Durham househunters were welcomed to an open day with a difference last Thursday when we marked the opening of our last two finished homes at sustainably-heated Briar Row with a hygge themed evening viewing event. Hotel Chocolat hot chocolate, Danish gløgg, pastries and cookies were on offer and fairy lights, candles and a fire pit created a gorgeously twinkly and inviting atmosphere in the show house at No.3.

Star of the show, though, was the air sourced heating which is piped under the tiled floor of each home, creating a luxurious, warming experience for the chilly feet of our guests. In fact in No.6 where it was turned right up, one guest actually found it “too hot”, which we felt rather proved our point about how warm and cosy the homes are despite the heat coming from a non-traditional, sustainable source. With the meteoric rise in gas prices in the news at the moment, living in an air source heated home has become a top priority for those looking to future-proof their lifestyles and we had lots of questions about how it works and how much it costs. (For a simplified explanation, see this blog post on air source heating we published last year.)

Looking round the two bright and smart new houses, everyone from McCarrick Homes was incredibly proud of the effort our team has gone to to create a perfect finish and all the lovely comments we received have been passed back to everyone who worked so tirelessly on the development.

After enjoying the fire pit in the paved garden and exploring our showhome and the two new homes, our guests left with Hygge-themed goody bags including mugs, keyrings, herbal tea, chocolate and scented candles. Since Thursday (and in fact before the Rightmove listing had gone up) No.6 is already under offer with further viewings booked for No.5 and No.3, the show home.

To book a viewing call 0191 933 5484 or email homes@mccarrick.co.uk.

Photography by Steve at Richardsons, Chester-le-Street