Happy Buyers: Ewan and Claire Todd

After 13 years living in an – extended – period cottage in Danderhall in Midlothian, Ewan and Claire Todd took the plunge and moved to a new build Mactaggart & Mickel home, just down the road at Millerhill in the new town of Shawfair.

They moved in at the end of April and have fallen in love with their new home, as have their son and daughter who can now play outside in safety.

“It’s everything we were looking for”, said Ewan. “There are many 4-bedroom homes on the market – and we looked at lots - but this one has by far the best layout and loads of storage space, including an integral garage.   It is in a quiet cul-de-sac which was really appealing as we lived beside a main road in our previous house.  The build quality is outstanding too.

“We really like the fact that the open plan kitchen, dining and family area stretches along the rear of house as we probably spend most of our time in this space.  We also appreciate that the utility room leads directly outside so we have a place to remove muddy shoes before entering the kitchen for example.”

The family love the space upstairs, and not just the four double bedrooms.  “Even the upstairs landing is generously sized and bright”, explained Ewan.  “It sounds like a small thing to notice but it really makes a difference.”

Many house hunters don’t think about which way the home faces, but this was an important consideration for the couple. “The garden faces west so we get the afternoon and evening sun” said Claire,  “That means when we come home from work, we can enjoy the sunshine streaming into our garden.”

Exceptional Customer Service

“We can say hand on heart that the support we have received from Mactaggart & Mickel has been exceptional” said Claire. “They never once applied any pressure to sign on the dotted line, and have accommodated all our requests cheerfully and quickly. I think it helped that we had a clear idea of what we wanted in terms of colour schemes and so on.  That made it easier in terms of selecting our kitchen finishes for example.”

Ewan added, “We were invited to take a tour of our new house 2 weeks’ before we moved in and were shown how everything worked by Melody, the sales consultant. This gave us a chance to make final decisions of what would go where. That was so reassuring and ensured that everything went smoothly during the actual move.”

Why Shawfair?

The couple knew they wanted to stay in the area.  “We really love living in Shawfair” said Ewan.  “The schools are great and there’s a new town centre planned, which will really pull the community together.

He added.  “And in terms of transport connections, Shawfair is ideal. The bypass is minutes away, we can be in Edinburgh in 15 minutes by train, and the Sheriffhall Park & Ride means we can easily jump on a bus.  We can even drive to Fort Kinnaird retail park without hitting one set of traffic lights!”

Mactaggart & Mickel are an award-winning fourth-generation family housebuilder who have been handcrafting new homes since 1925.  Renowned for exceptional quality and service, Mactaggart & Mickel have retained a 5-Star rating for customer satisfaction from the Home Builders Federation for seven consecutive years.

Every home is given a ‘Seal of Approval’ as a final quality check before new owners move in.  This is a final step in the housebuilding process to ensure that clients walk into a sparkling new home that meets stringent construction standards.