The House Hunt Officially Begins...
This is one of the houses we'll be checking out next week when we head off to Hungary!
I have been looking online for over 2 years now, so know the website off by heart practically!
Have booked the agent for Wed, Thurs and Friday of next week, so hopefully can get a place to do up by then.
We have to pay them 100Euro a day plus fuel for traipsing us around the countryside as these places are in small villages all over Hungary and the commission on them is like 33Euros or such!
Went down town to-day looking for a vacuum cleaner, B&Decker electric/cordless drill, hammer, saw, jig saw, sander, iron, iron board, jug, microwave, toaster, blender, saucepans, frypan, pillows, doonas, and all that type of kitcheny and bedroom gear and found I could get it all the top brands all lovely and new for way under 800 Euro. Have to look elsewhere for an oven, cook top, washing machine, fridge/freezer yet, but will find them to-morrow somewhere to get an idea of basic prices before they are needed.
Furniture will probably come from Bosnia as Klemen, a friend in Slovenia, said the quality is amazing and the prices are about 100 euro for a beautiful velvet, padded and studded lounge chair! Tables and chairs like my good dining suite etc are around 400 to 500E for a whole suite of 6 chairs and a table, it seems down there in Bosnia....new, that is!
I have been looking online for over 2 years now, so know the website off by heart practically!
Have booked the agent for Wed, Thurs and Friday of next week, so hopefully can get a place to do up by then.
We have to pay them 100Euro a day plus fuel for traipsing us around the countryside as these places are in small villages all over Hungary and the commission on them is like 33Euros or such!
Went down town to-day looking for a vacuum cleaner, B&Decker electric/cordless drill, hammer, saw, jig saw, sander, iron, iron board, jug, microwave, toaster, blender, saucepans, frypan, pillows, doonas, and all that type of kitcheny and bedroom gear and found I could get it all the top brands all lovely and new for way under 800 Euro. Have to look elsewhere for an oven, cook top, washing machine, fridge/freezer yet, but will find them to-morrow somewhere to get an idea of basic prices before they are needed.
Furniture will probably come from Bosnia as Klemen, a friend in Slovenia, said the quality is amazing and the prices are about 100 euro for a beautiful velvet, padded and studded lounge chair! Tables and chairs like my good dining suite etc are around 400 to 500E for a whole suite of 6 chairs and a table, it seems down there in Bosnia....new, that is!
Beds rooms are fine as it's easy to make a room look nice with a bit of net and a nice set of curtains and a white bed quilt...I brought mine with me incase I couldn't find the blue velvet or the embroidered French terylene.
This is the entry room which housed the 2 huge fire places, behind the blue doors. Could put a staircase up to the attic here and one down to the cellar and use the room the cellar stairs are in for another 2 house rooms as they are in the footprint of the house but does not have a fully lined ceiling.
Doesn't look too bad at all. The cellar is in the arched door to the left on the house and the attic stairs are behind the entry door that's open on the patio. Gutters look OK, roof is straight and sound...a lovely piece of land with no moles there by the looks of it either. Mould wasn't there...but a whole lot of junk is! Lot's of cement rendering is needed, but you hire a guy for 400 euro a month...the basic wage in Hungary and he works his magic for a whole month and fixes all the cracks and plaster falling off around the place. I like the idea of going upstairs and putting in 4 bedrooms up there and a bathroom or 2 and then building another house on the other block I can cut off...or just build a second house as you are allowed to build 20% coverage on it, excluding garages and patios etc.
Now into the local restaurant overlooking the lake, to get down to the nitty gritty of legal terms in Hungary over some late lunch! How to do the next bit...the place is about 6,000 pounds and I want it. Big decision...my stomach is churning and my heart thumping with excitement at the challenge and adventure ahead...all without a loo too.
So the day ends as a new chapter is opened on my journey into Europe! The biggest surprise of all was the news that Hungary grants Aussies a special longer stay visa if they buy a house to live in over here. I have to check it out more but it appears I can stay 2 years then if OK, can extend it for another 5 years and so on. So I'm pretty chuffed to-night, but am fully aware I may have heard the agent incorrectly. Regardless...it's still fun. Stay tuned for more news on the foray into house hunting in Hungary when we hit the agent and the lawyer's offices to-morrow.
Want more info on the Lodge progress? Go here.