by Debs Willis

Named by The Sunday Times as The Best Place to Live 2020 - South West, Cheltenham is a popular town for people relocating from London and with property hunters in general. It's no great shock for those of us who live here - it is a lovely, lively place to be. Full of cultural events, excellent and varied festivals, and a plethora of great independent restaurants, cafes and coffee shops, we are spoiled for choice in so many ways. Our schools, both state and private, are considered to be of a generally high standard and there are good sports facilities, including the wonderful Sandford Lido. 

As with all British towns, we will have to wait and see how big the effects of COVID will be in terms of shops and business survival; we already know that we have lost some of the chains, but hopefully the spaces will be filled with exciting newcomers and hopefully smaller, unique shops will get the chance to open doors in the empty properties. Pop-ups have been an exciting addition to our shopping habits over the last few years, and perhaps they will get their moment in the sun - something for the council and property owners to consider, particularly on the run up to Christmas. All that being said, we still have a fantastic range of shops to choose from, and The Promenade and The Suffolks are still beautiful areas to mooch around.

With the Stamp Duty holiday and the revival of the 90% mortgage loan, now is a really rather good time to buy property, for both private purchasers and landlords, and following the re-opening of the housing market there is a good and wide variety of properties available. If you're looking to move, our recommended property experts at CGT have houses and flats to both buy and rent, and with an incredible 35 years of experience they are experts in their field.