A few days ago I stumbled across The Rules of Life by Richard Templar on a friend’s bookshelf, in which he reveals his “personal code for living a better, happier, more successful kind of life”. Eminently readable, reassuring, even motivational I understand that Mr Templar has also tackled the notty problems of work, management, wealth and parenting. I wonder what he’d make of The Rules of Moving House………….

Many of my clients come to me because they want to avoid the stress of moving. The areas that seem to cause most stress are lack of communication from the estate agent or the solicitor handling the conveyancing, lack of time to get things done and the uncertainty and feeling of powerlessness leading up to exchange of contracts. The whole process of buying and selling can be difficult to manage because there are delays and long periods of uncertainty and inaction followed by short periods of frantic activity. It’s no wonder it can send stress levels soaring.

Playing by a set of Rules can help you gain some control over the process and act as a stressbuster.

• Put your home in order.

Give yourself time to prepare your house for sale, collect the relevant information about it and order a Home Information Pack. This is all work which needs to be done and doing it early in a planned way can speed up the sales process and avoid stressful last minute tasks.

• Help your agent sell your house.

Forge a good relationship with your agent. Be as flexible as you can about viewing arrangements and proactive in your approach without being aggressive. Be prepared to accept a slightly lower offer particularly from a buyer in a strong position.

• Do your homework.

Agree your mortgage offer in principle as early as possible and research the market so that you’re realistic about what you can afford. Instruct a solicitor to do the conveyancing. An organised buyer will make the estate agent love you more and treat you better.

• Weigh up your buyer and/or seller.

Take a good look at the circumstances of the seller of the property you like and the buyer of your own property and make decisions accordingly. Being part of a long chain is fraught with difficulties. Accepting an offer from anyone who hasn’t yet sold or hasn’t sorted out their finance can lead to problems. Equally if you are the buyer don’t expect to be chosen above others if you haven’t sold or have no idea whether you can afford what you’ve offered.

• Sharpen up your communication skills.

Be open, friendly and businesslike in all communications and expect the same from the agent and your solicitor. A solicitor who is happy to use email is a good thing! Such a person is more likely to keep you up to speed with developments at more regular intervals. Silence is stressful!

• Get more organised

Draw up a realistic timetable. Carry out tasks as soon as you can but don’t try to get ahead of the game because if something goes wrong you’ll end up with the headache of having to do everything twice. Get quotes for removals but don’t book until exchange of contracts has taken place and a completion date is fixed. Deal with paperwork promptly.

Living by these Rules can lead to that illusive better, happier, more successful kind of sale.

Until next week…

Cally

As it’s Half Term in Wiltshire I am officially not at work, having an energetic time with my three children this week. This gives me the perfect opportunity to put property advice aside and share with you the delights of Wells, which is on the edge of my search area when house hunting for clients. It also happens to be home to some good friends who live and work in the Bishop’s Palace developing and maintaining its beautiful gardens.

And so accompanied by three youngsters, suitably muffled against the subzero temperatures in Bradford this morning and Barney the school teddy bear,in holiday mood, we made our way across the foggy Mendips past Farleigh Castle and the recently extended Springleaze Farmshop (home of Tractor Ted ) and through Norton St Philip. By the time we reached the outskirts of Wells the fog had cleared and we could make out the familiar sight of Glastonbury Tor in the distance.

Wells itself was relatively peaceful as we nosed our way through the market area and on to the arches leading to the Palace. I imagine it would be a different story tomorrow or on Saturday when the cobbled streets are crammed with traders selling all manner of unusual goodies. The children maintained a steady commentary in the back for the benefit of Barney. After all it was his first visit to Wells. Much of it was to do with the city’s medieval heritage, in particular the sewerage system (a favourite topic of my young boys). But my four year old daughter did point out the swans in the moat and I spotted the flash of an otter near the bank.

The palace gardens themselves are in a state of readiness for the first visitors of the season so apart from the lucky few who live and work in its environs and a few local craftsmen carrying out repairs we were alone in appreciating the relative tranquility (Five children of seven and under is simply not conducive to total silence.) Barney continued to be told about the city council allotments which adjoin the grounds, the swans who ring a bell at feeding time and the whole company was afforded a once in a lifetime photoshoot with the Bishop of Taunton, resplendant in jeans and a thick sweater.

After lunch we trooped along a city lane to the park for swings and ballgames. For me one of the greatest delights of this city is to find a lane not two minutes’ walk from the centre where children can strike out safely away from traffic. Wells really is a gem of a place and inevitably very popular with families, providing excellent schooling both state and private, good shopping and real quality of life. I’m not a fan of city living -but if you have to live in one, then this is it.

For information about Wells try the following links: www.wells-uk.com and www.bishopspalacewells.co.uk.

Frequent visitors to the Country Gate website will have spotted a new link on our homepage. We are delighted to have been invited to be members of Countryside Connection, a ‘village community’ bringing together artisans and owners of innovative small businesses, offering quality local products and good old fashioned service - the very best of what rural business has to offer.

Click on the link to find all manner of unique local goods and services safe in the knowledge that, like me, they believe in keeping things local and serving their customers well. A friend of mine did her entire Christmas shop from this site.

Cally

If it’s February it must be Spring right? Coming from a long line of peasant farming Celts, as far as I am concerned the start of Spring is Febrary 1st and this year all the experts seem to agree with me. We are basking in glorious sunshine in Wiltshire. My daffs are up well before St David’s Day and this is just the kind of weather to prompt a flurry of home improvement activity.

I’ve just completed an article for a local magazine on giving your home a Spring MOT but for those of you who have bigger plans, here are 20 ways to improve your living space (with a general idea of how much this could add to the value of your home). Not all require planning permission but there are regulations that you do need to know about, particularly if your property is listed or has a covenant on it. It’s easy to check - look at the deeds of your house and have a chat with your local planning officer. It could save a lot of hassle later on. And don’t tackle any major project without professional advice unless you really know what you’re doing.

• Let there be light Improving the quality of light in your property can add up to 10% to the value of your house. Choose windows that are in keeping with your style of property if you have to replace any or you are intending to add more.
• Move the walls Creating or dividing spaces can make your living space more flexible and can add up to 10% to its value if you are shrewd about the work you do. Consult a professional about loadbearing walls.
• Build a garage Can add between 10 and 20% to the value of your house and this is not a project which always requires planning permission.
• Convert your loft Not something to tackle without professional advice but worth up to 15% of the value of your house per bedroom added.
• Put in dormer windows Increasing the headroom and light in loft rooms can add 5-15% to the value of your property.
• Build an extension Expensive but well worth doing as it can add up to 20% to the value of your property.
• Add a conservatory Cost effective extra space but beware the location. A freezing space in Winter and sauna in the Summer is not a useable space.
• Put working fireplaces back into your period property Could add 3% to the value of your home and they look wonderful. If you have a woodburner you can save on fuel bills as they throw out an enormous amount of heat. They also improve the ventilation in period properties - very important.
• Convert an outbuilding Granny annexe, office any useable space can add up to 10% to the overall value.
• Add a home office Turning that box room or small side extension into a well fitted office could add about 3% to your property’s value.
• Create an internal annexe Particularly good if you have a large loft room or basement and adds about 10%
• Create parking Can add up to £10,000 depending on the location of your property but do try to leave some front garden
• Create additional access Can add up to 5% as well as making life easier for you and your visitors.
• Add central heating or upgrade the wiring Has been known to increase the value of a property by up to 20%.
• Add a garden building A quality garden building is another cost effective way of increasing your living space. They make great home offices and playrooms - the higher the spec the greater the added value to your home.
• Give your home an external makeover Can add 5% to the value and certainly make a home more attractive, more useable and more saleable.

If you own a large or specialist property or live in a great location then these suggestions are for you.

• Buy next door Cheaper than moving and well worth it if your home is a period semi in a great location with a large garden, adding a whopping 70% to the combined value of both houses.
• Install a hot tub/wet room/sauna/gym Usually adds 2% and allows you to live in the lap of luxury.
• Add a swimming pool 5% on the value of your house but only advisable if it doesn’t swallow up the bulk of your garden.
• Build a tennis court Can be worth an extra £50,000 to the right buyer.

Do you have a ‘Make do and Mend’ story that you want to share with others? It could be a house restoration project that you’re proud of or the repair, restoration or adaptation of a piece of furniture. Here at Country Gate we’re running a competition over the next few weeks. The most innovative project will win a prize suitable for budding restorers and we’ll try to publish as many stories as we can over the coming months.

All you have to do is send your story with photographs if you like to us at the following address info@countrygate.co.uk or Easter Cottage, 57 Avonfield Avenue, Bradford on Avon. Wiltshire. BA15 1JF

The closing date is St David’s Day - March 1st and the winners will be announced at Easter three weeks later.

My eldest son is busy interviewing everyone he knows of a certain age for a school project on the 1950s. He is not a particularly materialistic or techy child, preferring making his own arrows and tearing around in Robin Hood style to the latest gadgets but even he was amazed to learn that not only were sweets still rationed after the war, but so was fabric for clothes and that most families fixed or adapted what was broken or inadequate several times rather than investing in anything new. ‘Make do and mend’ was a way of life and one with which I have to admit to feeling a certain affinity.

In property terms this culture has had much to recommend it over the last few years as the steps on the property ladder have become steeper and more difficult to climb. For many families requiring more space the cost of moving is prohibitive. When you add solicitor’s and estate agent’s fees to the cost of a survey, a removals firm and especially Stamp duty you can more easily afford a whopping extension or delux loft conversion. In many areas now skips are more far more common than For Sale signs and there has been a sharp increase in the number of loft and basement coversion companies springing up in towns and cities.

If you are having major work carried out on your home it may be worth adding the cost of renting alternative accommodation for a few months into the cost of the project. Living on a building site, particularly when you have small children is not easy. ( We managed with three children under 5….just!) It may be possible to stay with relatives or rent for a few weeks from friends. I have an arrangement for clients with the owner of a holiday let. She is happy to rent out on a short term basis, particularly during her low season. But remember that you do need to be close enough to supervise the project and inject some urgency into it - or employ a project manger to do this for you.

If living on site is the only way then do consider putting some of your possessions into storage, particularly anything which is likely to suffer from the vast quantities of dust which will be generated. Try to get away from the building work at weekends by staying with friends and relatives. You can always return the favour when your project is completed. Let your standards drop a bit - you may have to have a few more takeaways if you are surviving with a makeshift kitchen. It is also worth getting your builder to do several extra smaller jobs while they are with you. So if you have a wall that needs replastering or some sockets to move it will be cheaper to get it all done at the same time. If you are very organised and know exactly what you want done your builder will be able to plan more effectively from the start and may well quote you a flat fee for the whole project. Adding a new job everytime he turns up is potentially annoying, difficult to manage and will almost certainly put up the cost.

The ‘make do and mend’ philosophy is to be recommended if you own a period property or just if you are trying to furnish a new home on a budget. If you are the proud owner of ill-fitting sash windows you do not need to replace them. Old houses are built to last - but you do need to maintain them. Even if yours is in need of attention it’s never too late. Salvage yards, junk shops, flea markets, boot sales and ebay are stuffed with goodies that require a bit of TLC or time to return them to their former glory. Even rather ugly modern furniture can be turned into something beautiful with a bit of lateral thinking and a pot of paint. We worked wonders on the most unprepossessing computer cabinet with a saw, some beading panels and a couple of small pots of Farrow and Ball.

My grandfather and his contemporaries had all sorts of repairing and restoring skills that we are now in danger of losing. If you have the restoration bug and want to learn more, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings run courses for homeowners. Check out their website at www.spab.org.uk You could also have a look at www.buildingconservation.com The English Heritage book “Period House” by Jackson and Day is full of interesting information. For inspiration for your own interiors projects check out “Recycle” by Moira and Nicholas Hankinson.