Coast or Country and the like, why................

'We want to put our stamp on it" is a phrase that aggravates me on property programmes.
Not sure why exactly.

I love property programmes and it is clear that the house hunters are chosen for their quirks and eccentricities. In fact I know it's the case as friends of my daughters were deselected from a programme as they were 'too normal'.

Thus we, the viewers, get a double dose of schadenfreude and Nosey-Parkerdom. We get to see the interiors of other people's houses and we get to hear the delightful silliness of those, for example, who have £millions to spend but who cannot find a single place to buy.

In a recent 'Location....' a couple sold a very lovely house in my own village which was their dream house in their dream location. They had a £million to spend and, before they called in Kirsty and Phil, had viewed ninety properties without success. They didn't buy any of the delightful places that K&P showed them because their problem was that they really wanted to be back in the first house. It was obvious to all but them and made the programme compulsive viewing.

As long as there are ridiculous house viewing programme I will watch them. They always reinforce my contentment with my own house and my own DH.

I would like there to be a Place in The Country-Revisited series. Let's see how these people with fantasies of keeping chickens, growing vegetables, baking their own bread etc are getting on. Living in the middle of nowhere as a retirement project is madness to my mind, and unless you are of a practical nature, an expensive business too if you need to get tradespeople in for every fence repair, chicken house fix. Yes, it is lovely to have peace and quiet, yes it is lovely to have views, but how are those views when you are 80+, widowed, unable to drive, dependent upon the goodwill of friends and neighbours for everyday essentials? Would terrify me. I live in a village, got the views out the back, but also got a GP, Coop, school etc. Having said all this, I do love watching these property programmes, we sit and speculate about the people, wonder where they got the money from, hector then on their comments, criticise the decor......

I do despair when watching A Place in the Country when those of retirement age are looking at isolated properties, I relocated from Somerset after being widowed, I was 59 & wanted to be about 10 miles radius from my DD in Torquay.

I found my new home on Rightmove in a small Town on the edge of Dartmoor. There is a bus service until about 8pm. Local GP Surgery with volunteers who offer transport for a donation to Surgery/Hospital/Dentist. Local Post Office/shop within walking distance. So much more practical particularly if you have to stop driving. Small garden, perfectly manageable. That is my ideal.

These people seem to get carried away with the dream not the practicalities.

I love the 'We must have a big dining room for when we entertain', when they are moving massive distances. They won't know anyone!

Have always lived in the middle of nowhere. Just returned from a few years in France with lots less money than we left with. Only way back in to countryside at same standard of living is old ruin we are doing up. No low beams, no huge open plan rooms, no vaulted ceilings, no paddocks. Have gone for three ensuite bathrooms though so we can do B&B to pay for it all!
Can't imagine getting Alistair and co to chose my dream home, only DH and I know what that is

We watch Location x 3 and don't understand why the buyers haven't done their own research when they are already local. I can see that help might be useful if you are moving a long way away but surely not if you know the area?

We would like to move in the next year or two and have thoroughly researched the area. We have Rightmove map alerts on the precise areas we prefer and every now and then look at what is available in the wider area. What could any 'expert' do in addition to that? I suppose they might be useful when it came to negotiating the price but I think even that amounts to - offer low and increase if necessary. The exception being when the agent says offers by such and such a date and you know they are going to go above the asking price but even then I probably know the market better than they do as I have been following it for so long.

I do like Kirsty and Phil though, they seem relatively normal compared to some others, despite Kirsty coming from a very privileged background.

Occasionally watch A place in the Country, but it does depend on who is presenting the programme ...one or two I cannot bear ..too pompous and arrogant. Have occasionally seen couples offer a bid on a property...but many more I think simply want to be on TV. Lost interest in Location etc. as think same as above its their 15 minutes of fame on TV. Sorry to be so cynical but this is how a lot of these people come across. Much preferred Phil Spencer's Secret Agent which was far more interesting in practical terms as these were not over the top properties or showy with acres....but many simple homes were people needed helpful/useful/practical help and expertise in getting their houses sold so they could literally move. Nothing showy about that programme. Phil comes across well and also quite sensitive in enabling people to help themselves.

i think it's an inheritance.... at least i tell myself that's how they get such money / mortgage offers .... or they are much better savers than us!
not "ordinary" people anyway...

I always think it's a bit sad that people with in excess of £500,000 (even as much as £1.5m) to spend on a property are unable to source and view them without the aid of a TV programme. I also get really irritated with those who want 'something with character' and then complain about low ceilings, beams, small rooms, etc.

And while we're on the subject, why do so many suddenly decide they want to keep horses, chickens, etc, when they've never had any experience in the past?

D.H. addicted to Grand Designs. Why do they always get pregnant when they are living on a building site? Why does every bedroom need a bathroom? How do they change the bulbs in these enormously high ceilinged rooms? And how on earth do they manage the cleaning?

I can't stop watching these programmes - who on earth would want to live in the middle of nowhere, down a lane, up a hill miles from local shops (even with a view). Most of the couples seem to be past or nearing retirement so there could end with just one of them living the good life. I do get miffed when they see a kitchen the size of my ground floor and declare it "a bit on the small side." I love being near friends, shops, cinemas, theatres, restaurants, etc., and whilst I enjoy holidays in the country or near the coast, have no desire to move and can't imagine my friends or family being able to visit very often.

Another point on locations that appear fab on tv. Kirsty showed a property we knew, it was on the busiest of main roads and not in a nice area, although the property itself was a great size with potential. But you have to do a bit of homework on the area. We have put our bungalow search on the back burner for the moment as our list of reasons to avoid the area now includes 'aircraft noise'!! (Fracking, flooding, road noise, crime, HS2 route, digester site, pig farm smells +++), hard to please perhaps, but the only negative we encounter here currently is the noise of the sheep racing at the local 'attraction' and neighbours apples making our garage roof look like a snooker table, easily contended with so perhaps we should just stay here lol.

And do we have to hear sarah say I've sold hundreds of houses all over the world and kerr I'm an interior designer two or three times in an episode. WE KNOW.

The programmes that try to find a home in the country do amaze me, they often want a huge house with at least four bedrooms somewhere very or at least fairly isolated, with a view. The reasons given almost always include that they want plenty of room so all their family and friends can go and visit and stay with them. They often also want lots of land also so they can keep goats, chickens, ducks, horses, etc. Coming from the city as many of them do, have they got the first idea how much work a large house, garden/land, and animals will take, not to mention never having a holiday again as the animals will tie them down. Leaving behind all their family and friends in the city means trying to make new friends in an isolated spot! Will the family and friends really want to travel to the farthest corner of Cornwall or wherever regularly, especially in winter?

It's the people moving abroad 'for the children' that get me. Be honest, it's for you and the children going to a school where they don't speak the language, is a minor inconvenience. Or the young couple who can't live more than 50 yards from the café culture and nightlife, planning to start a family.

What about Grand Designs? It's not called 'Modest Designs' or 'Sensible Designs' for obvious reasons. Most of the properties are enormous (and soulless).
I wonder if the time for the dream they've had for years has maybe passed - the children may have left home, they would find a smaller place easier to maintain, etc but now they've got the money they want to invest in a bigger house.
The problems they suffer during the build must surely take the gloss off it.

We're always aghast at the acreage they demand on Escape to the Country. Do these idiots have any idea how much hard work and money goes into maintaining large gardens, paddocks and fields?

I also don't understand why, having demanded the above, they then get shown a converted bakery in the middle of a village with a tiny yard out the back.

They call it a 'compromise' but I reckon somebody's 'avin' a larff!

I think there have been one or rwo instances where the couple have said they'd viewed the property before, floorflock, but that's all.
I still watch Phil and! Kirsty but stopped watching the others. They all say exactly the same things - I would be waiting for them to say ''I want to keep chickens'' or ''I want to get a dog and go for long walks'' or ''I want to grow my own veg and join in with the community' - so boring.
I wish someone would say they wanted to start a witches covern or set up a house of Ill repute for the villagers!

I couldn't agree more, KateyK. Not that I'm jealous you understand but have you noticed that the higher the budget the more ghastly the houses they visit?
I expect that the smaller, charming cottages which are more to my taste are cheaper - but sadly still way beyond my means.
Enormous houses (with a few exceptions) just don't look cosy to my mind but then we're all different aren't we?

We are obsessed now with watching people view houses that we can't afford and they aren't going to buy, like the food porn shows, all rubbish and about showing off. We are becoming a nation of voyeurs.

We find it hard to believe that these people find it so difficult to spend £900,000 and think that Phil & Kirsty have such an easy job! Can't they look for a house for themselves? And, does anyone ever say, I looked at this before..... Do the couples concerned never do any homework for themselves?

Love these programmes about locating to different parts of the country. I want to live just about everywhere that I've seen. Does give me a giggle when some folks dismiss a barn of a place as being too small, I just think how much cleaning I would need to do! My wants would be no stairs, no sloping ceilings, no beams as I'm quite tall and plenty space for my chooks and other animals. Oh, and no thatched roofs. I have the irrational idea that it would be heaving with bugs and even more bugs. Nice to dream though ?

My DH agrees withh you loopyloo We were watching one recently where a couple were looking for something somewhere in the Caribbean. They didn't see anything they liked and my DH said 'free holiday'.

I love these programmes. I suspect people do it because it's interesting. I love seeing the houses and flats. Phil and Kirsty are very entertaining.