what kind of person would love our house for sale?

what kind of person would love our house for sale?

by | Oct 6, 2021 | Lifestyle

Our house for sale is beautiful. It is a fully renovated three bedroom stone house over three floors, located in a stunning part of northern Istria, very close to the borders with Slovenia and Italy. It’s about 35 minutes from the Adriatic coast, an hour from Pula international airport and in the heart of wine and truffle country. But, as beautiful as we think it is, it is not suitable for everyone. It’s not the kind of holiday home, where you’d get a coach transfer from the airport, flop around the pool when you arrive, before heading out in the evening for the bright lights of town. We do not want to waste the time of any prospective purchasers or get up their hopes that they might have found the perfect party palace. So, as stunning as we think it is, if you are looking for the following features in a holiday home, ours is not going to be the one…

Hustle and Bustle

If you want a holiday home that’s right in the centre of the action, it definitely ain’t this house. We live (full-time) in a small village – and although we can boast three amazingly renowned restaurants on our doorstep – that’s it. The nearest shop is a couple of kilometres away – as is the nearest cashpoint and bar. There are no close-by night clubs to trip the light fantastic in. The nearest petrol station is about 12kms away – so you have to be pretty organised. But, as it’s in the nearest town to the closest supermarket, fabulous pizza restaurants, banks, notary and DIY place, then you do soon learn to be organised.

On the Seafront

The sea is about half an hour to the west and about an hour to the east, from the house, but we often travel further afield to find remote coves and beaches. So, if you want to be able to pack a towel and a lilo under your arm, and head across the road, with the rest of the sea-seekers, you’re not going to be able to do it from our front door.

Easy Transport Links

This one is KEY. If you don’t drive or don’t have a car, our house would be a nightmare for you. Public transport in Istria (especially in the north) is, if we’re being honest, pretty non-existent. You can book a taxi from the local town, but if you were to be totally reliant on taxis, it would drive you mad within a couple of days. The local school bus seems to be the only regular form of transport – OK if you are 12 and going to your lessons. Not so good for anything else. There are no train links. No trams. So, without a car (either your own or hired) getting around would be very difficult.

A Built Up Tourist Area

Our home is in a village. A village of locals – restauranteurs, farmers, retired people – and people who have second homes here. People who are pretty self-sufficient, too. So, you won’t find fast food places, stalls selling generally cheap tat, money exchanges etc. The usual stuff you might find in & around a beach resort. If you want to be cheek by jowl with lots of other people, too, on the beach, or in restaurants, this probably isn’t the place for you either. Space is definitely not at a premium here – it’s what we have lots of!

But, if you want some, or all of the following, then our house maybe just perfect…

Peace & Quiet

Some days, we rarely see a car go past the house. But, we’re not hidden away in the hills. We are near a main road – it’s just not busy all the time. There’ll always be a few tractors, trundling up and down the road, between the fields and villages. Sometimes – especially in the summer – there will be cars and motor homes and camper vans and motorbikes and cyclists, touring the area or heading to their holiday accommodation or one of the restaurants. A few times we’ve had processions of classic cars, off to their next meet-up. But because we are set back from the road, with a wall of bamboos shielding us, it feels like we have total privacy. Especially when all we can hear is birdsong or crickets or woodpeckers or a tractor in a nearby field.

Proximity to the Sea

Although the sea is not on our doorstep, we can easily be dipping our toes in The Adriatic. Although always a drive away, every drive is through the most amazing countryside – hills, fields, vineyards, forests, magical villages, hilltop towns – and the sea, always at the end of the journey. Our nearest largest town is where we do our supermarket shopping, and it’s right on the north west coast, so we can always combine a shop with a trip to the sea. Further afield, we can be in the beautiful Venetian-esque harbour town of Rovinj, or the Roman port of Pula. The sliver of Slovenian coast, with the stunning towns of Piran, Izola and Portorož can be reached in less than forty minutes. And the cosmopolitan and beautiful Trieste, just inside the Italian border, in just about the same amount of time. For us, the positive of being a little more inland, is that we can easily get to the sea, but we can also get away, especially in the summer, when these places can become crowded, and escape to our cool rural haven.

Proximity to Medieval & Venetian Towns and Villages

The Istrian peninsula is littered with the most magical towns and villages. All full of history and charm and beauty. Some are nestled on top of hills, having once been fortifications to keep out invaders, such as Oprtalj, Motovun, Grožnjan and Piemonte – all very close to the house. Some are very Italian in style – unsurprising as Istria was ruled by Venice from the 13th century until the fall of Venice in 1797. Rovinj, on the western coast is perhaps the most beautiful example of an Italian style town, with its pastel coloured houses, with ornate balconies and shutters, fringing the harbour. To the east of the peninsula (but less than an hour from the house), is the grand Austro-Hungarian resort of Opatija, and the thriving, buzzing, arty city of Rijeka. Further south, is the medieval town of Svetvinčenat, with its magnificent restored castle, in the centre. Pula, Istria’s main city, is an hour away – and with an almost perfect amphitheatre and a Forum, blink – and you could be in Rome.

The Possibility to Travel Easily

We’ve made it very clear that having a car in these parts is pretty essential, as you can’t rely on taxis or public transport. However, once you get your head around the fact that you will do an awful lot of driving, it can be an absolute pleasure. Roads are generally quiet – even in the height of the tourist season, it’s rare to get stuck in a traffic jam. Although we can’t guarantee you won’t get stuck behind a tractor…

One of the reasons we purchased our house, is its location. Yes, it’s in a village – but it’s not isolated. Within ten minutes, we can be across the border into Slovenia (twenty minutes if you need to cross one of the larger border points) and within thirty minutes, we’re in Italy. We’ve travelled extensively since we arrived here. We’ve been to places we would never have considered if we’d had to travel to them from Manchester. It’s still such a thrill to get in the car and head south to beautiful Croatian islands, east to Zagreb, north to Ljubljana, west to Venice or Bergamo. We’ve driven to Austria for a birthday weekend. Down to Cesena in Emilia-Romagna to see a band. When we do return to the UK, we tend to drive now, as we can make a real trip out of it.

We do still fly – but, unlike in the UK when flying meant using big international airports, it’s much, much pleasurable these days. Pula, in the south of the peninsula, does have an international airport, and although it’s been expanded since we first flew into it, it’s still smaller than any of the terminals in Manchester airport. But, with flights to most places in Europe you’d want to go to. Other accessible airports include Zadar, Trieste, Treviso, Venice, Ljubljana and Zagreb. We also drive to Bergamo in northern Italy for flights. Everything just seems so much easier – and the real bonus is we are really discovering the countries around us. Ferries also connect us with a lot of the Adriatic and Mediterranean countries and islands. From Pula, Rovinj, Porec and Trieste we can sail to destinations further south in Croatia and across to Italy, where we can then connect with Greece and the islands. So, if you like the idea of being able to get in the car and discover new destinations, easily, you might like our house…

With a peninsula packed full of history, beauty, tiny villages, ancient towns, vineyards and wineries, the best restaurants, cycling routes, festivals and much, much more, we couldn’t recommend Istria highly enough as a place to own a holiday home. In the four years that we have lived here (even with a pandemic to contend with), we’re seeing its popularity grow. Abandoned houses are being renovated. New, modern and contemporary properties, are being built, sitting alongside their stone counterparts. New businesses are emerging. All meaning, that now might be the time to take the plunge and think about making your dream become a reality. Especially if you want the kind of things we highlight.

If you want to know more about our house for sale, do visit our website – or email helen@escapetoistria.com and I’ll provide you with all of the answers you need.

 

 

 

 

 

 

a holiday home in istria…

a holiday home in istria…

by | Sep 10, 2021 | Lifestyle

Are you the kind of person who goes on holiday and imagines living there? The kind of person, who, when they return home, often to the inevitable damp and drizzly weather that we generally experienced back in Manchester, dreams of having a holiday home? Somewhere where the weather is guaranteed and where you can just kick back and relax? Whenever you want – because it’s yours. If this sounds like you, then read on – as we have an idea…

We’re selling our beautifully renovated Istrian stone house because we have found another property to renovate, a few kilometres away. We live in Istria full time – because we did what we’d always dreamed of. We bought a house in the sun and, in March 2017, left the grey skies of north west England behind. We had no intention of renovating the property and flipping it. Completely out of the blue, the new property caught our eyes and we decided that if we didn’t go for it, we’d regret it. So, our beloved stone house is up for sale.

Admittedly, circumstances haven’t been on our side. Trying to sell a house, in the middle of a global pandemic, has not been easy. But then again, nothing has been really easy and I suppose if this has been our only concern over the last year or so, we’ve fared pretty well. However, travel to Istria is now becoming much easier and interest in the house has taken off. Unfortunately, trying to sell a property abroad, is not as easy as when we sold in Didsbury. Open days, for multiple viewings are unheard of here. We rely on getting the word out via our own marketing and our own website. We’re also targeting a very specific and quite niche group of buyers and enquiries, leading to viewings, are much slower than back in the UK. However, we know that our buyer is out there – and we’re ready and waiting for them.

We also know, from the enquiries we’ve had, that lots of people are very interested in our property as a second/holiday home. We know that people in the UK are interested, as well as potential purchasers from across Europe. But in these challenging times, we are also acutely aware that cost is a massive consideration – and to buy a holiday home these days, as tempting as it may sound, may not be possible for everyone. However, if you are determined, like we were, to be abroad, there may just be a way to do it…

The word TIMESHARE is one which makes me shudder. I couldn’t think of anything worse than ploughing money into a property which wouldn’t completely be mine, and which could only be used through negotiations with everyone else who had invested in it. Paying money to have a property in the sun, and perhaps being stuck with the weeks no-one else wanted. The weeks when the weather’s not good, for example, Or, totally out of season. Paying money for a property which kind of was mine, but not really. However, we’ve recently been thinking about the concept of “timeshare” and realised it could actually have some very positive connotations, in the right context…

For anyone interested in the possibility of a holiday home, but not relishing the prospect of taking on the whole financial commitment, how about doing it with family and/or friends? A kind of timeshare – but with people you know and trust. Our home has three – but potentially four – large bedrooms. It has three large living spaces – this would be reduce to two if The Snug was converted into a self-contained en-suite, but the current living room is very spacious. We have two bathrooms – one with a bath and one with a wet-room style shower, so no arguments in the morning! The outside area is spacious and is well set up for outdoor life, with a gravel parking area for two cars. More space is available around the house for further vehicles, if necessary. And, if our potential purchasers fancy a little bit of a renovation project, we also have an additional stone cottage, to the rear of the main house. If renovated, this could become a very cute annexe, creating additional living space. Or, if a pool was on the agenda, it could be demolished to create the additional space. And, with the beautiful Istrian stones salvaged and cleaned up, all of the material would be there to build a garden wall, for privacy.

If this sounds like something you might be interested in investigating with family or friends, take a look at our website, where you’ll find a whole lot more information. And that dream of yours might just become a reality.

 

 

property for sale in istria…

property for sale in istria…

by | Jul 7, 2020 | Renovation

Renovated Property for Sale in Istria

In March 2017 we moved lock, stock and barrel to Istria, in northern Croatia and set about renovating a very traditional stone house. Fast forward three years, and the big renovation is complete :

  • Completely new and updated kitchen
  • One bathroom gutted and completely remodelled, wet-room style
  • Second bathroom totally renovated with new sanitary ware
  • Internal cellar gutted and now utilised as an additional living room
  • Living room and dining room (with an uplit internal well chamber with a reinforced glass cover) completely renovated
  • Three bedrooms decorated to a very high standard
  • Additional land (including a small house with potential for renovation/development to the rear) acquired
  • All boundaries established
  • Garden to the front created, with various zoned areas

It’s now the house we always imagined it would be, and whilst we’re still pottering around, now doing the “nice” bits of DIY, we’re thoroughly enjoying our new home in the sun. But – and it’s a big but – we’ve got itchy feet. Because we’ve seen another property. It caught our eyes when we first moved here, but it was nothing more than a bit of minor flirtation as we had our hands full with getting to grips with our stone house. But, over the months and now years, that minor flirtation has grown and we have to be honest and say our heads have been really turned.

The reasons behind our decision to make a move…

The property we have our eyes on now, is so very different to our current home. Although we’ve renovated it in a very contemporary way internally, the exterior is still quite traditional, built as it with Istrian stones and with the traditional Istrian red roof. The new property is absolutely at the other end of the spectrum. In fact, it’s not even a house, It’s a former industrial unit, sitting on one level, and with only partition walls internally, making open plan living something more of a reality.

We do genuinely love our stone house, and we had absolutely no intention of renovating it to sell it, but sometimes opportunities present themselves and they feel like they are meant to be. With the help of people we’ve got to know here – builders, electricians, plumbers, stonemasons – we’ve created what we know to be a very unique property.

Living here full-time…

We live here full time and have very quickly adapted to the Istrian way of life. It’s a slower pace of life than back in the UK, but we are so close to so many wonderful places, that in normal times, we can still have a similar kind of life to the one we had in Manchester. Larger supermarkets are about 30 minutes away, Pula and the airport about an hour. The border to Slovenia is 10 minutes away, and Trieste less than 40 minutes. The sea on each of side of the peninsula can be reached from our house in less than 45 minutes to the east and about 25 minutes to the west. We can be in Ljubljana, the uber stylish and trendy Slovenian capital within an hour and a half. Venice is two hours away, by motorway – or by catamaran, if you prefer.

Anyone who wished to purchase our home and make it a full time move as we have done, we’d be on hand to offer support and guidance and share our valuable network of contacts and expertise.

Holiday home/rental potential…

The house has been renovated to an incredibly high standard, because it is our home. This would mean that it would literally be ready for any new owner to just turn up and unpack their suitcase, if bought as a holiday home. Much of the furniture is included in the sale, simply because we’d have to dismantle much of it, to get out of the house. Our website details what is included and what is not.

The small house to the rear of the main house, is also included in the sale. This is NOT currently habitable – it is what we call one of the abandoned houses of Istria. However, it could be renovated or demolished and rebuilt, either as an annexe or joined onto the main house. We have chosen not to have a swimming pool, but this could be the ideal space for one…

The rental market for holiday homes in Istria is huge. With good marketing, our property could be a great source of income. We have considered doing it ourselves, but we think our industrial unit will take up all of our time going forward and so we have made the decision to move on and pass our home into the hands of new owners, who we know will fall in love with it it, as we have. And, if you don’t believe us about how amazing, see what family and friends who’ve visited, have to say.

Safe Viewings

The world is now a very different place to how it was a few months ago, when we designed our website and suggested how viewings could be done, in person. Like everyone the world over, we’ve had to rethink how we do things, and so can now offer the following…

We have uploaded a virtual tour of our home, where you can walk you through the house, room by room and the outside area.  If this then whets your appetite, we’d suggest that you drop us an email via the contact form and we can arrange to delve deeper via Zoom or FaceTime or WhatsApp. We’ll also be able to answer any questions you have in real time.

We would still welcome serious viewings in person, but we would obviously insist on all safety measures being adhered to, including the wearing of masks and use of hand sanitiser. In a move that is just not us, because we are very much “people people”, we’d also request, sadly, no hand-shaking and no touching of anything around the house. As the visit would be relatively short, we would ask that our bathrooms not be used. We are so very sorry that we need to ask these things, but we would much prefer to be safe than sorry…

Detailed information is available on our website, so do please check it out in the first instance. To then make an enquiry, or to request further information, please complete the contact form on our website or email helen@escapetoistria.com

The Well Room : the original well is now situated outside the front door and the chamber has been drained. It has been fitted with a triple layered reinforced (safety) glass cover and is uplit.