LSherratt

iTrader: (1)

I've watched a good amount of these episodes from both versions and all I can notice is how indecisive, ungrateful and generally how unhappy the English couples are compared to the Aussies. In most episodes of the Aussie version, the couples on the program will usually always make an offer on the houses that the presenters have sourced and in more than half of the episodes I've watched, they actually end up buying the property.

The Aussies seem really upbeat about the whole process and really 'get into it'. The English version on the other hand is basically the complete opposite. I rarely see a couple ending up owning a property as a result of the program. The presenters source lots of potential houses for the people on the show and they are always so quick to dismiss them, sometimes for a really stupid reason. They are so unbelievably fussy and one lady from a few weeks ago said she had looked at 70+ properties . No surprises that she didn't make an offer on any houses that the presenters sourced.

Another thing I've noticed is that the Aussie houses look really modern inside, massive open plan and just generally tidy and nice looking. The english houses for sale all look as if they're from the 60's and the owners desperately in need of an interior designer . Are they all being sold by people in their 80's(?) or do some people have really really bad taste? The furniture in some of the houses they show is dreadful, really!

Probably doesn't help that most of the Aussie houses have proper built-in outdoor BBQ's and swimming pools, but that's besides the point...

f1_fan

iTrader: (9)

I think the Aussie way of life and climate in most places does lend itself more to open plan living than in the UK, but that said in my experience even Aussies in their dotage tend to have quite modern taste in interior design whereas here people seem stuck in the dark ages in a lot of cases.

I got my taste for open place from spending time in Aus and the US where they both have quite similar style of houses (well in California, Arizona, Nevada anyway). I think the problem here is people lack imagination and relatively it costs a lot to do something different with a property. Most people who buy a three bed semi keep it as is as they don't bother to think beyond convention.

In Aus and the USA they are much more likely to design layouts and interiors that are different to the norm for some reason.

hodgy0_2

But the cost of land is an issue, surely

Open plan is great when you have such a low population density, so land is relatively cheap (and a conducive climate too, so that you can create that inside / outside space)

But yes, open plan is great - can be an issue with lots of children re noise etc

tony de wonderful

Houses are generally more modern there and on larger plots than the UK (although there is a trend in them becoming smaller and subdivided). We have a lot ****ty and tiny housing stock in the UK basically. But Aussie housing is getting more expensive all the time and is right up there in terms of cost. However, I think they are even more optimistic about the future price of property than we are in the UK. One reason is that land release there is very tightly controlled and manipulated by local government in conjunction with developers. Plus their population is growing all the time. Property has become something of an Aussie religion.

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Maybe because the Aussie version has been running less time.
I reckon that 90% of the couples on there, and especially on "Place in the Sun", have no intention of buying, they just go for the TV time and free holiday.

People in the UK at the moment seem to want to do almost anything to get on TV.

It would be my worst nightmare.

hodgy0_2

some friends in our village actually used the services of Phil Spencer's location company to find them their house - known locally as "the pink house"

we actually looked at it a few years ago, but decided against it

tony de wonderful

Is using rightmove or zoopla so hard?

hodgy0_2

lol, the wife is a "stressy" American (but actually really nice) - the husband is a Barrister in the City

time is a valuable commodity not money for some people

LSherratt

iTrader: (1)

It really doesn't take that long to source some houses yourself though? I honestly don't see the need for somebody to help find you a house? You just enter in some key details, distance, size, type etc and let Zoopla filter it out for you.... Looking and discovering houses should be an enjoyable experience; the English have got it so wrong

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Nope...they just wanna be on TV........

skoobidude

After being granted planning permission to extend my house last year, Sarah Beeny's production company wrote to us offering the chance to be on her Double Your House For Half The Money program.
Decided to go through with it and filled out an application but never heard back from them...
I only really wanted to go on to meet Sarah as i think she's pump.

joz8968

iTrader: (13)

Just think of those breasts you're gonna miss out on...

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

On the contrary. I'd like to move somewhere not far from my roots.

BUT it must be a relatively compact house, not a bungalow, on a large plot of land with large outbuildings or permission to build them (big enough to house four cars) and in walking of a pub and shop.

Seriously that is very rare.

Sure there are plenty of £1million pads that meet that requirement. But at the same time they are 6+bed mansions, a listed building, or a crappy bungalow (or dorma bungalow).

Any land available that would meet that criteria for a new-build is immediately snapped up by builders to rack and stack 50 houses on. The rest of the open land is farmland that's been owned by the same landowners for generations upon generations.

The housing boom raped alot of land from good houses on large plots so builders could squeeze in another 10 houses in the back garden. Seriously, not everyone want to live within spitting distance of a neighbour. If it were a £50K house, yeah, fine...stick a zero on that to get £500K and STILL get a house on a tiny plot of land, its beyond a joke.

Anything existing just, well, is either not for sale, or has a crappy house that needs demolishing but no ability to get permission to build anything decent within budget.

Yeah, what I want isn't what the average person wants. But the environment in the UK just doesn't enable me to do what I feel I need to do.

In Spain I could buy a finca on the outskirts of a town and stick what I like on there. But I don't want to live in Spain. I'm English, not Spanish. Much like I'm not Australian or Canadian.

DYK

I'd be p1ssed off paying half a million for a shed of a house in the UK that you could get far better abroad and for a lot cheaper..

tony de wonderful

I've thought about what it would be like to **** off to Spain or Cyprus or Malta or something and live in a relatively luxurious villa, but really it isn't me. I guess I prefer to be close to my roots to? I think the only scenario where I would do it is if I was married or something and the wife was keen. It's not like I don't know what it is like to live overseas 'cos I was in Oz for four years. Living in Spain would be stressful on my own not knowing anyone and not working there. Most of the expats I know who live in Spain would be boozers in their spare time and that sort of life isn't my cup of tea.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

I agree, however my preference is for land space rather than big and grand luxurious villas. The bigger the house, the more it costs in both time and money in upkeep regardless of its location which is the opposite of what I want. In Spain you could buy a tin-shack on acres of land for peanuts with the freedom to do what you you like, so long as you can bribe the local mayor, the only issue is to make sure its been correctly notified to avoid any land-grab laws (which often happens when parts of a large finca is sold off, but not properly notified to the government - and that's what catches out alot of expats).

Ignoring package holiday makers, British Expats often seem to be the worst representation of the British; often old, hypocritical, ignorant, annoying, or a combination of them all, sticking to their local enclaves and not integrating. They'll complain about local corruption, yet they'll happily build a illegal swimming pool, then moan when they get fined or odered to tear it town; That's how the system works over there; take the risk, but you will always be fined regardless. If they had personal issues before moving, those issues will almost always be amplified after moving abroad; A better house does not make for a happier home.

I'd only move if it allowed for more personal freedom. More space being part of that, but the sacrifice for that would be everything else. Job prospects/income, friends, family etc. would all have to be taken into account.

skoobidude

Yeh great udders for bitty suckles!

joz8968

iTrader: (13)

LOL!