By Maxie Heppell

After making the big decision, the next step is … to find a place to live in your new country.

So many men, so many opinions, but for us the best option was for me to fly to England before the great trek to find us a home. That way, my visually impaired husband and our four-legged child would have a soft landing after all the stress that usually accompanies the last days in South Africa.

But how do you decide where to live in a new country?

We wanted to be close to London – the city has crept deep into our hearts! But we could not afford a house with a piece of land in the urban neighbourhoods.

We had to accept this and a few other “obvious” things:

• Maintaining the same standard of living here as in South Africa is probably only for the upper class.
• You might not be able to afford a comfortable, average three-bedroom house with a vegetable garden in the backyard, and maybe even a swimming pool, on the same salary scale. Except maybe in the smaller villages further north where the weather is bad – worse – the worst.
• A large car is not a sign of prosperity in England. On the contrary. In the larger cities where public transport works so fantastically, it is superfluous. And in the smaller towns, there is not enough parking space.
• Home cleaners are an absolute luxury. The ordinary working-class and middle-class families usually do everything themselves. The best advice I have ever received on how to cope with a full day’s work and the maintenance of a whole household is: “Lower your standards.” I now have a lot more empathy with a person missing some dust under the bed in the spare room. And you know what? The sky has not yet fallen.

To rent a house

Depending on your visa status, rental agents may require you to pay up to six months’ rent in advance as a deposit. However, we were lucky enough to secure a place with just six weeks’ rent.

Negotiation is not taboo, and the owner of our place was quite accommodating when I asked for a reduced monthly rent if we were to rent for 18 months and not just 12. It would also give us a chance to find our feet, figure out how the English system of renting and buying works, and decide if we wanted to stay in the same area.

Properties are much cheaper in the north than in the south, and in the south, certain areas are also much more expensive than others. Check out properties at www.rightmove.co.uk. This is a convenient first stop for anyone thinking of renting or buying.

Something that differs from South Africa is that the tenant is responsible for the property rates, or “council tax”, as it is known here. Each town or city (“borough”) is divided into different council tax bands, and the annual rate, payable monthly, is then determined according to that. The exact amounts are available on each borough’s website.

Here in West Berkshire where we live, our monthly service rates are more or less as follows:

Although some services are not payable monthly, we faithfully set aside these amounts each month for the Big Account to come. It works!

To buy a house

After eighteen months, we decided we like the area where we lived and it is time to buy. That was while the COVID pandemic was at its worst and new homebuyers were lured with a special offer: No stamp duty would be payable on properties up to a certain amount. So we saved a massive £19 600 (about R420 000)! That, and the fact that the monthly instalment on the property we were interested in would be less than our rent, was all the incentive we needed.

We had so much to learn! So many things are different from what we were used to in South Africa! We were lucky enough to get a referral to a fantastic real estate lawyer from another expat here in England and I would love to share her information:

	Joanne Cummings, a partner in the legal practice of Spencer West, is one of the smartest in her field that both my husband and I have ever encountered. With her English background, she helped us understand the multitude of loopholes and mud holes of English law. Through the whole long process, she went out of her way to ensure our interests were protected.
Joanne Cummings Partner – Real Estate Solicitor, BA (Hons) joanne.cummings@spencer-west.com Tel. +44 (0)20 7925 8080

The following will give you an idea of the investigations and costs involved in buying a home in England:

• Local authority search
• Environmental search
• Drainage and water search
• Chancel check
• Land registry fee
• Bankruptcy search
• Land registry search
• Legal fees
• VAT
• SDLT (stamp duty)

It is a complex system where the seller can still back out at the eleventh hour. I will not bore you with all the detail but would like to share a small part. According to the chancel check, homeowners who live within a certain radius of some church buildings may be legally obliged to pay for the maintenance of those buildings! For more information, visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chancel_repair_liability.

My only advice is: Get a Joanne!

Having a place to live in England comes at a price. But working systems and infrastructure, safety and security, and a strong economy make the sacrifices worthwhile.

Until next time …

Greetings from Newbury!
Maxie

Also read: Life in England: Part 3