It's time to look at houses again. We're going to want to own something comfortable at some point that won't require us to move. Even though the economic recovery will probably not be driven by housing, I'm going to go on the record saying that prices are as low as they're going to get. An Estonian real estate broker even said in a newspaper that now is not a good time to buy -- signal to proceed.
A trip to the US didn't suggest many real estate options that made my mouth water, it just made want to cry to see how anything appealing was out of our range, so we're looking at Estonia, as hard that is to accept that I am gradually becoming a lifer here.
There's a number of properties on Veerenni tänav in the "Old South" of Tallinn's city centre for good prices. We looked at a loft that had consisted of an unfinished attic under a 4-metre gable roof, and three or four small apartments that were in an interesting state -- as if the former owners (factory workers with a teenage son, it appeared) had moved out in a hurry in 1989 and no one had been there since. The price was good as one would expect but reflected the location near the city centre.
I'm not crazy about it. Veerenni is a pretty noisy and ugly street that in my opinion had more charm -- a working class charm like that of the Kalamaja district -- back when there was an historical factory front across the street that extended several hundred metres. That was demolished some time ago to make way for the Lutheri residential quarter which is planned to be one of those industrial reclamation projects that Estonia is lauded for (in fact this phenomenon might contend for this blog's "top ten best things about Estonia"). With the recession, I'm not sure how on schedule the Lutheri project is; the website looks nice, but there's been a big vacant lot there for more than a couple seasons.
But on both sides of Veerenni are wonderful residential areas of private homes -- the best I can think of in the city centre (unless you count Lilleküla as part of the centre) -- a slightly plainer version of Nõmme, simply ideal quiet, leafy areas of medium-sized homes and big yards. I don't see any of those for sale though. It's the houses on the edge, right on Veerenni. So I wonder what people know about Veerenni that we don't. Are they going to widen it to make room for all the traffic the new development will generate?
I also entertain the absurdist fear that the plan is ultimately for Veerenni to live up to its name -- a giant gutter or flume.
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6 comments:
I don't know any specifics about Veerenni, but our apartment is near there and the "Old South" neighborhood you speak of. We often would stroll through that residential area between the train station and Järvevana. I always thought that would be my favorite area to buy a house if we stayed in Tallinn. Alas, you don't find anything in there for sale as you mentioned and I suppose for good reason.
Good luck on your search though. I know from experience it can be a real bitch finding something suitable and having to deal with people looking to rip you off at every turn.
Do you have to live in Tallinn? We bought our place in Setomaa (which an Estonian friend said is like Montana in the national mindset) for a good price.
For it we got a house, three connected barns in good condition, smoke sauna, orchard, and kemps.
We have no plans to become resident there, but it makes a good escape plan should our lives hit a rough patch, ie. "there's always Setomaa."
I am not recommending that you relocate to the southeastern most depths of Finno-Ugria, but might there be some fixer-upper deals outside of Tallinn that could house your growing family? Or do you need to be within walking distance of Stockmann to take advantage of its 'crazy days'?
For it we got a house, three connected barns in good condition, smoke sauna, orchard, and kemps.
That's making me homesick. Yeah, you can get a great deal out in the boonies for sure. If you can live in rural Estonia and earn a living, it's the way I would go. I haven't figured out how to do that yet though. Plus some of the schools out yonder leave a bit to be desired, if you have a wee one.
Ha-ha. Well, my wife is reluctant to leave the cozy confines of this cosmopolitan garden town. But we have agreed that we should get a summer home, whatever we do.
We've had a couple things in the country fall through. That weird syndrome that Vello wrote about once too -- owner doesn't seem to want to sell.
We are looking in extreme SE. We had one place we liked last year that was across from Karula park, on a sandy lake. Didn't move fast enough. I like Võrtsjärv for some reason. I know it's marshy but seems undiscovered.
Part of me keeps playing with the idea of buying property in Estonia. It appeals to me greatly, even though I know the odds of my actually living in it for any great lengths of time are fairly slim.
On the one hand, I could buy an apartment in Estonia for about a tenth of what I'd pay for one here in Australia. On the other hand, I'd have less success renting it out if I went down that road.
Then there's the "other side of the planet" thing, which makes it harder to make sure I'm not getting ripped off at some point.
Deep down inside, I'd love to own a farmhouse in Estonia, but I also know that if I buy an apartment I won't have to worry about taking care of the grounds...
So many things to drool over, not enough impetus to actually do something about it...
As a property owner we have all our properties within walking distance of the University. In the process of acquiring those properties we listened to sound advice about not owning long distance or vacation property. It has worked well for management and control of expenses. We sold our lake property as well as the condo in Alexandria along with the house at Bull Run Mountain. For the cost of ownership not generating income we can rent and travel anywhere should we so choose. Appreciation is good and something to hope for, but appreciation with income is better.
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