Jules Hudson is in Perth and Kinross, helping a young couple with a budget of £350,000 to find an ideal country home for them and their two young sons.
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00:00It's a taxing business seeking out that dream home in the country.
00:06Am I persuading you?
00:07Not sure at the moment.
00:10For one, accommodating extended family requires delicate handling.
00:15Unfortunately, my mum has to deal with the family chaos.
00:18She cannot escape it.
00:20And sometimes a little vision is required
00:23to see what a home could become.
00:25I'm loving that.
00:27My goodness me, what a difference it could make.
00:29Yeah, totally.
00:30Agreed. Exciting.
00:32But rest assured we're on hand to help navigate any choppy waters.
00:38So that leaves you potentially with £100,000 to throw at this.
00:42Would that make the house work?
00:44It would.
00:45Yeah?
00:46I think it would.
00:59Serene glens, tumbling waterfalls and tranquil lochs.
01:13To reconnect with nature, there's no better place than Perth and Kinross.
01:19Well, if you are a regular watcher of my adventures on Escape to the Country,
01:23you will often hear me refer to being in the heart of a county,
01:26the heart of a region.
01:28And where I am stood now, I am quite literally in the heart of Scotland.
01:32The locals in the market town of Pitlochry just behind me will tell you
01:36that if you put your finger on a map here and turn it upside down,
01:39it would in theory balance perfectly.
01:42It therefore is the perfect place to begin this Scottish Escape to the Country.
01:49Covering just over 2,000 square miles of central Scotland,
01:53Perth and Kinross is one of the least densely populated areas in the country.
01:58It really is the heart of Scotland.
02:00To the north you've got rolling hills and mountains,
02:02Cairngorm National Park, so you can go skiing or hiking.
02:07We've got fishing on a lot of great rivers, fantastic golf courses,
02:11lots of fantastic castles.
02:13Generally a great place to live with fantastic communities.
02:20The enchanting village of Kenmore is one of them.
02:23Built on the northern banks of Loch Tay back in the 1760s,
02:27today it has a reputation as a centre for water sports.
02:33In the Victorian town of Pitlochry,
02:35the 3,000 residents support a thriving high street
02:39and enjoy walks on the stunning trails that surround the town.
02:45I would say Perth and Kinross is the outdoor capital of Scotland.
02:49We've got the Catarin Trail, which is a 64-mile circular walk.
02:54We've got some tremendous mountains.
02:57We've got, I think, 22 Munros within Perth and Kinross and within easy reach.
03:03Why wouldn't anybody want to come here?
03:08Honestly, Bob, I can think of no reason whatsoever.
03:18Day house hunting in Scotland is always rewarding.
03:21Wherever you go, you are spoilt with the most dramatic views possible.
03:25But there is something, dare I say it, a little bit special about Perth and Kinross.
03:30The landscapes here are truly epic.
03:32The lochs, I think, speak for themselves.
03:34No wonder today's house hunters want to call this place home.
03:41Our dream destination would be to look out one window, see a loch,
03:44and look out another window and see a mountain.
03:48Six months ago, Jess, originally from Bolton,
03:51and Graham, who grew up in Aberdeen,
03:53sold their home on the outskirts of the Cheshire town of Warrington
03:57and moved into a rental property in the Perthshire town of Pitlochry.
04:01We want to have the best life ever for our children and for ourselves
04:05and for our business and for our hobbies.
04:09We really want the opportunity just to be able to nip up
04:11and take ourselves to the mountains in the winter.
04:14We want the lochs. We can do paddle boarding.
04:17You want to do your swimming.
04:19We want to be surrounded by nature, so we can do walking and bird watching.
04:24That one sounds like a blackbird.
04:27That one could be a wren.
04:33Our couple have set their hearts on living a more outdoorsy lifestyle
04:37for their two sons, 4-year-old Cooper and 2-year-old Woody.
04:42We've just seen them transform
04:44because the house that we're renting is just surrounded by sheep and fields,
04:47and they're just their own little characters.
04:49They just go out there talking to the sheep and just having a great time.
04:52It's been lovely for them.
04:54There's a real sense of adventure to what we're doing.
04:56It's exciting. You can see the kids are excited
04:58about sort of building this next stage to our life.
05:05Since Jess's mum will also be making the move with them,
05:08the couple want a detached property with four bedrooms.
05:12They need an office from which they can run their outdoor furniture business
05:15and ideally a quarter of an acre of land with mountain or forest views.
05:21Their budget? £350,000.
05:32Wow, what a move this could prove to be,
05:36because let's be honest, they are an outdoorsy family,
05:39and they are looking for an opportunity to give their two young boys
05:43a very different upbringing and a very different lifestyle
05:46to that which they may have undertaken in Cheshire.
05:50So, yeah, there's a lot riding on it, but my goodness me,
05:53there is a lot of opportunity for them here as well.
05:56They are going to have lots here to tempt them
05:58and lots here to entertain them.
06:00I cannot wait to meet them and get this house search underway.
06:08We begin with a property in a hamlet near Bridge of Calais.
06:15Sitting on the banks of the River Ardal,
06:17the community in this friendly village has a hotel,
06:20a specialist fishing bookshop, a post office and general store,
06:25and bus services to neighbouring Kirkmichael, Blairgowrie town
06:29and the ski slopes of Glenshee.
06:34The house in question is a few miles north of this village
06:37where I'm meeting Jess and Graeme on a peaceful trail
06:40that winds its way through the Dalrellion Forest.
06:48Well, guys, welcome back to Scotland, I should say, Graeme.
06:51I mean, this is home for you, isn't it?
06:53Absolutely. Thank you, Jules. Yeah, yeah.
06:55Pleased to be back.
06:56Now, I know that you spent about three months
06:58living with your parents, Graeme, up here.
07:00That obviously was the catalyst to make you think,
07:02yeah, we could make this work.
07:04Yeah, absolutely. It was a challenge.
07:06Family of four, back with my parents.
07:09But, yeah, it gave us an opportunity to really get a feel for it
07:12and have a look around as well.
07:14And when we were doing our research on the whole of Scotland,
07:16we kind of found Perth and Kinross was the perfect place for our family
07:20because we're so close to ski slopes, so many locks here,
07:23so many things to do, you know, as a family that like to be outdoors.
07:27Yeah, we couldn't think of anywhere else that would suit us better.
07:30We've just got to find you somewhere to live.
07:33Fingers crossed, yeah.
07:34Well, you may be interested to know that our first property
07:37is just down there.
07:38Oh, wow.
07:39So, actually, you as a family and the boys would have the run of this wood.
07:43Amazing. Fantastic.
07:45So, should we get on with it?
07:46Yeah, definitely.
07:47Come on, let's go.
07:51This footpath is just 100 metres or so
07:55from the front door of this detached stone cottage,
07:59one of a handful of properties that make up this idyllic rural hamlet.
08:05So, this is your front garden.
08:07OK.
08:08There are the woods that we were just in.
08:10And this is what I want you to look at, that one.
08:13Yeah, it's very pretty.
08:14Wow. Yeah.
08:16Yeah, it's lovely.
08:17Yeah, first impressions, it's...
08:19This is lovely, yeah.
08:20It does look very looked after, doesn't it?
08:22It really is. Fantastic, yeah.
08:23Yeah? Yeah.
08:24Excited to see inside.
08:25I'm intrigued.
08:26Shall we have a look?
08:27Yeah.
08:30The property, a former cow shed or byre in Gaelic,
08:34dates back to the 1700s
08:36and was converted into a family home in 2019.
08:41So, come on in.
08:43This is the corridor that kind of links it all together.
08:46But we'll begin in here.
08:50Yeah, it's nice. It's nice.
08:52It's got a nice feel to it. Yeah.
08:54Beautiful range, is it?
08:56Yeah, gas top on that one.
08:58Yeah, it feels very light in here.
09:00Very lovely and airy, doesn't it?
09:02Yeah.
09:03I'm excited to see more, to see how it flows.
09:05Yeah?
09:06Well, it sort of flows through into here,
09:08the principal living room, I suppose you'd say.
09:10Yeah, this is lovely.
09:12It's like a real snug of a living room, isn't it?
09:15Yeah, it's a lovely room.
09:16Really nice size for us all to get in here.
09:18Yeah.
09:19I like that you can see the kitchen as well.
09:21Yeah.
09:22That's kind of nice.
09:23It's a nice open plan that we've not had yet in a house.
09:25Right.
09:26Let's go back down the corridor.
09:27Come and follow me.
09:30So, little glimpse of the garden.
09:32We'll get to that later on.
09:34Obviously, there's the hallway and front door.
09:37Lovely double bedroom in here.
09:39But come and have a look at this,
09:40because this is on the spec
09:43one of the four bedrooms that this property is described as having,
09:48but they've got it set up as a snug.
09:52Situated at the rear of the property,
09:54overlooking the back garden,
09:56this snug has the family bathroom next door,
09:58and next to that, a bedroom presently in use as an office.
10:03There's the potential here, then, for Jess's mum
10:05to have a very neat self-contained wing
10:08if Jess and Graham are prepared to forego a bedroom.
10:12It would be great, wouldn't it,
10:13to have a separate lounge for the kids,
10:15or for my mum, you know, just a space to break away.
10:17Yeah, 100%.
10:19And actually, it gives her a sort of suite of rooms, doesn't it?
10:22Because actually, you know, if she's got a friend round
10:24or something like that and just wants to chill out,
10:26she's got a bedroom there,
10:27she's got, obviously, the bathroom, et cetera,
10:29and then into here, and she's at this end.
10:32She doesn't need to get into the kind of family chaos
10:34if she doesn't want to, potentially.
10:36Good point.
10:37Unfortunately, my mum has to deal with the family chaos.
10:40She cannot escape it.
10:44I'm leaving Jess and Graham to explore the rest of the house
10:47at their leisure, starting with the main bedroom,
10:50which looks out over the front.
10:53OK, this is nice.
10:55Oh, yeah, this is good.
10:57I like the fact that it's got this awesome big windowsill.
11:01Yeah, this is good.
11:02Nice thick walls.
11:03I feel like I'd want to sit on that and, like, read a book.
11:07Uh-huh.
11:08Oh, that's good.
11:09Shower.
11:10That's great.
11:11Oh, we've never had an ensuite.
11:13That's lovely.
11:14That's a big positive.
11:18Next door is the double room we briefly poked our noses into earlier.
11:24OK, this is cute.
11:26I feel like this would be the boys' bedroom.
11:29Yeah, it could work for them.
11:31Yeah.
11:32Bunk beds.
11:33Potentially.
11:34You'd need a wardrobe here.
11:36Yeah, yeah.
11:38You could definitely build something here.
11:41Yeah.
11:42Just to make full use of the space.
11:44Yeah.
11:47The grounds here extend to about a third of an acre.
11:50A south-facing front garden has a seating area
11:53and is bordered by a stone wall.
11:56Then this sizeable north-facing back garden has a large patio,
12:00a timber shed and a lovely summer house complete with power.
12:08The garden is a real selling point.
12:10Yeah, this is, like, my favourite bit.
12:12Yeah, this 100% works and that looks idyllic to be as an office.
12:17I guess we need to think about how much it might cost you.
12:20Hmm.
12:21Yes.
12:22Yeah.
12:23Go on, then.
12:24Oh, gosh.
12:25Erm...
12:26I'm going to say £305,000.
12:28£305,000.
12:29Berry Wine Scotland, so offers over.
12:31Yeah.
12:32Yeah, OK.
12:33I would say offers over £330,000.
12:35£330,000.
12:37Interesting.
12:38Well, this is currently on the market for offers over £315,000.
12:44OK.
12:45Interesting.
12:46I think that's quite a good price.
12:47Yeah.
12:48Yeah, that is good.
12:49Would you like to have another look around?
12:51Yeah, we'd love to.
12:52Yeah, let's do it.
12:53Go on, then. It's all yours.
12:57This detached converted buyer
12:59has an open-plan kitchen, dining, living room,
13:02four bedrooms, one en suite and a family bathroom.
13:07On a plot of around a third of an acre
13:09in an idyllic rural spot on the edge of a forest,
13:12it's on the market for offers over £315,000.
13:19I really like the house.
13:21Erm, possibly the only major compromise is the location.
13:26Although it's given us everything we wanted around,
13:29access to things for the children,
13:32we are a bit out of the way where we are.
13:34But that's the only compromise I can see.
13:39The house doesn't need that much doing to it,
13:41and that is a big bonus.
13:45It's really nice.
13:46It's definitely got a really good feel to it.
13:48I could see us being really happy here.
13:55Well, there we are.
13:57Property one done.
13:59Reasonably successful, I think.
14:01Absolutely, yeah.
14:03I can't wait to see what else you've got in store.
14:05Well, I can't wait to show you.
14:07Come on. Let's go.
14:18Blairgowrie and Rattray,
14:20the largest town in Perth and Kinross
14:22and home to just over 9,000 people.
14:26It's quite a friendly local town.
14:28Everyone knows everyone.
14:30There's plenty of events that go on in Blairgowrie,
14:32and there's a lot of things that happen in the Well Meadow,
14:34sort of community-led events,
14:36and there's the Highland Games that happen once a year,
14:39which seems to be a pretty popular event that everyone goes to.
14:42Referred to by the locals as Blair,
14:45it's actually two towns.
14:47Blairgowrie, the larger of the two,
14:49lies on the south-west shores of the River Eriks.
14:53It's a really pretty river.
14:56While Rattray sits on the north-eastern banks.
14:59The community in Blairgowrie is absolutely the beating heart.
15:03There are 150 community groups.
15:05Basically, if you're interested in doing anything,
15:08Blairgowrie will have a group of people who share that interest.
15:12It's a community that you can have fun in.
15:17Perth and Dundee are within a 30- to 40-minute commute by car
15:21and a tad longer by bus.
15:23Blair's main shopping streets
15:25boast more than 200 local shops and businesses,
15:28but its most famous export?
15:30Soft fruits.
15:32Blair's other nickname is, after all, the Berry Tune.
15:36I absolutely can attest to the fact
15:38that Blairgowrie has the best raspberries and strawberries
15:42from anywhere.
15:45People also come here for its rich pickings
15:48in terms of outdoor pursuits.
15:51What would you recommend sports-wise for the summer?
15:54Oh, mountain biking is one of the best ones here.
15:57We've got a lot of paths and trails you can use.
16:00You've got water sports fairly close at hand,
16:02lots of locks and rivers.
16:04Paddleboarding, canoeing, kayaking and a bit of climbing.
16:07You're really only about 40 minutes from anything here.
16:11That's what's kind of attracted us to the area, isn't it?
16:14We kind of want to be nestled in amongst all the activities.
16:19And that's the beauty here.
16:21You can be in the heart of it all
16:23and still enjoy the splendid isolation that these landscapes offer.
16:32We're hopping over the border into Angus now
16:35to the small village of Curtin of Gleneyla.
16:41The largest settlement in the Gleneyla Valley,
16:43the community has a church, a village hall and a hotel
16:46with a bar, a restaurant and, yes, your eyes do not deceive you,
16:51a tartan-reliant robin.
16:56Two miles south of the village, in an idyllic rural spot
16:59with stunning views across to Mount Blair and Glenclover,
17:03sits our second property.
17:05Well...
17:07Wow!
17:09A former farmhouse built around 1880.
17:15There we are.
17:17Look at that. Yeah. That is really nice, yeah.
17:20It's a lot bigger than I was expecting it to be.
17:23Absolutely. And really pretty.
17:25Definitely has Victorian proportions to it.
17:27You'll see when we go round it.
17:29The other thing with it, though,
17:31is that it has already got existing planning to make it bigger.
17:34OK. Come on, let's have a look.
17:39We'll be looking at the plans
17:41for the impressive extension in detail later,
17:44but first we'll start in the conservatory
17:46added by the vendors 15 years ago.
17:50You can tell we're in mosquito country, can't you?
17:53LAUGHTER
17:55There we are. A huge footprint of this.
17:57Yeah. Look at that great dining table.
18:00Yeah, it's a good space. I think it works a treat.
18:02But it leads off from the kitchen, which is in here.
18:06Which makes perfect sense, really.
18:08Hmm, OK.
18:10I mean, it's big enough, isn't it?
18:12It's not your modern open plan. Sure.
18:14Although there's a hint of it, obviously, going through to there.
18:17Yeah. It's very homely, though, isn't it?
18:19Yeah. It's a nice kitchen.
18:21It has got a really nice feel to it. It does, yeah.
18:23I do like the wood.
18:26I think they'll find the same homely feeling next door.
18:31So through, then, to the main living room,
18:34with wood burner, which is rather nice.
18:36Not huge, to be fair,
18:38but I think it's compensated for by the conservatory.
18:41Sure. It's nice, though.
18:43It is a lovely, lovely room.
18:45Now, it has got three bedrooms, this one, as it stands.
18:49The main one is through here.
18:52Ah, OK.
18:55Here we go.
18:58Ooh, look at that window.
19:00Wow, yeah, that's lovely, that.
19:02Look at the trees out there. Yeah.
19:04Double doors out to that portion of the patio area, as you can see,
19:09plus shower en suite in here.
19:11Perfect, yeah.
19:13This is a good-sized room, isn't it?
19:15This is good, and I like the height.
19:17You know, straight out there for a coffee in the morning
19:20on a summer's day would be great.
19:25I have a hunch they'll be as pleased with the upstairs bedrooms
19:28as they are with the downstairs.
19:30Oh, this is a nice room.
19:32Double beds. I know. Perfect.
19:34Yeah, it is really nice.
19:36And plenty of floor space.
19:38Yeah, like, they've got one desk for one kid,
19:40one desk for the other kid. Yeah.
19:42They're doing their homework. Yeah, it's great.
19:47A family bathroom is sandwiched between the two bedrooms.
19:52Oh, yeah, this is a nice room, too.
19:54Yeah, they're great sizes, aren't they?
19:56Mm.
19:57If this was your mum's room, she can have her own little lounge.
20:00Yeah, yeah. She can have a chair here and stuff.
20:02Yeah, this is big enough, isn't it, to put something else in?
20:05Yeah, it's great.
20:10And as the family grows, so too could the house.
20:13The present owners have planning permission
20:15for a really quite exciting extension.
20:18Designed by a local architect,
20:20I'm going to talk Jess and Graham through the vision.
20:23So, this is what is proposed. Have a look.
20:25Here's the existing gable. Mm-hm.
20:28And you can see the conservatory.
20:30And what they're proposing is a two-storey link in that gap
20:34that then leads out to this cantilevered extension.
20:37Oh, wow.
20:39On the ground floor of the two-storey gap extension,
20:42a downstairs cloakroom and utility would be created.
20:46Upstairs would see the addition of a new landfill
20:50Upstairs would see the addition of a new landing
20:53linking the old farmhouse with the new extension built onto the bank.
20:57This would house two en suite double bedrooms.
21:01The anticipated cost of this work?
21:04Around £100,000,
21:06and it would increase the total square footage of the property
21:09by almost a third.
21:13I'm loving that. My goodness me, what a difference it could make.
21:17Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah, totally. Agreed. Exciting.
21:22The house sits on a plot of around half an acre
21:25and includes this large patio at the front,
21:28hard standing with a greenhouse, raised beds and a veggie plot,
21:32a useful outbuilding and a double garage.
21:37Oh, wow.
21:39Oh, this is good, isn't it? OK.
21:41Yeah, this is a decent size. Yeah, really.
21:43You could have a bit of the business going on in here.
21:45Yeah, it's great.
21:49All in all, it's a pretty splendid offering.
21:52All that's left is for Jess and Graham to put a price on it.
21:59So, what do we think, sir?
22:01I've got no clue with this one,
22:04but I'm going to guess it's at the top of our budget,
22:07so offers over £350,000. Yeah.
22:10And I'm going to say offers over £340,000.
22:14£340,000. Yes.
22:16OK, well...
22:19..you are right, madam. Oh!
22:21You're done. There you go.
22:23I wasn't sure at first,
22:25but actually walking around now and seeing it a bit more,
22:29I do really like it.
22:31And that price does kind of work, yeah?
22:34100%.
22:37This detached Victorian farmhouse has a conservatory,
22:41a kitchen, cosy sitting room and three bedrooms.
22:45It has planning permission for an impressive two-storey extension
22:49and sits on a plot of half an acre with stunning views across the valley.
22:53It's on the market for offers over £340,000.
22:58We maybe wouldn't need that right now,
23:00but maybe when the boys are a bit bigger
23:02and they want their own bedrooms, that would be good.
23:05Yeah, well, it gives us so much more space, doesn't it?
23:08A really, really cool addition to this house.
23:15This is something that we've been after.
23:17This kind of idea of this communal living and working
23:20and having the different areas for hobbies,
23:23I think would really work for us.
23:25Yeah, I'd agree. I think it offers a lot, yeah.
23:39Our last stop of the day is Loch Tummel,
23:42six miles west of Pitlochery, where we're picking up two VIPs.
23:47Look at this, got enough stones?
23:50Oh, maybe not.
23:52Oh, there we go, get another one. Let's get another one.
23:55Four-year-old Cooper and two-year-old Woody.
23:58Shall we have a bit of a skim off, then, Graeme?
24:01Let's try it. Shall we?
24:03Oh, that's pretty good. Wow!
24:05Pretty good.
24:09Whoa!
24:10That was a good one.
24:12That was like five, fair play.
24:14Happy with that.
24:17You pick one for me.
24:19Here you are, I'll give you a winner.
24:21Oh, thank you, yeah, great.
24:24Perfect, straight in.
24:26You can do it.
24:29Perfect, straight in.
24:32You can lead a horse to water.
24:34But you can't make it skim, apparently.
24:41Go on, go on!
24:43Yay!
24:45Right, then.
24:47Cup of tea and a piece of cake?
24:49Oh, yes. Wouldn't say no.
24:51Maybe a wee draught. Let's do that.
24:53Who wants some cake?
24:55We want cake. Yep.
24:58I can't think of a better way to round off our day.
25:14If the splendour of this part of Scotland has captured your heart,
25:18here's what you need to know about house prices before making the move here.
25:23The average cost of a detached house in Scotland
25:26is just over £335,000.
25:30But in Perth and Kinross,
25:32that figure rises to more than £377,000.
25:39Living amongst these landscapes comes at a price,
25:42but that doesn't appear to be putting buyers off,
25:45as a local agent explains.
25:48The property market's very buoyant at the moment.
25:50Properties are still selling quite quickly.
25:52We had one that went under-offered the day it went up for sale,
25:56and we're getting a good selection of families,
25:58couples and retirees looking to move to the area,
26:01so things have picked up again nicely.
26:07Of course, there are properties to suit all budgets and tastes.
26:11Take a look at a selection of what else is currently on the market.
26:16This three-bed detached property has a cosy lounge,
26:20a contemporary kitchen with separate dining area
26:23and a beautifully landscaped rear garden.
26:25On the market for offers over £289,950.
26:36£450,000 could land you this former schoolhouse.
26:40Now a unique and distinctive property,
26:43now a unique and distinctive home
26:45with a large double-height open-plan kitchen-living dining room,
26:51two bedrooms and two luxuriously appointed bathrooms.
26:57Or for a short break, this idyllic contemporary cabin
27:01sleeps two in an open-plan room that houses a double bed,
27:05a spot for dining,
27:07a cosy seating area and a small but perfectly formed kitchen.
27:12The separate shower room has lots of quirky features,
27:15including this lovely copper sink
27:17and there's a spacious cupboard veranda complete with log-burning stove.
27:23Prices start from £155 per night with a minimum two-night stay.
27:34Well, I am sure that the properties we saw yesterday
27:37are still swirling through the minds of both Jess and Graham,
27:41but today is another day,
27:42our final day of house hunting here with them in Perth and Kinross,
27:46which means, of course, we have but one more property to come,
27:49our mystery house.
27:50Now what I'm about to show them, I guarantee they will not be expecting.
27:54It may well challenge them in all sorts of ways,
27:57but before we get to it,
27:58time to catch up with them and do a bit of scene setting.
28:04It's mystery house time
28:06and we're making our way to the town of Aleph.
28:13The community here has everything to hand,
28:16including a butcher's, a small supermarket, a library,
28:20a post office, a hardware store and a primary school.
28:28The icing on the cake, however,
28:29is that whichever direction you walk out of town,
28:32you'll access some of the most magnificent rural scenes.
28:37Like this one, four miles north of Aleph,
28:42where I've brought Jess and Graham.
28:48Now this is the River Islay.
28:50Have you ever been here before?
28:51No, not to this spot, but what a place.
28:54This Reekie Lynn, the falls, absolutely stunning.
28:57Would this be somewhere for you to bring the kids,
28:59do you think, for a little wander?
29:01Oh, yeah, yeah, 100%.
29:02Yeah, picnic down here, bit of an explorer.
29:06And all of this on your doorstep, potentially,
29:09because our mystery house is not far away from here.
29:14So I'm going to leave you to explore this area.
29:16Meanwhile, I'm going to go ahead to the mystery house,
29:18get it all ready for you, and I'll see you soon.
29:21Enjoy the view.
29:22Cheers.
29:26Our mystery house sits on the very outskirts of Aleph.
29:30Right, come and have a peek at our mystery house.
29:34Now, granted, it perhaps is not the prettiest mystery house
29:37we've ever shown, but for the properties this week,
29:40it is the biggest.
29:43In fact, it's actually two properties,
29:45with a three-bedroom dwelling on the ground floor
29:48and a completely separate three-bed flat above.
29:51However, there is a catch.
29:57And the catch is, this is a total renovation project.
30:05Whether Jess and Graham keep the two properties separate,
30:09one for them and one for Mum, or merge them into one,
30:13they'd need to knock it about a bit to make it work
30:15for their growing family.
30:17It's going to take some imagination, of course,
30:19and some money, but here's the other bit of good news.
30:22It's also the cheapest property of the week so far.
30:29This is a property just waiting for someone to come
30:32and breathe new life into it,
30:34and Jess and Graham might be just the couple to do it.
30:41Welcome... Mmm!
30:44..to our mystery house. Wow.
30:46What are you thinking, I wonder?
30:48Yeah. I mean, I like the look of it.
30:51I do like this style of house.
30:53I am pleasantly surprised by this.
30:56Are you? Yeah, genuinely.
30:58Built in 1970 as a bungalow,
31:01then given another floor to produce a separate dwelling.
31:05So what it gives you are two three-bed properties.
31:10Oh, wow.
31:12One above the other. Wow, OK.
31:15However, it does need a total makeover.
31:19OK, interesting.
31:21You're looking like, oh, no! I'm looking like I want to get in.
31:24Come on, let's have a look. Now, we've got a choice.
31:26Downstairs or upstairs? I would suggest upstairs.
31:28Upstairs. OK. Yeah? Yeah. Let's do it. Come on.
31:34The first-floor flat has a spacious living room,
31:37three bedrooms, one en suite,
31:40a shower room and a galley kitchen.
31:43I'm quite surprised this is not the other way around,
31:46with more window. Yeah.
31:48This end? Yeah. That's what it needs.
31:51I think you'd absolutely take all this out. Yeah.
31:54Take out the walls that you can, support what you can't,
31:58and look at a big, open-plan living space here, looking out that way.
32:02Yeah. Yeah.
32:07The downstairs flat has a similar layout, just slightly larger.
32:13So you tell me, what about this?
32:18Yeah, OK. It's a nice big room, isn't it? Yeah.
32:21It's a great-sized room, yeah.
32:24It needs a lot of work.
32:26It does need a lot of doing to it,
32:28but I just think a lot of it is actually just cosmetic.
32:31New decor, new flooring, put in a wood burner,
32:34give it a focal point.
32:36It's all to play for. Yeah.
32:38Am I persuading you in any way, shape or form?
32:40I think this is a real opportunity, if I'm honest.
32:43Yeah. Not sure at the moment.
32:45I see the potential, for sure. Hmm.
32:47I can see Jess is absolutely struggling,
32:49thinking, Jules, what on earth are you saying?
32:52This is madness!
32:54I just really struggle to visualise.
32:58I sense I've bamboozled them somewhat with this one,
33:01but I'm hopeful that a little time on their own
33:04is all they need to see the potential on offer here.
33:10OK. It's a decent-sized kitchen. Yeah.
33:14We could even make this bit the lounge.
33:18What do you think?
33:20I think we need to really think about it,
33:23but you could have almost living upstairs,
33:25cooking, dining down here.
33:27Hmm. Maybe.
33:29That'd be too... Maybe. ..too wacky.
33:34I'm beginning to think this may be a gamble
33:37that hasn't quite paid off,
33:39but it's not over until it's over.
33:42Stick with it. Stick with it, honestly.
33:45Come and have a look at the garden.
33:50The good-sized garden wraps around the whole house
33:52and boasts fantastic views across the Strathmore Hills.
33:56Priceless? Let's find out.
34:02So, what do we think, then?
34:04I can tell you this is a fixed price, all right?
34:07So it's not offers over.
34:09OK. I'm going to guess £305,000.
34:13Hmm. And I'm going to say £325,000.
34:17Which would give you a bit left over.
34:21I don't think enough to make it work. Uh-huh.
34:24Which is why we've come here,
34:26because this is on the market for a fixed price of £250,000.
34:31All right. OK.
34:33OK. Right. Hmm.
34:36So that leaves you potentially with £100,000 to throw at this.
34:40Hmm. Would that make the house work?
34:43It would. Yeah? I think it would. Yeah.
34:47This detached 1970s property offers two three-bed flats
34:52with the potential to reconfigure them into a superb family home.
34:57Sitting in the middle of a good-sized garden with uninterrupted views,
35:01it's on the market with a fixed price of £250,000.
35:06This could potentially offer us a long-term family home
35:12that is really big enough for all of us as the boys grow.
35:16It's definitely an intriguing proposition.
35:22I feel like I'm struggling to see the finished result.
35:26There's just a lot of a house.
35:29And it is, you know, it is a really nice house to look at.
35:32It's just whether or not we can take on such a project right now.
35:43MUSIC PLAYS
35:49I'm heading to Loch Farskely now to meet a group
35:52who are taking part in a litter pick with a difference.
35:56Yep, it's on paddleboards.
35:59It's being run by a non-profit organisation
36:02that combines outdoor activities like paddleboarding, yoga and running
36:07with litter picking.
36:09Leading today's session is Lesley Graham.
36:12Well, Lesley, what an amazing spot for this.
36:14It's so beautiful, isn't it? What a lovely part of the country.
36:17And the idea of getting out on a paddleboard on a loch.
36:20No wonder you all do it, but there is purpose behind it, isn't it?
36:23Tell us a bit more about Planet Patrol.
36:25Yeah, there is. So we do litter picks on the lochs and the canals
36:29and waterways across the country, but there are people across the world,
36:33I think there's over 100 countries, who are involved in Planet Patrol now.
36:37And then after we collect, we take photos of it
36:40and we upload it to the Planet Patrol app
36:43and it records what we've collected across the world
36:46and then they report back on that at the end of the year.
36:49So in a way, this is citizen science, isn't it?
36:51It is.
36:52Well, I'm delighted to take part today.
36:54Hopefully going to stay relatively dry.
36:59These events are open to anyone who wants to give it a go,
37:02with qualified instructors on hand and all equipment provided
37:06to make the sessions as accessible as possible.
37:09Right then. Let's go.
37:15Over the last six years, volunteers around the world
37:18have recorded nearly half a million pieces of litter
37:22and categorised it by location, brand and material type.
37:28Of all the litter that's collected and recorded,
37:31about 50% of that comes from ten brands.
37:35Shocking, isn't it? 50% from ten brands
37:38and yet still they're not changing the way they package it.
37:41And you'll know them all.
37:43I bet I will.
37:47The biggest offenders are crisp packets, sweet wrappers,
37:50drinks cans, plastic bags and bottles.
37:55I mean, the good news is it does actually look pretty clean,
37:58doesn't it, which is, you'd like to think that the message
38:01might be getting through to people just to take their litter home
38:04and deal with it properly.
38:05I mean, it's not a big ask, is it, really?
38:07It's not. It's like, if you take it out, you can take it home.
38:10Yeah.
38:13By logging what's thrown away and where,
38:16the ever-growing evidence base is used to develop targeted solutions,
38:20identify the polluters to be held accountable
38:23and help shape government policy to eliminate single-use materials.
38:28Now, then, we should probably have a little look at what,
38:31well, I say we got.
38:33You and I were too busy talking, weren't we?
38:35We collected nothing, but I could see everybody else
38:38in amongst the trees on the bank.
38:40Look at all this. A football. Classic.
38:43That. Who found that?
38:46I mean, this is party time on the lock, isn't it?
38:49How would you leave that behind?
38:51And what have you got in here? Is that a barbecue?
38:55Wow.
38:56Just take it home.
38:57Take it home. You brought it down here. Why not take it with you?
39:00I think that's a really good illustration
39:02of why what you do is so important.
39:04But also, I've seen first-hand what fun it is.
39:09Uploading their finds to the app is the last
39:12but arguably most important part of the session.
39:15And it's very straightforward.
39:18We record.
39:20We record by taking a photo, which is through the app.
39:23Dead easy.
39:24And then it will ask us for the brand.
39:26And then we add the item, and that just gets logged up.
39:29That's brilliant.
39:30But, guys, thank you so much for having me along
39:33for what's been a truly magical experience
39:35paddling out on the lock there,
39:37but also to see the great work that you do.
39:39Absolutely fantastic.
39:42Is that your board?
39:44That's a classic. That's my paddle board.
39:48Well, this week, of course, we have been firmly focused
39:51on trying to find not just a new home for Jess and Graham,
39:55but also a hub for their new business as well,
39:58plus a wider family lifestyle to go with it.
40:01We've travelled far and wide across the region
40:03through the doors of three, I think,
40:05really viable businesses.
40:07One of which, of course,
40:08is the Royal Australian Paddle Board.
40:10It's a brand-new business,
40:11but it's also a hub for their new business as well.
40:14Plus, a wider family lifestyle to go with it.
40:16I think really viable properties,
40:17but have we managed to find one that will work?
40:20Well, they're down there enjoying the river.
40:22Let's go and ask them.
40:29So, have we had time to have a good chat about it all?
40:33Yeah.
40:34Yeah, pretty confused.
40:36It's a really hard decision.
40:40My favourite is number two.
40:42I feel like two gives us a lot that we are looking for
40:45in terms of the space outside the house.
40:47Yep.
40:48I'd agree with that.
40:49I am kind of torn with the opportunity of three.
40:54Of the mystery house.
40:55Yeah.
40:56Even though it needs some work that would take,
40:58you know, some time,
40:59I can really see the potential
41:01and understand what you were telling us about that.
41:04Whereas the second house we saw,
41:06although I absolutely love its location,
41:08it's at the top of our budget,
41:10and then we need to spend more
41:12to get it to be that big enough space.
41:15It has all the outdoor space.
41:16Yeah.
41:17But the indoor space is missing.
41:19And I think we'll take the family to both those homes.
41:22Yeah.
41:23I think that's what we need to do.
41:24Yeah, I think we need another viewing, don't we?
41:26Yeah.
41:27On two and three.
41:28And perhaps even take a builder with us to number three.
41:31Very good idea.
41:33I wish you all the best of luck, guys.
41:36It's been a real pleasure.
41:37I know you are here to stay.
41:39Your boys are going to grow up
41:41as young Scotsmen, aren't they?
41:43Absolutely.
41:44Let us know what happens.
41:46We always love to come back
41:48and see where you are in a year or two.
41:50Amazing.
41:51We will do.
41:52Thank you very much.
41:53Thanks so much for the guidance.
41:54Absolute pleasure.
42:01Well, what a week we've had here in Perth and Kinross,
42:03trying to help Graham and Jess and their young family
42:06find a home for their future.
42:08A move motivated for two clear reasons.
42:10One, to find a rural lifestyle for them and their two young boys,
42:14but also for Graham to enjoy the sense of coming home.
42:18And there is nothing quite as attractive
42:20as that draw of where you were born.
42:23Now, we may not be sending them off
42:25with the keys to their new home just yet,
42:27but we've certainly pushed them further downstream
42:30as they immerse themselves in a new lifestyle
42:32and a new life here in this glorious part of the world.
42:36I'll see you next time.
42:40Well, after a lot of debate,
42:42Jess and Graham ruled out the mystery house,
42:44deciding it was too big a project at this time in their lives.
42:48They did return with the whole family to house two,
42:51but after scouting out the area,
42:53decided they needed to be closer to major road links for their business.
42:57Their search continues.
43:00If you would like to escape to the country in Scotland,
43:03Northern Ireland, Wales or England and need our help,
43:06why not apply online at bbc.co.uk.
43:36.