"We moved to Bulgaria after realised we would never be able to afford a mortgage in the UK"
- 9 months ago
A British family left the UK for Bulgaria after realising they would never be able to buy a home - and saved £293k by snapping up a farm abroad for just £7k.
Lewis Vye, and his wife, Jordan, both 31, left their two-bed rental house in Bournemouth, Dorset, and moved 1,788 miles to Haskovo Province, Bulgaria, in June 2022 - with their two children, Leo, 11, and Fae, two.
Jordan got the idea off a friend of a friend, who told her she had bought a house in the country for just £3k.
After mulling over the idea and constantly checking Rightmove for properties, the pair bought a two-acre plot of land which included a three-bedroom house, a barn and outbuildings for £7k - cheaper than the £300k mortgage they were facing in the UK.
But then covid hit and the family were unable to visit the property until May 2021.
Jordan and Lewis then informed their family of the move, sold most of their belongings and packed up their caravan - arriving in Bulgaria in June 2022.
The couple say their quality of life has improved as they have more time to spend with their children and with each other.
Jordan, a freelance social media manager, originally from Bournemouth, Dorset, said: "We were really struggling with the whole mortgage thing.
"We had our son at 19 and moved into a flat that we couldn't afford, it all started from there.
"It set our path for never being able to get a mortgage - it was a really big thing of owning our own home.
"Even with two wages, it wasn't something that seemed achievable for us in the UK.
"It hasn't been easy but there is such a great community here in Bulgaria.
"It reminds me of what my grandma would use to say when she lived in Bradford.
"It was a community, it was a village, everyone knew everybody, everyone helped.
"We had so many people when we arrived offering to help us."
Jordan was in Southampton, Hampshire, when she bumped into a friend of a friend who revealed she bought a house in Bulgaria.
Jordan said: "I was talking to a friend of a friend, and she told me she bought a house in Bulgaria for £3k.
"I asked her if I could have a look, I couldn't believe it.
"I went home and had a look for myself, I remember showing Lewis and I joked saying 'should we start again?'.
"We then looked, and we couldn't believe what we could get for that price.
"We had always liked the idea of doing something up.
"It was also the countryside element, we had always wanted to live in the countryside.
"In Bournemouth, if you want a house in the countryside, it was never going to happen for us."
Lewis and Jordan purchased the house in Bulgaria for £7k using their savings.
But after they bought the plot, they were unable to visit the house due to covid restrictions.
After they were finally able to view the property, they broke the news to their family - who didn't want them to leave.
Jordan said: "They feel like we sprung the news on them, but we have had it planned for a while.
Lewis Vye, and his wife, Jordan, both 31, left their two-bed rental house in Bournemouth, Dorset, and moved 1,788 miles to Haskovo Province, Bulgaria, in June 2022 - with their two children, Leo, 11, and Fae, two.
Jordan got the idea off a friend of a friend, who told her she had bought a house in the country for just £3k.
After mulling over the idea and constantly checking Rightmove for properties, the pair bought a two-acre plot of land which included a three-bedroom house, a barn and outbuildings for £7k - cheaper than the £300k mortgage they were facing in the UK.
But then covid hit and the family were unable to visit the property until May 2021.
Jordan and Lewis then informed their family of the move, sold most of their belongings and packed up their caravan - arriving in Bulgaria in June 2022.
The couple say their quality of life has improved as they have more time to spend with their children and with each other.
Jordan, a freelance social media manager, originally from Bournemouth, Dorset, said: "We were really struggling with the whole mortgage thing.
"We had our son at 19 and moved into a flat that we couldn't afford, it all started from there.
"It set our path for never being able to get a mortgage - it was a really big thing of owning our own home.
"Even with two wages, it wasn't something that seemed achievable for us in the UK.
"It hasn't been easy but there is such a great community here in Bulgaria.
"It reminds me of what my grandma would use to say when she lived in Bradford.
"It was a community, it was a village, everyone knew everybody, everyone helped.
"We had so many people when we arrived offering to help us."
Jordan was in Southampton, Hampshire, when she bumped into a friend of a friend who revealed she bought a house in Bulgaria.
Jordan said: "I was talking to a friend of a friend, and she told me she bought a house in Bulgaria for £3k.
"I asked her if I could have a look, I couldn't believe it.
"I went home and had a look for myself, I remember showing Lewis and I joked saying 'should we start again?'.
"We then looked, and we couldn't believe what we could get for that price.
"We had always liked the idea of doing something up.
"It was also the countryside element, we had always wanted to live in the countryside.
"In Bournemouth, if you want a house in the countryside, it was never going to happen for us."
Lewis and Jordan purchased the house in Bulgaria for £7k using their savings.
But after they bought the plot, they were unable to visit the house due to covid restrictions.
After they were finally able to view the property, they broke the news to their family - who didn't want them to leave.
Jordan said: "They feel like we sprung the news on them, but we have had it planned for a while.