A NEW major development of park homes on Canvey will have a positive effect on the housing market across Castle Point, the developer has claimed.

Lee Skinner, who is overseeing the development of the Sandy Bay resort, believes the influx of residents from Canvey to the resort will see housing become available for first time buyers and young people, enabling them to get on the housing ladder.

The developer believes residents downgrading from the island, will free up homes, as well as giving new Sandy Bay residents equity they can pass on to their children and grandchildren.

Mr Skinner said: “At the moment, I would say about 50 per cent of the homes we have sold are to people living on Canvey and in Castle Point.

“It is releasing homes on Canvey, and that is a huge positive.

“A lot of the time, we are looking at a single person or couple, downgrading from a three or four bedroom home, to one of our homes.

“In almost every case, people’s homes are more expensive than what we are selling.

“They may sell their home for £400,000, buy one of ours for £200,000, and they can pass that money onto their children or grandchildren for deposits.

“We all know the housing market is not particularly promising on the island at the moment, so this will have a positive effect on Canvey’s housing market.”

The project has been deemed a huge success so far, already ahead of schedule.

Due to the speed of the project, Mr Skinner has doubled the size of the onsite workforce, all employed from local companies.

When the three-and-a-half year project is complete, the site will provide a total of 900 homes.

The site will also feature a clubhouse with a restaurant, cafe, bar and convenience store, an indoor swimming pool, spa and gym complex, a gated entrance with 24-hour security and maintenance teams.

Mr Skinner said: “These are the reasons people are so interested in Sandy Bay. People want to live in a community with like minded people, with everything they could need on site, people like the safety element, they like on the on-site security, and they like having all their facilities on site and within walking distance.

“From our point of view, we are over the moon with how it is going. Quite simply, it is an upmarket resort in a super location. It is like living on a holiday for 365 days a year.”