SAILOR’S STORE IS A BEACHFRONT BEAUTY

It’s all change at one of Moray’s most stylish modern homes, writes Susan Welsh

With three youngsters growing up fast and an expanding business to take care of, Kevin and Angeline Thomson felt they had outgrown the house they’d built for themselves.

Looking for the right spot to build their next home, they found it... 150 yards away. Arden House is an outstanding family home in the hamlet of Troves which is less than two miles from Elgin.

And, while this lovely house is just a short distance from their former home, it took longer than they expected for them to make the move.

“We basically outgrew the house we were in before as we felt we needed more space for the kids and needed an office, which would have meant redesigning the house,” said Kevin, who runs his own business, Ardach Contracts, with a friend.

“Instead, we decided to build a bigger version of the same house, but with a few changes so it suited our needs better.”

It took longer than expected to gain the relevant planning permissions, while a dip in the property market meant their own home didn’t sell as quickly as they expected.

“With the help of a number of local tradesman I built the house myself but in stages as I ran out of money, “said Kevin. “In hindsight, we should have sold the house first before starting on this one.”

But that experience hasn’t put him off.

“We’re about to start the whole process again, but this home will be sold first before we start!

“We’ve been here for four years and love it as the layout works for us, but an opportunity has come up to get some extra land a few miles from here.

“If I could move this house there I would but that’s not possible so next time we’ll build a slightly different version of this house – without an upstairs.”

Meanwhile Kevin, Angeline and their children Jack, 19, Rachel, 17 and 14-year-old Owen are preparing to say goodbye to what has been an excellent family home.

For sale at offers over £600,000, it is a hugely impressive two-storey home, built to a very high