First an apology. I have not updated this in ages but then had a lot of other things on my mind. Finally feeling guilty so thought I should put a few bits and bobs on here.
First I found something truly irritating which if you are plan Ning on moving here you need to know. Many of the newer houses in Shetland are timber frame timber clad construction. Unfortunately with the current economic climate many of the major lenders have become more careful and as a result many of the big lenders WILL NOT lend on a timber frame timber clad house. This first came up when Nationwide first said they might and then changed there mind. After that I tried RBS who said they definitely do and then I got all the way through the application process only for them to realise they didn't. Very frustrating and a huge waste of my time. I assume the rules have changed recently or something because RBS definitely used to lend on timber frame timber clad houses. This is odd because timber frame timber clad houses are not a problem. They are in fact very normal across the rest of the world. It is only really he in the UK we are fixated on bricks and mortar. Anyway a long story short is that if you want to have a more full choice of house in Shetland check with your lender if they mortgage timber frame timber clad houses. This does not help if they make a mistake like RBS but you need to consider it. Quick tip if you are doing your own research. Go to a Google and search for your lender name and "for intermediaries". This let's you see the website that intermediaries use to do an application for you and allows you to look at all the rules the lender will use. They all have a bit that details construction types they will not lend on and are on the whole very clear.
Second I found that I am still clearing out stuff from my current house in preparation for the move. Another two full car loads of rubbish went from the loft yesterday. I cannot begin to guess how much junk we have chucked but it feels good to be getting clear of a lot of the stuff we have kept needlessly for years.
Third I found that this moving lark is stressful. The last week has been a whirlwind of chasing solicitors and mortgage lenders to try and get everything moving nice and quickly. Before you stress too much realise it does not move quickly regardless how much you want it to. Solicitors move on a different time frame than the rest of us.
Four I found that everything costs money. Your money and lots of it. You need a fair old store behind you before you start. All sorts of little fees crop up out of nowhere and if you can't pay everything does not move.

To sum up me, the wife and the kidsare all stressed out and I am chasing and kicking everyone in sight to try and get this move underway as quick as possible. Looking forward to the end but this is difficult right now.