By Danielle NuttallLIKE all couples who set their hearts on moving, Paul and Barbara Prewett wanted to find the perfect home from home. But little did they realise their new nest would not only offer a nice garden, garage and off road parking - it also came with the same address as their old home.

By Danielle Nuttall

LIKE all couples who set their hearts on moving, Paul and Barbara Prewett wanted to find the perfect home from home.

But little did they realise their new nest would not only offer a nice garden, garage and off road parking - it also came with the same address as their old home.

The couple moved from Bristol in April when Mr Prewett got a new job as the general manager of a truck dealership and began renting a house on the Chantry estate in Ipswich, with the address 31 Sandpiper Road.

After spending seven months searching for a property to buy, they almost gave up before stumbling across a new development on The Chase in Stowmarket that seemed to match all their requirements.

The couple bought Plot 36 - a detached, three-bedroom home - and could not believe their ears when the sales representative told them their new address would be none other than 31 Sandpiper Road.

“I don't what Ladbrokes would put the odds on that, probably 10,000 to one,” said Mr Prewett, 55.

“That house offered us everything we wanted. It was a three-bedroom detached house with garage, parking spaces for two cars and we had nearly given up hope of finding somewhere.

“That was the perfect house. When you find out the house number and address is the same, it was a little bit like a sign. Fate's a marvellous thing.”

Mr Prewett said the road had only been a mud track when they had bought the property, so they had had no idea of its future name.

“It took us ages to find somewhere where we could keep the dog. We didn't want to buy a house until we found the right one,” he added.

“Obviously being Plot 36 we would not have known the address. It wasn't until she said the address is 31 Sandpiper Road when we realised it was exactly the same as the house we live in already.”

Mr Prewett said the house is still in the process of being built, but they hoped to be settled in at some point in December, just in time for Christmas. In the meantime, the couple are enjoying the sights of Suffolk.

“We love it. We absolutely love it. It's the perfect area to see our working life out and the weather is much better up here,” he added.

danielle.nuttall@eadt.co.uk