Buying a house in a remote location at 62 years old.

Nomis21

I am thinking of buying this property...

http://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/sneem/eskine-sneem-kerry-1101764/

It is at the end of a long and remote road in the Kerry Mountains. But I have fallen in love with the idea of living there and having my own circle of Standing Stones in the garden surrounded by woodlands and breathtaking mountain scenery with star filled skies untouched by any pollution.

But at the age of 62 am I taking a risk living alone in such a remote location?

I am in good health but is it still too risky being so far from the nearest town?

Pinkycharm

Wow! A little piece of heaven! I'd love a place like that too! Go for it if it is what you want! You only live once!

NIMAN

Nice property and nice location.

As for the question of whether you would be too remote, well only you can answer that. Medical emergencies can happen to any of us who live a distance away from major towns, but its just something rural dwellers live with. I myself live 30mins minimum from the nearest hospital, and I know should any of my family need urgent medical attention we might be too far away to get help. But it doesn't stop people living rurally. We can't all live in cities close to hospitals, or indeed want to.

Would you have a circle of friends you'd be in contact with, who you could phone in an emergency? Its likely you might get friendly with locals and have contact numbers for them in the future should you need them.

But we can't put our lives on hold for the 'what ifs', if you think it would make you happy, go for it.

athtrasna

If you were my parent I wouldn't relax for one minute knowing you were that isolated. It's a security thing as much as a medical one to say nothing of the risk of being cut off in bad weather.

NIMAN

True.

I'd say with the remote nature, you'd probably be a lot less likely to be broken into.

How far is the property from any major group of people, houses, village etc?

Technique

Have you viewed the house? It would worry me that there are no photos of the interior.

snoopy12

OP are you living in a more urbanised area at present?

bmm

Consider renting in the area for a few months before taking the plunge.

Nomis21

I live in a town of about 2,000 at the moment. I am walking distance to all facilities including a GP.

The nearest town to the property I want to move to is Sneem, (pop 700) about 14 kms away down a mountain single track paved road. I know this area from visiting friends in Sneem over the years and although I have never been to the property, I have an appointment to view it and hopefully will be making an offer.

The property was a BandB up till last year so I don't think it could have deteriorated that much. In 2004 it was sold for 345K.

How many properties have a 3,000 year old stone Circle in the garden? Priceless.

Letree

Romantic ideas and reality can be quite different. You could buy it and find living there very lonely and isolating. Just something to consider.

Nomis21

I am an Ambassador on 'Couchsurfing' and have visitors from all over the World staying with me nearly every night. I'm hoping they will like it in Kerry as well, as long as I collect them from the nearest bus stop.

the_syco

Lack of any inside photos to me means that someone has already lived their life there.

The weeds in photo 6 usually mean that the area is marshy. The houses to the right were probably the original house there, with the house to the right being the "newer" house.

Anyway, look at this; https://goo.gl/maps/9MgyUiQipZw

From the skylight on the roof of the house in the picture, the house in the picture is the one to the south. The house to the north, I'm unsure of. Looking at OSI, both houses were in in 1995. The standing stones are next to the northern house.

The OSI historic 25" map also lists something as being there, but unknown. I'm guessing the house to the right in photo 6?

Satriale

Best of luck, Nomis. Looks beautiful in those Summery pictures, you've a few neighbours there within a stones throw, I'd be inclined to go and ask them what its like year round.
I'm jealous and i already live somewhere like that.

the_syco

Oh, and looking at the first picture, the outside looks like separate wooden planks; any insulation would need someone to ensure it's all dry.
Picture two, those windows will probably lose heat like a sieve.
Picture three, if it's an old house, I'm guessing that used to be a thatched roof.

I'm noting a lot of lights on the grounds. Ensure someone turns them on so that you can ensure they all work at night. Look into getting them replaced with LED lights; less power, more illumination. Although you may think it's nice that they don't produce much illumination, they'll be a godsend if you can flick a switch to cover your land in light, for unwanted trespassers (animal or otherwise) or if you need to do something at night. Also, find out how deep the wire was put; you don't want to hit a live wire!

From looking at the historical records, it seems that that land was fenced off for a while; maybe find out if it was fenced off to keep animals in or out?

I'm trying to figure out the point of picture seven.

Picture 8; slight extension. I'm guessing that's the kitchen. The flat roof above it may not have any insulation.

I'm guessing picture 10 is a water pumping station?

I'd actually like to walk around the houses to see what condition that they're in. I missed the part in the article that there are two cottages there.

If the ring of stones there really are old, and not something put there in the last 50 years to make the place look nice, I suppose you could look into hosting small pagan wedding/handfasting ceremonies?

Graces7

Nomis21 wrote: »

I live in a town of about 2,000 at the moment. I am walking distance to all facilities including a GP.

The nearest town to the property I want to move to is Sneem, (pop 700) about 14 kms away down a mountain single track paved road. I know this area from visiting friends in Sneem over the years and although I have never been to the property, I have an appointment to view it and hopefully will be making an offer.

The property was a BandB up till last year so I don't think it could have deteriorated that much. In 2004 it was sold for 345K.

How many properties have a 3,000 year old stone Circle in the garden? Priceless.

Caveat emptor. I live in this area and all kinds of alarm sounding. Rose coloured glasses need leaving aside. There are no photos of the inside because of the words " renovation needed" in the blurb. That means the house is a wreck inside. Trust me on that! Age is not the issue; I bought an old cottage in the mountains elsewhere at that age but it was sound structurally and stone. Getting work done in the Sneem area is a nightmare. Visiting an area and living there are 2 different things altogether NB I sold up as repairs would have been needed and a house like this will eat money. An dyes in that location a place empty will deteriorate fast. It looks flimsy and you need sturdy. A real fixer upper. I live now about the same distance from Sneem as this house is. A stone circle may appeal but it will not keep the weather out in winter.

Graces7

Letree wrote: »

Romantic ideas and reality can be quite different. You could buy it and find living there very lonely and isolating. Just something to consider.

I love alone in isolation and loneliness not an issue for me; different people....But the reality of that house is....

Graces7

Nomis21 wrote: »

I am an Ambassador on 'Couchsurfing' and have visitors from all over the World staying with me nearly every night. I'm hoping they will like it in Kerry as well, as long as I collect them from the nearest bus stop.

Long drive to a bus stop there...if there are any buses...

Graces7

athtrasna wrote: »

If you were my parent I wouldn't relax for one minute knowing you were that isolated. It's a security thing as much as a medical one to say nothing of the risk of being cut off in bad weather.

These are not the issues that worry me; I am heading for 80 and live alone in a very isolated house... Lived like this decades and know to keep well stocked etc. The more isolated the less risk of any break in...we have South doc....

It wasnt me123

I lived in a rural spot, half way up a mountain, for over 10 years and now back in an urban area and loving it. The basic realities of being on the road constantly for shops, doctors, meeting friends, hobbies, etc just wore me down. Also the winter was a huge headache. Frozen pipes, inaccessible roads, ice, etc. and it can be a lonely existence. I would rent first in that area for 12 months, get all the seasons in, see if there is enough around the area to interest you. Best of luck

jeamimus

Nomis21 wrote: »

I am in good health but is it still too risky being so far from the nearest town?

You can't predict the future and, unless you have special health needs, its best leave that to the gods. Many places in North Leinster are an hour from a hospital so I can't see that youre much worse than that.

Main point is are you happy pottering about on your own? There will certainly be plenty of work to keep you occupied there but if you want to keep some animals 0.7 of an acre is a little too small for anything. You mentioned that you're a couchsurfing host so I would suggest that youre more an 'other persons company' person than 'your own company'.
The photos are summer pictures but that's not the norm there. Think of the wind and rain these last few months.

Secondly the sparseness of the description means that it really does need serious renovations, so be really careful here, both regarding actually being able to get the jobs done well and the cost.

Most likely you wont have any mobile phone reception or internet so could you cope with that?

I suggest a first step would be to ask the agent for interior photos... If interested, I would think you should be able to get a considerable reduction on the asking price.

Oh and have a good look at the trees to make sure they are healthy. These seem quite close to the house so you dont want any coming down in the gales.

handlemaster

Nomis21 wrote: »

I am thinking of buying this property...

http://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/sneem/eskine-sneem-kerry-1101764/

It is at the end of a long and remote road in the Kerry Mountains. But I have fallen in love with the idea of living there and having my own circle of Standing Stones in the garden surrounded by woodlands and breathtaking mountain scenery with star filled skies untouched by any pollution.

But at the age of 62 am I taking a risk living alone in such a remote location?

I am in good health but is it still too risky being so far from the nearest town?

All that shows is a field trees etc..doesnt look like much of a house. Have you view it ?

pgj2015

I once was looking at a lovely looking car on done deal op, it was anything but, when I went to view it, in the pictures it looked great but when I saw it, it looked like it had been in a bad crash, as others have said the lack of interior pictures would put me off. Also it looks like the property had a problem with Giant Rhubarb (an invasive species), you could be forever trying to get rid of that.

If you do view it and think you will buy it, you could do worse than hire a building surveyor to check it out before buying, then if you do buy, you can use the surveyors report to get the price down.

pgj2015

I once was looking at a lovely looking car on done deal op, it was anything but, when I went to view it, in the pictures it looked great but when I saw it, it looked like it had been in a bad crash, as others have said the lack of interior pictures would put me off. Also it looks like the property has a problem with japanese knotweed, you could be forever trying to get rid of that.

If you do view it and think you will buy it, you could do worse than hire a building surveyor to check it out before buying, then if you do buy, you can use the surveyors report to get the price down.

Remember that the forest will be clear felled at some point.
What do you do for leisure? I don't see much nearby. No pub within walking distance.

How would the couch surfers get there and what would they do there?

iguana

I know it's not the nicest thing to think of but as you get older the odds of getting ailments that will prevent you from driving do increase. Yes there are many, many people who drive into their 80s+ but there are also plenty who can't. If you were waiting for cataract removal or recovering from a mild stroke you would be completely reliant on other people to even do a basic food shop. Even without any particular illness, as we get older our nightvision greatly decreases and our reaction times slow so in winter you would be very limited in when you could drive as stormy weather and minimal daylight hours would make driving on that kind of road totally inadvisable.

Obviously we can't make every decision in our present about how we will cope in a future when our bodies will in all likelihood be weaker. But we do owe it to our future selves to be sensible enough to take that future into consideration when making major life decisions. The stone circle looks lovely in those photos and I'm sure standing in the middle of it, owning it, would feel amazing. But the reality of caring for the house, the land and your self in the later decades of your life needs to be thought through fully with the romance of that feeling put aside.

shrapnel222

if you love the house, it's your decision and yours alone. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise or "guilt trip you" into thinking they would be worried about you being so isolated. Your life, your rules. Be as selfish as you like.

if in 5 or 10 years time, health and other things change , then you can always move on

Nomis21

Thanks for all your opinions and views which were vary varied.

I called the agent who is sending me on pictures of the inside of the wooden building. It is not habitable. She said it is rotten and needs demolishing and I won't need a key for any of the buildings as they are open!

Still cheap for 7 acres and they are open for offers.

I'll go up for a look just to satisfy my curiosity but interest has somewhat waned.

dazed+confused

athtrasna wrote:

If you were my parent I wouldn't relax for one minute knowing you were that isolated. It's a security thing as much as a medical one to say nothing of the risk of being cut off in bad weather.

If I were the parent living somewhere like that, I'd be very relaxed indeed!

Graces7

iguana wrote: »

I know it's not the nicest thing to think of but as you get older the odds of getting ailments that will prevent you from driving do increase. Yes there are many, many people who drive into their 80s+ but there are also plenty who can't. If you were waiting for cataract removal or recovering from a mild stroke you would be completely reliant on other people to even do a basic food shop. Even without any particular illness, as we get older our nightvision greatly decreases and our reaction times slow so in winter you would be very limited in when you could drive as stormy weather and minimal daylight hours would make driving on that kind of road totally inadvisable.

Obviously we can't make every decision in our present about how we will cope in a future when our bodies will in all likelihood be weaker. But we do owe it to our future selves to be sensible enough to take that future into consideration when making major life decisions. The stone circle looks lovely in those photos and I'm sure standing in the middle of it, owning it, would feel amazing. But the reality of caring for the house, the land and your self in the later decades of your life needs to be thought through fully with the romance of that feeling put aside.

Well said. The problem with age is that it never gets any better and is unpredictable. I decided to sell up and rent and it was wise. I still have the isolation.I need.. An old house really is a money pit. have a look see but leave the rose coloured glasses at home Sneem is a small village with almost no facilities; I go there only once a week in summer to trade and shop in Killarney. In case you were wondering the nearest A and E is Tralee.. And think re eg broadband.. I have digiweb satellite. Would love to see the house though! Where is it, in relation to Sneem? Worry not that I might put in an offer; no money here! Just curious...

Graces7

Nomis21 wrote: »

Thanks for all your opinions and views which were vary varied.

I called the agent who is sending me on pictures of the inside of the wooden building. It is not habitable. She said it is rotten and needs demolishing and I won't need a key for any of the buildings as they are open!

Still cheap for 7 acres and they are open for offers.

I'll go up for a look just to satisfy my curiosity but interest has somewhat waned.

Well done and typical agent speak! It is the words " needs renovating" that are the key. When I was seeking the cottage I did buy, the agent admitted that that was the only one a key was needed for! There were others but my immediate question was is it habitable now? I am curious now too!

jeamimus

Nomis21 wrote: »

I called the agent who is sending me on pictures of the inside of the wooden building. It is not habitable. She said it is rotten and needs demolishing and I won't need a key for any of the buildings as they are open!

Still cheap for 7 acres and they are open for offers.

I'll go up for a look just to satisfy my curiosity but interest has somewhat waned.

Seven acres of forestry land €20k Maxx.

Be very very careful of buildings which are described as not habitable, or needing demolition, especially in a sensitive location such as this. You may need planning permission to fix them and this could be a nightmare.

While I would definitely advise you to live remotely at any age, if you felt it was for you, I would not advise stressing yourself by getting involved in Planning issues, particularly in an area such as this, at any age!

the_syco

Nomis21 wrote: »

I called the agent who is sending me on pictures of the inside of the wooden building. It is not habitable. She said it is rotten and needs demolishing and I won't need a key for any of the buildings as they are open!

Still cheap for 7 acres and they are open for offers.

Good luck getting building supplies up there, nevermind anyone who'll work there very on and off, due to the weather!

TeaBagMania

That’s my dream home in the country. Habitable is a relative term, what might be uninhabitable to someone else would be just fine by my standards.

If the structure is as bad as the EA says it is than the 140 asking price is way off the mark, however, if the structure and roof are solid than it might not be a bad fixer upper one room at a time.

As someone previously mentioned you really need to limit your trips when living in the country, make a list and stock up. Looks like you would only be a one hour drive from Killarney so even once a week trips wouldn’t be too bad although id probably stretch it to two weeks.

Im a long way from retirement but I like to window shop for the time being. This property currently has my eye. Yeah it might be small but that just means there is less to be maintained

http://www.daft.ie/cork/houses-for-sale/goleen/corran-beg-goleen-cork-1154851/

Pinkycharm

Nomis21 wrote: »

I live in a town of about 2,000 at the moment. I am walking distance to all facilities including a GP.

The nearest town to the property I want to move to is Sneem, (pop 700) about 14 kms away down a mountain single track paved road. I know this area from visiting friends in Sneem over the years and although I have never been to the property, I have an appointment to view it and hopefully will be making an offer.

The property was a BandB up till last year so I don't think it could have deteriorated that much. In 2004 it was sold for 345K.

How many properties have a 3,000 year old stone Circle in the garden? Priceless.

as a sucker for history, i'd buy it for that reason alone.

Nomis21

Here they are...IMG_3299.JPG

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It doesn't look to me that it needs to be demolished.

Quandary

Nomis21 wrote: »

Here they are...IMG_3299.JPG

IMG_3301.JPG

IMG_3305.JPG

IMG_3309.JPG

IMG_3311.JPG

It doesn't look to me that it needs to be demolished.

I have viewed some rental properties in Dublin in the past and some of them were in a similar condition to a few of those photos.

TeaBagMania

Nomis21 wrote: »

Here they are...IMG_3299.JPG

IMG_3301.JPG

IMG_3305.JPG

IMG_3309.JPG

IMG_3311.JPG

It doesn't look to me that it needs to be demolished.

looks fine to me, id live there

Nomis21

My car is off the road. If someone can take me there from Tullamore to go look at the property, I'll pay for all the fuel. Any day is good for me. Please Send me a PM.

TeaBagMania

Nomis, if I was in Ireland I’d be happy to take you. Who knows that could be a future world heritage site

the_syco

Nomis21 wrote: »

My car is off the road. If someone can take me there from Tullamore to go look at the property, I'll pay for all the fuel. Any day is good for me. Please Send me a PM.

You'd need to get it on the road if you wanted to live out there!

Nomis21 wrote: »

Here they are...IMG_3299.JPG

Looks okay.

Nomis21 wrote: »

IMG_3301.JPG

Above the cooker; lack of an extractor could be a problem, as would the walls; looks like water dripping down it?

Nomis21 wrote: »

IMG_3305.JPG

I'm guessing the roof is leaking, and wall around the plug in the corner looks bad. I'd say the entire place would need new window frames. Also, possibly single pane, so would leak heat.

Nomis21 wrote: »

IMG_3309.JPG

Probably single pane again. Doubt there's any insulation in the walls or roof.

Nomis21 wrote: »

IMG_3311.JPG

Looks like vinyl flooring, as opposed to real tiles. Top-right; wood lice?

pgj2015

Nomis21 wrote: »

My car is off the road. If someone can take me there from Tullamore to go look at the property, I'll pay for all the fuel. Any day is good for me. Please Send me a PM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIIuR-HjFho

cassid

To be honest I would walk away from that house. I bought a house with my hubby years ago in Dublin but close to the sea. It was in bits inside and outside, we had no children at the time and thought we could handle living in a kip for a few months. We spent so much money and time, ended up having to borrow more money. Every time another tradesperson came in to do work, more problems were found. It is really hard work and whatever budget you think you have now, double or triple it unless you are an experienced builder, old houses just gobble up money.

We had that same roof and it used to flap up and down in the wind and rain, when snow came it cracked.

NIMAN

To be honest its looking like a big price for such a property.

Lot of work, and money, needed there from those pictures.

Graces7

Nomis21 wrote: »

Here they are...IMG_3299.JPG

IMG_3301.JPG

IMG_3305.JPG

IMG_3309.JPG

IMG_3311.JPG

It doesn't look to me that it needs to be demolished.

Depends when they were taken and how long it has been empty. I know Majella, the agent and she is to be trusted. If she says that it is so...

Graces7

Add to0 this that every local farmer will be grazing his sheep there; see the grass around the stones, and there will be no strong fencing and rights of way issues... These are a nightmare....

Suzyq

I feel cold just looking at those pictures, can't imagine the damp.

Ursus Horribilis

I don't want to be funny here but if your car is off the road and you can't get to Sneem under your own steam, is buying something like this wise? Can you afford it? I can't say I'm an expert on houses but there's enough in those photos to have me running to the hills. Photos can be flattering and don't give you the full picture. Something like that is a money pit and that's even for someone who likes rustic charm. If you travel to see it, would you be able to bring along someone who knows their stuff? Perhaps your friends in Sneem could help.

hanna200

Nomis21 wrote: »

I am thinking of buying this property...

http://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/sneem/eskine-sneem-kerry-1101764/

It is at the end of a long and remote road in the Kerry Mountains. But I have fallen in love with the idea of living there and having my own circle of Standing Stones in the garden surrounded by woodlands and breathtaking mountain scenery with star filled skies untouched by any pollution.

But at the age of 62 am I taking a risk living alone in such a remote location?

I am in good health but is it still too risky being so far from the nearest town?

I would NOT take a plunge, I would spend €140k and travel using airbnb, couchsurfing as accommodation around the word

Nomis21

Thanks everyone for all your comments.

The balance of opinion is against buying this property. I was swinging that way as well but a close friend who has experience at renovating properties says he might join me in the enterprise and live there as well. That is now the only way I might I might still consider it as a proposition, but even that is now doubtful unless the price dropped dramatically.

TeaBagMania

The_syco brought up some valid areas that need attention but not at 140K. They’re fishing.

It’d be interesting to hear what your building friend has to say about the structure

Claw Hammer

O/P, You should have more sense at your age!