 We
want a holiday home abroad
Do you dream of having your very own place in the sun? A holiday
home in a warm climate where you and the kids can while away balmy sun
drenched days and endless summers.
It may sound like a fantasy, but an increasing number of young
families are making it happen.
Why buy?
Encouraged by rocketing property prices in the UK and a desire to invest
in something a little more fun than stocks and shares a growing number
of British families are choosing to put their money into bricks and mortar
abroad. And the benefits are not just financial - by owning your own holiday
home you get the added convenience of being able to kit your pad out with
all the equipment your family needs, making travel a lot easier.
 Mandy
Sidgwick and her partner Richard bought their house in the Languedoc region
of France when they found out they were expecting their first baby, Louis,
six years ago.
"It was something we'd always wanted to do and being pregnant spurred
us into action," says Mandy, a full time mum. "We knew if we didn't do
it then it was likely that we'd never get around to it.
We spent three months renovating the house when Louis was a tiny baby
- I remember just singing to him all the time to keep him happy while
I was painting."
In the five years since they finished the house the Sidgwicks have had
two more sons, Oliver (4) and Henry (22 months) and for Mandy having a
place of their own to holiday in has been a dream come true. "The best
thing about it is that we can leave all our equipment there. We have a
highchair, potty, toys, books - everything right down to a little buggy.
The other great thing is that you can really relax as you don't have
to worry about the kids breaking things or making too much noise, if you
rent somewhere you are always a bit on edge with little ones around."
Popular places
The Sidgwicks are typical in that they chose to buy not far from home.
Ian Clark (Clark) director of overseas property agents Our Home Abroad,
says that most young families want to buy within a short hop of the UK.
"Spain is the most popular choice," says Ian. "The main reason being
that it is easy to get to. No one wants to fly long haul with a baby or
toddler in tow, but you can get to Spain in a couple of hours and there
are loads of flights from the UK. Spain has great weather, people know
what to expect from it and they know they can rent their place out easily
to holiday makers."
Best for young families
Ian has seen a growing number of enquiries from young families over the
past five years. "I think it's because they have more money than previous
generations because so many people have a lot of equity in their homes,"
he says. "They tend to like resorts where there are a lot of facilities
for the children on site.
Some, like Polaris World offer everything from a crèche to a full-blown
international school on site, and they are managed with 24 hour security
so people can lock up and leave without worrying."
Developers have caught on to the trend and are increasingly designing
properties with young families in mind. A development in Turkey that has
won several awards for design and innovation is the Regnum-Bargylia (Regnum-Bargylia)
luxury village project near the popular resort of Bodrum (Bodrum).
The list of family friendly features at the gated development includes
a no-car on site policy, kids play area and large children's pool, first
aid centre and a supermarket stocked with baby food and nappies.
Regnum chairman Ali Ozturk (Ozturk) says: "We've designed it to be safe
and quiet for families. The balconies are really high, the whole place
is safe and we have a lovely private bay with a sandy area for kids and
a decked area so they can shelter from the sun.
We're getting a lot of interest from young couples and as the majority
of our clients have at least one child they always ask about the facilities."
The only downside the Sidgwicks have discovered is the snag of having
DIY to do in two countries. "Maintenance is something that everyone should
think about," says Mandy. "The shutters need painting every year on our
house and if you're only there for a couple of weeks holiday then it can
be a pain. We only have a patio garden, having a big garden to keep up
would be a nightmare."
That said Mandy is adamant that the pros outweigh the cons. "The boys
absolutely love it there and we get to really relax. We've made friends
with our neighbours and get to practice our French while we are there.
It's brilliant."
 Bargylia,
Turkey
Two bed duplex apartments with balcony and sea view start from £60,000.
Regnum Developments 020 7930 7550
www.regnum.co.uk
 Polaris
World, Spain
Two bed apartments from £82,620, two bed townhouses from £187,500.
Our Home Abroad 0870 850 6942
www.ourhomeabroad.com
or www.polarisworld.com
 Westin
CampoReal Golf and Spa Resort, Portugal
A project offering property owners the opportunity to use facilities
at a new five star hotel due to be built on site this year (2007) - to
include a kids club, health club, spa and tennis courts.
Townhouses from £307,000, villas from £471,000. Info: Premier Resorts
0800 083 5300
www.premiercamporeal.co.uk
Where to next?
- New year - new nappies? One mum
tries to switch from disposables to re-usables.
- New
Year - fit kids? We look at different ways of getting them up and
about and talk to cricketer and Strictly Come Dancing winner Darren
Gough about why dancing is the grooviest exercise around
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