If you could do it all again

Roomy


Joined: 20/02/2011
Posts: 836

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:09

would you?Move to TRNC I mean and what if anything would you do differently?



I am hoping to take early retirement within the next 5 years and am looking at the possibilities, I love Cyprus and the price of property on the North side is very tempting but having read through a lot of posts here before registering I must admit that there doesn't seem to be much in the way of positivity, I hope I am wrong.

We are coming over in August for 4 weeks and am hoping to go over to the North on a fact finding mission and possible view to buy a small holiday home.



Thanks in advance for your replies.

Andy

shrimp


Joined: 01/09/2010
Posts: 939

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:16

We had exactly the same idea, having lived there many years ago and having spent many holidays there since....we thought we woud retire there this summer but having been last year for three weeks with that in mind and having put on a very similar post last summer to this one, we have decided not to......too many pit falls...so we have decided that when we do come we will rent out our home in UK and rent in the north and see how that goes.......we would then have a bolt hole if it all goes egg shaped.........good luck with what ever you decide to do........

mrsgee


Joined: 23/06/2009
Posts: 396

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:17

Yes, 100% Nope wouldn't do anything different. There are lots of negative posts on here...and some justification behind some of them. Maybe we have been lucky. Do your research.....don't buy on a whim...spend time in the north....and yes, beware of the pitfalls in the property market.

Quarmby


Joined: 15/09/2008
Posts: 975

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:18

Andy



I am trying to sell my property over there for the last 5 years, so what I am about to say may make you think I am mad. If you want somewhere to stay for holidays just rent. But if you are mad you can always buy mine!

Jeannie


Joined: 04/08/2009
Posts: 3283

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:22

Quarmby, message 4 - or, they could buy mine of course Ideal small holiday home.



Price on request

walkerscott


Joined: 13/08/2009
Posts: 901

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:24

I recommend that you thoroughly read every page and follow every link in your own time:



http://www.no-deeds-no-money.moonfruit.com



and then consider what your priorities are ...

pollymarples


Joined: 08/08/2010
Posts: 1778

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:31

Liistn to walkerscott, NO DEEDS(kocan) no MONEY.



BEST TO RENT IN THESE UNCERTAIN TIMES.

cronos


Joined: 26/10/2008
Posts: 2093

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 14:38

Roomy....you may get fed up of hearing it but...... RENT...DON'T BUY.



Save yourself the heartache.



Enjoy the good things in TRNC without risking your life savings !

waddo


Joined: 29/11/2008
Posts: 1966

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 15:10

I would the same thing again (leased) but I would have waited another year so I had at least some savings behind me. The other bits I would change are things like not telling people what I was doing ,so I got the blame when they tried and failed, not bringing relatives with me to try to give them a better life and ending up being blamed for their failures as well but mostly I would pack DIY bits as they were very, very hard to find five years ago!



Wonderful place if you like it and have made a successful transition, terrible place if you made a bad choice and now hate it - just like anywhere else in the world. It has is problems, its ups and its downs but if you come here to retire then you have the time to deal with everything. Possible the most important part to get into your mind is that "Time" here is not important and that things just happen in "Time".

hawkeye


Joined: 12/09/2010
Posts: 334

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 15:11

If we did it all again.............we had 8 years living in the north....yes I would do it again. But I would not have purchased I would have rented and kept a place in Uk?? maybe........... I would not buy again in the North, but have the adventure definately would. Why not buy? because when you have had enough and want to move on its much much easier.

ballymurphy


Joined: 20/09/2009
Posts: 166

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 15:20

Rent, rent, rent rent, for a better life rent!!!!!

halffull


Joined: 26/01/2009
Posts: 571

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 15:35

As a retired couple, as long as you can accept the separation from family, don't get caught in a housing scam. have a big enough pension or investment funds, then it's a great place.



My wife and I retired here and we love it, the only down side is the wife misses the grand kids, but they visit and we see them on skype.

denizen



Joined: 21/08/2009
Posts: 388

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 16:10

love it here but sometimes wish we'd rented. There is a very wide choice of rentals here and good value. If all the "ifs" come about then glad we bought, cos it would be easy to sell at a profit if.......

fosterscan


Joined: 27/02/2010
Posts: 541

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 16:38

Hindsight is a great thing ask why so many bought and never rented ! Because when the cyprus problem is sorted the prices will rise to that of the south there was money to be made thats why.

yorgozlu



Joined: 16/06/2009
Posts: 4437

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 16:42

fosterscan;

Whooooops,now you are asking for it!



lets see how many more are truthfull within?

denizen



Joined: 21/08/2009
Posts: 388

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 16:54

Hi yorgozlu:Whooooops,now you are asking for it!







lets see how many more are truthfull within?

Why should anyone not be truthful?

Most of us thought/think that we got bargain buys, it's like having a bet on a sprint race and find you're involved in a cross country event, a bloody long cross country event it's turned into, but it will finish, eventually.

It's just that most of us don't want to fall within sight of the posts.

Roomy


Joined: 20/02/2011
Posts: 836

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 18:08

Thanks for all replies.

All things considered it seems to be the buying or not of property that splits opinion.Property situation aside how would retirement in the North compare to the Greek side in your opinions?

halffull


Joined: 26/01/2009
Posts: 571

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 18:23

You'll get a thousand differing responses to that one!!!

Personally my experience of the people south of the boarder is that they have never been as friendly or helpful as I have found those on this side. Not that we venture south often, but every time we have there has always been some unpleasantness.

We live in a community which is either Cypriot or Turkish and they can never do enough for you, nothing is ever too much trouble and they always speak and ask after you. The only barrier is our pour Turkish, which is improving.

blade


Joined: 19/06/2010
Posts: 1286

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 19:15

We purchased here about 6 years ago. We purchased pre 74 turkish title/ a legal title deed. We were issued our ptp and are very happy. We wouldn't change a thing.

Those who jumped in without thinking got stung for the so called cheap property, just becarefull and think before you buy. That way you should be ok.

Lilli



Joined: 21/07/2008
Posts: 13081

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 19:21

blade all credit to you but do you have a teenage child. That sems to be the stumbling block. I know a few families who brought their teenage children here, sunny lane school were they have all made friends. Good standard of education but no prospects unless the re unite. I speak to the kids as as they have nowhere to go they join their parents for dinner, they all say we wish we were back in the UK for the music scene, friend work prospects etc. Its great that there is not the knife culture but kids need each other x

Roomy


Joined: 20/02/2011
Posts: 836

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 19:43

Why don't the ex pats with kids set up some kind of club for their kids? Just asking.

No1Doyen


Joined: 04/07/2008
Posts: 16617

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 20:07

Roomy. That seems like a good idea to me.

Roomy


Joined: 20/02/2011
Posts: 836

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 21:46

Thanks No1Doven it crossed my mind that it might solve one problem pretty quickly.

It also crossed my mind that if enough like minded posters here got together they could solve an awful lot of other problems for each other.

Lilli



Joined: 21/07/2008
Posts: 13081

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 22:00

thet do have junior rugby and maybe so school activities but I have never heard of anything, I beleive now the new kids are russian x

Roomy


Joined: 20/02/2011
Posts: 836

Message Posted:
20/02/2011 22:16

The Russian kids will have the exact same problems as the British kids, kids have a way of getting round stuff, put them together in a room, anyhoo, most people in the world have taken the time to learn a little English unlike us not bothering to learn any other languages

girne 29


Joined: 06/12/2007
Posts: 1488

Message Posted:
21/02/2011 02:11

Rent ,dont buy, enjoy the life without the hassle and with the knowledge you can move at a minutes notice.



bought as I wanted 'my own place'. in the long run it has proved very expensive.

Buy for £100k five years later worth £100k minus £4k site costs. = £96k

£100k in bank at 15%average=£200k minus(cost for rent villa 5years) 25 k=£175k

So go to NC with £100k and rent for 5 years living you go home with £75k profit ,if you buy and sell up after 5 years you go home with £4k loss.



Fosterscan

wont find many that admit buying for profit,nobody likes to think they screwed up,or being accused of making money out of the situation as regards refugees on either side.



Some tell you they , dicovered this place called NC ,decided it was the best place in the world and loved the TC's that much that they had to go there and live to show their support against the embargo ROC etc. Cheap villas? we had no idea!

If it was cheaper in ROC, they would gone there to support---

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
21/02/2011 22:44

Msg 26



"Some tell you they , dicovered this place called NC ,decided it was the best place in the world and loved the TC's that much that they had to go there and live to show their support against the embargo ROC etc. Cheap villas? we had no idea! If it was cheaper in ROC, they would gone there to support---"



Bravo! It's taken a good five years for such honest comments to start appearing on TRNC forums. Earlier visionaries used to be hounded and banned for such frankness. Just think how many people could have been saved from ruin and heartache if their warnings had been heeded. Some people bear a heavy responsibility - and you don't need to look far to find them.

martinD41


Joined: 06/09/2010
Posts: 3001

Message Posted:
21/02/2011 23:13

msg14 I agree with one exception..I took a look at the building methods and decided I didn't want to live/Pay for a house that was in fact, in terms of build quality, a "Lock up Garage"...............

fosterscan


Joined: 27/02/2010
Posts: 541

Message Posted:
21/02/2011 23:20

Zoots youve lost me

How would people saying that they bought for profit stop others buying a few years ago. Lets face it if you bought before 2004 you made good money and had the place finished.After 2004 the prices went up and everyone thought they were on to a good thing including the 'builders'.Where did all those new cars come from at that time noone new the money would run out and how things would end up.

martinD41


Joined: 06/09/2010
Posts: 3001

Message Posted:
22/02/2011 08:35

msg19.blade ..Thinking carefully is one thing...Being openly lied to is quite another .......

ray.johnson1



Joined: 04/05/2009
Posts: 90

Message Posted:
22/02/2011 08:40

Very positive, Yes, great living here. If we were to do it again we would NOT buy off plan but buy a villa or whatever that is built, has electric and water connected and has deeds. But no hesitation, super place to live but do not right off the negatives, just be aware of them.

guidosp1


Joined: 30/12/2008
Posts: 341

Message Posted:
22/02/2011 09:49

Simple matematic

Cost of a villa minimum100k

Cost of rent 300/350£ per month

Equal to 30 years of rent and no hassle

And you still got your money in the bank

Got the picture?

Troodo


Joined: 12/06/2008
Posts: 1002

Message Posted:
22/02/2011 11:17

Same old same old names come up on every negative thread of this nature. Seems to me about a dozen names; some don’t even live here full time. I am sorry for the people who have bee caught out and I have been out supporting them, but they are in the minority. There are thousands of people of many nationalities who have decided that, with all its faults, this is the place they want to live - unfortunately the disenchanted shout loudest.

martinD41


Joined: 06/09/2010
Posts: 3001

Message Posted:
22/02/2011 11:31

So because they are in the minority (and you surmise don't live here full time )they should not post their views on the matter,in order to make their disenchantment known.........