Insanely cheap homes abroad

Wiseman_Vaughn said:
Interesting thread this!

I was thinking about taking a look at Sweden about 8 years ago - I notice that the prices are still incredibly good value.

What is the Tax situation over there - say if you were to be resident there for 6 months out of the year?
Click to expand...

I don't know about that. You pay property tax (like council tax) but, as far as I know, if you are working and earning in England, that's where you pay tax. We're not close to being in that position yet, so I haven't looked. It's just a summer bolt hole for us at the moment.
 
Borobarmy said:
Is the language difficult to muster or is like anywhere , best way to learn is live among the folk ?
Click to expand...

Language is a bit tricky, but I pick it up when I'm there. I got a long way with DuoLingo but it's a different ball game when you are being spoken to at full speed in a regional dialect. I can read and write Swedish much better than I speak it. Fortunately, English is widely spoken ... with a high degree of competence, because they watch a lot of British and American TV. They are obsessed with Midsummer Murders :D
 
borolad259 said:
Language is a bit tricky, but I pick it up when I'm there. I got a long way with DuoLingo but it's a different ball game when you are being spoken to at full speed in a regional dialect. I can read and write Swedish much better than I speak it. Fortunately, English is widely spoken ... with a high degree of competence, because they watch a lot of British and American TV. They are obsessed with Midsummer Murders :D
Click to expand...
Cheers
 
When I worked for Ericsson , English was the official language and all the office based staff could speak it. A lot of Ericsson activities were based near the major cities, particularly Stockholm. Staff often took 2 months holiday in the Summer and some went off to Summer homes and forgot about work (in 1980s). I would imagine the cheap properties are not commutable to a City. Its a bit like living in some parts of Scotland where you are over 125 miles from a city
 
Redwurzel said:
When I worked for Ericsson , English was the official language and all the office based staff could speak it. A lot of Ericsson activities were based near the major cities, particularly Stockholm. Staff often took 2 months holiday in the Summer and some went off to Summer homes and forgot about work (in 1980s). I would imagine the cheap properties are not commutable to a City. Its a bit like living in some parts of Scotland where you are over 125 miles from a city
Click to expand...

In the north where you have large towns rather than cities (like Skelleftea for instance) even properties 25 miles away from the centre can be a fraction of the cost. This is largely because of the difficulty of getting about in a bad winter. That 45 grand mansion up thread though is actually quite close to Karlstad ... central southern Sweden. But, in general, you are correct. I do think things are changing though. As with the West Coast of Scotland, broadband makes remote working more feasible.
 
borolad259 said:
Oh man alive ... I thought about buying this place a few yearts ago when it was for sale for 60 grand. It's still a bargain at £85,000 ... a campsite with cafe/bar, living quarters, service buildings, 13 chalets, on the banks of one of Swedens prime Salmon rivers ... swimming lake, and room for about 50 caravans/motorhomes/tents. Insane value. Thinking of doing it. https://winterfastighetsformedling....Nopif3sz-2UrPDH0ba-4ns5Nip4G6x0Ex1RWJM#images
Click to expand...
me too!
 
Would you be comfortable with leaving the place empty / unattended in the winter months with regards to break ins etc
 
borolad259 said:
Property is very cheap in rural Lapland. The 85,000 is for the whole kit kaboodle. Several acres of land, a restaurant/bar, all of the chalets and the camp ground. I have thought seriously about buying it and going out there to run it through the summer season.
Click to expand...
Who's going to eat in your restaurant?
 
HundredRoom said:
Would you be comfortable with leaving the place empty / unattended in the winter months with regards to break ins etc
Click to expand...

We leave our place unattended most winters. The bigger worry is having a power cut, so the heating (which is set to keep the inside above freezing) goes off and the pipes freeze. I have a friend who stops by regularly to keep an eye on it.
 
People in the UK don't realise how mild our climate is in the Winter. I didn't see any snow this winter.

In England we are also relatively densely populated with lots of roads, towns and cities. This makes it economic to put down good mobile phone networks and good internet networks.

I went on holiday a remote part of the West of Scotland one summer and I was chatting with two brothers who had lived on the Ardnamurchan Penisula. They went to a village type school that had about 8 children in it, for secondary school they boarded at a state secondary school in Fort William and game home at the ned of each term. The village school has now closed and local children go to a state primary boarding school in Strontian, where some of the children board during the week.

Property is partly subsidised in the UK because it gets special tax treatment. There is no capital gains to pay when you sell your main home. Its also quite cheap to by and sell property here. There is little stamp duty on lower priced properties. Young people also get subsidies to buy in the UK with help to buy ISAs. Building regulations have been tight here too until recent years and are still in parts of the country where Nimbyism is strong. Plus we have a net inflow of around 250,000 people each year. This all pushes prices up in the UK.
 
borolad259 said:
We leave our place unattended most winters. The bigger worry is having a power cut, so the heating (which is set to keep the inside above freezing) goes off and the pipes freeze. I have a friend who stops by regularly to keep an eye on it.
Click to expand...

Strange winter up there this year 30C inside the Artic Circle for a time. Even further South,Temps hovering around just below freezing Jan/Feb, when it should be -10,20 C
Friend in Örebro said that on occasions their daytime was matching SW France.
Mind I have been in Avignon when it was -10C😉
 
Ziggy said:
Strange winter up there this year 30C inside the Artic Circle for a time. Even further South,Temps hovering around just below freezing Jan/Feb, when it should be -10,20 C
Friend in Örebro said that on occasions their daytime was matching SW France.
Mind I have been in Avignon when it was -10C😉
Click to expand...
30°C inside Arctic Circle!
 
Ziggy said:
Strange winter up there this year 30C inside the Artic Circle for a time. Even further South,Temps hovering around just below freezing Jan/Feb, when it should be -10,20 C
Friend in Örebro said that on occasions their daytime was matching SW France.
Mind I have been in Avignon when it was -10C😉
Click to expand...

They had quite a long winter this year though, Spring was very late arriving, though the freeze thaw cycle caused enormous problems for the Reindeer herders. The reindeer can't reach their lichen through the snow if a layer of ice forms. In the summer, 25 to 30 degrees happens fairly frequently, though it seems to be getting more frequent with climate change.
 
France, Italy and Spain have locations where cheap housing are abundant -- just depends on your preference of living -- I'm sure that prices will fall as the economic situation in Europe declines.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top