A Homecoming to Mersea Island
For Andrea Bilton (50) and her partner Will Preen (48), moving to the seaside was a sentimental decision. The couple bought a home at our Sanderling Reach development on Mersea Island, Essex, which they share with Andrea’s two daughters, one away at university, and the other a teenager still living at home.
“I grew up regularly visiting Mersea Island and I’ve always dreamed of living there,” says Andrea, who works for an investment company. “When the girls were younger we found a compromise of sorts – we’d keep a caravan there and we would go and stay as much as we can. The island has always felt like a home from home. Something just kept bringing me back… and I lived in Colchester so it wasn’t exactly far! But stepping into West Mersea is like entering a whole other world where your life is just one big holiday. You never get used to it.”
The move also signals a new step in Andrea and Will’s relationship, Sanderling Reach represented the start of a new life together. Andrea put the proceeds from the sale of her previous home into the joint pot, with Will topping up the remainder to purchase their £500,000 three-bedroom detached home.
Andrea adds: “I was absolutely ready to move – I sold my old house within a week of putting it in the market. It then took just eight weeks to move into Sanderling Reach from putting in the offer. My daughters always said that Mersea Island would be their first choice in this area.”
She continues: “Funnily enough we weren’t ever planning to move until my youngest went to University for practical reasons. So I’d been biding my time, daydreaming about the coast and the country, so I just started trawling through Rightmove. Sanderling Reach popped up and I just liked the look of it, even though I had sworn that I wasn’t interested in a new build. But I went to see it and I really liked it and the decision was made.”
Andrea’s new home at Sanderling Reach is located less than 500m from the shoreline, located on the quaint Mersea Island. Tucked between the Blackwater Estuary and the North Sea, the island is inhabited by colourful beach huts, dog-friendly beaches, and a population of just under 7,000 people.
Marketing Suite is open Thursday to Monday from 10am – 5pm, located off Seaview Avenue, West Mersea, CO5 8BY.