Spotlight on Heaton

WHY: Good bus links, excellent choice of schools including top-ranking independent Bolton School, easy access to junction 6 of the M61. Good mix of well-established small shops and restaurants along Chorley Old Road as well as large Morrisons, two golf courses within minutes.

WHO: A broad mix but families wanting to size-up are creeping in on the older couples who bought family homes before prices boomed in the area. Also popular with first-time buyer couples working in Bolton or Manchester looking for terraced properties.

PRICES: Following traditional expectations prices are higher in `Higher Heaton', particularly the further you go up Chorley New Road towards Lostock, with four-bedroom houses fetching around £455,000 and stone-built 5-bedroom homes going for around £800,000.

Spiralling prices in this desirable area have not gone un-noticed by developers and a streak of prestigious family-sized luxury developments is appearing alongside older properties.

Three-bedroom family homes are still the most in demand, and one costing £130,000 in New Hall Lane recently sold in two days. First time buyers can expect to pay upwards of £70,000 for a two-up two-down terrace which would have been worth £39,000 five years ago.

AGENT'S VIEW: Pam Hamer from Carrington's Estate Agents, Chorley Old Road, said: "When people have lived in Heaton they never want to leave, if they want to trade-up they always want to stay in the area.

"It's very sought after, especially Higher Heaton. "It's got five very good schools and good access to the shops on Chorley Old Road, which are well-established and traditional with florists, hairdressers, and the supermarket, and there's also a health centre and doctors' surgeries."

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