About Morris Homes

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

It has an excellent location. There are 2 train stations nearby (10-15mins walk away), yet not too close, so pets are safe and we cannot hear the trains either. Easy to get on the motorway and get anywhere. There are 2 airports nearby, Liverpool and Manchester and they’re both about 45mins away.
There’s a huge retail park with plenty of shopping opportunities and lots of smaller shops too on the high street.
So far we haven’t come across anything negative around here.
There’s also a brand new, state of the art gym around the corner, which is amazing.
People are mostly friendly.
The seaside is close by (within 20-30mins), North Wales is also quick and easy access. Liverpool and Chester within 30mins, whilst you can get to Manchester City centre in an hour too.
It’s brilliant really.

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

The development is on a flight path, so you often hear or see incoming/outgoing flights to Liverpool airport. There are busier days and more quiet ones. But when the holiday season kicked in, it surprised me how many noisy jet engines were passing by fairly low, just over our house.
When we were viewing the site it was during lockdown and there were no planes.

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

They are working on it. Slowly, but surely we’re getting everything fixed (I hope).

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

We loved the “idea” of Houlton after spending time in the area walking. The master plan showing all the green space and the future plans really made us want to be part of this development and community. There are always plenty of people working on the upkeep of the green spaces and hope that this will continue as the area progresses. There have also been a lot of lovely community activities available which have really brought the community together, including during lockdown when we needed some fun to brighten the days.
There is only one restaurant at present which is really nice but a bit pricey to use too regularly, we are hopeful for more options and possibly a pub option eventually. There are no shops on the development yet but a co op is being built which will be a great help to have nearby. Transport is not too much of a problem for us but there doesn’t seem to be much of a bus route to and from the area at present.
Our street is lovely and we have really bonded with our neighbours and love the fact we are a close and have no through traffic, the main Houlton road can get a bit busy with traffic to the dirft on shift change and there is an awful amount of speeding including around the playground. We hope this will be addressed soon as the screeching and rally driving is definitely a big issue. Hopefully before anyone gets hurt.
There are also some areas in need of better lighting, park area and some of the walkways and possibly addressing wheelchairs accessibility on some of the walkways.
Overall we love being here and accept that there is a long way to go before things like the above can be addressed and we look forward to seeing the area progress and flourish.
Much love from Mackingham Palace ??

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

How much stress the final move was going to be using “move with us” absolutely useless company and caused an enormous amount of problems and pressure.

If there is one thing you would change about your flat or property what would it be:

We didn’t get any planting or trees on the property which we were shown on our original plan and all other houses did.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

I love Houlton as a development, at the moment itsi very much in it’s early stages and so the facilities are not all in place yet. There is no local shop, though it is currently being built and there is no doctors surgery, although there are plans for one in the future. We are a 40 minute walk from the local centre of Hillmorton which has a range of convenience stores, post office, pubs, vets and takeaway options. The secondary school is being built and will open this year taking year 7 only in the first year. The primary school is already oversubscribed which is difficult as there are a lot of you g families moving into Houlton. There are plans for 2 more primary schools in the future. My street is private and self contained with a beautiful aspect and great privacy. As the development is only at the end of Phase 1 out of 4, there is a great sense of community with lots of activities and a wonderful sense of everyone working together to make this a wonderful place to live. Bin collections are every Thursday with recycling and general waste being collected on a fortnightly basis.

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

I wish I had been prepared for how much would still need doing to the house after moving in and the costs involved in this. Be prepared to have money in the bank for lighting outside, garden landscaping, building and implementing storage solutions [loft boarding etc], tiling and so on.

What is the best feature of your home:

The location, a spacious garden and the look and design of the kitchen area.

The only issue we had when buying the house was that we originally reserved a Dalton and it was in the middle of Covid and as such we were put on furlough, which meant that the mortgage provider would not at that time give us a mortgage. They would not give us back £500 reservation fee despite this being a help to buy initiative. Luckily in the end they were able to offer us another Dalton further down the line when our working arrangements had got better, as someone dropped out of their own reservation.

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Great choice of shops nearby with a co-op and a cost Cutter within walking distance. The train station is only a 15 minute walk as well with a 15 minute journey into Liverpool. Living on the street is fine the only issue at the moment is that the roads aren’t finished so there’s only one way in one way out and when there are large construction vehicles blocking the way it can be very frustrating to get to and from your house.

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

We were told that the houses would’ve been built within a couple of months of moving in we have been in now for over 12 months and they are still being built, with the babies this is slightly annoying..!

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

We had a two week period where any snags were fixed in a timely manner