A Place in the Sun: Couple criticise road noise

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Presenter of the sun-seeking Channel 4 property show A Place in the Sun Jasmine Harman was tasked with finding Exmouth-based couple Jo and Neil the perfect property. They were after an Italian home close to the beach and with a guest annexe, and something that would be suitable for their dog, Roxy. And it looked like she had done so when they arrived at the fourth property, but unfortunately, the couple couldn’t accept being close to a road.

Armed with a budget of £200,000, Jasmine lined up five stunning potentials in the province of Brindisi.

After checking out three other places, the fourth property seemed to encompass everything the couple was after.

As a two-bed villa in Francavilla Fontana, the home sat on two acres of land with olive trees, an above ground pool and a wrap-around patio. It included a modern interior with an open plan dining room, living room and kitchen, two double bedrooms and a shower room.

The property was valued at £173,394 – well within budget for the couple, who initially loved the look of the place.

Jo said some features were “perfect” and Jasmine seemed hopeful that the couple might decide on the villa.

But they had just one issue with the location, which was a huge gamechanger for them. After exploring, Jo admitted: “It’s absolutely beautiful inside and from the outside.

“It offers us everything bar the guest accommodation.” Sensing what was coming, Jasmine asked: “But?”

“It’s the road-noise,” Neil confessed. “That’s all it is. I’m really gutted because that inside is beautiful.”

Jasmine asked: “What will I need to do for our final property to give the lovely property with the pool and the twin annexes some competition?”

The couple had said the previous property with a pool was on the “maybe” list, but were after something cheaper.

“We don’t need two guest accommodations,” Jo said. And Neil added he would sacrifice having a pool to have the other features at a better location.

Options were starting to run out, with the couple already rejecting property one – a two-bed house perched on a hill in Ostuni, for being too small.

They preferred the second property, a villa in Contrada San Benedetto with a Trullo guesthouse, and the third with a pool and multiple guest houses.

The second was surrounded by countryside and filled with traditional Italian Trulli – stone houses with cone roofs originally designed to house farm workers.

It also featured a patio to the front of the property, complete with a pizza oven, and nearly two acres of land filled with olive and fruit trees

However, the kitchen wasn’t big enough for Jo and Neil. Neil described the property as being “almost spot on.”

In the end, the couple decided to put in an offer on the final property they saw – a two-bed villa in San Vito Dei Normanni.

Within half an hour drive from Brindisi airport and just 15 minutes from the coast, the pair adored everything about the home.

It was on the market for £210,000 – but Jo and Neil tried their luck at an offer of £185,000, which was rejected by the owner.

After offering a counter-offer of just over £192,000, the couple once again tried to lower it to £190,000.

Sadly, the offer was once more rejected, with £191,000 put on the table instead, which was eventually accepted by the excited couple.

“We just bought a house!” Jo exclaimed when the deal was done. “I’m worn out,” commented Neil.

A Place in the Sun airs weekdays at 3pm on Channel 4.

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