This story starts back in 2008. Helen and I had decided to buy our first property together.
We had dinner one evening with our friends, Ian and Cath at their place in the Bantry's and with the wonderful location, proximity to Sandton and surrounds and very small number of units in a complex, the whole setup was ideal.
Needless to say, one day after golf at Royal Johannesburg, we popped into a few of the Bantry show days and found a unit we thought we could love (if you looked beyond the shocking carpets, ridiculous colour schemes and badly decorated living areas) So we put in an offer.
We got the house. Easy as that.
At the time, we treated it as an investment property and decided not to move in, but rather to get tenants and generate some revenue off the rental income. We went overseas in the December of 2008 and while away, decided that we would actually quite like to live in our own home. So we booted our tenants out and went about moving in.
We went about effectively gutting the place and putting new wooden floors in, re-painting, ripping out the sideboard and decorating with matching colours and Samsung appliances throughout (I had a friend who worked for Samsung...) :)
Then on the day of Trevor's bachelors, Helen (with the support of some trusted friends) proceeded to move everything into the house, so that on my arrival (some 26 hours later) it was all in...a job well done (I still maintain I worked harder at Trevor's bachelors, but it isn't remembered that way)
Fast forward two years and upon return from our Honeymoon, Helen and I swore we would not look at property for a while, content that our spot in Bryanston is perfectly lovely and meets our needs for now.
This being said, we decided to ("just for fun") pop into a few show days. This is where it all goes wrong people. There is no such thing as casual house shopping (or window shopping for property). Before you know it, you are on every agent's distribution list and are skipping golf or mountain biking on weekends to go and look for houses. It was that quick.
The first place we were serious about was an amazing spot (cluster home) on Chesterfield Road in Bryanston. Stately, large and amazing to look at, it was the kind of home that requires its own soundtrack. The only problem, there were a few things we didnt like. Once this sets in, you can bet it's a slippery slope to walking away. Which we did.
We then decided to be really adventurous and spread our wings slightly further afield to Craighall Park. This didnt last long and we were soon back in the leafy suburbs of Bryanston.
It was at this stage that we found a lovely little area within Bryanston proper (on the East side) called the Devonshire Park enclosure. Accessible only through a boom on two sides, the area has about 6 streets and a great little park for dogs called Hamilton Park. We immediately knew we wanted something here.
The only problem, the average established house in the area was on the market for R6.5m and upwards. Great!
We then came across a piece of land that was being sub-divided for development into four cluster homes. Each with an expanse of 1100m2 and a show house that had some very tasteful ideas on what could be built. So we went for it, we drew up our own plans and we both agreed we knew exactly what we wanted. Such was our conviction, we even met with the builder to look at options.
Then, out of the blue, the seller decided he'd actually really quite like to put his price up. As you do, when someone wants to buy. This was not what we had in mind and strategically backed away. He had tried to motivate that his selling price excluded VAT and as a result, we would need to cough up a further 14% on the purchase price of the land. No thanks my friend, no sale.
At this stage, however, we had decided we wanted to live in this area, come what may. So we started to visit show days, look at houses fit for the average CEO of a Fortune 500 company and just generally do the rounds. Eventually we popped into a property which had just been released onto the market and was being sold without transfer duties applying (i.e. the developer had never sold it (he rented it to an ambassador) and as a result, the saving on the transfer duties would be massive)
This house was amazing, four en suite bedrooms, huge entertainment areas, chef's kitchen, underfloor heating, CCTV camera's, beams in the garden, optional 5th bedroom, wine cellar, swimming pool...the works! The best part, we could afford it, at a stretch.
So we made an offer. The seller turned his nose up. Quite surprisingly, considering that our offer was only just below his asking price. So we went back, had another look and decided that we really wanted to live here. So we made another offer. This time, meeting his asking price (keeping in mind, we were and still are, in a time of recession and lower housing prices...that's how much we wanted this house)
We, as well as the agent, were so convinced he would accept, we almost started buying furniture.
Then we waited...and waited...and waited.
The seller vanished. He didnt respond to phone calls, he never came back on email.
Helen and I were so confused, we had met the asking price and could not seem to make any progress. The agent assured us it was the first time in 25 years she had come across something like this. For us, it meant a lot of frustration. You know what it's like when you see something you want, so you go to the shop and it's sitting there on the shelf, but the shop owner won't let you have it? This was it...just worse.
Anyway, long story short, we waited for 2 months until we gave up. Who knows what went through his mind, but we eventually decided it was no use and let this fish get away.
At this stage, the prospect of going to show houses and speaking to agents, only to see things we didnt want was not in any way exciting. So we pulled the plug. We also backed out of wanting to sell our spot in Bantry as we decided that what we had built there was worth more than any buyer could give us. It is our home.
Then we went to play golf at Pecanwood with our friend Dave. While on the course, Helen made a comment to me about the fact that the lifestyle out near the Magaliesberg and the Dam is so peaceful. She suggested we look at some of the houses for sale and measure the prices against what we had seen in Bryanston.
That was all it took and before we knew it, we were shooting around the golf estate on a golf cart, looking at EVERYTHING!
It was all very exciting, as the price of property at Pecanwood, a top 20 golf course in South Africa and the first to be designed by Jack Nicklaus in the country, is much more affordable than what we had seen near our own home in the suburbs. We then shifted our attention to the land available (about 15% of the total development is still not yet built)
The same process as before kicked in and we designed what we felt would be the perfect house for us. Pecanwood allows you to build up to 60% of the total size of the land. We found a great piece of land, went for it and the seller (once again) decided he would like to receive his asking price and nothing less, for it. Once again, we felt this wasn't the best situation for us and we moved on.
We were then alerted to another piece of land, north east facing and in a lovely crescent on the estate. This is where we are now...and so we find ourselves in the position we are in...we have made an offer, designed a house, and the seller has debts to pay before the clearance certificate can be issued.
After this past friday (see http://cjwood1981.blogspot.com/2011/01/weekend-that-was.html) we have now amended the offer to purchase and we are waiting until this friday, 14th January to get final resolution on the purchase.
If it goes through, and transfer is affected fully within the usual period of time, we could be building within 3 - 4 months from now.
So 10 months later, multiple Sunday's, frustration and confusion, we find ourselves looking at a piece of land 40 minutes drive from Bryanston. How far we've moved!
Resolution 5 is no closer yet to having some positive feedback, but rest assured, you'll hear it here first!
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