Once a small local event held at Stourpaine Bushes near Pimperne that I used to go to as a little boy, the Great Dorset Steam Fair 2018 is now in its 50th year and is the largest show of its kind in the World.
Located on a 600 acre site at Tarrant Hinton amidst the countryside of the Cranborne Chase, it has an extraordinary number of working traction engines, steam powered machines, heritage vehicles and equipment as well as a vast fun fair.
It is rather like a country fair gone mad with hundreds of stalls, umpteen beer & cider outlets, a First World War trench system, hundreds of working displays and a music festival that goes on late into the night. Attracting some 200,000 visitors over five days it even has its own radio station. At times there can be as many as 30,000 on site making it the fifth largest population centre in the county.
The queues to the showground can be quite lengthy despite a well organised parking system but the wait is worthwhile to witness living history and attend a unique event. There is so much to see and do that many people camp for all five days.
The Steam Fair runs from Thursday 23rd August until Bank Holiday Monday, 27th August.

Steam Fair

Until this summer it had been the understanding for many years in the property industry that houses with an indoor swimming pool had a positive advantage and having one could help sell a home as well as adding to its value. In contrast, an outdoor pool did not add any more to the sale price and indeed, for some buyers have been regarded as a detrimental feature. This has changed!

2018 has been one the hottest and driest summers known with records constantly being broken and temperatures regularly reaching 30C. With the heatwave set to continue, house buyers are positively seeking homes with pools, whether they are inside or out. However, with the continuing shortage of village property on the market, finding one is not easy despite it being estimated that there are over 200,000 homes in the UK with a swimming pool.

There is a lot to take into consideration when installing a swimming pool not least of which is the cost and this can vary enormously depending on what ground works are required and whether it’s an above ground, below ground or housed. Then there’s the type of pool to think about from a traditional design, an infinity pool or a natural swimming pond as well what they are made of and whether there are to be any additional features like diving boards, pressure jets or water cascades.

Another important factor is how the water is to be managed, cleaned, filtered, covered and heated. One also has to take into account where in a garden a pool is going to be sited and ideally this will be in a sunny but sheltered spot. Safety needs to be taken into consideration, particularly where there are young children around, so it is sensible to have fencing with secure access.

Size matters. Most people want a pool which is large enough to have some fun splashing around in and to be able to swim a few lengths rather than one that is no bigger than a paddling pool to cool down in on a hot day but it should not be so large that it completely dominates the garden.

Rural View are marketing a village property in an exclusive residential road on the Isle of Wight that boasts having a particularly good-sized pool (55 x 28 ft). Lamorna is an extended detached house built in the 1960’s with a large garden and is being marketed as a refurbishment or redevelopment opportunity. The guide price is £1.1 million and should a new owner fancy swimming in the sea rather than the pool, then the beach is just a short stroll away.

Rural View are delighted that the Housing Secretary Sajid Javid has announced plans to introduce new measures to speed up the house selling/buying process and professionalise the estate agent sector, driving up standards and bringing an end to ‘rogue managing agents’. This is something that is more than overdue and we, together with the rest of the property industry, have been calling for for many years.

With over one million homes bought and sold in England each year, delays and complications during the process cause unnecessary financial and emotional stress to customers. This uncertainty can lead to delayed decisions and contributes to over one quarter of house sales falling through annually.

According to government research, more than 6 out of 10 buyers and sellers have experienced stress, and around a quarter of sellers said they would use a different estate agent if they were to go through the process again.

Estate agents will now be required to hold a professional qualification and to be transparent about the fees they receive for referring clients to solicitors, surveyors and mortgage brokers. Other measures to make the system easier, faster and more transparent include:

– encouraging the use of voluntary reservation agreements to help prevent sales falling through and crack down on gazumping
– setting a timeline for local authority searches so buyers get the information they need within 10 days
– requiring managing agents and freeholders to provide up-to-date lease information for a set fee and to an agreed timetable which will end the current situation where leaseholders are at the mercy of freeholders and their agents
– strengthening the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team so they can carry out more enforcement activity which includes banning agents

Housing Secretary Sajid Javid said:

– “Buying a home is one of the biggest and most important purchases someone will make in their life. But for far too long buyers and sellers have been trapped in a stressful system full of delays and uncertainty.”
-“So we’re going to put the consumers back in the driving seat. We will require estate agents to hold a qualification so that people are no longer at risk from a minority of ‘rogue agents’ and can trust the process when buying or selling their home.”

Mark Hayward, Chief Executive, NAEA Propertymark said:

-“We particularly welcome the commitment to further regulation – we have long argued that estate agents should be recognised as professionals, this is an important step towards achieving this and we look forward to working with the government.”

There are approximately 20,000 estate agent businesses across the country, and currently, anyone can practice as an estate agent. The changes set out will professionalise the sector, creating a more trustworthy and reliable industry who will be better held to account.

Guides on ‘How to Buy’ and ‘How to Sell’ will be developed and published to ensure customers are better informed of the process and know what questions they should be asking. The government will work with consumer groups and industry to develop a consistent set of performance metrics for conveyancers, so consumers can make a more informed choice.

To bring the profession into the technology era, a working group will be set up to bring industry and partners, such as HM Land Registry, together to look at developing innovative digital solutions to speed up the home buying and selling process.

Government will consult on how the industry can be brought up to professional standards, like those in the same trade such as conveyancers, solicitors and surveyors.

Sitting proudly on top of a hilly promontory on the Dorset/Wiltshire border, is an ancient Saxon market town of tremendous historic interest as well as being a lovely place to live or visit. However, it is one street that really puts Shaftesbury on the map even though this modest twisting cobbled lane only has buildings on one side and requires a certain amount of effort to climb up and down due to its steepness.

Gold Hill Shaftesbury

Gold Hill is one of the most iconic and recognisable streets in the country although many people don’t actually know where this romanticised idyll of a traditional English country town is. With its higgledy piggledy period cottages and sweeping backdrop of the beautiful countryside of North Dorset’s Blackmore Vale, it has appeared on countless chocolate boxes, biscuit tins and calendars.

Gold Hill really came to fame in 1973 as the star of director Ridley Scott’s television advertisement for Hovis bread showing a young grocer boy valiantly pushing his bike up the steep hill to make his deliveries to the musical accompaniment of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9. In 2006 it was voted by the public as the most loved advertisement ever. Ironically the voiceover was made in a Northern accent and the music performed by a brass band giving the impression that the scene was actually in Yorkshire rather than Dorset!

The history of Shaftesbury, Dorset

Shaftesbury was established in the 9th Century by Alfred the Great as a fortified settlement where he also founded a nunnery for his daughter Ethelgifu in 888. The abbey was the burial place in 979 of Edward II, known as Edward the Martyr, who was murdered at Corfe Castle and is also where King Canute died in 1035. The stone wall bordering Gold Hill is believed to be part of the defences of the abbey which was destroyed following Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries in 1539.

With the loss of the abbey, Shaftesbury’s prosperity faded and in the 17th and 18th Centuries its economy was based mainly on cloth and button making, brewing and as a coaching hub. Nowadays the town is a vibrant community and has many excellent amenities including a range of independent shops, boutiques, cafes, restaurants and inns as well as a large supermarket and a twice weekly farmer’s market on the broad High Street. There are also doctors and dentist surgeries, a cottage hospital, an arts centre, sports facilities and reputable state run primary and secondary schools. The town is immortalised in the World of literature as Thomas Hardy’s ‘Shaston’.

When the Tudor guildhall was pulled down in 1827 to widen the High Street, the Earl of Grosvenor built a new one in a commanding position at the top of Gold Hill with the salt cellar underneath it now a café serving delicious meals and a great place from which to enjoy the fine views. Originally Gold Hill was one of the main means of accessing the town but this building blocks the way to anything but pedestrian traffic. Adjacent to it is the small but fascinating Gold Hill Museum and St Peters, a fine 14th Century church.

Shaftesbury today

Before venturing up Gold Hill, one might want to fuel up at Ye Olde Two Brewers pub on St James’s Street, a lane of pretty stone cottages. On arriving at the top, one can reward oneself with a drink at The Mitre Inn or at one of the many tea rooms on the High Street. For fine dining there is the Grosvenor Arms, a smart boutique hotel and a favourite place to stay for the London set.

Located towards the lower end of Gold Hill and accessible by car is Folly Cottage, a late Victorian end-of-terrace cottage which is on the market with Rural View. The modest red brick exterior belies the extent and charming character of the accommodation inside. Stylishly refurbished in recent years, the property enjoys a lovely outlook at the back and offers scope to make further improvements including converting the existing top floor studio room into a fourth bedroom. The guide price is £425,000 and more information is available from the town property estate agents Rural View on 01722 716895.

In a recent article, I urged anyone venturing into the property market to appoint a solicitor as soon as possible and preferably before, so as to pre-empt any issues and ensure a speedy transaction. The same goes for property financing and this applies to both buyers and sellers.

Before one starts looking to buy a new home, it is of course important to know what budget you have at your disposal. Looking at houses that are beyond your realistic reach or leaves you too stretched may lead to disappointment. Living in a splendid mansion might not be such a great idea if you end up only being able to heat one room.

Indeed, there’s an argument to say that you should n’t view until you have a mortgage offer agreed in principle. Having one demonstrates that you have investigated your finances and gives a prospective vendor confidence that you are able to buy their home.

On the other hand you might be pleasantly surprised to find that you have more funding available than you thought and can afford a grander home than you had anticipated.

For straight forward information on the basic principles of the mortgage process and what’s involved, the different types of interest rates and repayment vehicles, as well as the costs to consider, get in touch with Rural View or click on the link for a free Consumer Guide to Mortgages.

For those sellers who are downsizing or disposing of a property altogether, what are you going to do with the surplus after the sale? Other than blowing it all in Las Vegas, thought needs to be given as to the most appropriate investments and whether this is to provide an income or capital growth. Alternatively if it is being given to family members, what’s the most efficient way of doing so and will there be any tax implications?

The World of finance can be a complex place even for the most experienced and savvy borrower or investor, so a good starting point is to seek the input of a financial adviser.

The days of having a chat with your local bank manager are just about over and it is generally considered best to talk to an independent expert who has access to the whole of the mortgage, investment, pension and insurance markets so as to be able to source the most attractive and appropriate financial products for your own personal circumstances.

I stress the word independent above. You might have been with the same building society, insurer etc. for years but are they are offering you the best rates or terms that are right for you? Is your current advisor tied to just one or a limited number of providers?

Rather like choosing the right solicitor or estate agent, it is important that your financial adviser instils in you a feeling of confidence and trust. When selecting one, check the range of financial products they deal with, their experience, independence and what fees you will have to pay.

Let us know if you would like the names of any local independent financial advisers or mortgage consultants.