Halifax indicates that rural house prices have outperformed those in urban areas since 2007 with the Chiltern district in Buckinghamshire which includes the village of Wargrave seeing house prices go up by £1,107 per month over the past decade. 

In response to this demand, award-winning local developers, Millgate are opening the doors to their new show-home on Victoria Road in central Wargrave on Saturday 17th November 2012. This brand new development of 8 three and four bedroom family village houses is situated in the raised area of Victoria Road.
Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director of Millgate, comments:

“Finding just the right site is critical when it comes to building new homes.  And we have done just that at “Victoria Mews”, Wargrave.  This development is going to be a dream come true for eight fortunate buyers.  The houses are built with the highest specification and in a price range where we anticipate very strong demand.”
Joint Managing Director David Tate, appointed selling agent, expresses his thoughts on the new development:

“We are excited to be launching this new site for Millgate, their fourth in Wargrave following on from the fantastic success of Wargrave Park, a site of six luxury homes in the village centre. Previous sites in the village include large family homes at Wyatt Close and Harvest Place, so Victoria Mews will be welcomed by local buyers seeking Millgate quality at an affordable price.”

Each luxury family home has been built to include a garage, conservatory and balcony off one of the bedrooms.  The gardens are fully landscaped and this is undoubtedly one of the best residential locations in village of Wargrave. Price guide for the houses is £675,000 to £725,000. 

To find out more and register your interest in advance by contacting Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk.     
 

Millgate, the award winning luxury house builder in the South East of England has once again demonstrated their innovation within the industry through the creation of a construction iBook which is available for free at the Apple Store. 

The iBook is a sophisticated photographic and video portfolio of past projects, many of which have been award winners, with the latest stunning country mansions to be added in volume II which will be available by Christmas and features:

Highview Manor, Oxfordshire – an architectural jewel with commanding views to the North over Preservation Trust land towards the Oxford Spires and to the South backing onto ancient woodland and the Downs beyond.  This six bedroom house boasts an indoor swimming pool, tennis court and multi-gym, not to mention two acres of land, a four car garage and a detached two bedroom cottage set in the grounds.

Burford House, Berkshire – a commuters dream home, located in an idyllic semi-rural location within 3 miles of Beaconsfield, recently described as one of the most desirable towns in the country.

Millgate’s vision for the iBook was focussed on having the ability to showcase their past and present portfolio as well as cement trust with existing and future buyers.  As their homes have become ever more exclusive, buyers naturally take longer to commit to a sale and many are based overseas making the iBook an invaluable tool to visually show a potential new home to these clients.

Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director of Millgate, comments,

“We know that we build inspirational houses but getting that message across to someone in one viewing or perhaps who is based overseas is a challenge.  We feel that the iBook helps deliver our message of quality and luxury to our clients and partners in industry.”

Josh Linforth, Director of Social Zoo who created the iBook with Millgate comments,

“Social Zoo was delighted to assist Millgate Homes with their iBook, it was a pleasure to work with them and we enjoyed capturing their concept and absorbing their creative input to create a truly stunning iBook. The iBook now allows potential customers to tour their dream home and gain inspirational ideas. Having their iBook available on the Apple iBook store allows the prestigious homes to be viewed by an extremely wide audience.”

Since Millgate’s iBook was made available in late April of 2012, in this short period it has received nearly 300 downloads from a variety of different countries.

To view and download the Millgate iBook visit:  http://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/millgate-homes/id534209272?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4%2522

If you would like any further information on the iBook contact Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk.

Premium new homes builder Millgate who has been creating bespoke developments in the sought after location of Oxfordshire, recently voted third most expensive city in the UK for property per square metre  according to a new study by Halifax, is pleased to announce the opening of its Rothermere Place Show Home.

Opening on the 20th October 2012, Rothermere Place sits proudly within Hinksey Hill, one of the most renowned addresses in Oxfordshire where rivers meander between pretty villages and the city of Oxford lies just three miles away.

Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director at Millgate, comments,

“We build the finest new homes in areas with the best reputation. Oxfordshire is a highly desirable county where demand for country family homes particularly around the city is high.”

Further commenting on the market and the Rothermere Place development, Philip Turner, Director of Thomas Merrifield selling agents for Millgate remarks:

“We are excited to be launching this new Millgate development in one of Oxford´s prime locations. Off a private road, the homes occupy suburb southerly aspect plots each of c.0.5 acres with a stunning natural backdrop of mature woodland and have been constructed to the highest of standards with exceptional attention to detail and a specification synonymous with the marque.

“From our previous experience of acting for Millgate their pursuit of excellence does not go unnoticed by the discerning buyer and we expect this to be no exception. There is a strong demand for high quality homes both from an active local market and buyers moving out of London looking to take advantage of living in a City that provides strong transport links a vibrant cultural and entertainment scene and of course excellent educational facilities.”

Rothermere Place compromises just four detached country homes starting at £1.95million. Latimer House, a Georgian inspired detached family home set in private landscaped gardens bordered by mature woodland exceeding half an acre and Hertford House an exceptional five bedroom detached home set over three floors providing the ultimate in comfort and style. The third property, Kingsley House is a superb Tudor inspired three storey, five bedroom detached house with a Victorian cream lime rendered façade while the final property, Rushton House is an outstanding three storey, five bedroom Arts & Crafts style detached house specifically designed for the modern family lifestyle.

To find out more, register your interest in advance by contacting Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk.  

A recent poll from insurance giants Aviva suggests that almost 36 million people in the UK, over half, have experienced living as adults in the same home as another generation of their family.  And for 3 million of them, the stint lasted as long as a decade.

Cross-generation households are becoming an ever more prominent feature of modern life in the UK due to a variety of reasons and increasingly economic ones due to the recession.

Many are students who cannot afford the hefty university and housing fees so are staying at home after leaving school. The elderly are another sizeable demographic involved in cross-generational living with the Aviva data suggesting that almost a fifth of the older generation are being offered accommodation in their offspring’s homes thereby offsetting vastly expensive care home costs.

Louise Colley, Head of Protection Sales and Marketing at Aviva, comments,

“Almost 20% of intergenerational living is due to families welcoming the older generation into their homes. With a rapidly ageing population, this is likely to become more common in the future and families may need to take this into consideration when purchasing and renovating their properties.”

So with the future needs of our families, our parents, children and even grandchildren in mind, are properties with annexes the solution?

Properties with annexes, be they connected or within the grounds of a home, despite their growing popularity are not easy to come by. In the family friendly Home County of Buckinghamshire for example, Zoopla data reveals that less than 3% of properties afford annexe accommodation.

Hambledon House on Harvest Hill however, a newly built country mansion in Bourne End, Buckinghamshire is one such property complete with annexe. Developed by award-wining house builder Millgate, this glorious detached house sits on an elevated position with fabulous views over the Thames Estuary to the Chilterns and has an annexe with its own entrance, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom.

The main house offers five bedrooms, five bathrooms and is a dream family home. Substantial living space which is set over three floors includes four reception rooms and a vast kitchen / breakfast room which will clearly be the hub of the house.

Drawing upon their 25 years of house building experience, Millgate homes frequently feature annexes for a variety of reasons:

Office Space: Paying a rent to run a small business is a very unnecessary overhead for many so what better than to have your office at home yet tucked away from family life?  Somewhere you can shut the door and walk away from at night. The 45 sqm of space at Hambledon House is plenty big enough to accommodate you and a business partner.

Granny Annexe:  A modern day concern is where and how to look after your aging parents and in-laws. There might not be room for 4 of them at the annexe of Hambledon House – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory sleeping conditions are somewhat archaic for 2012 – however there is ample room for 2 and if needs must, a stair lift on the outside is possible.
Teenage Hangout: This annexe could be the ultimate solution for a teenager taking a gap year or one living at home whilst going to university.  Imagine the bliss of not having to get annoyed by the fact your slovenly teenager is still in bed at lunch time and not being woken up at 3am when he or she brings some mates back for an after party.

Guest Suite:  Designed to give your guests some real privacy whilst maintaining your own.  Having friends to stay for a few days would be so easy with a separate access guest suite.

Bed and Breakfast:   Not everyone’s idea of fun but this annexe really would be perfect for the odd paying guest – or perhaps even a paying overseas student when you need to make ends meet.

Au-Pair/Nanny:  A perfect solution for many families – imagine the enjoyment for both your family and your ‘help’ to have a separate living area and privacy.  This way you can maintain the family life that you always wanted and still have the luxury of some help just a few yards away.

Jonathan Cranley, Sales and Marketing Director at Millgate describes the reaction buyers are having to this extra space in Hambledon House:

“All our visitors are seeing the fabulous potential that this extra space incorporates into this property.  Modern families have such a diverse range of needs – often blended families need extra space – having step-children and step-parents and all sorts needing a bed now and again!”

Hambledon House is priced at £2,800.000. For more information on this house contact Millgate on 0118 934 3344 or visit www.millgatehomes.co.uk