House hunting - June 2007 (Day 1)

Having narrowed it down to 4 agencies, we would have half a day with each of them to look at 3 or 4 properties (depending how far apart they were). We made it clear to them all that our time was limited and identified which of the properties on their websites we wanted to look at (except for lokation.it who didn't have the properties on their website but exchanged details with us by email.

With A&G (a long established Italian firm based in Amandola) we agreed it would be best to sit down in their offices and go through their whole database to find suitable properties which we could then visit. The other two companies (I'll call them AA and BB) were rather harder to pin down.

Looking back now at our file from the time, I was surprised how organised we were. For each agency we had date, time meeting place and contact information. Then for each property we had a photo (if we had been able to find one) and description and a whole checklist of things to look at:

• Access
• Location - neighbours
• Plot / garden / suitability for pool
• Views
• Permissions & plans
• Utilities
• Condition and attractiveness - exterior
• Condition and attractiveness - interior
• Other comments

So, armed with maps, guidebooks and all our homework, we parked the kids with their grandparents and, at 4:00 on the morning of Monday 11 June we set off for Liverpool airport to catch the Ryanair flight to Rome Ciampino. Previously we had gone via Ancona (which is less then half the distance) but the Rome flights are daily and some (including Thursday) are in the evening which meant that we could get two full days and two half days in the region in a four day trip. As it turns out, it wasn't bad thing that we explored the Rome route because our friends at Ryanair have now pulled the Ancona flight altogether.

At the airport we picked up our hire car (one of those quirky little Lancia Ypsilons), switched on the sat nav (Via Michelin - good but a bit temperamental with utterly dreadful instruction) and followed its guidance onto the Autostrada north towards Umbria then cut across the Appenines to come into the Marche near Sarnano so that we could explore the area round there and Gualdo where there seemed to be quite a few houses available. Once you get off the Autostrada you are on a two lane, winding main road and inevitably get stuck behind slower traffic. We stopped of for lunch at a roadside restaurant and were horrified to discover a big dent in the back of the car. Why do I never check them out before signing the paper work? (Actually the answer is partly because you sign the paperwork in the airport before you ever see the thing. We have now solved the problem by buying an annual policy that covers all excesses on your hire insurance. At about £80 for two drivers for a year then for people like us who do lots of car hire it's absolutely a no-brainer for the peace of mind alone.)

We explored the beautiful countryside east of Sarnano with the help of the satnav although it did have a tendency to send you down precipitous white roads (unsurfaced lanes). At one point we passed a lane with a sign saying Liz and Barry which seemed rather incongruous in such a seemingly remote area. Later we would come to know them well.

After arriving at Casa Montalto, we set about finalising our plans for the next two days. On the Tuesday morning we were meeting Lokation at Monte San Martino, then company AA in the afternoon. On the Wednesday we would see A&G at their office in Amandola followed by company BB in the afternoon. The arrangement for AA and BB were still unclear and we had been trying to contact AA for several days. When we finally got hold of him, he had canceled our arrangement because he hadn't heard from us. Perhaps he should have answered his bloody phone! With company BB the problem was that the arrangements kept changing and they would not tell us anything about the properties we were going to see. It appeared that, although the company was UK owned, it relied on local subcontractors and they made their plans at the last moment. Also the guy who was going to show us the properties had changed again. We were not full of confidence about this company despite their high profile.

Early in the evening, Debbie from Casa Montalto took us to see a property that she knew about in Force. It was, she told us, a "ruin". and she wasn't joking as the picture shows. It was only when we actually saw one in the flesh that we fully understood what you are buying with a ruin. Essentially you get a pile of stones and, because there has been a house there, you will have the right to replace it with a house of the same size. Economically this can be attractive because it tends to be cheaper to, effectively, build from scratch but what you end up with is a new house.

Anyway, we went out for a very good meal at I Piceni at Ortezzano where we came to the conclusion that we probably didn't want a ruin. We wanted a real house with the history that entails. And so to be for a relatively early night (as you do when you've been up since just after three!)