People & Places
The Carter's life changing plans
Two years ago Lloyd and Trish Carter decided to buy a holiday home in Knysna, South Africa.
Fast forward 24 months and they have rebuilt that house and are transforming it into a boutique hotel, now own a second property in South Africa and are about to embark on the process of applying for permanent residency. Kate Baddeley caught up with Lloyd to find out about the Carter's life-changing plans.
"Basically we didn't know anything thing about South Africa, but we fell in love with it and bought a holiday home, and now we're determined to live out there." Should would-be emigrants ever need a mascot to look up to for inspiration or to prove to sceptical family members that it is possible to completely change your lives on the basis of a holiday they would do well to look to Lloyd and his wife.
Admittedly, they may not have started the process of applying for residency yet but they are well on the way to living their dream. "We fell in love with South Africa on a golfing holiday three years ago, when we did the garden route. We asked a taxi driver to take us to Knysna. We instantly fell in love with it, it's absolutely beautiful and the low crime rate is a real appeal," explains Lloyd. "Six months later we decided to return to Knysna to buy a holiday home."
Lloyd (43), his wife Trish (37) and their seven-month-old daughter Hannah are aiming to leave their home in Guildford and be living in South Africa by August 2007. This may sound like wishful thinking, but they have already made their mark on the country, as Lloyd explains. "We purchased a house that was a complete mess, but on a beautiful plot." They bought a 1940s style bungalow, and employed an English and a South African architect, the idea being as Lloyd said, "To combine a bit of South Africa with a bit of England." Lloyd runs a marble and granite company so nobody is better equipped to take on such a project. Yet although the house is now virtually completed, since purchasing it their plans have changed considerably. "On our last trip we decided that the house is too big for us to live in, but we could see it had amazing commercial potential and would make a wonderful boutique hotel," explains Lloyd. The couple have even began head hunting their hotel staff. "We stayed in a hotel called Lake Pleasant, and we got chatting to the assistant manager and she is interested in coming to work for us."
Lloyd and Trish admit that things are progressing pretty quickly and on the whole they are nothing but enthusiastic and positive about their plans. "We just don't think you could find a better place to live. People think we're mad moving so fast but we feel all the things that are happening to us are really positive." But there has been the odd moment of doubt. "We purchased the property quite suddenly. We signed the papers, and once you sign the papers in South Africa that's it. On the plane home we suddenly thought 'what have we done'," says Lloyd. "At the time the elections were going on in South Africa and there was a lot of talk of the problems they were having in South Africa, which made us feel a little uneasy."
The couple knew they didn't want to stay in the UK forever and when they visited South Africa were instantly drawn to it. "We love the outdoor way of life, and how friendly the people are out there," says Lloyd. When I spoke to Trish she was quick to add their main motivation for relocating to South Africa. "One of the reasons we want to move to South Africa is our daughter. We have decided that South Africa is where we want to bring her up. We visited a Montessori school out there and we were really impressed."
Trish is currently on maternity leave, but initially the couple thought they would apply for residency on the basis of her occupation. "We thought that the fact that my wife is a nurse would help us get in, but now our plans have changed. We plan to work in our business," adds Lloyd. Lloyd and Trish are now getting to know South Africa, as they visit twice a year. "South Africa is a bit like three countries rolled into one. We can see a bit of Canada and Australia in it. It's a bit like England 20 or 30 years ago," says Lloyd explaining the country's appeal.
Since their first holiday Lloyd says they have witnessed considerable changes to the country. "In a commercial sense everything is changing. I have friends out there in the building trade who say a few years back if a Mercedes or a BMW drove past people took notice, now they're common place and there's Ferraris as well. I think that is a good indicator of how things have changed. I would say every six months something changes – but it's all for the good."
The ever-changing economic climate of South Africa prompted Lloyd and Trish to make further preparations for their emigration. "We decided that we wanted to have an income in rand as it fluctuates so much, so we purchased a second home to rent out," Lloyd informs me. "But after deciding the first home would be best suited to our hotel, we are now going to renovate the second house to live in. We actually purchased this home over the Internet, although we did ask our British friends to go and check it out for us. There are tenants in it at the moment, but the lease will run out just in time for us to move in when we arrive in South Africa."
Despite taking the odd risk, the couple certainly seem to have put every provision in place to ensure a fairly smooth emigration process. They even have friends out there, who they met when they were at the South African Embassy in London. "We mentioned Knysna, they over heard, and we've been friends ever since,"Lloyd recalls. The only thing they have to worry about is their families. "They are more hesitant about us going now we've had Hannah, they will miss her. But we feel it's so easy to go back and fourth," says Lloyd, who's clearly not going to let anything hold him back.
Lloyd and Trish are just about to meet up with the immigration lawyer they have employed. They are not completely sure about the visa category they will be applying under. But they are certain about one thing. "Our friends went to South Africa to retire. Financially, we don't need to work too much, but we want to really get stuck in to South African life, not take a back seat. I am going to look for a partnership in a marble and granite company as the demand there is high. Working gives you a chance to really get into the community, to make friends. We really want to be a part of South Africa."