Released: 27th July 2010
Development: Stapleford Court

Retirees heading for new country lifestyles in Dorset, Devon & Cornwall

The UK is experiencing what has been described as a dramatic ‘age quake’ with more over 65s than under 16s in the population.* Recent surveys by Saga have revealed that many older people don’t see retirement as something that comes at the end of life but something that marks a new life. In England, 43% of over 50s surveyed plan to move home on retirement, with more than 25% commenting that they would like to retire to Dorset, Devon or Cornwall. More than 80% of those surveyed cited the countryside as the most important deciding factor in choosing where to live.

Leading retirement developer, Archstone Lifestyle Homes, has certainly noticed an increase in ‘out of area’ retirees heading for the company’s developments in Dorset and on the Dorset-Wiltshire borders. At Stapleford Court in the attractive Dorset town of Stalbridge, two of the recent home buyers have migrated from Sussex coastal towns to start a new life in a peaceful country town which offers traditional shops, a friendly atmosphere and easy access to some of the UK’s most beautiful countryside.

“Stapleford Court in Stalbridge is an excellent location for retirees,” comments Tim McEvoy, Archstone’s Sales & Marketing Director. “It’s a small development of just 13 two and three-bedroom cottages, of which only four are now available for sale, each with a sunroom overlooking the central landscaped gardens. The development, which is gated, is a few minutes’ walk from the shops and the library is right next door. We’ve had an overwhelming number of enquiries from people living out of the area - and particularly from areas on the South Coast traditionally considered to be retirement ‘hotspots.’ We believe that people are looking to retire to areas that are quiet - and many are saying that coastal towns are getting busier and noisier.”

Archstone’s St Michael’s View development in the quiet Wiltshire town of Mere has also proved popular with ‘out of area’ retirees with only two apartments remaining available.

“Dorset is certainly one of the most popular counties - we’ve only got one penthouse apartment remaining available at our Abbeymead Court development in Sherborne and we’ve had plenty of enquiries for Millers, our latest development of just three new houses in Sherborne, but we’re now noticing that an increasing number of retirees are looking at Wiltshire. In fact, we’ve only two apartments remaining available at our St Michael’s View development in Mere, which is another quiet town with a good range of shops and services,” concludes Tim McEvoy.

For further information on developments by Archstone Lifestyle Homes, please visit the website on www.archstone.co.uk or telephone the Archstone sales team on 01425 481225.

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Image: Stapleford Court, Archstone’s development in Stalbridge.

*Information taken from Tracey Mcveigh’s article, The Observer, Sunday 17 May 2009

Research mentioned at www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/may/17/ageing-population-retirement-saga-housing