Arley hunts for new sites to keep up with demand

Warrington-based house builder Arley Homes is searching for new sites across the North West after selling out four developments since the start of the year.

The Birches at Charnock Richard, Dunham Chase in Altrincham and Knightswood in Cheadle Hulme, along with The Meadows at Coppull, are all now fully sold. The Maples in Fulwood, Preston, is also down to the last one, leaving Arley Homes with money in the bank and looking for new sites with similar potential. The properties range from two-bed mews and semi-detached to five-bed detached. The average sales price across the four sold-out schemes is £287,000.

John Cosgrave, managing director of Arley Homes, said: "Land buying can be a gamble at times but there are some sites where the potential is clear. Completing sites in Charnock Richard and Coppull has allowed us to demonstrate the quality of our product to people in this community, and has helped get the new Chorley development, Duxbury Manor, off to great start."

All 12 houses at the Knightswood development in Turves Road, Cheadle Hulme, were reserved within two weeks of launch in February. It was Arley's second south Manchester development after Dunham Chase in Altrincham sold almost entirely off plan, again with 12 properties snapped up without a show home.

With The Meadows in Coppull having completed along with The Birches in Charnock Richard, where Arley offered a mixture of detached and mews properties in a rural setting, Arley has also sold most of the first phase of its Duxbury Manor development, also in Chorley. The Maples in Fulwood, a luxury development of 13 four and five bed detached, was launched at the end of 2011 and has just one remaining.

Cosgrave added: "Cheadle Hulme was a fantastic location for its transport links and amenities in the local area. It's a place with young professionals and families alike, providing that sense of community that many buyers are after. Altrincham was the same and at Dunham Chase we were taking calls as soon as the site hoardings went up and sold eight before the foundations were finished. We've also had a good experience with The Maples in Fulwood, another aspirational area, which all goes to show that there is still a strong market for the right product in the right location.

"We are now in the process of purchasing similar sites in aspirational areas which we believe offer the same appeal for buyers, and we are on the lookout for more. We're fairly flexible and are just as happy to develop a 1 acre site as a 12 acre site – as with the 135-home Duxbury Manor. With this success at the sales end of the business, we are in a good position to buy and are keen to explore other options across the rest of the North West."

Arley's new developments set to come on line in the next few months include sites in Nantwich, Trafford, Cheshire and Lancashire. Land available for the end of 2012 and the start of 2013, therefore, is the next target for the Warrington-based house builder, which recently appointed new land manager, Andy Morgan, from McInerney Homes North West to pursue new opportunities.