70s-style houses with real flare!

IT HAS been c a l l e d ‘ t he decade that taste forgot’, either associated with kitsch Abigail’s Party-style interiors or concrete tower blocks. But as the 1970s recedes into history, homes like this six-bedroom house in Enfield, North London, are being reappraised by buyers seeking the decade’s more distinctive properties.

‘It’s like a slice of California dropped into Enfield,’ says its vendor, Stephen Squire, and certainly, its low-slung ranchlike style is part of the appeal.

Squire, 52, who moved here 20 years ago from Hackney, proclaims himself to be ‘a child of the 1970s’.

‘So it felt like home,’ he says. ‘Also, I wanted to move away from skirting boards and small bedrooms.’

After looking for 1930s modernist houses he was smitten by the house in Walnut Grove, a cul-de-sac near the New River. ‘ Houses of this type are very unusual,’ says Stephen, a commercial property developer who aims to downsize to a smaller home.

‘It’s a prototype of the future. The bedrooms have ensuite bathrooms, still a luxury in the 1970s, and there’s a big garage with room for several cars, which was very important at the time.’

In an extravagance then only known to the likes of George Best, it was also built with underfloor heating. Any downsides? ‘ It’s so large I’ve collected too many things,’ confesses Stephen.

The 1970s was still a time of relatively low building density, which the large garden reflects. ‘ It’s very unlikely a single house would be built here now,’ says Squire. ‘You could put three homes on this plot.’

The house’s big picture-windows gaze on a park-like garden, while within, the three reception rooms and wide circulation spaces would seem excessive even in ritzy Hampstead.

As the property is unlisted, its relaxed layout could be opened up even more. As Stephen adds: ‘It’s odd that people buy Victorian houses and then make them minimalist and open-plan inside.’

The house’s styling is echoed in the interior design fashions of today. Indeed, the architecture of the era is being increasingly recognised. Stephen says that his visitors are always fascinated by the property’s period style. ‘It’s a real conversation point,’ he says.