Welcome back to What I Own – Metro’s property series where we speak to homeowners about getting on the ladder.
When Ian and Andrea Clewett had children, they knew they needed more space. And so, they left their first home in Leicester, and headed for Wales.
The family moved to a small village just on the edge of Snowdonia National Park, and paid £302,000 for their five-bedroom home.
Having each previously owned a few different properties, they had a bit of equity under their belts, meaning they could put down a hefty £200,000 deposit.
This is what Andrea had to say about their property journey…
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Tell us about yourself!
We’ve been married for 22 years, and have three children (19, 16 and seven), and an 11-year-old springer spaniel.
Ian is a freelance graphic designer, and we both run an online business, Showerscape, which sells bespoke shower panels.
As a family, we love the outdoors, the mountains and the coast, which is why we moved to Snowdonia.
Whereabouts is your property? What do you think of the area?
We live in a small village called Aberangell, on the southern edge of the Snowdonia National Park.
It’s a beautiful place to live, with open rolling hills, forests and mountains, and pretty close to the sea too – it’s great for mountain biking, running and generally exploring.
There’s a great community spirit in the area, so even though we’re located really rurally, there’s always plenty to get involved with if you want to.
When did you move in?
In November 2018, with an eight-week-old baby at the time which was pretty daunting.
How much does your property cost?
We purchased the house for £302,000 in 2018. I would estimate it to be worth around £550,000 today.
Property prices vary a lot around here, as no house is the same, and demand is pretty high as there’s not much availability.
How much was your deposit?
We had a good amount of equity from previous house purchases and moves, so we had around £200,000 to put down as a deposit.
What is the monthly cost of living here now, both mortgage and bills?
We have a 10-year fixed rate agreement at 2.75%, and we pay £720 per month. We overpay by around £200 to try to get rid of it as quickly as we can.
Our council tax costs £360 per month, and our electricity costs £180.
We got a good rate also because of the amount of equity we managed to build up and the fact that we are pretty low risk to the lenders.
How long did it take you to save up for your deposit?
Initially, when we bought our first house in 2001, we had to save for a long time.
We felt like, as quickly as we were saving, the prices were rising, so we could never quite catch up with it.
Our family had to help us out in the end with a deposit to enable us to get on the ladder, which we are really grateful for. But back then, the deposit for our first home at a 10% deposit was still only around £7,000, though it seemed a lot 25 years ago.
Where did you live before this – were you renting or living with family?
We lived in a three-bed semi-detached house in Glenfield, Leicestershire. It was convenient, but not where we wanted to actually be.
When we first met, we rented a big, shared house in the middle of Leicester city centre. It was a bit like a grown-up student house – it was so much fun, and we still have some of our best friends from living there.
Renting allowed us to work out what we actually wanted from a property and where we wanted to be, and when we first managed to buy our first home, even though it was small, we were so proud of it.
What made you want to buy rather than rent?
Unfortunately, working for yourself and being self-employed can sometimes make it difficult to have a good pension, so our property is part of that.
We’ve always felt like we need some assets, something to fall back on when we’re older, hopefully.
How did you find this property? What made you choose it?
It took us three years to find this house. It was for sale for a long while, but it was quite dated and didn’t look particularly inspiring on Rightmove, and it’s the ‘other side of the valley’, which in a small community really makes a difference in terms of school catchment areas and social connections.
When we finally came to view it, we loved it. It was such a wildcard, not an old character property, not in the location we thought we would buy, but it really ticked a lot of boxes when we came to view it.
There was a lot going for it in terms of practicality and space, and the stunning valley views.
How have you made the property feel like home?
We love the outdoors, the views are incredible from the house and all surrounding areas, so we try to bring some of that inside, too.
We draw on natural materials and tones, interesting textures, and making things ourselves. It’s a bit of an ongoing project. We like bold colours but also simplicity and lightness.
How many properties have you owned before this?
This is our fourth property since buying our first home in 2001.
What’s your favourite room and why?
Definitely the kitchen. It was horrendous before we re-designed it, and it’s made such a huge difference to the space. Adding the breakfast bar has made it such a sociable space.
Do you have plans to change the property?
We don’t need to extend. But there are always jobs to do. The next job on the list is our downstairs toilet and utility area; it’s all very basic and needs modernising.
As the weather gets better, we’re planning to put an outdoor room space in the garden so we can sit, have a fire or BBQ, looking at the view under the stars.
Are there any problems with the property that you have to deal with?
Living surrounded by the woodland creates a lot of leaves. The gutters regularly need clearing out, and leaves need sweeping from the back of the house in the winter months.
What do you want people to know about buying a home?
Things don’t have to be perfect! There’s always a compromise when buying a house, and very often what you end up buying is not what you set out to look for. Be open-minded.
What are your plans for the future? Do you plan to stay here long-term?
It’s a big house, and there will come a point when we don’t need the space, so we may consider moving at that point. But until then, we’re really happy here.
Shall we take a look around?
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