At Ballantine Garden Village, Lisburn, site manager Michael Poole has once again been recognised as one of the leading House Builders in Northern Ireland. As a key member of W.J. Law, who have been building quality since 1903, Michael is excited about the NHBC showcase event, and hopes once more to achieve further industry recognition.

At Ballantine, W.J. Law have again come up with ways in which home buyers can both get on to the housing ladder, or move from another property. In conjunction with Northern Ireland Co – Ownership, it is possible to buy at Ballantine with no deposit, as long as the property chosen is under £175,000. At Ballantine, this means that buyers can purchase with no deposit from as little as £410 per month, or £100 per week. In other developments of W.J.Law this comes down as low as £80 per week.

For properties over £175,000, there is the smartmove 2 move scheme, where buyers can get a mortgage through the Halifax, who pride themselves in their high approval rate. Buyers here only need a 10% deposit, as the Smartmove 2 buy scheme provides another 10%, meaning the mortgage is only 80% instead of having to pay interest on 90%.

,p>Commenting on the above, Philip Convery of The Mortgage Shop in Lisburn said, “The award is a great credit to Michael once again; allied with the affordable prices, and the mortgage help they and we can offer, W.J. Law is once again proving to be market leaders”

Environment Minister Edwin Poots MLA, visited Ballantine Garden Village in Lisburn to recognise a novel achievement by W.J. LAW, one of the leading House builders in Northern Ireland. W.J. LAW had been notified of winning the short-listing in 3 separate awards, for 2 different sites, and by chance heard news of all 3 awards on the same day.

Michael Poole has been short listed for the NHBC Pride in the Job Award for Ballantine Garden Village in Lisburn. He won the best site manager in Northern Ireland in 2008 for this site, and went to London to represent the province. He hopes to do the same this year, and possibly go one better and win the UK wide award this time. Michael also finds time to serve as a part time member of the Fire Service in his home town of Ballynahinch – truly an ‘all action hero’.

The other site to receive word of quality recognition is in North Down: The site at Avonmore Court near Bangor, has been short listed in the (Construction Employers Federation) CEF Specify Awards. One of only 3 short-listed in the “Partnering Best Practice” category, the site is further recognised by also being short-listed within the Green Field Category.

WJ LAW were recognised last year by winning the overall Specify NI award last year for Ballantine Garden Village. Accordingly Avonmore Court and Site Manager Stephen Dillon from Dromore are under pressure to win again at this different site!

WJ Law got word of winning all 3 nominations on the same day, and will await the results in November for the overall Northern Ireland award.

With the housing Market approaching recovery, it is good of the Minister to recognise success. Minister Poots took the time to review many parts of the site which are generally unseen; again proving that the devil is in the detail, and this is what has set these two developments apart from the rest.

The beautiful Fairytale Cottages are priced from £99,999 under the unique ‘smartmove scheme’ where the buyers have their 25% mortgage deposit paid for them by the developer. The 25% is free for 2 years after which a 4% charge applies, and it has to be paid whenever the house is sold, or within 10 years, whichever comes first.

The Fairytale Cottages are market leading, and combine all the benefits of a brand new home as far as being roomy, and very cheap to heat.

It is the appearance which is the real showstopper however, with most of the ideas inspired by iconic architects of the early 19^th century, such as John Douglas and John Nash, designer of Regent Street, Buckingham palace and our own Shanes Castle.

Management at WJ Law recently held a ‘Celebration of Excellence’ champagne reception to celebrate Michael’s achievement which was attended by employees, together with representatives from local government and business.

On winning his accolade as one of the UK’s best site managers, Michael Poole thanked the NHBC and WJ Law. “I’m over the moon getting recognition for the hard work all our men have done at Ballantine Garden Village. It’s over a century since WJ Law started building homes and I’m proud to be part such of a strong heritage.

“Thank you to WJ Law and to the NHBC for this recognition. It means a lot to me and the team at Ballantine Garden Village to be part of one of the most prestigious competitions in the house-building industry. We look forward to the regional awards in November.”

Last year Michael won the same award for his work at Berkeley Hall Court, Lisburn, and in 2006 for his work at Bishopshill, Dromore. Innovation, style, high specification and design integrity are at the heart of the WJ Law business according to director of WJ Law, David Law.

“Michael Poole has driven forward innovation and excellence in building homes at each of our developments and he recognises everyone who works as a team to provide our unique and increasingly popular Country Georgian homes. We are proud of his achievements and wish him well in the awards ceremony at Culloden Hotel in November.”

In order to ease the burden on home-purchasers, WJ Law recently unveiled a new buying scheme designed to encourage people to get on and climb the property ladder

The Houseprice Guarantee Scheme guarantees that the capital value of a home can only rise, given that WJ Law promise to refund the difference in value and stamp duty if WJ Law were to sell the same home for less inside 18 months.