They say you don’t know what you’re looking for until you walk around the corner and see it right there in front of you.
And that’s almost what happened when Scott and Laura Punzano came across number one Polmuir Place in the Ferryhill area of Aberdeen.
The couple, who have been married for a decade this year, moved to the four-bedroom home from a one-bedroom flat in the city’s Broomhill Road.
“I have to say I wasn’t looking as I was happy to chill out in the flat for a couple of years,” recalled Laura, 36.
“Scott was the one who drove it and said we should start looking at the opportunity to view houses.
“I wasn’t sure, but then we saw one we liked in the west end and I thought: ‘Ok, let’s search.’
“It was Scott who noticed this house on the market and I just said: ‘Oh, that’s nice’, but I wasn’t bothered if we moved.
“When we came to see it we fell in love with it.”
With friends in the area, Scott and Laura, who are parents to Orlaithcorrect, 6, and Gabriel, 1, already knew it would be a good place to set up home in.
Scott, a planning engineer in the oil and gas industry, is just a 15-minute walk from work, while there are plenty of things nearby to keep their children entertained.
“There’s the community centre beside the school that we use quite a lot,” said Scott.
Laura added: “It’s brilliant for activities.
“Orlaith goes to football there on a Tuesday and there’s also gymnastics, language classes and baking classes.
“There’s a Valentine disco, Halloween disco and Christmas disco and she also goes to the breakfast club some mornings.”
The house itself was originally built in 1974 as a bungalow, but has been extended over the years.
There are six houses in the cul-de-sac it sits in, which have also been upgraded over the years.
When Scott and Laura moved in in January 2007, the house was in good condition. The kitchen had recently been upgraded and this was a major push factor for Laura.
“I’m a bit of a cook so I was really chuffed,” she said. “As soon I saw it, for me that was it. We were really lucky there.”
The couple have put in two new bathrooms in the last two years along with a few other major revamps.
“We put in a new boiler in October last year and there was originally a flat roof that was susceptible to leaks which we had completely redone,” said Laura.
“It has a remaining eight-year guarantee against floods and leaks.”
The house gets a lot of sun and Scott particularly likes the lounge.
“It’s south facing and has a big window so it gets the sun all day,” he said.
“We sit in there a lot and we like our en suite as that’s quite large.
“During the summer we get a lot of sun and we’ve got a garden which is obscured by cherry blossom.
“We have had our dinner and lunch out there a few times.”
Another great feature of this house is most definitely its space. Each of the bedrooms have plenty of room for storing clothes and other belongings.
“The children have their own room and we’ve got a guest room, so because we’ve got three bathrooms it’s really handy,” said Laura.
“We use the en suite and the guests can use the shower room upstairs.
“In the spare room there’s a fitted wardrobe.
“It’s really good that there’s something there for guests.”
Although the couple thought this would be their forever home, they have decided to move to Montrose where they will be closer to some of their friends and family.
Scott’s mum recently moved there and the family have been spending a lot of time in the town at the weekends.
“I’m from there originally and when my mum went back, I kind of wanted to myself,” said Scott.
“I’ve got family in Perth as well so it’s closer to them too. We’ll miss our friends and being so close to Duthie Park.
“We didn’t think we’d ever leave and it wasn’t a decision taken lightly.”
Contact Simpson and Marwick on 01224-622622.
