From pandemic to provincial – why I’m buying a home in the country

It’s 7am and I am sitting in a café called Racers overlooking Lake Wendouree in Ballarat, enjoying a flat white coffee – in a mug.

If you had told me six months ago I would be living in this small Victorian town, I would have laughed. But then again, nothing seems shocking in 2020. 

Just 100km away in Melbourne, my colleagues will be sipping their lattes, walking the same block back to their apartments for another fun filled day in isolation.

Not long ago, that was me. My fiancé Jaid and I had been living in an incy-wincy little two-bedroom shoebox in South Yarra for almost two years, while dreaming of owning our own home.

Chasing perfection

We were on the lookout for a three bed, one bath with at least some sort of decent outdoor living area. It had to be within about 15 minutes’ drive from central Melbourne. We wanted something with a bit of character and, wait for it… we wanted it to be well south of a million dollars.

Insane right? Yes. It’s safe to say after signing up to every possible real estate email alert, well, we got zilch. All we could find were shipping container-sized units that either had a railway going through the lounge or an outdoor entertaining area big enough for a small dog to entertain his friends.

Then COVID hit and it really seemed like all hope was lost. After probably 60 minutes of being locked down it dawned on me (someone who has ADHD) that I may not survive the confines of lockdown in an apartment much longer than a few weeks. And with that realisation, everything started to change.

Falling in crazy, stupid love

We started ‘casually’ looking online at houses in Ballarat, flirting with the idea if you will. “Oh hey babe, how good would it be to have a lawn? OMG, and a veggie garden?” Crazy thoughts. Thoughts that quite simply we couldn’t afford to have in central Melbourne.

As the COVID shackles tightened, Jaid stopped working (she’s a hairdresser) and my dining room desk setup grew more nightmarish. Ballarat began to look more and more appealing.

They had me at man cave and her at home salon. Comparing what we could afford in Ballarat versus central Melbourne was nothing short of hilarious. In Melbourne we were essentially looking at either saving for another 300 years, winning lotto, working seven days and nights a week or … buying a two-bedroom unit. But in Ballarat, with no change in budget, we were looking at buying a three to four-bedroom Victorian at over 400 square metres. Not to mention with oodles of scope for a future man cave, WFH salon, an office each, a veggie garden to sustain a pandemic, and room for a pet lama in the backyard.

Unprecedented decision made! I work for ME, a bank that is a big supporter of flexibility, so I knew I could work from home most of the time, now and into the future. That was the final nail in the coffin of apartment life. We were moving to Ballarat to buy our first home.

Tasting it first

Fast forward and we are living in a rental property that’s one-third cheaper than our South Yarra apartment and at least 20 times bigger. We’re renting first to scope out all the areas and give us plenty of time to find our perfect Forever Home.

I can easily say moving to the country is the best decision we’ve made all year and potentially for the rest of our lives.