Follow the journey of Angeljca Bondi and Alfonso La Porta, who migrated from Sicily to the UK, found jobs, saved, and bought a two-bedroom apartment at Bellway’s Goodsyard development in Bishop’s Stortford. Discover their story of hard work, determination, and achieving their dream home.
A young couple who emigrated from Sicily to the UK have found the perfect location for their home in Bishop’s Stortford.
Angeljca Bondi and Alfonso La Porta have bought an apartment at Bellway’s Goodsyard development in the town, which is just 10 minutes from their workplace at Stansted Airport, half an hour from the tourist attractions of central London and 90 minutes from Heathrow and Gatwick airports, to allow them to explore the world together.
The couple moved over from Cianciana in Sicily to chase the dream of a better life and quickly found work so they could save for their own home. Angeljca, 27, is a restaurant manager while 35-year-old Alfonso is a team leader at a fast-food restaurant.
Angeljca said: “Through working hard and saving, we have managed to buy a wonderful two bedroom apartment which is in the perfect location for us so we can get to work easily, get into London to see the sights and get to long-haul airports to travel the world together.”
The couple’s journey towards homeownership began after they plucked up the courage to leave their family and friends at home and emigrate in 2017.
“We knew there were so many more opportunities in the UK than in the small city we lived in,” said Angeljca. “Alfonso and I moved over, barely able to speak a word of English, but within two weeks we both had jobs at Stanstead Airport.”
The couple rented a one bedroom flat in Bishop’s Stortford before deciding the time was right to buy their own home.
Angeljca said: “We had saved a big enough deposit and started to look around for a place we could call home. The most important thing was that we wanted to stay in Bishop’s Stortford to be close to work and to London.
“We noticed that Bellway was building at Goodsyard right across from the train station, so we went along for a look. The sales advisor Winnie was lovely and she suggested a broker who was able to help us get a mortgage deal.
“Winnie was brilliant because she took control and helped us every step of the way and made sure we knew what was going on at all times. She showed us a two bedroom ground-floor apartment and we fell in love with it. Our monthly mortgage is £350 more than our rent was but we are investing in our future, not paying for a property that belongs to someone else.”
They moved into their £327,000 ground-floor apartment recently.
Angeljca said: “The open-plan living space really suits our lifestyle and the apartment is really light and airy. It is very modern and finished to a high standard which is great. We did not want to move into a property that needed work doing to it as we both work hard and want to spend our spare time having fun not struggling with DIY.
“The location is incredible and perfect for us. It takes us two minutes to walk across to the station where we catch a train which gets us to Stansted in eight minutes. If we want to go to London for a day out it takes 30 minutes to get to Liverpool Street. We’ve seen a lot of the sights – Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye, but there is so much more to explore.
“We are keen to see more of the world and it only takes one and half hours to get to Heathrow or Gatwick for long haul flights. We’ve already been to Los Angeles and are going to the Maldives soon and China in May.”
The couple are delighted to have a spare bedroom so family and friends can stay over.
“No-one has been to stay yet but Alfonso’s mum and my grandmother are due to come over from Sicily to see our lovely new home,” said Angeljca. “It will be so good to have the extra space so that they can be comfortable while they stay with us.
“We have bought this home with the future in mind because we may want to start a family before too long and we already have the extra bedroom which could serve as a nursery. We are so happy because, just seven years after arriving here in England, we have achieved our dream of having good jobs and have found the perfect home for us in the next exciting stage of our lives.”
There is a range of one and two-bedroom apartments currently available to reserve at Goodsyard, with prices starting from £262,500.
For more information, call the sales team on 01279 945851 or visit https://www.bellway.co.uk/new-homes/north-london/goodsyard.
