It is amazing how events overtake you isn’t it?
Ming and I spent a lovely weekend in Wales in August – complete with evening support call for his work whilst travelling down and another very unexpected call in the middle of the night on the Saturday. We joked – “hey – office – who needs an office – you can even do it from the middle of Wales”. I found that the soft water there did wonders for my eczema and I seemed to have more energy- something I had longed for since the onset of M.E.
We decided to go back and have a longer holiday there when Ming had his annual leave in September.
When we got home occasionally we would talk about dreams, LifeRites centres, barns to convert me having more energy and less eczema and always came back to the cost – perhaps one day – a few acres – a lovely dream. Combating boredom one day I dived into the internet to see what prices were like in Wales – I had heard that they were quite cheap – they were very and there were loads of properties for sale. I printed some off and showed Ming – we could have a smallholding – house, acres and buildings for almost what we would get for our three bed Victorian semi in Aldershot.
Well we are going back to Wales on holiday so why not take in a few properties while we are there – just to get the feel – something more tangible to dream on.
So the second Monday in September saw us armed with loads of property details on our way down to Wales. Does that date stick in your minds? Yes the fuel blockades but we were not going to miss our holiday – the hotel was booked. Sensible me had filled the car up on the Sunday and Ming had got a couple of cans full to put into the back of the car after we heard the news early Monday – just in case.
We took a leisurely pootle down the M4 travelling at optimum fuel efficiency speed (or so Ming said) and arrived at the first property on time. The estate agent had told us it was a "Project" – now there are projects and there are projects.
This project according to the details had 52 acres of land 40 of them being woodland, a stream and a quarry together with out buildings. So there we are, pretty little house from the outside with a 2 storey but very dilapidated barn next to it. We are taken into the house by the son of the owner and peer through the murk – small windows – not much light. He turns on the light and we are in a room with huge inglenook fireplace slate floors and not much else.
In what could laughably be called a kitchen I see a sink. We are then taken into the other downstairs room – very similar but lined with bookshelves and computer bits piled high. Again very dark. We were then shown a very basic bathroom with stone walls and Victorian bath. Right off to view the upstairs – ha! up maybe – stairs – using the term very loosely – wobbly banisters and "Oh mind that stair, its gone through".
Upstairs there were two rooms open to the eaves and “air conditioned” – you know what I mean – chinks of light coming through the roof. " Let me out! I haven't got my hard hat", I whisper to Ming and he suggests to the chap that we look at the land. At that time a structural surveyor turns up for another prospective buyer and we are left to take the jeep (have I ever said how grateful I am to have the jeep?) along the track to look at the woodland- all 40 acres of it- vertical! You would have to tie the sheep on with ropes and dangle them down to graze – and abseil down to the stream! Yes the woodland is the 90 degree side of a steep valley. We made our excuses and left, too much of a project for us.
The next place was very pretty – three bed house with 40 ft double storey barn next to it, plus very nice stream with little pools under trees, an orchard and two fields plus another field that had returned to scrub and a large pond – very sweet and pretty but a bit small for what we are looking for.
We drove round the perimeter before we left – ‘cos owner said we could get out that way – on foot maybe!! We came to a halt as the track became a footpath – so we do a hundred point turn making full use of four wheel drive. (I did mention how good it is to have a jeep didn't I?) We went into the local town to find some supper and ended up with fish and chips in the car as we watched one of the many "go slow" convoys of trucks creep along the main road. While waiting for said fish and chips we caught the local news and found that there was not much fuel to be had in Wales at all. We had half a tank and might get stuck here – oh dear what a shame – a longer holiday! So we set off for the hotel passing loads of fuel stations with no fuel. Then we saw one without signs and a chap putting fuel into his car – swift U turn.
"Have you got fuel", I asked the girl
"Yes."
"Are you rationing?"
"No "
We fill it up and give the car a wiggle to make sure that there is no room for more. Phew, and off to the hotel. The next day we go to Carmarthen to look at the local estate agents armed with a sheaf of details that I got off the internet. The first estate agent whose internet details we had, just went through and said “on offer, sold, no good”, etc, etc and left us with only one to view. The second estate agent was really sweet and we arranged to view a couple of his properties – one of which we were given the key.
The first viewing was a nice farm – too big for us with couple desperate for us to buy and telling us all about the brother who owned the place who had had three strokes and was not coming home. The second one was the empty one – we were so excited! It was a beautiful farmhouse with barn attached with planning to convert. Across the yard a wonderful range of stone barns that we could also convert for our centre – a big field just completed it. We sat and had our packed lunch there feeling that we had found it far sooner than we had expected.
Back to Carmarthen to return the key and decided to go and have a chat with planners to see if we could incorporate the barn into the living accommodation rather than a separate dwelling as in the plans and thought we would drop into the local hippy drippy shop on the way. “Back in 15 mins sign" on the door – have a talk with planners and they say yes that’s fine – sign still up on shop – have a coffee and then find shop is open – want to sound out about local courses etc as she has the usual courses advertised on the door. We tell her what we are doing and she asks to look at the property and comes over all funny. "Don't buy it", she says" I used to live there".
It turns out that she rented the property until May this year and it is 4 miles from the local tip as the crow flies and when the wind is in the other direction there is a terrible smell of methane – apart from that unless the heating is kept on the walls are damp. My heart sank.
Off to the next viewing – very bijou, complete with chap that used to sell fuchsias but is now a hypnotherapist, who proceeded to tell us al about his divorce and how she was an alcoholic and how he still wasn't over it ad infinitum – made our apologies as we would be late for the next appointment.
At the next one, the house is rally too small – but lovely buildings round a yard but only a couple of acres of land. Chap invites us to have a cup of tea and we sit round big kitchen table and hear about his heart bypass and how he wants something bigger, and that he used to work for telecom and knows Aldershot.
His wife turns up and we have to have another cup of tea – and another chat – but finally we leave deciding that although the food in the restaurant at the hotel is quite pricey we are too tired to go looking for takeaway or such – have a very good meal and tumble into bed.
Wednesday dawns and it is the day to go home if we have enough petrol, so we check out and go off to the estate agent that has our viewings for the day who just happens to be the structural surveyor that looked at the "project" – says that the only thing to do is to knock it down and start again – and its only worth about £50,000 not the £175,000 that they were asking!
Off to the first viewing – nice place, nice outbuildings, but asking far too much – no tea, no talk, so an hour and half early for next appointment, but driving past and seeing some other people being shown round (property empty) we ask if we can tag along as we need to conserve fuel to get home. It may have looked great on the details but we find it is right on the main road with trucks trundling past and the water mill is run by electricity not water – also the house was pretty ropey too. So there we are midday and our next appointment is 6.30pm cos the chap works away and son will show us round after work. So I suggest that as the property is empty we go and have a look outside ‘cos the estate agent has said that owner allows people to look outside – fuel is getting critical and if we don't like the outside we can cancel and get off home.
We arrive only to find owner has come down to do some clearing up and is more than pleased to show us round. It is a five bedroom farmhouse with 20ft kitchen and 30ft living room. It needs of a lot of love but the three foot thick walls are sound.
Outside on the other side of the yard is a two storey barn 40 ft long attached to another single storey barn of 80ft, all brick built – there is an overgrown orchard and spring and a pond that needs digging – then there is another stone built 40 ft single storey barn – and then another and then a two storey barn and then two huge modern barns. There are three good fields and a sound driveway. We keep grinning at each other behind owners back and it is all I can do to stop myself jumping up and down.
We take our leave feeling very excited – but we must get home just about enough fuel for the 200 mile journey home if we include the two cans in the back (did I say I loved my jeep?) We get stuck in go slow convoys again and Ming thinks that we may have to pull off until they stop it but they all veer off before the Severn bridge and we are motoring again. We arrive back with fumes left having decided that we would put in an offer as its too good to miss and we can always invite people to attend the courses in our house and camp as they do at present. So offer put in and accepted – £145,000 to include tractor and two trailers.
Now to sit back – not on your life – we are working frantically to sell this house now.
Its amazing how events overtake you isn’t it. From a dream to reality almost before we considered it.
Just got to sell our house.
Gods willing we will see you in Wales.