Why Move to Watford?
Watford is an increasingly desirable location for professionals due to its superb transport links into the city, as well as families with children due to the excellent schools in the local area including Watford Boys Grammar School and Watford Girls Grammar School and a selection of exceptional primary schools.
The renowned Cassiobury park which has the green flag award winning beauty spot and has been voted as one of the top parks in the Uk, is located within the West of Watford alongside the Metropolitan line station. What was once known as the harlequin and it's name still holds strong to this day is now the INTU shopping centre, which has undergone an extensive multi million pound regeneration programme.
Watford boasts Watford Colosseum and Palace Theatre which prove a popular attraction. The Grove Hotel, located on the outskirts of Watford, is used by the England national football team before home games whilst it also hosts a large number of events including the 2006 PGA World Golf Championship in which Tiger Woods won, as well as hosting the 2013 Bilderberg Conference. Located in Watford town centre is the forever popular Cineworld and Imax cinema, which also encompasses a bowling alley and an extensive range of restaurants.
The local market
Watford housing market continues to be a popular hot spot for all buyers, houses and apartments had some growth in value over the last few years and they remain highly sought after. In the outlying villages there is plenty of choice and prices remain competitive. The overall growth of property prices in Watford and the surrounding area continue to do well as demand outstrips supply.
Location
Watford offers access to a many local parks to include the award winning Cassiobury park which has been voted one of the top parks to visit in the UK, Watford has a wide variety of highly regarded local Schooling to include the Watford boys and Watford girls Grammar. There is a thriving town centre as well excellent transport links to Watford Junction and Watford North train stations as well as good access to the M1, M25 and A41.
History and sport
Watford lies on the edge of the Chiltern Hills, 14 miles to the north west of London. It is located on rising ground to the north of the River Colne and east of the River Gade. The "ford" part of the name came about as it refers to an ancient major route from London to the north west, where the route crossed the River Colne. Watford is close to strategic roads - the M25 motorway that circles London and the M1 motorway that connects London to the Midlands and northern England, making it an ideal location for commuters. Watford is also served by several railway stations including a tube station.
Celebrities have enjoyed Watford life too with retired football turned actor Vinnie Jones and the England manager Gareth Southgate are among only a few names to mention.
Watford have a successful football team who currently place in the Championship and Sir Elton John has strong links with the club, having once been their chairman.
Anthony Joshua, Olympic Gold Medallist, hails from Watford and the High Street boasts a gold Royal Mail post box down to his success in the 2012 Olympics.
Development
Watford has many popular residential areas, there is a range of property types in Watford. With a wealth of beautiful Victorian and Edwardian period properties, there is also a good selection of complete period buildings and Victorian villas, whilst in the last 15 years there have been many modern apartments built or converted to satisfy the high demand in the area. Watford continues to be a popular hot spot for families, First time buyer and the investors.
Properties
As one of Watford's most popular estate agents, Your Move has flats and houses for sale in Watford and the surrounding villages, We sell properties ranging from studio apartments right the way through to large detached houses in the most expensive areas. Supported by our dedicated land and new homes department, we have also sold a number of development sites to clients who are currently building a wide range of property from one bedroom apartments to luxury five bedroom detached houses.
Among the most sought-after addresses is the Hempstead Road, a main road which links the town centre to the M25 motorway. Houses here rarely start at less than £750,000, increasing to over £1,200,000 + for the largest in the road. Both Cassiobury and Nascot Wood are arguably the most sought after areas, and if you want to live here you will have a pay a premium to do so.
Restaurants and shopping
The Watford area benefits from a diverse selection of popular high street shops, supermarkets and smaller independent boutiques. These include Tesco, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Asda for weekly grocery shopping. Gibson's the butchers is known for top quality meat (their sausages were featured on Ready Steady Cook). The bottom of the High Street has been redeveloped and boasts a number of well known chain of restaurants including Wagamamas, Jimmy's World Grill, and Carluccios amongst others. The shopping centre, Intu, previously known as The Harlequin, features a huge array of shops.