Aldi set to boost demand at new Deeside housing site

A new Aldi supermarket in Deeside is expected to give a major lift to a nearby housing development, with local builder Anwyl Homes anticipating the ‘Aldi effect’ will attract more buyers to its Summers Bridge scheme.

Construction is underway at the Airfields site in Garden City, where Aldi’s new store is set to open in August 2025, creating around 40 new jobs. The development also includes a Greggs drive-through and an electric vehicle charging hub with 18 spaces.

Anwyl Homes is building 183 properties at Summers Bridge, located on the former RAF Sealand site.

The homes range from one-bedroom apartments and two-bedroom semis to larger three and four-bedroom homes, all with private parking and strong transport links to Chester, North Wales and the North West.

The new Aldi store, with a 1,356 square metre sales area and 176 parking spaces, will be accessed from the main spine road of the development.

Graeme Gibb, sales director for Anwyl Homes Cheshire and North Wales, said the supermarket is already making a positive impact.

“It’s a real boost to us as a new homes developer that the wider Airfields site is also welcoming Aldi, which is set to open towards the end of the summer,” he said.

“It’s well known in the property industry, and has become a bit of a phenomenon, that the addition of a new supermarket has a positive impact on the local housing market. The phrase ‘the Aldi effect’ was coined in 2016 when research found that being close to the store boosts house prices, in a similar way to the ‘Waitrose effect’.”

The developer says a similar pattern was seen at its recent site in Llay, where an Aldi store also opened nearby.

In its planning documents, Aldi said the store’s “strategic location will reduce the need for residents to travel long distances for their weekly groceries, promoting local shopping and community engagement.”

Flintshire currently has Aldi stores in Mold, Buckley and Flint, with the Deeside addition expanding the retailer’s presence in the county.

Homes at Summers Bridge priced up to £300,000 are eligible for the Welsh Government’s Help to Buy scheme.

It offers an equity loan of up to 20% of the purchase price, interest-free for five years, helping buyers get on the ladder with just a 5% deposit.