How a plot of land on the Sleat peninsula became a stunning contemporary home
We share the story of John Watson and Lesley Ryan and their stunning Heb Home - designed, built and lived in within a year
John Watson and Lesley Ryan were in the lucky position to be able to purchase a plot on the Sleat peninsula in Scotland with the view to look to build their own home.
Why choose a Heb Home?
“We considered a number of options for the project. Originally looking at building a house designed by Heb Home’s sister company, Dualchas.
“However, we couldn’t make it work within our budget. Going with a Heb Home meant that we are still able to get everything we wanted in our home. Whilst still ensuring it be stylish and well-designed.
“We wanted to work with a company that understood the history and landscape of the Highlands and surrounding islands.
“A company who works to deliver homes that fit in to their surroundings.
“The other benefit of going with a Heb Home was that we had far greater certainty over the build cost, helping to make the process less stressful.
“Another key factor for us was the adaptability of the kit home. We chose the LH102PD.2, but were able to make some design changes prior to submitting for planning. This really fine-tuned the design.
“We ended up with a design that completely met all our requirements (and had plenty of that all-important storage!).
Photo: Heb Homes
Was it hard to get planning permission?
As already mentioned, the Highlands and surrounding islands hold a lot of historic and architectural value, so it could be tricky to get build permission in that location.
However, John and Lesley were lucky and their planning process took less than 5 months from initial design discussions with Heb Homes to full approval!
They explain: “We had decided at an early stage to go with the Heb Homes turnkey offering in order to make the process as simple as possible for ourselves.
“With the Heb Homes contractor on board, we broke ground in late February 2019, with the build completing in early December 2019.
“That was about six weeks behind schedule, however that delay was primarily due to challenges with our electricity connections.
“This probably delayed completion by 4-6 weeks which inevitably resulted in additional cost.
“Overall, it was a relatively straightforward build with the contractor keeping us well informed on progress and any issues either remotely or during monthly site visits.”
Photo: Heb Homes
What was it like working with Heb Homes?
It’s always a difficult decision deciding on a team to work with, and making sure it all goes smoothly – luckily John and Lesley had a great time with Heb Homes.
They add: “The whole team were a pleasure to work with.
“They made every effort to accomadate our suggested alterations to the kit design we started with. Therefore, ensuring we could get a home that would really work for us.
“We found their communication and responsiveness to be excellent throughout.
“I recommend them and this process to anyone.
“From our first meeting with the Heb Homes team, we felt like we were working with them to design a house that met our needs.
“That relationship continued as we progressed through various stages of design and planning approval right through to the build itself.”
Photo: Heb Homes
Relocation
“We relocated to Skye from Glasgow in early 2020, allowing us to work through the relatively small number of snagging items and really getting used to our new surroundings.
“The quality of the build is excellent, and any snagging items identified have been addressed in a timely manner.
“We continue to be delighted with the house – it has exceeded our expectations on so many levels and we love how it fits our lifestyle (and that of our cat and dog!).
“Our favourite part of the house has to be our open-plan living, dining and kitchen space.
“From here we can just sit and look out at our incredible and ever-changing view of the expanse of sea, mountains and sky that you can never tire of.”
Photo: Heb Homes
Find out more about Heb Homes here.
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