Jan Vayne and his girlfriend Marije had been dreaming about a holiday property abroad for a while. “We love both snow and sun, so it should be a place where we can have both and one that also shows a stable economic and geopolitical situation. In addition, it had to be a country that we can fairly quickly reach, should we want to go there. Soon, we came up with Norway.”
Healthy country“We knew that Norway is a healthy country that is autonomous and does not isolate itself. The peace particularly appealed to us, but also the stability, pureness and beauty of the land. It is very inspiring to see how Norwegians treat their energy and nature. This made it easy to choose for Norway.”
Personal click
But where do you start? A Google search brought them to Portula. An introduction to Erik and Werner followed and it felt right away. "Then we spent four days together on the road in Norway looking at different plots and houses."
A place of our own
“We both have different wishes, so we had to look for something that would make us both happy. That is why we autonomously decided to have a holiday property built. For Marije the most important thing is to have a place where she can store her own things, so she doesn’t need to move everything all the time. I’m appealed to a house with one large space, whereas Marije is more into nooks and crannies.
Bourgeois
“It was very nice that Werner guides us through the steps we had to take in Norway. For instance, we had to a Norwegian bank to have our passports ‘confirmed’, which was the first step for the required Norwegian D-number. The bank’s opening hours were between 10.00 am and 2.00 pm, very bourgeois. It was clear that Portula had been there, was made us feel confident.”
Viewed locations
“During those few days, we looked at different plots and construction projects. The first location was at a lake, the second spot was on a mountain and the third near a ski slope. We explored the area and found out about things to do in the area. From forest to ski slope, from supermarket to pub.”
Trial living on a mountain
"The great thing was that during those days we were able to test live in a house built by Portula to get a taste of the atmosphere. We slept on the mountain where we also ended up buying a lot. The house was luxurious and super comfortable. Great to experience waking up in the morning in your future vacation home. The first thing we saw were tracks of a moose!"
Southeast Norway
"On Werner's advice, we chose southeast Norway. Here you have four seasons, a sub-land climate, little rain, you can sail and ski, and you are close to the big cities. In addition, you can drive to the south coast within an hour and a half. There you find the Norwegian 'hustle and bustle'; with bearskins by fires drinking beer together," Jan laughs.
The most beautiful spot
“The main thing is to find the right plot, because you are facing a zoning plan”, Werner of Portula explains. “I has chosen this plot for Jan and Marije in advance, purely on gut feeling. Nicely situated at a lake, near the cosy village and within walking distance from the supermarket. You can be on the ski slope within 10 minutes.” Jan and Marije fell in love with it straight away: “This plot really stood out. To us this was the most beautiful spot!”
Site preparation
Currently, the plot is being prepared for construction. On average, there are about 7 to 9 months between plot selection and building the house. Jan and Marije's vacation home will be ready in mid-2023. "Right now we are finalizing with Werner and Wessel our chosen house type Fiskebekk. In doing so, we are looking at what best suits our place and the price and yield difference. We are also looking at whether 1 or 2 families can stay in the home."
Business point of view
"The choice of the type of home we make in addition to our personal preference also comes from a business point of view. Ultimately, it has to generate a return. After about 8 weeks of renting, we already have the costs out of it and that is a reassuring thought."
Renting out via Portula
“Our plan is to visit Norway for two weeks, some four times per year”, Jan says. “Thus, during the remaining period we will rent it out. We will also outsource that to Portula (Fjord Rentals). That local presence during letting is super convenient.” But first the house must get finished. “After construction has started, we will get a photo-update of the state of affairs every two weeks. Even photos made by a drone. It is fantastic to be able to monitor the process from a distance, this way! I will not rule out that we will perhaps buy a second house there.”
