Nicki Chapman has become something of a property savant since signing on to Escape to the Country.
The presenter, who resides in an Edwardian house with her husband, Dave "Shacky" Shackleton, found her forever home in the leafy borough of Chiswick. Before making the move to West London, Nicki and Shacky had bought their first-ever home together in the nearby borough of Putney, and it was this decision that stood them in good stead.
© DAVE M. BENETT/GETTY IMAGESSpeaking with The Times this month, Nicki hailed her former Putney residence as her best-ever investment, after buying it for £320,000 in 1998.
"It more than doubled in value over the course of three years to £700,000, she said, "despite a surveyor warning us that we were paying 'over the odds' for the property at the time. I doubt I'll ever double my money like that again."
© InstagramWhile Nicki has experienced some good fortune in the world of property, she's also seen a tougher side to the market. When the TV star and her husband first set eyes on their Chiswick property – which had been split into a couple of flats – they knew it wasn't the ideal time to buy, build or move.
"We paid more than £1 million for both the property and the work, but it's the house of our dreams and is obviously worth a lot more now. It was a terrible time to buy because property prices dropped like a stone after the financial crash," Nicky recalled. "Luckily we were in a position to sit it out. I love property — a lot of people will know that from Escape to the Country."
Jump to the present and Nicki and Dave have lived in their "forever home" for well over 15 years. In that time, they've converted the property into a four-bedroom home with a study and a cellar, while adding a huge kitchen extension and plenty of trees in their spacious garden.
© InstagramIn a 2024 interview with The Times, Nicki recalled the full extent of their home renovations. "We gutted it," she said. "A builder was already doing it up and had secured planning permission to convert it from two flats back into a house.
"We had RSJs [rolled steel joists] put in, took the back off and added a kitchen extension, which opens onto the garden. We also built at the sides and put in en suites. Nothing of the original house remains, apart from the staircase."
Nicki added that she'd worked with Mark Gregory – one of the most decorated designers at Chelsea Flower Show – to transform her garden into a "sanctuary".
"I wanted to attract more wildlife so we put in trees, including pleached hornbeams along the back which provide fantastic security and privacy. Who needs a fence?" she quipped.
