Love Letter – 33 Oak Hill Road in Chatham

To Prospective Buyers of 33 Oak Hill:

From the moment we pulled into the cul-de-sac in front of 33 Oak Hill Road in 2010 and saw kids playing basketball and riding their bicycles around the circle I knew we had found the perfect home for our family. My then six-year-old son couldn’t wait to get out of the car to see what game the kids were playing. Touring the home we saw endless spaces for playtime, family time, and private time for mom and dad— something that was a welcome change from our cramped Manhattan apartment.

Personally, I fell in love with the master bedroom suite—as a huge reader I was excited to have a place to build a library as well as a jacuzzi tub where I could unwind from the stress of the day. When you coupled that with a vibrant neighborhood with kids off all ages, we knew this was where we needed to move.

Once we moved in all our hopes were realized as we found a house that would grow and flex with us as our kids progressed from elementary school to middle school and high school. Our kids made friends in the neighborhood very easily as the cul-de-sac attracted kids in our direction—something that worked well for both my extroverted son and my shyer daughter—and they were outside playing daily from the first day we moved in. As pet owners, we also loved having a fenced backyard where the dog could run around and play too.

We also found a close-knit neighborhood that hosted block parties, adult cocktail parties, and Halloween events for parents and kids, and neighbors who were always willing to help one another out. The (voluntary) neighbors’ association and Facebook group made it easy for us to meet and stay in touch with one another. When Hurricane Sandy knocked the power out for several days, a few houses rolled out their propane grills and we hosted the biggest potluck block party using the contents of our freezers. The location also put us within walking distance of nearly all the schools the kids attended and very close to the playing fields when they started playing baseball, softball, soccer, and football—something that came in very handy as we tried to juggle work, school, and sports schedules.

In the house, the main floor, particularly the great room, became the heart of our home life and the site for family dinners, game nights, and movie nights. It also offered a great place to entertain. I tried to time dinner—or at least cocktail hour- so that we could enjoy the spectacular sunsets. The kids loved having their own private bedroom and play wing and once they were fed, bathed, and tucked in for the night, my husband and I welcomed having our own retreat upstairs. Our private guest rooms also made it very easy for guests to spend the night without disrupting the flow of normal family life, and Grandma and Grandpa were frequent visitors

The versatile layout offered us many opportunities to change things around as our kids grew. The downstairs morphed from a playroom into a location for slumber parties and, x-box marathons, and later into a more sophisticated rec room for teen parties. When the pandemic hit, we had enough private workspace (and WIFI bandwidth!) to allow all four of us to work or attend school from home without disrupting one another.

Now that our kids are off in college the house has really become too big for the two of us and we are looking to downsize. It is a very bittersweet time as I have truly loved my time here. I wish the new owners as much happiness and good fortune as we have had in our home.

For more information on this beautiful move-in ready custom home click here!