For a lot of people, the decision to have children is quickly followed by the realisation that they will need a bigger house.
And so to make room for their extra members couples decide to move up the property ladder and into a bigger house.
It happened a little differently for Emma and Neil Thomson as I discovered when I visited the family on a beautiful sunny day at their home at 22 Woodlands Terrace, Cults.
The young couple had been living in a flat in the Aberdeen suburb five years ago when they decided they wanted to move to somewhere bigger.
Not because of any decision to have children but just so they would have room for their two dogs and daughter, Amy.
As Neil was brought up in Cults and as both absolutely loved the area, they knew they didn’t want to leave it. And so they began looking at properties for sale in the area.
“We were looking at new builds really,” Emma, 37, said.
“We did look at a couple of older properties but we just fancied doing something different. I grew up in old granite properties so this was something new to me. Then this one by Cala Homes came up.”
The house in question was a recently-built four bedroom, three storey townhouse with integral garage. And it was the design of the house that made the couple take it for their next home.
“I just loved the townhouse,” Emma said.
“I think a lot of people don’t really know what a townhouse is like or they have their ideas of what it is like but you really have to live in one to see its potential. It’s deceptively spacious.”
Three years later and their large family home was welcoming another member – Ella, now two. But it was quite an unexpected arrival for the couple.
Emma explained that she only discovered she was pregnant six weeks before she was due – which happened again when she had son Alfie, who was born just five weeks ago.
But although both children were unexpected, Emma and Neil already had the perfect family home for when they arrived.
Emma said: “The house has been great for us. It suited us when we were just a couple with two dogs and Amy and it has been great when our circumstances changed as well. There is something for everyone in this house.”
And it is certainly a lovely family home. When I visited it was a beautiful sunny day and the house was in its full glory. Each room was filled with sunlight and made it possible to enjoy the gorgeous day – even while being inside.
As well as four double bedrooms – one with an en suite shower room – and an integral garage, it also features a spacious lounge with one wall filled with floor to ceiling windows which give you great views of the city, a stylish and modern kitchen and dining area as well as a family bathroom.
Outside the house, on the market for offers over £525,000, a single car driveway leads to the garage and there is a garden.
The south-facing rear garden, which offers lots of privacy and security for children, has been landscaped and is easy to maintain.
There are many aspects of this house that the family has fallen in love with, especially the space they all have.
“It’s great having the three floors and it’s so bright and airy, it feels really welcoming,” Emma said.
“It’s just a lovely happy home. The views are amazing, you can see right across the countryside and you are so close to town as well.
“We spend a lot of time in the kitchen and dining area. In the summer when the sun streams in and you can open the balcony doors, it’s just lovely. It’s a nice space to spend time together in. You can cook and still see the children and entertain guests, it’s great.
“The room on the ground floor we’ve used as a sort of playroom for Ella and in the summer we can open the doors right on to the garden so it’s great for kids. It’s a really nice community too, there are a lot of kids here. They can play out in the grass and it’s really safe. We only have people coming in who live here or are visiting people so there’s no through traffic.”
And despite being a new home – which usually means it is ready to be moved into with any work required – the couple have been able to add their own touch to it.
Originally the kitchen and dining room were separated by French doors and each had their own entrance.
“We just felt that didn’t really work for us, it didn’t really flow so we took the wall down and opened the space out,” Emma explained.
They also replaced the oak wooden staircase with a white one to continue the contemporary look of the house.
The location has also worked well for the family – with shops and nursery nearby and the city just 10 minutes away.
And despite deciding to put their home on the market, they are not leaving the area that they have grown to love.
They have decided to take another new step and work with Cala Homes to build a new home just five minutes away.
While the housing company will take care of the construction, Emma and Neil have been able to decide on interior specifications and create their dream home.
“That’s one of the sad things really. We’ve got this house the way we want it and now we are moving but it’s just the right time for our family,” Emma added.
“I will really miss this house, we’ve just been so happy here.”
Contact: Aberdein Considine on 01224 589589.