It was a love of travel that propelled Hugh and Isabel Murray from their Elizabethan farmhouse in Hampshire to a retirement apartment at Grove Place, an Elizabethan mansion in Romsey
Retired management consultant Hugh, 74 and his wife Isabel 67, were finding their two-and-a-half-acre garden at their five-bedroom family home more challenging than they wanted.
“We had created a lovely garden, but it needed an awful lot of weeding!” Isabel explains. “For about two years we looked (not very hard!) at alternatives, thinking to buy and then feeling we’d wait until we really needed to move. Then the dog and cat died and our dear cleaner of 25 years retired. That’s when we discovered Grove Place.”
Grove Place retirement village is set in 27 acres of rural countryside and comprises modern, luxury apartments with hotel-style facilities in a stunning Elizabethan mansion.
“In one sense it was too early to move, but for many years our travelling and exploring had been curtailed to the dead winter months when the garden didn’t need so much work,” Isabel adds.
“Since the move we’ve able to ‘lock ‘n’ go’ at any time. We are very blessed to have a family cottage on the west coast of Scotland, and a house which we built on a Greek island, which we can and do visit more often than before.
“We are free to move around without any feeling of guilt! We enjoy the surroundings here without feeling that we have to weed, though we can if we want to. The restaurant is amazing, and our wonderful helpful staff clean the gutters and climb ladders, change light bulbs, and sort out problems.
“Grove Place is a very uncomplicated and stress free environment. Our apartment is modern, double-glazed, a doddle to clean, south facing and warm and the facilities are incredible,” adds Isabel.
“We looked at loads of retirement properties and found that Lifecare Residences provided more than anyone else.
“There’s an indoor pool and spa, gym, bar, restaurant, billiard room, coffee rooms, hairdresser, shop, treatment room and entertaining spaces. There’s also a mini bus and beautiful gardens and grounds. The staff are pearls! Delightful and helpful.
“And Southampton railway station, airport, theatres and cruise ships are all on the doorstep.”
The Murrays’ top five tips:
1) Don’t leave it too late before you move.
2) Be very clear about what you need/want of a home. Grove Place Village is a community – like a rural village – it’s a very friendly environment but you don’t have to participate.
3) It’s rural. A car is necessary for independence, but the mini bus is out and about every day. If the cultural environment of London is in your blood then Grove Place may be too remote.
4) We are blessed to have bolt holes in Scotland and Greece. Think through whether you want to be in the same environment year in year out.
5) If family is important to you be wise about location. How close are they? Our two children and their families live within an hour from us. 
Grove Place, designed for the over 65s, is fully sold but check website for re-sales www.lifecareresidences.com. Recent sales indicate two-beds will cost £335,000 and three beds £650,000. Lifecare Residences also operates Battersea Place, London’s first retirement village, due to be ready for occupancy early 2016. One, two and three-bed apartments cost from £650,000.
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