How to buy a place in the country

[Mon Ami Mate]

I spent much of my early life on a farm in rural Somerset and I've always hankered for the great outdoors. I'm getting more and more intolerant of people as I get older. I'm tired of crap neighbours, noise, hassle, aggression, people driving all over my garden, cyclists trying to mow me down on pavements, traffic jams and chavvy kids hanging around street corners. I yearn for a house in a rural place with a bit of land, green open spaces and peace and quiet. I'm self employed, I don't need to commute anywhere. How do you go about finding something like this? I've tried phoning up estate agents and they all say "sorry, we rarely ever get anything like this" but can't seem to push you towards somebody who can. Any ideas?

[RedLeicester]

Try a different estate agent?! They all have their patches and their fiefdoms, find one that covers the area you're after, or use a site like Rightmove or the like to narrow it down. Ooodles of farms and estates out there.

[tokyo_mb]

Depends a lot what your budget is... As RedLeicester says there are a good number of places out there - worth checking the farms and estates links on the big agents sites (they're not all massive), and also setting up RightMove or PrimeLocation searches with "acres" or "barn" in the keywords...

I think that was how I found the place we just bought in Shropshire - farmhouse and outbuildings in the middle of its own land - though to be honest I cannot remember exactly how I came to that section of the Strutt and Parker website while sat in Tokyo!

Just a quick plug for Strutt and Parker (no connection other than as a potential / then actual buyer). Have dealt with them in locations as diverse as the Highlands (for a property on Orkney) and also Ludlow and been impressed on each occasion.

[RedLeicester]

This'll do. http://search.knightfrank.com/she080182

[5MUG]

We are currently renting a place that is for sale while we have building work done. Its gorgeous! £695k in rural Kent.

[Sleepers]

Took us 4 years to find our pad in the country! Because of location it's dead mens shoes, you have to wait until some bu99er corks it!

Worth it though for all the reasons you mention.

Cheers

[Harry Flashman]

5MUG said:

We are currently renting a place that is for sale while we have building work done. Its gorgeous! £695k in rural Kent.

Details? I am looking for a place in rural Kent/Essex...

[Tacagni]

Try www.ruralscene.co.uk

[Mon Ami Mate]

Tacagni said:

Try www.ruralscene.co.uk

Blimey, just logged on to that and immediately found a place that looks absolutely ideal. Thank you!

[Tacagni]

Even though we have our place in the "sticks" i look at that website every week there are some great places on there

[onomatopoeia]

If you're looking in the south west, these people might have something http://www.gth.net/

[Driller]

Plenty of places like this in France

[spikeyhead]

Driller said:

Plenty of places like this in France

I'd rather live with chavs than the French

[FourWheelDrift]

RedLeicester said:

This'll do. http://search.knightfrank.com/she080182

Along with :

http://www.savills.co.uk/
http://www.struttandparker.com/
http://www.chestertonhumberts.com/
http://www.smithsgore.co.uk/
http://www.kingwest.co.uk/
http://www.johndwood.co.uk/
http://www.hamptons.co.uk/
http://www.jackson-stops.co.uk/
http://www.bidwells.co.uk/
http://www.carterjonas.co.uk/

Those should keep you busy.

[Tonsko]

tokyo_mb said:

... and also Ludlow and been impressed on each occasion.

Mind the arrows!

[Puggit]

I've always lived on the edge or rural life - and so often cycle out in to the nearby countryside. It has never ceased to amaze me how many of the tucked away cottages are owned by skilled workers (as can be seen by the logo-ed vans parked outside).

I'm guessing this type of worker often buys the run-down houses and does them up. Either that or they are earning far more money than they declaring

[Driller]

spikeyhead said:

I'd rather live with chavs than the French

Yeah but the French are much more fun for insulting and target practice

[Bill]

FourWheelDrift said:

Along with :

http://www.savills.co.uk/
http://www.struttandparker.com/
http://www.chestertonhumberts.com/
http://www.smithsgore.co.uk/
http://www.kingwest.co.uk/
http://www.johndwood.co.uk/
http://www.hamptons.co.uk/
http://www.jackson-stops.co.uk/
http://www.bidwells.co.uk/
http://www.carterjonas.co.uk/

Those should keep you busy.

Blimey, there's a few names there I remember from my childhood growing up in the country.