A guide to living in South East England

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Even though there are no local convenience shops at the moment, there is a good bus connection to the city centre. The new development is surrounded by a nice park, and well kept front gardens. You can hear the noise of a highway in the distance, as well as of an ongoing construction, but not get disturbed by it.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Directed me to correct actions, when for instance our street was not on the maps, encouraged me to talk to Google. Which I did successfully.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I really don’t know. We very quickly got acquainted with the house, the street, and the area, and are happy with what we discovered.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Burfield Grange is well located for access to the Cuckoo Trail with two access points on the development. There are nurseries and schools (Primary and Secondary) within walking distance and Hailsham Town is a 2.5km walk away accessible via the Cuckoo Trail. The roads are well proportioned with all homes having accessible parking on driveways. Part of the public land is owned by Hellingly Parish Council and other parts of estate managed by a management company - the latter is payable by a service charge payable be each home (there are 240). We have an excellent Resident Association and Neighbourhood Watch scheme which ensure that the estate is well kept, and relatively crime free. Burfield Grange is a beautiful, quiet, well respected and well looked after development and many of the residents comment how lovely it is living here.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

When buying a new build home (1) Get absolutely everything that is agreed put in writing (2) Do your homework and ask other residents how they feel about the developer and their home (3) Employ a Snagging Company - this house will be the biggest purchase of your life - get it checked by a professional (before you complete on the purchase if possible) - it is money well spent - trust me! (4) Do not use the solicitor recommended by the developer - they are often not impartial (5) If you do not know the area take the time to explore before you buy (6) Check out Social Media - once the homes on new developments start to get occupied there is often a Facebook page for it, also look at social media for your developer - it can be an eye opener, (7) Do not be fooled by sales pitches - of course the developer wants to sell their homes and quickly so there are some good deals out there (8) Do not believe that NHBC or LABC or other so called 10 year guarantees cover everything as they do not! - these companies are funnily enough funded amongst others, by the developers - you may be surprised by some of their findings and decisions! (9) Enjoy your new home once you have purchased knowing that you have done your homework.

What is the best feature of your home:

My home is well located within the development, looks attractive and is energy efficient. To be honest, now we have ironed out the issues we had with it when we purchased it, made some internal improvements and have decorated it throughout, we aboslutely love it.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Moda is perfectly located in Hove not far from the lovely restaurants and bars and transport links. A few minutes away is the beautiful Hove Park which is ideal for walking our dogs. Hove train station is less than 10 min walk, and there is a bus stop practically outside the entrance to Moda. Moda is located immediately next to the train line, but honestly, the sound of the trains passing really doesnt bother or disturb us at all. The apartment glazing shuts out the outside noise extremely well and the apartments are soundproofed from each other so apart from in the corridors, you do not hear and thing from anyone else.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

We are on a waiting list currently for the maintenence team to put some pictures up for us. We are hoping the wait wont be too long.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Parking is probably the only challenge, not so much for residents if they pay for a parking space, but for visitors, there are only a handful of spaces privately controlled, available to pay for 12 or 24 hours. There needs to be more visitor parking and flexible on hours to stay.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

Maidenhead strikes a lovely balance between town convenience and riverside tranquility. Everything I need is walkable - grocery shops, the post office, cafés, and a decent range of restaurants. The Thames towpath is right there for morning runs, and I've discovered wonderful walks along the Jubilee River towards Dorney. For entertainment, the Odeon cinema cover films. The Elizabeth line is direct into London without the stre s of driving. If I had to find a fault, the high street could use a few more independent shops, but the new developments are heading in the right direction.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Flawlessly. Oxana A is incredibly proactive. For personal requests, she's quick, thorough and always follows up. It's the most responsive management team I've ever dealt with.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

I recommend visiting Cookham village and the Stanley Spencer Gallery on a weekend; it's a short trip and full of charm.

Please tell us about the good and bad aspects of living in your local area:

It’s a nice quiet area with friendly and respectful neighbours. No experience of anti-social behaviour so far. Local services like post and bin collections are good. The area feels safe to live in.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Previously, establishing communication with the property liaison to discuss building issues was challenging, with notable delays across both email and telephone correspondence. However, this matter has since been resolved, as reaching them has become significantly more accessible and efficient in recent weeks.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

While the kitchen remains entirely functional, the layout makes it difficult to isolate cooking activity from the rest of the living space. The open-plan configuration initially seemed suitable, but it has proven less practical during full meal preparation. In an ideal scenario, particularly for someone who enjoys cooking frequently, a less open layout would be more suitable. Nevertheless, the property is situated in a good area to live in.