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00:00With its mountainous beauty and lush landscape,
00:03the Canadian countryside is as beautiful as it is breathtaking.
00:09Many Canadians are discovering rural life and they're making the move.
00:14We are helping them find their perfect country house.
00:19I love how lush it is, like there's definitely a lot of greenery, kind of magical.
00:24It's amazing.
00:25I feel like I'm in Barby's dream house.
00:35We're here in Okotoks with Judy and Aaron who are looking for their forever home.
00:40Let's see if we can find them the perfect country house.
00:45Hello!
00:46So nice to see you.
00:47How's it going, Judy?
00:48Hi Aaron.
00:48Great to see you.
00:49What a beautiful day we have ahead of us.
00:52How exciting, right?
00:52We are so excited.
00:53You have traveled so far to do some country house hunting today.
00:56And I've got three awesome houses lined up for you.
00:59So tell me a little bit about what you're looking for in a house.
01:06I'm South African.
01:08I immigrated to the UK in 2020.
01:10That was my big move in my life.
01:13Forever move.
01:14My forever move was the UK.
01:16And then...
01:17Me.
01:17Enter Aaron.
01:19Yeah, and I was a Canadian diplomat living in London.
01:22I'd been there for almost 10 years.
01:24And I'd actually resigned from my job to move back to Canada.
01:28When I resigned, in a couple of days I met Judy.
01:32And I had to un-resign.
01:35We quit jobs.
01:37Yeah.
01:37We moved continents and landed in Alberta and trying to figure out where to live.
01:42We just thought, let's try something different.
01:44We're making a massive move.
01:46So let's try something different.
01:47Let's do the small town living and see how that goes.
01:49Yeah.
01:49And wow.
01:50Okatoks is where we want to be.
01:52We love, we love the town.
01:54It's going to be very interesting to see what's on the market.
01:57You know, I think somewhere around the 8.50 to 9, something like that would be reasonable
02:03given how property prices have increased substantially.
02:06We'd like to have some space in there for furniture because we've arrived with our suitcases.
02:10A kitchen that you can entertain, but we love cooking and we love eating.
02:15So being able to cook in the kitchen and not trip over each other's feet or not, you know,
02:19having workspace, obviously we've got a little one coming, so you need that space.
02:23Or we don't want to go too trendy.
02:26We'd rather go for something a bit classical that isn't going to date in like a year or two.
02:32We want to do some work.
02:33We also don't want to be overwhelmed with too much.
02:37Yeah.
02:37We don't want structural work to do.
02:39Cosmetic is fine.
02:41Yeah.
02:41And so being sure that we have a place that is not going to require massive amounts of work.
02:47Yeah.
02:55Small town in Alberta, Canada, located 15 minutes from South Calgary.
03:00It's known for its art galleries, festivals, events, big rock and other sites with cultural importance with Indigenous communities.
03:08If you're searching for a small town with a lot of character, Okotoks is the place for you.
03:20We're at amazing house number one.
03:22I'm really excited to show you this house.
03:24There's nothing to do in this house.
03:25So you can just move in.
03:27It's move-in ready completely.
03:28Yeah, that's nice.
03:28Which I think is kind of nice when you're moving from so far away and you've got baby on the
03:32way, you can really take advantage of that.
03:34It's a really good size house.
03:36It's about 2,400 square feet, which is big, bigger than you would have gotten in the city, for sure.
03:42Yeah, and it's got four bedrooms.
03:44So I think there's lots of room for you, for baby, for home office, for all those kind of things.
03:50Coming up to the house, I was really impressed with the colour scheme and the brickwork on the front with
03:56a view in the background.
03:57Just beautiful.
03:59Just sets it off.
04:00Alright, I guess the only thing left to do is to head inside and take a look.
04:04Sounds good.
04:04Alright, let's go.
04:05Let's go.
04:16Ooh, this feels very relaxing from a colour standpoint.
04:21I think the way that they've mixed the colours maybe makes it feel a little bit more warm,
04:26because if everything was so matchy-matchy, then maybe it wouldn't have that character feel to it.
04:31And I really like how it's mixed with some green and the tile is really nice.
04:36It has this great texture.
04:37Oh, this is a huge island.
04:39I think this would be great for entertaining.
04:41So overall, I think it's such a nice open concept space.
04:45We come in right at the front door.
04:46You've got a nice little office nook at the front.
04:49And then as soon as you come into this space, it's so nice and open.
04:53The view is amazing.
04:55It's not something.
04:56These windows are huge.
04:57Light is very important to us.
05:00And I love that it's private too.
05:01It actually backs right onto a golf course back there, so you're not going to have any homes behind you.
05:05I really like the size.
05:07I'm just not 100% sure about the grain.
05:09It was a bit bold.
05:11I love the kitchen space.
05:13Yeah.
05:13For entertaining.
05:14It's very impressive.
05:15And it's also warm and you feel like you can gather around.
05:19Yeah.
05:19Which is important to us.
05:20I really enjoy the open concept of the house.
05:23I feel like it's really good for family life.
05:26Well, there's so much to explore in this house.
05:28Like I said, there's four bedrooms here, but I really want you to check out the primary suite.
05:32Why don't you guys head upstairs and have a look and then I'll meet you outside.
05:35Great.
05:36Straight this way.
05:47The space is really nice.
05:49Oh, wow.
05:50Oh.
05:50Look at the view.
05:51It's a nice size actually.
05:53Very nice size.
05:54Yeah.
05:54And nice panelling on the back.
05:56I do like panelling.
05:57And the bathroom.
05:58What do you think?
05:59That tub is incredible.
06:02Oh, look at that huge shower though.
06:04Yeah.
06:04Yeah.
06:05It's like a spa almost.
06:06The colours are dark.
06:08It's quite dark.
06:09I would feel maybe a little bit lighter.
06:11My only issue is the very dark panelling and the dark bathroom.
06:19And what about the whole house?
06:21Very nice entertaining house.
06:23I loved coming up the staircase and that nice big family area there too.
06:27And that office in the front.
06:29I think you would really enjoy being in that office.
06:31Yeah.
06:31Should we go find Amanda and get surprised at how much it is?
06:35Yes.
06:35Let's do that.
06:36Okay.
06:42Oh, what did you think of that principal suite?
06:45It feels quite decadent.
06:46It's a bit dark.
06:47The tiles are dark.
06:48It's decadent but dark.
06:49Yeah.
06:49Is that something you would switch up or you think you could live with it?
06:52It's beautiful but for me personally it's a bit dark.
06:55I understand.
06:55I understand.
06:56And I feel like when you get to the price point, which I'm interested in, how much do
07:01you want to switch out?
07:02That's very true.
07:03I mean part of the charm of this house is the turnkey situation so you wouldn't have to
07:08do anything.
07:09So I do understand your concern there.
07:12How much do you think this house is?
07:13Um, I think it's about $9.50.
07:18$9.50?
07:18Are you going to?
07:19I'm going to have to say closer to a million.
07:31How much do you think this house is?
07:33I think it's about $9.50.
07:36$9.50?
07:37Are you going to?
07:37I'm going to have to say closer to a million.
07:40This house is $1.1 million.
07:43Wow.
07:45Yeah, so the price was a bit of a shock.
07:49I wonder if we can find something that is as beautiful but maybe a little bit more.
07:54In our price point.
07:55Yeah.
07:56This is only house number one.
07:57Yeah.
07:57We've got two more to see.
07:58I'm really looking forward to it.
07:59Amanda's got a great eye for what we're looking for.
08:04Judy and Aaron were both fans of the open plan living and modern features of house one.
08:09Now I'm taking them to a similar house that's more light filled and keeps that modern take on country living.
08:16Ooh, here we are at house number two.
08:18The wind is picked up for us.
08:19It's a little nice outside.
08:21I actually love how neutral this exterior is.
08:24What's your first thoughts?
08:26That's quite our style I would say.
08:28Yeah, right?
08:29Nice, light, white, bright, fresh for sure.
08:32I like the integrated lights too in the eaves.
08:35It's so nice.
08:36Good catch.
08:37You have a good eye for design for sure.
08:38Oh, thanks.
08:39Well, this is still a good sized house too.
08:40It's a little bit bigger than the last house we saw.
08:42Still has four bedrooms though.
08:44So, it's getting chilly now.
08:45Why don't we run inside?
08:46Let's do that.
08:47Let's go.
08:55Oh, I'm really liking how open this kitchen feels and how it flows.
09:00I was immediately drawn to this really long island.
09:03The other house had a big island, but this one is really long so you could lay out a lot
09:06of food on here.
09:07Yeah.
09:07You'd have a lot of people over.
09:09Absolutely.
09:10What's your thought on the color palette in this kitchen?
09:13Because you've got a more kind of like wood color on the cabinetry.
09:17I like the combination of the white and the wood.
09:20It's very warm.
09:22Mm-hmm.
09:22It's inviting.
09:23I was thinking that too.
09:24I wasn't sure if you would feel like these doors are like a little bit contemporary for you.
09:28They are, but I like it actually.
09:31Okay.
09:31It's a mix of country and contemporary, which is really interesting.
09:35I like the countertop actually a lot more.
09:37I'm not sure.
09:38Oh.
09:38It's more muted.
09:40Yes.
09:40It has a grain in it, but it's…
09:42It is more muted.
09:43Yeah.
09:43Can you imagine yourself with a little toddler in here?
09:46Yeah.
09:46I think you could keep an eye on them most of the time just because of the openness.
09:51Yeah.
09:51Very nice.
09:51I feel like once the baby starts running, it's going to be like around this island.
09:55Yeah.
09:55Yeah.
09:56And I can just see him coming down the stairs.
09:58We're making breakfast.
09:59Yeah.
09:59He's coming down in the morning.
10:00Yeah.
10:01That's really nice.
10:01Such a nice vision.
10:03Yeah.
10:03This is a really dynamic lighting.
10:05Is this something that you would keep?
10:09Um…
10:11Yeah, not a fan.
10:14They're quite basket-like.
10:17A little big for our taste, I think.
10:19It's something we would most likely change pretty quick.
10:23Why don't you head upstairs and I'll meet you outside.
10:25Okay.
10:26All right.
10:35It's very similar to the panelling in the previous house.
10:38It's quite dark, isn't it?
10:40It is dark.
10:40But again, we can paint that.
10:42What I do like is it's really bright in here, actually.
10:46It's very spacious.
10:47And spacious.
10:48Very, very spacious.
10:49Yeah.
10:49The change room is huge.
10:51Lots of storage space for clothes and things.
10:53Yeah.
10:54And the bathroom is very much more our style.
10:57It's nice and light.
10:59Relaxing.
10:59Light and very relaxing.
11:01I'm really interested in how much it's going to be.
11:03Let's go see.
11:12Ooh.
11:14What did you think of this principal suite and the ensuite as well?
11:18Oh, it's huge.
11:19It is.
11:20It's such a nice size.
11:22Very nice and light.
11:23Overall, I think it is a lovely house and it's got a ton of space in it.
11:27Like I said, a little bit bigger than house number one.
11:29Mm-hmm.
11:30So with everything that it has to offer, what do you think the price is on this house?
11:34I'm going to guess again about $950 maybe a little above.
11:38It is bigger than house number one.
11:40Yeah.
11:40Mm-hmm.
11:40Do you agree?
11:41I think it might be a little bit more than $950 just with the space.
11:46Mm-hmm.
11:48Yeah.
11:48And the different finishings.
11:49Yeah.
11:50Just slightly more.
11:51Just slightly more.
11:51Yeah.
11:51Okay.
11:52$960,000, $965,000.
11:54Yeah.
11:55This house is actually $900,000.
11:57Oh.
11:58Okay.
11:58So you're getting a lot of value.
12:00Yeah.
12:01So the price on this house is a little bit better.
12:03Absolutely.
12:04Yeah.
12:05I feel really positive because the more houses we look at, the lower the price.
12:09Yes.
12:09So I've got a lot of hope.
12:11Let's go see what house number three has to offer because I think we might be getting closer
12:16and closer.
12:17Yeah.
12:17I just have that feeling.
12:18Yeah.
12:29Now that I've shown Judy and Aaron two more modern homes, I think it's time for a change
12:34of pace and to take them to something a bit more traditional and private.
12:41Here we are at house number three.
12:43You can see right off the bat, it's a little bit older style.
12:46Yeah.
12:47But I like that the exterior is still neutral.
12:49What's your first thoughts on this house?
12:51There's landscaping done already, which is good.
12:53There is a nice big tree right there.
12:56Yeah.
12:56But what about the roof and are there going to be any hidden issues with buying an older
13:00home?
13:02First impression coming up to this house was it's definitely much older.
13:06It is inviting.
13:07I agree.
13:08Yeah.
13:08There's a really nice traditional element to it.
13:11I'm a little bit worried about all the maintenance that could go along with it.
13:16Yes.
13:17I have one really big lure for you.
13:19Yes.
13:19There's actually a lake just minutes around the corner from us here.
13:22Oh, wow.
13:22So I know the water is important.
13:24So having said that, I feel like we should just take a peek inside while you've got that
13:28idea in your head.
13:29That's positive.
13:30All right, let's head inside.
13:39Okay.
13:40You can definitely feel that this is an older home compared to number one, number two.
13:45Yes.
13:46What's your first thoughts on this entry?
13:48The tile, not common and a lot of grout.
13:52Very textured for cleaning.
13:55I like that it's a different front entrance to the houses that we're seeing that are more
13:59modern.
14:00It's something very different.
14:02Yeah.
14:02But the tile, like the tile is going throughout the whole house.
14:07I don't know what we're going to do about that.
14:08Yeah.
14:09The tile is a major concern.
14:10I won't lie.
14:11Yeah.
14:14Well, here we are in what I think is a lovely kitchen, definitely a more traditional style
14:19to it.
14:20Looks like the previous owners have done a little bit of upgrading to it.
14:23So what's your thoughts on this kitchen?
14:25Nice workspace.
14:26Yeah.
14:26Nice workspace.
14:28Still the tile.
14:29Still the tile.
14:30It just is everywhere.
14:32It's everywhere.
14:33It's a lot of cleaning.
14:35I like the kitchen space.
14:36It gives me a nice hope that you can update the rest of the elements that we're a little
14:41bit worried about.
14:43I do miss the island space.
14:46The big island.
14:46I do like seeing that in the other homes.
14:49But the flow in the kitchen, I think for us two that enjoy cooking together, I think
14:53we will be able to move around quite easily in the kitchen.
14:57So why don't you guys head upstairs to check out that principal suite so you can address
15:00the bathroom and any concerns you might have in there with the age of the house.
15:03And then I'm happy to meet you outside and have a look at the gardens.
15:07It's great.
15:07All right, head upstairs.
15:16This is spacious and bright as well.
15:21Nice big windows.
15:22And it's neutral.
15:24We wouldn't have to paint anything.
15:26Yeah.
15:26Yeah, absolutely.
15:27And I do again like actually all of the houses have the primary bedroom separated from the
15:32other bedrooms.
15:33I really like that.
15:34Yeah.
15:35And did you see the two change rooms?
15:36I did.
15:37I'm not going to get in your way.
15:38I agree.
15:39That.
15:40And the bathroom is nice and big, but once again, it's the same tiles.
15:44Yeah.
15:45There's dated things.
15:46Again, the carpet needs to be changed.
15:48Yeah.
15:48The tiles and the shower was, you know, it's an older shower.
15:52It's going to take work.
15:53It's going to take work.
15:55Yeah.
15:55Should we go and chat to Amanda and find out about that price?
15:58I don't know what this is going to be like.
16:00It's going to be interesting.
16:01Let's go and have a look.
16:13Ooh, that sun is nice, right?
16:16The weather is changing by the minute.
16:18Welcome to Okotoks, right?
16:20That's the weather.
16:20But that's kind of the charm of it, right?
16:22After touring this and thinking about the work involved and the age of the house, what
16:26do you think the cost is of this house?
16:27I think, I think about 900.
16:30It's got the basement, it's got an established garden, and it's in a lay community, which
16:35is...
16:36Yeah, that's a big deal, right?
16:37It's a big deal.
16:38Yeah.
16:38I just feel it would be lower because it is an older home.
16:43There's a bit of work to do.
16:45At least I would want it to be lower.
16:46So, $875, something like that.
16:50This house is $825.
16:52Oh.
16:53Okay.
16:55The price is good.
16:56I mean, I'm a fan of the price.
16:58I just...
16:59Not a fan of all the work.
17:00Again, all the work that's going to go into it, the investment in that, of time, the disruption
17:05that it's going to take to upgrade the things that we want to upgrade.
17:09Yeah.
17:09And just the unknown.
17:11Like, I worry about the unknown.
17:13Great, it's cheap, but yeah.
17:15Yeah.
17:16I think we need some time.
17:18Yeah.
17:18I think we need to go and have a little bit of a chat.
17:21Yeah.
17:24Well, I see a twinkle in your eye, but I have to ask you, which house did you choose?
17:29We chose.
17:30We chose.
17:39Now that we've explored all three houses, Judy and Erin have a lot to consider.
17:44While I wait, I'm popping into the French 50 Artisan Bakery to sample some local baked
17:50goods and hear about what makes Okotoks the wonderful community it is.
17:55Hello, Marie.
17:56It's so nice to meet you.
17:58Nice to meet you.
17:59And I'm meeting you in this amazing bakery that you and your husband have created.
18:04We started a one-day-a-week business in a brick-and-mortar place, and that's how we kind
18:09of planted the seed to see if the community would be interested in having sourdough bread
18:15and sourdough pastries.
18:17Wow.
18:17And the one-day-a-week business grew very quickly where, in the morning, Brad would
18:20be baking all night, and he would see the lineup out the door going, oh my God, what have
18:25we started?
18:26Created.
18:27Yes.
18:27That's a good problem, but still intimidating, I'm sure.
18:30Very much so.
18:31The community was just supporting us so, so well that it was a bit of an adrenaline rush
18:37every weekend.
18:38We started searching because we said, okay, you know, we're going to grow this into a full-time
18:42business.
18:43We need a place.
18:44Yes.
18:45It doesn't need to be big.
18:46We don't have a big place right now, so let's find something, you know, maybe slightly bigger.
18:50Okay.
18:51And we looked for two years.
18:53This home, which is a hundred-year-old house, one of the original farmhouses of Okotoks.
18:59That's amazing.
19:00Did the mayor live here at one point?
19:02He did.
19:02It's from the Lynham House.
19:04When we worked with our designer, she heard what we were saying.
19:07We wanted the warmth and the welcoming, and for people to feel comfortable when they walk
19:11in.
19:12It's very homey in here.
19:13It is very homey, so it definitely doesn't feel commercial in any way.
19:17What a tremendous thing you've done for the community here, and basically all I want to
19:21do now is definitely have a coffee and one of these amazing pastries behind me.
19:25Let's go have one.
19:26Oh, sounds good.
19:27Thank you so much.
19:28I love talking with you.
19:30You're such a kind spirit.
19:31Thank you so much.
19:40Now let's check in on Judy and Erin to see if they made a decision on their future forever
19:45home.
19:47Well, guys, I bet you had some interesting dinner conversation last night, didn't you?
19:51Yes.
19:52Absolutely.
19:53Lots of choice.
19:54So let's think back on the houses.
19:55House number one, top of budget, but it also offered a lot of interesting features.
20:01Yes.
20:02Like you love that two-story window effect.
20:04It had this huge island for entertaining.
20:07Yeah.
20:07I know the stone, you're a little apprehensive about how busy it was.
20:11And we really all agreed that the wood floor was super nice.
20:14It was a very impressive start, but I do feel for that price point and still wanting
20:20to change the dark tiles in the bathroom.
20:23I just felt like it's just not really not good.
20:25Just not feeling it?
20:27No.
20:27And I think there's another element.
20:29I really like the view.
20:30I like that there's no houses on the back, but it was not as private as it could be actually.
20:36So house number two, I think we all liked the warm atmosphere when we walked in.
20:40We had a really long island when you stepped into the kitchen.
20:43Great curb appeal.
20:45You mentioned it had the mix of the wood and the white cabinetry.
20:49They worked quite well together.
20:50Mm-hmm.
20:51And the long island still, I could see us entertaining quite a few people there.
20:56Nice flow as well.
20:57Nice flow.
20:57I don't think inside the house there would be anything to do.
21:01No.
21:01It would just be...
21:02Except for the lights above the island.
21:04They were quite big, yeah.
21:06They were quite substantive.
21:07But you were going to make them into laundry baskets.
21:09Laundry baskets.
21:10No big deal at all.
21:13House number three, I think the energy in that house was all kind of alluring to us.
21:17There was kind of a nostalgic feel to it, and maybe that is because of its age.
21:21You were talking, like, replacing the ceiling, adding so much lights.
21:25Yeah, the tile.
21:26The tiles.
21:28The tiles.
21:29The never-ending tiles.
21:32Yeah, how are you feeling about having to do all that work with baby coming?
21:36It feels like a lot for anybody.
21:38It could feel a bit overwhelming and uncertain because you don't know.
21:42It's great, you can do all of that work, but what is the cost going to be at the end?
21:45But the price point on that home was more doable.
21:49It is.
21:50Yes, yeah.
21:51Well, I see a twinkle in your eye, but I have to ask you, which house did you choose?
21:56We chose number three.
22:00Oh, you did.
22:00I kind of had a feeling because of the traditional style.
22:04It really did suit you guys, and I'm so impressed that you're willing to take on the work.
22:09Our motto is, we do hard things.
22:11We do do hard things.
22:12Yeah.
22:13Yeah.
22:13Cheers, guys.
22:15I'm so excited.
22:16It was wonderful to work through this with you.
22:19Yeah.
22:22I'm so happy that Judy and Aaron have found their dream home, and I can't wait to see what they
22:28do with the place.
22:28All the best.
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