Stockholm Escape to the Continent

One man born in this beautiful city links physics, chemistry

and medicine to literature and peace,

but who was he and where could I be?

Find out in just a moment as we escape to the continent.

In today's property search, our couple know a good thing

when they see it.

Yeah, really nice. I'd like to move in now, please.

But time is against us.

-It will be gone in a week.

-Quick.

Yeah, it is quick.

There are shocks in store for our house-hunters...

-Surprise!

-OK, wow. That's pretty impressive.

..but the biggest one is for me.

Ah! This is a little bit terrifying.

I'm in the Swedish capital of Stockholm and behind me is the

Nobel Museum, named after Alfred Nobel,

a son of this city born in 1833.

He was a scientist, an engineer and an inventor,

with some 300 patents to his name, including dynamite,

so, unsurprisingly, he made an absolute fortune.

But he had no family to leave his money to,

so he set up a fund for five prizes,

the Nobel Prizes, that are held in the highest of regard

internationally - a lot like Alfred's magnificent city.

Sweden is a 2.5-hour flight from the UK

and the city of Stockholm is in the south-east of the country.

Stockholm is at the meeting point of two bodies of water,

Lake Malaren and the Baltic Sea.

Coined the Venice of the North,

this unique capital city is spread over 14 islands.

But the wider metropolitan area covers a network of 30,000 islands,

known as the Stockholm Archipelago.

The old town, locally known as Gamla Stan,

is Stockholm's original city centre.

It dates from the 13th century,

but most buildings are from the 17 and 1800s,

including colourful examples of North German architecture.

Gamla Stan is also home to Stockholm's Royal Palace.

Designed in an Italian baroque style, it has 1430 rooms -

nearly twice as many as Buckingham Palace.

To the east of the old town lies the island of Djurgarden, with a mix

of parkland, picturesque canals and some of the city's 70+ museums.

One of these is home to the jaw-dropping Vasa,

the only preserved 17th-century ship in the world.

The heart of modern Stockholm beats in the Norrmalm area, packed with

shops, bars and restaurants and the striking Waterfront Congress Centre.

If it's quality of life you're after, then Stockholm could be

the place for you.

It was recently voted in the top five best cities in the entire

world to live in.

And you wouldn't have to dig too deeply

into your pockets to move here.

The average house price in greater Stockholm is around £284,000,

which is a massive £172,000 cheaper than Greater London.

And once you get here, you'd have

plenty of space as the population is around one million people.

So, let's meet today's buyers and see

if we can add another two, or three, to that figure.

Today's buyers are Kevin, a software engineer,

and Australian-born Sarah, who works in PR.

They met at work when they were employed on the same project.

I ended up just sitting next to him one day

and I didn't have a lot to do,

so I was trying to chat to him, not chat him up, but chat to him

and he really wasn't having that much of a bar of it, really.

I was actually try to do some work.

So, we became friends and we were friends for quite a while,

we just kind of got along and enjoyed each other's company,

and then we got together.

They were married in 2007 and settled in south-west London,

which has been a great base for pursuing their careers

and their sporting rivalries.

There is a tennis club just around the corner

and I used to be better than Kev.

But then he had some lessons from a friend of his who helped to

bring his game up to speed.

So, now he's a little bit better than me,

so I don't like to play him as often.

Yes, so now you don't play me.

I don't like losing.

I'm Australian, of course I don't like losing...

especially not to an Englishman.

And during their time in London, things have moved on.

We have our two little cats, Milly and Poppet,

and also we've had some great news lately that Sarah is pregnant.

So, we've another little... Well, a baby on the way.

With this change in circumstances,

their London pad is no longer where they want to be.

Currently we live in a first floor maisonette,

which is really nice, but we are kind of overlooked by neighbours

and we only have a small amount of outdoor space.

So, the decision to move to Sweden was born,

particularly as Kevin shouldn't have too much trouble getting a job.

I'm reasonably comfortable about finding work.

My skills are fairly in demand.

And also, as a software engineer, from what I understand, a lot of

the companies will actually work in English, at least part of the time.

And Stockholm is where they hope their forever future lies.

We are looking to move to somewhere that reflects our social

and moral values and Sweden, for us, we think really has that.

You know, they respect family, they respect work-life balance,

I guess their outlook on life really is something that we want to

look to experience and see whether that works for us.

It's not a retirement plan, it's a life plan,

and we need to make sure that we kind of try and get it right.

As Kevin plans to work in central Stockholm, we are looking at

commutable neighbourhoods not more than half an hour from the centre.

But first, I need to find out a few more details from our house

hunters themselves.

-Welcome to Stockholm!

-Thank you.

So, why do you want to move to this part of the world?

What is it about Stockholm in particular?

Well, I came here ages ago on a rugby trip

and met a few people there, and I'd come back

and then brought Sarah over, we had a great holiday,

and we just immediately were drawn to the place, weren't we?

Yes, we even got married here...just over there.

So, we've been here quite a few times

and we have been here in the winter and we've been here in the summer,

so we know that there are extremes of temperature,

-so we are prepared for that.

-Right.

It's kind of a different lifestyle.

They have a really good focus on families and, you know,

a good work-life balance and it's

something completely different, so for us that's really appealing.

You've mentioned that you want to raise a family here

and that's because that is imminent. You're expecting your first baby!

-Yes.

-Yes.

-Due in February.

-That's absolutely brilliant news.

It will be a completely different life,

and that's a bit of a scary thing because it's all of the unknowns.

It's exciting and scary both at the same time.

So, let's find out what your requirements from this property are.

Tell me about your dream home here.

We'd like a three-to-four-bedroom house,

we'd like a ground floor bedroom, ideally somewhere with a bathroom.

So when my mum visits, that's easy for her, because she's disabled.

How far out are you prepared to go? Do you have anywhere in mind?

Well, I'd like to be able to cycle in.

At the moment, I cycle about 11 miles a day,

so that's probably the tops I'd do.

I guess we're moving here for a lifestyle change as well,

so we commute a lot in London and, so we want to try and reduce that.

Tell me about your dream house. What does it look like?

I guess that the outside, we kind of like the very traditional look.

I don't think we like...

-We wouldn't like, you know, kind of '70s or industrial looking.

-Right.

-And then inside...

-A nice kitchen, entertaining area.

Yeah, we don't necessarily want to do a lot of renovation work.

We've renovated our house in Balham and I think it might be a push

too far to try and do too much, and also without having the language.

So, something that, you know, is kind of ready to go.

So, when are you planning on moving?

Are you going to have the baby in Sweden or in the UK?

Well, we may need to wait until the baby arrives,

just because of health care arrangements.

And as soon as the baby arrives, then we'll pack it up and move it over.

But you're hoping to have found a property before that?

So we don't have too rush into doing all of that when the baby arrives.

-You don't want to be house-hunting with a newborn.

-No.

-No.

You probably know, but the housing market here works very

differently to in the UK.

If you like a property, you're going

to have to put an offer in straight away.

It's nerve-racking because people put houses on the market and it's

sealed bids, and everybody puts their bid in and then it's gone,

but you can get into negotiations and delay when you move in.

I guess you could make plans a bit quicker because,

if it is more secure, then that's probably a better situation for us.

-Let's talk budget. How much have you got to spend?

-It's £750,000.

That is a really decent budget.

I have got a few properties lined up for you to see. Shall we go?

-Excellent.

-Let's do it.

With their finances in place,

they are in a position to secure a property,

but need to negotiate a move in date after the baby is born.

And what they want for £750,000 is a traditional Scandinavian house

with an open plan interior.

They need three bedrooms for their expanding family,

plus an accessible bedroom for Kevin's mother.

They want a good-sized garden in a semirural location,

not much more than ten miles from central Stockholm.

But they will need to have their wits and wallets about them.

Buying a property here is an unbelievably quick process.

Houses go on the market with all surveys

and legal documents in place.

Bids go in which can push the price way above the guide price.

And once the seller accepts a bid, it's sold.

It's a rapid transaction that often sees houses changing hands

in under a week.

And what we've got on offer for Kevin and Sarah are four fantastic

properties, delivering the best of Swedish design and architecture.

During their time here, we will be putting them up in their own

property to give them a chance to embed in local life.

Our final property choice is a mystery house,

which offers something that could sway it for our house-hunters.

For our first property we are heading to Boo, an area in the inner

Stockholm archipelago, which is just nine miles from the city centre,

so within Kevin's 11-mile cycling limit.

It's a residential, family-orientated area

with a real community feel.

There are good schools, great sports facilities and a local restaurant.

The southern part of this area overlooks

the bay of Backtorpsvagen, which leads out to the sea.

Within view of this bay and set in beautiful,

natural surroundings is the first of our Swedish properties.

-I'm going to stop you around about here, and have a look.

-Wow!

-Wow!

-Very exciting.

-That's great.

-It's nice and modern.

-It's got a red door, we like that.

-A red door, yes.

And it's very big, yeah. Yeah, it looks fab, really excited.

Good, that's the right start.

-It was only built in 2006.

-OK.

It used to be a holiday home on this patch

and then the owners decided to build this.

-Wow. An all-year holiday house.

-It could be!

-Yeah!

-Let's go in.

-OK.

'The setting and exterior of this property have gone down well

'and I reckon the inside won't fail to impress.'

-Through the lovely red door.

-Fabulous. Wow!

"Wow" is good.

-It's really nice.

-First things first,

what do we do in a Swedish house?

-Shoes off.

-Shoes off.

-Precisely.

'With the shoes-off culture, this house, like most in Sweden,

'has underfloor heating throughout.'

-This way, please.

-Great.

Through this lovely entranceway and, before you look that way,

-look this way.

-Wow, fabulous.

-The kitchen - what do you think?

I can see myself in there. That's really nice.

-That's just how we'd do it, isn't it?

-Yeah, exactly.

I can see a little cat sitting on that bench, keeping warm.

-I love the round window.

-Yeah, that's really great.

One thing you're not going to have a problem with here is light

because you will see there is just windows everywhere.

It's very Swedish - clean lines, oak worktop.

You can see, cos the house is quite modern,

that everything is just brand-new and clean.

I'd like to move in now, thanks.

Yeah, I could definitely see us living here for sure, yeah.

Search over!

-That was the easiest Escape To The Continent ever!

-Brilliant, yeah.

All right, this is the kitchen.

-Let's see the rest of the living space.

-Brilliant.

'I'm not surprised that they love the design

'and layout of this house - it's everything you'd hope

'a modern Swedish home would be.

'Separated by a breakfast bar,

'the kitchen is connected to a generous-sized dining area

'and this leads onto the large living room.'

Wow, it's really good.

It's open-plan, but separate still. It feels it, doesn't it?

Yeah, I feel you could be in this area

-and not really be in that person's space...

-Yeah.

..but still be able to talk and communicate.

-I think this is the kind of thing we envisioned.

-Yeah, totally.

-Beautiful log fire behind you.

-Excellent.

You'll be cosy, just what you wanted, Kevin.

This is also going to make you very happy.

They are using it as an office, but that could easily be a bedroom.

Yes, perfect.

And there's a door that goes round into the entrance on the other side.

-Your parents could happily have that room.

-Yeah, yeah.

-Also there's a shower room on the ground floor.

-Wow!

-There's a huge utility room and there's a cloakroom.

-Perfect.

-All right, should we see the upstairs?

-Yes, let's do it.

-Come with me.

-Thanks.

'Almost every room in this house is double aspect,

'allowing lots of light in and great views out.

'Upstairs, there are three bedrooms in total,

'two of which are large doubles decorated to a high standard.

'There is a spacious landing area used as more living space

'and then there's the master bedroom.'

So here we have lots of light, lots of space.

Is this big enough for you?

-I think we could manage!

-Yeah.

Because what it's got next door is a walk-in wardrobe.

Ah, that was my question.

-And then you can go straight into what is the master bathroom.

-OK.

-It's a huge bathroom.

-Excellent.

What feeling are you getting in this house?

It feels like home does, doesn't it?

Yeah, definitely. It just feels really relaxed

and you could imagine having friends and family staying,

not being on top of each other and seeing out all of the windows...

Everywhere you look, you can see a bit of a tree

or see some greenery, so I think it's really calming.

I have to agree with you.

There's something really homely and relaxed,

-and it just feels like a home.

-Yeah, definitely.

-Yeah.

And it doesn't feel as if you'd need to do anything, which is fabulous.

-All right, shall we have a good look outside?

-Yeah, let's go, brilliant.

'They are really taking to this house.

'I think it's just the sort of home they were hoping for.

'Outside, there's a huge decked area,

'which would add extra living space in the summer,

'a separate garage,

'plus a child-friendly garden covering a third of an acre.'

So this is your garden. Is it big enough?

Plenty big enough, yeah.

I don't think we'll know what to do here.

It's about ten times the size of our current one.

So let's get to business. How much do you think it's on the market for?

Kevin, let's start with you.

It must be the top end of our budget, I'd say, about £750,000.

I would say just slightly under then, £745,000.

Well, you're actually closer.

It's actually on at £735,000,

-so you'd have a little bit of change.

-Wow, amazing!

If you like this house, which I'm sensing you really do,

you are going to have to seriously start thinking about moving forward

because it works very fast here. People will come and view it.

It's been on their website for a couple of days,

over 2,000 people have clicked on it, viewings have begun

and people will begin to make offers,

and it will be gone in a week.

-OK, that's quick.

-Yeah, it is quick.

So I'm going to send you off to have another look around the property.

-I'll meet you at the front.

-Brilliant, thanks a lot.

-Off you go.

-Thanks.

-See ya.

So for £15,000 under their top budget,

this modern family home gives spacious, light open-plan living.

There are three bedrooms upstairs plus an accessible one downstairs.

It offers one-third of an acre of land

and is set in a rural location,

whilst being just a 20-minute commute to the city centre.

But if they really like it - and I think they do -

they're going to need to move quickly.

This is good.

It's a decent-sized room, especially a spare room.

It's much bigger than we have at home.

I could definitely see little people in here.

I feel really comfortable here and I feel really warm

and invited into this house, so I could definitely see myself,

Kev, two cats and a new baby living in this house.

So that's very exciting.

There's plenty of space for our relatives to come over,

for my parents to stay and Sarah's parents to stay,

and it just seems ideal.

I think what's really surprising for me is that I don't feel as if

we would really need to compromise with this house.

This house is fantastic. It's a definite contender.

-There they are.

-Hi!

-Hi!

-Do we still like this house?

-We love it, yeah.

Yeah, it's really great, we really like it.

-We could definitely see ourselves living here.

-Yeah.

-How serious are you?

-Pretty serious, yeah.

-Yeah, for sure.

That is thrilling news.

Well, it's not yours yet,

so unfortunately were going to have to leave.

-OK.

-This way.

-All right, thanks.

'It's the end of today's house-hunting in Stockholm,

'which has gone very well.

'I'm now taking Kevin and Sarah to Gamla Stan,

'the historic centre of the city,

'where we've arranged a little something for them.'

As the two of you do want to move here permanently,

we thought it'd be a great idea

-for that experience to start right now.

-OK.

So for the rest of your time here, you will be staying right here.

-Amazing, brilliant.

-In the penthouse!

-Oh, nothing but the best!

Nothing but the best!

It'll be fun, yeah, being right in the centre of town

and being right in the thick of it.

Cos I want the two of you to just get stuck in and become locals.

-We'll try.

-As much as you can, yeah?

-Yeah.

-And I'll catch up with you in the morning.

-Brilliant.

-Thanks, bye!

'In central Stockholm, life is definitely about apartment living.

'In fact, in Sweden, 46% of the population live in flats

'as opposed to just 21% in the UK.'

-Shall we unpack a little bit?

-Yeah.

Get settled in. I think there are some drawers over here.

'This temporary Stockholm pad could be the first steps

'of Kevin and Sarah's new life here in Sweden.'

Perhaps we could go and explore.

-Yeah, let's do that. Let's head out, shall we?

-Yeah.

'Daylight hours in Sweden can be extreme.

'In the north, July and August see an astonishing 24 hours of daylight

'and January has 24 hours of darkness.

'Here in Stockholm, however,

'daylight hours are similar to those in Scotland.'

-It's really nice, isn't it?

-It's really great to be back, isn't it?

Every time we come back, it feels really good.

It feels like we could just come and move here tomorrow, really.

-Yeah, definitely. Look, there's a gift shop over here.

-Oh, yeah.

Some quite interesting things for kids.

If we get something like that,

we could learn a bit of Swedish with our child.

-It'll be good that they'll be bilingual.

-Yeah.

'It's the start of our second day in the Swedish capital of Stockholm.

'We're helping Kevin and Sarah,

'who are looking to swap their London pad for a family home here

'which will accommodate them and their new baby, which is on its way.

'During their time here, they're staying in a rented property

'to get an authentic taste of Swedish living.'

Now, the first property I showed Kevin and Sarah,

they absolutely fell in love with.

They even said it felt like home, which is brilliant.

It also sets the bar very high.

Today, it's about something a little bit different,

but if the weather can change this dramatically,

maybe their minds can too.

-Speak of the devils!

-Hey, how are you doing?

-Come on out, if you dare!

-How are you?

-Great, thanks.

-Did you have a nice evening?

Year, it was really good, yeah.

We had some food and we had an early night.

An early night, but enjoyed your evening in Stockholm?

-Yeah, great, yeah.

-Are you prepared to tackle this weather?

Yeah. There's no bad weather, just bad clothing, so we should be fine.

-That's the right attitude. Ready to see more properties?

-Yes.

-Definitely.

-Come with me.

-Excellent!

For our next property,

were going 13 miles north of central Stockholm to the area of Taby.

It may be a bit far to cycle, but it's well connected by rail,

with a fast train taking just 20 minutes.

This town is fantastic for amenities,

with a shopping centre, supermarkets, good schools

and plenty of facilities for bringing up a family.

And conveniently, just around the corner

from a daycare centre is our next property.

-Yeah, wow!

-Nice!

-Right! Very traditional-looking.

It is a traditional Swedish home.

I like that it's not one-dimensional, it's quite interesting looking

and it's got lots of different aspects to it.

I like it, it's not modern like the last place we looked at,

but it's what we're looking for in the traditional style of things.

I can't wait to show you the inside of this one.

-Yeah, looking forward to it.

-Are you ready?

'Sarah and Kevin wanted something traditional-looking

'and this turn-of-the-century house

'is built in the National Romantic style.

'But whilst it is old, it's by no means rundown.

'There's a new roof, new rendering and new windows.

'And inside this huge property,

'the traditional style continues with a light, floral decor.'

All right!

Straight into the living area of this house.

First impressions, please, Kevin.

It'd probably need a bit of work to put our stamp on it,

but I think I like it.

OK, so you've just entered. What do you think?

I am actually quite drawn to it. It's really traditional, really homey.

I like all the different features,

like the fireplace and the big old radiators.

-No, I like it.

-It is an old traditional home.

-Yeah.

Through there, they've got another room,

which goes out onto the terrace,

which they're using as a kiddies' play area,

but you could easily use that as a bedroom for when your parents visit.

-Great.

-That's good to know.

-Ready to go on?

-Yeah, let's.

'The downstairs layout of this house is great for Kevin's mother,

'with a large downstairs bathroom,

which is also the property's only bathroom.

'The living room flows into a light, bright dining room,

which links through to the kitchen.

-OK.

-Right.

-Interesting!

Tell me what you think.

I think I'm a little bit speechless.

I think that I like it, but it could probably be reconfigured.

-Yeah, we'd have to change it round.

-Yeah.

I think it's probably just a little bit dated

and maybe just not as functional as I would like,

cos I like to do a lot of cooking.

It's an old house, so with it comes the charm.

Yes, it is charming, definitely, that's a good word for it.

I just think maybe we'd have to think

about how we would live in a space like this.

-Shall we go upstairs?

-Yeah, let's have a look.

'Upstairs, there are three bedrooms in total,

'two of them are good-size doubles, both with working wood-burners.

'Unlike Victorian fireplaces in the UK,

'wood-burning stoves are still central to Swedish homes

'and in this property,

'there are several carefully preserved originals.

'Off the upstairs landing is a WC and the third and final bedroom.'

-Into what they are using as the master bedroom.

-OK.

-It's an extension.

-OK, OK. I really like the ceiling.

You have your own little balcony outside.

It feels like you're coming to a separate kind of area and,

if you had a door, you'd be able to close yourself off,

which would be quite nice.

I like this room, I like the balcony out there,

I can imagine sitting out there and having some breakfast something,

but it doesn't immediately grab me.

Obviously you loved the modern house,

but you did say to me that we want something old and we want something traditional.

Now this is definitely an old traditional house,

and with it comes all the quirks

and idiosyncrasies that those houses come with.

For you, this process is about helping you

make your mind up about, "OK, do we really want a traditional house?

"Or maybe we actually want something a bit more..."

I think we like the feel and look of a traditional house,

but is it functional to live in?

I can see that there is work that needs to be done and,

having just finished doing loads of work on our own flat,

I'm not sure I'm ready to take that on.

'The final element is a huge basement currently used for storage,

'but which could be developed into more living spaces.

'Outside, the garden is child-friendly,

'with lots of mature trees.'

-Do we like the garden?

-It's a nice garden, yeah.

-Yeah, it's really good.

-It's quite spacious.

It's got different spaces and interesting exploring areas.

Now, tell me, do you like this house?

I really like the outside, I think it's like a little gingerbread house

and I think it's amazing and I love the quirkiness,

but I'm not quite sure how well it would function as a home.

It doesn't really give us that open-plan

kind of living that we're wanting, really.

So, Sarah, how much do you think it's on for?

I'm going to say £730,000.

It's really difficult. It could be up as high as the other one,

but I'm going to go for £700,000.

£700,000 is what you're saying, Kevin, and you're saying £730,000.

I'm afraid you're both wrong.

It's on the market at £530,000!

Oh, my God! OK, we're completely wrong. OK, that's really surprising.

So you'd save £220,000.

How much are you liking this house now, Kevin?

"I really like this house now!"

You could get an architect in,

you could knock a couple of walls down,

you could get that kitchen done.

Having the extra cash would enable us to maybe reconfigure

and, as you said, do the things that we would like to do.

So that's changed it quite dramatically.

OK, well, go and have a look.

-I'll see you in a bit.

-OK, perfect, thanks.

So for £220,000 under their top budget,

this is a traditional turn-of-the-century property

with character at every turn.

There are three upstairs bedrooms

plus the all-important downstairs bedroom and bathroom.

The garden is plenty big enough for a children's play space

and it's 20 minutes by fast train to the city.

And whilst Kevin and Sarah may want to do some changes,

they certainly have enough leftover cash.

I saw the front of the house and I thought,

"This looks like a nice place, let's see what it's like inside."

And then as they came in, I think my heart sank a little bit.

The biggest disappointment when we came in, I think,

was the kitchen because we'd spent a lot of time getting our kitchen how we wanted it,

and the kitchen here isn't really...very functional.

When I heard the price, I was very surprised.

I'm still not sure whether the price would sway me

because I think that there could be a lot of work,

and I don't know how much that would impact on our lives.

Moving to a new country, having a baby and then doing renovations

might be a little bit of a push too far.

-Hi!

-Hi, there!

So, are we satisfied we've seen enough?

I think we've seen everything there is to see.

-OK, in that case, let's leave.

-Let's crack on.

It's perhaps not surprising Kevin and Sarah are drawn to Sweden.

It consistently ranks as one of the top countries in the world for quality of life.

It's currently number four in The Economist's where to be born list.

The high-quality free education and the state's attitude to childcare

are just two of the big draws for young families.

Swedes get a whopping 480 days of paid parental leave

compared to just 195 for Britain's,

and this can be split between the mother and the father,

trouncing the two weeks' paternity leave given in the UK.

'But no move abroad is a walk in the park

'so, to give Sarah and Kevin the lowdown on what life in Sweden might have in store for them,

'I've lined up a meeting with British expat Penny-Belle and her husband Bernie.'

Hi!

Hi, there! Pleased to meet you!

Penny-Belle and Bernie, meet Sarah and Kevin.

Hi, nice to meet you.

The reason why I think the four of you will get on very well

is because you been living here how long?

-Eight months.

-Eight months.

And Bernie works in tech. They're bringing up a small family.

-I know you've got quite a few questions, haven't you?

-Yeah, a few.

-Yeah, just a few.

-Do come in.

-OK, thank you.

'Bernie is originally from South Africa

'and he and Penny-Belle have previously lived in America,

'so they really know their stuff

'when it comes to getting to grips with a new lifestyle.

'They're also keen cyclists,

'so as Bernie takes Kevin on a tour of the neighbourhood of Taby,

'we ladies have something sweet in store.'

I can see that've you set this out for...

-What is it?

-Fika and coffee.

-And that's very traditional?

-Swedish people have it all the time.

I'm going to make myself right at home, go and lay the table

and the two of you can just carry on and find out what you want to know.

-I will.

-See you in a bit.

-Thanks. So, how do you find it?

-Are you settling in?

-Absolutely settling in.

Swedes make life very easy for you if you've got children.

So how have you found the cost of childcare

because I know, in London, there's a nursery just across the road from my house

and that costs about £1,500 per month per child.

Yeah, the cost for childcare is amazing here

and you're supported by the local commune,

and it probably costs for Cecilia, who's three, about £80 a month.

And that's for full-time... Well, it's 8.30am to 3.30pm.

Well, that is full-time for a small child.

Yeah, it is like a school day.

They make it fair for you and easy for you to have children here.

'With the boys back from their cycle ride,

'there's a chance to chat over coffee and cake.'

Let's talk about the reality of living here.

You've got a tonne of questions, so fire away.

Yeah, I guess the big thing is,

when you first came here, was it as you expected?

I think it was a lot easier than we thought it was going to be.

There's always an adjustment period of making a move,

but I would say relative to other moves we've made,

this has been by far the easiest.

One thing I've noticed in the brief period that I've been here

is that everything seems so expensive,

so is the cost of living a lot higher here than back in the UK?

Yes, it is, but it's all relative

because everybody is paid more fairly, I would say.

The minimum wage is higher.

There's a narrower spread of salaries.

I mean, there are things that are much more expensive.

If you want to get a cleaner, for instance,

it's four times as much as you would spend in England.

So you're learning the language, you've started to learn...

-Yeah, a little bit.

-Our Swedish isn't very good.

I suppose, if you do have a little bit,

-then it shows that you're keen to integrate.

-Absolutely.

I think, longer term, to integrate, you need to speak Swedish.

I think that makes a difference.

So let's talk about integration.

I was quite shocked at how different the Swedes are to English people.

For instance, they come across quite straight and almost rude,

but that's not the case at all.

It's just that they are respectful of each other's space.

So it just takes a bit of time to break down

some of those barriers and get to know people?

If you're, for example, in the street and look lost,

no-one's going to come up to you and say, "Hey, you look lost. Can I help you?"

You have to say, "Hey, I'm lost. Can you help me?"

And then they'll be really helpful.

Bernie, you work here, so how different is work culture?

It's great. I think it's a very good work-life balance.

You work a 40-hour week.

If you're working longer hours,

people think you're not very good at your job.

"What's wrong with you? Why do you need to work longer hours?"

Ben is home for 6.30 every night

to help put the kids to bed, read them a story.

We can have dinner together, whereas in England, it was much later.

So, Bernie, how do you find socialising at work then?

Is it very different? Cos in London, it's very much a pub culture.

You go out with people after work and have a few drinks.

Yeah, we go out for lunch every day

and we have a proper meal in a restaurant, and sit down,

and that's a nice thing to do.

There are beers after work.

People buy their own, so you don't buy rounds.

Everyone does their own drink

and I would say that people drink less than in the UK,

which is certainly no bad thing, in my opinion.

You've been here eight month so far. Any regrets?

-No, not really.

-Not yet!

And are you still sure you want to make the move here?

- Yeah, absolutely. - It's really great to see another family doing it and enjoying it,

so that's really, really great.

Yes, so this could be the start of a nice friendship?

I definitely think you should come back for coffee and fika again.

Thank you for having us.

'Undeniably, the quality-of-life in Sweden is high,

'but it does come at a price.'

And when Kevin starts work,

he will start paying Scandinavian-style taxes

of which Sweden's other highest.

Anyone earning over £32,000 pays 49%-60% of their salary

in income and local government taxes,

way above that of UK, where the top rate is a comparatively low 45%

and only kicks in on income over £150,000.

One other thing to note about the house-buying process here

is that mortgages are usually arranged by the bank

local to the property,

so you need to have your finances in order

and go to see the bank manager to be able to move quickly.

In this big move to Stockholm,

Kevin and Sarah will be upscaling their two-bedroom maisonette

to a four-bedroom family home

and will be needing a lot more furniture,

which Sweden is famous for.

The country that gave the world IKEA is celebrated

for its contemporary and cool designs.

-I quite like these ones.

-Yeah.

-Do you like this?

-They're pretty nice, aren't they? What about that?

Yeah, that's nice, isn't it?

-What's the damage on that?

-980.

£98!

-OK, we'll get saving.

-I think that's probably a good idea.

'Furniture, like most things in Sweden,

'is more expensive than in the UK,

'and they're going to need deep pockets

'to furnish the next house we're showing them.'

This property is in the western suburb of Spanga,

bang on Kevin's 11-mile cycling commute distance

and close to the airport.

It's one of Stockholm's property hot spots -

affluent, good shops, great schools

and there's a fast train into the city.

And if they join this community,

Kevin would be just a 15-minute cycle to Wireless Valley,

where many of the big names in IT are based.

And in a leafy suburban street is our next property.

-Here we are. What you think about this one then?

-It's big.

-Yes, really interesting.

-Mm-hmm!

-THEY LAUGH

-Big and interesting.

-What do they mean then? Daunting big or...?

-No, in a good way.

That is good, yeah, cos it is a whole lot of house.

-Nice flowered terrace.

-Are you being sarky?

No, no, I'm not, I think it's really cool! It's very Romeo and Juliet.

Yes, you could be up there.

Kevin, you could be down here.

-THEY LAUGH

-OK, right.

I'm super-excited about showing you inside this one.

-OK, shall we do it?

-OK, let's go.

'This villa dates from 1919 and is set in a third of an acre

'of child-friendly, wraparound garden

'with some separate entertaining spaces.

'The striking entrance to this property

is tucked away from street view.

'Once through the entry hall,

'you're greeted by the ground-floor living room,

'chock-full of period features.'

-Ooh!

-Mmm! Cool!

-Yeah, I like it.

-It's nice, yeah.

-It feels really big.

-Yeah, really open.

Yeah, and obvious kind of spaces. Yeah, I like it already.

You've got this fantastic huge lounge

with that incredible bay window, which will let all the light in.

It's got that perfect balance that you like,

which is through open living area,

but with definite spaces, so the dining room's in there

-and there's a little space in there. Shall we have a look?

-Yeah, let's.

-Into...

-A library.

-Yes.

A library is such a luxury, isn't it?

The whole space feel so nice. It just flows, it feels really natural.

Oh, it's got you excited!

Kevin, are you happy that Sarah's excited or what?

I'm very happy Sarah's excited, of course!

-What about you? How do you feel so far?

-No, no, it's very nice.

It seems very homely, a good use of space.

OK, a very important room in the house - the kitchen.

-Let's head there now.

-Let's see it.

'Back through the living room and a small pantry area,

'the country-style kitchen has plenty of room for casual dining.'

-Come on through.

-OK.

-Kevin, what do you think about this kitchen?

-Yeah, it's a good layout.

Obviously dated, I'd need to refresh it a bit,

-but, yeah, we could work with it.

-Yeah, I agree.

I think it is a really good layout, loads of cupboard space.

-It probably just needs a little bit of updating.

-Yeah.

Just put the type of cupboards in that you like.

Also on this floor, you've got a toilet, a bedroom,

perfect for when your family comes.

-Now I want to take you up to the first floor.

-OK.

-OK, great.

'Up on the first floor are three bedrooms.

'One is set up as a children's bedroom, one is an office,

'and there is another small office space.

'There's also a fully-tiled shower room,

'which just leaves the final bedroom on this floor.'

-OK, the master bedroom.

-It's nice.

Decent size, great to have a fire in there.

They've got a built-in cupboard here.

In fact, this house has got lots of storage.

This has got a balcony over here.

-Ah, the Romeo and Juliet balcony, brilliant.

-The Romeo and Juliet balcony.

-Lovely.

-And a terrace over there.

-Oh, fab!

-A sun terrace.

-Nice.

It feels like a good mix between a modern and a traditional house.

I like the layout, it feels quite functional and modern,

but it's got nice traditional features, like the fireplace

and the fireplace in the living room, for example, so it's got a good mix.

Now we just have to put a price on it.

Shall we find somewhere comfortable to guess the price?

-It's a big challenge.

-We'll give it a go.

-Come on.

-OK.

'This large house doesn't end there,

'as there is another floor

'up in the eaves with two further guest bedrooms.

'And as if that wasn't enough, we're heading down to the basement,

'where there is even more in store.'

-Sauna!

-Wow!

-With a bath and a shower.

-Amazing.

-Yeah? Good to go.

-Great!

-But this is pretty cool. Come in.

-OK, wow!

-THEY LAUGH

-Home entertainment room.

-Excellent!

-Yeah, this is super.

-Who'll be down here?

-You.

Yeah, probably on that sofa.

So let's think about price. Let's start with you, Sarah.

How much do you think this property is on the market for?

They're all stumping me. I'm really confused about this.

£680,000.

-How about you, Kevin?

-Yeah, it's a tricky one to do.

-I think about £700,000.

-OK.

You're both wrong. It's a little bit more.

-OK.

-It was put on the market at £710,000, which is not bad.

When we got here, their highest offer was £735,000.

-In the last hour, it's gone up to £755,000.

-OK.

So that gives you a sense of how quickly the market moves here.

If you like it, you're going to have to think about

whether you're prepared to stretch your budget.

If you like this property and seriously like this property enough

to want to put a bid in and get yourselves in the game,

then you would have to do that,

-I would recommend, within the next 12 hours.

-Yeah.

-Yeah, OK.

-Because this is happening now.

-Yes, it is.

-NOW, now.

-Very quickly.

-OK, off you go.

-OK, thanks.

-Thanks.

'With the quick Swedish house-buying system,'

the price has already jumped

to £45,000 over the asking price of £710,000.

But for that, this really is a whole lot of house.

Spread across four floors, there are six bedrooms, a library,

modern connected living spaces,

a sauna and entertainment room,

plus a large garden and some very special character balconies.

It's a lot of space, but it's a lot of money.

It's crazy how quickly the market moves here, isn't it?

It's a bit scary.

When I first saw the house from the outside,

I was really surprised at how big and expansive it was.

This house is massive.

Loads of space, more space than we need, probably.

The housing market here is something we need to get used to and fast!

There really is a lot to think about with this

because it's a quick decision that needs to be made.

It's all become very real

in that people are offering on this property right now,

so if they want part of the action,

they're going to have to get involved.

How much do they love it though?

-Hello, are you ready?

-Yeah, we are.

-Come on, I will let you out.

-Thank you.

-Have you seen enough?

-Yes.

Yeah, there was a lot to see and we have seen it all.

-A lot to see and a lot to think about.

-Yes, definitely.

-Come on then, let's go.

-OK.

It's our final day looking for a family home here in Stockholm

for Londoners Kevin and Sarah, who have a budget of £750,000.

They're staying in a classic Stockholm pad whilst they're here

to get the true Swedish experience.

We still have our mystery house to reveal,

so we're leaving the suburbs and going slightly further afield.

I just hope they've got their sea legs.

Mystery property time

and I am here because this is where the archipelago really opens up.

-The next house is on one of the islands.

-Oh, wow!

-It's on Norra Lagno.

You can drive there from central Stockholm,

it'll take about half an hour, but where's the fun in that when you can jump on a boat?

The mystery houses is the most rural of all our houses,

located 15 miles to the east of central Stockholm in Norra Lagno.

It's a peninsula piece of land attached to the island of Varmdo,

which is rapidly becoming a suburban area to Stockholm.

But this peninsula remains a rural idyll with no shops

and services, although these are just a few miles away.

There's only 300 permanent residents,

but the population triples in the summer

as Stockholmers escape the city for their holiday homes.

You might think of Sweden as a cold country,

but Stockholm is relatively mild.

'In winter, it can drop to minus five,

'but in July, temperatures regularly hit a sunny 22 degrees Celsius.'

-Here we are! Now that wouldn't be a bad commute, would it?

-Yeah!

'Just a three-minute walk from the landing spot

'and located in a gorgeous rural setting is out mystery house,

'which has a unique quirk that could really suit our house buyers.'

Up this cute little path.

-Ooh!

-Wow, it's cool! Yeah, I really like it.

Let's look at it from a better aspect over here. Come on.

This way.

Come around here. Have a look at this beauty!

You wanted something old in your original criteria,

so we have come to something old.

-This was actually built in 1880.

-OK, that's quite old.

Yeah, pretty old, right?

I think it looks like a really nice place -

lots of land - you feel like you are out in the countryside.

-It's really nice and peaceful.

-Yes.

-Shall we go and have a look inside?

Yeah, let's have a look.

'So the more rural location is going down well and the old

and traditional nature of the exterior is just what they were after.

'I'm very excited to show them the interior, which is a real contrast.'

-Come on through.

-Oh, it's really nice.

-Yeah.

-It's really cosy. Looks nice, doesn't it?

-Yeah, I really like it.

Loads of light and how it's set out, look, you can just imagine

yourself being in here, lounging around in front of the fire.

Yeah, just a great feeling.

This feels definitely the right kind of size.

Great layout.

It's really traditional from the outside and then,

inside, it's really nice and modern.

OK. So, you like the living room - that's brilliant.

-Shall we go and see the kitchen?

-Yeah, definitely, let's go.

-Follow me!

'Much of the interior of this house was renovated in 2006,

'giving them the modern design they've realised they actually want.

'This house is not completely open plan,

'but I think that's a blessing.

'The downstairs living spaces flow into each other, giving connection

'while still being distinct areas.'

-It's really nice. What do you think?

-Yeah, lovely, yeah.

It's still got traditional features,

but still really modern and really nice.

-Yeah, it's even got the original cooker.

-Oh, right, OK.

It was first put in with this house. It actually still works.

-Oh, wow, OK.

-But it's just a beautiful feature.

And also, on this floor, you've got a bedroom -

-which they're using as an office - and a shower room.

-OK, great.

That's exactly what we need. Yeah, perfect.

And this would be great,

-accessible for the whole family to be around.

-Yes.

-You feel this one, don't you?

-Yeah, definitely. Yeah, it's nice.

Yeah, I really like this one. I'm with Kev.

-I think it's definitely, you know, it's up the top now.

-OK.

-It just depends on what else there is.

-OK. Well, let's go and see.

-Shall we head upstairs?

-Yeah, let's go upstairs.

-Come on, follow me.

The final rooms on the ground floor are a utility/cloakroom,

which connects the kitchen to the garden,

great for disrobing all the coats and boots,

and then there's a snug off the dining room.

At the top of the stairs, the first thing to greet you is a typically

Swedish feature of an upstairs family room.

-Oh, wow!

-Mmm, wow!

-Yeah, more wow!

-More wow!

It's just nice to have these separate spaces because you may not always

want to be in the same room, even just us.

You know, I might want to read a book or Kev might be working.

Or if we have family over, then we might want to have our own space,

-just for a little bit.

-Yeah.

'Off this living space are four bedrooms.

'One bedroom is currently used for guests,

'whilst two others are fantastic children's rooms.'

If you look to your right there, you've got quite possibly

-the coolest kids' bedrooms ever.

-Yeah.

-Mm.

-The beds are brilliant!

-Yeah, OK, that's really cool.

But if you go that way, Kevin,

-that's the master bedroom. Let's have a look.

-OK.

-Yeah, nice.

-Is it big enough for you?

Yeah, it's...

-It's not massive, but it seems like there's lots of storage.

-Yeah.

And you have a fantastic en suite.

-Oh, fab! Yeah, that's really great.

-That's good.

-Isn't that brilliant?

-Yeah.

-OK, well, I've got another area to show you, which is a surprise.

-OK.

-I love a surprise! Come with me.

-OK. Super.

'Now they may not be giving too much away,

'but I can tell they love this house.

'Inside, it quite simply has everything they asked for.

'Outside, the property is set in just under an acre of land,

'with a lawned area,

'a ready-made Wendy house and then a raised platform

'with something they didn't actually request,

'but I think they're going to like.'

-So, surprise!

-OK, wow!

A bean-shaped pool!

Yeah, that's pretty impressive.

-Let's think about the P word...

-Oh, dear.

-..price.

-Yeah.

I'd like you to tell me how much

you think this property is on the market for.

Probably near our top end again,

so I'd say about £750,000.

-And, Sarah, how about you?

-I think it'll be over budget.

I think I'm going to say £755,000.

-It's over your budget.

-Mm-hm.

-It's on at £780,000.

-Right, OK.

However, this is a really unique situation

and actually it could potentially work in your favour.

This property is not actually going to be brought to the market

-until next spring.

-OK, OK.

-So, we have had a sneak preview.

-Wow. That's really, really exciting.

That's interesting, yeah.

It's a really privileged position to be in. The luxury of time!

Imagine that in a Swedish housing market.

You can go back, you can look at your finances

-and plan the possibility of making a move.

-Yeah.

-And it's next spring, so baby will be born.

-Yeah.

-Sounds too good to be true!

-It does, doesn't it?

That's really exciting because, actually,

-that time will really give us, you know, a bit of breathing space.

-Yeah.

-I want the two of you to go off and have a really good look around the house.

-Yeah.

Talk amongst yourselves and I'll be lounging somewhere

in this glorious sunshine.

-OK.

-All right? Off you go.

-OK.

-Cheers!

'So, for £30,000 over their stated budget,

'this is the house that has it all.

'Traditional on the outside but modern on the inside,

'there are well-connected living spaces, four upstairs bedrooms,

'plus the downstairs bedroom

'and bathroom they need for Kevin's mother.

'There's a bonus swimming pool

'and it's set in a fantastic rural location.

'And, crucially, with the delayed sale date,

'what this house offers them is a move after their baby is born.'

The mystery house, for me, is definitely the best house we've seen so far.

In a lovely area and it's got a great feel, really homely.

It just seems to be almost perfect.

I didn't think anything could surpass the modern house,

but actually this house has really fulfilled all of the needs

and I'm really impressed by it.

This house is above our budget slightly.

It's certainly something we'd need to think about and see

if we can stretch to that.

For the right house, I think we probably can.

The great thing about this is that it seems like we do have time.

We're not stuck in this...

Well, not trapped by this very fast-moving market.

Given the situation that we will have a baby next year and this house will

come on the market, it definitely feels like the house

that we can put an offer in on.

-Hello!

-Hi, how are you?

-I'm great.

-How are you?

-Yeah, we're great.

-Yeah, good, good.

Can I take you away from this property?

-It's going to be tricky.

-Yeah, barely.

-OK. So, you love it.

Yeah, it's really great.

-OK, let's go and find somewhere to talk about it.

-OK, thanks.

-Come on.

With the properties going down so well,

this move is quickly becoming a reality.

Time to have a go at putting their Swedish lessons to the test.

THEY SPEAK SWEDISH

-Well done.

-Thanks. That wasn't so bad, was it?

It'll be better when we can actually speak proper Swedish,

-that'll be much better.

-I think need to practise, get those books out.

-It'll be nice to be able to just have a normal conversation.

-Yeah.

We definitely need lots of lessons.

I'm not stopping for coffee and fika because I'm going to find out

a little bit more about this incredible city.

Stockholm is one of the best preserved medieval cities in Europe

and even long-term residents can get lost navigating through the many

islands that make up the city and the 57 bridges that connect them.

I'd like to find out more about the layout of this unique capital

from a local expert, if I can find them!

-Hi, Anita!

-Hey, pleased to meet you.

-How are you?

I'm great, I'm great. Whereabouts am I? What is this place?

You're in the old town, like, the heart of the city.

And who's this fella, here?

-Birger Jarl, the founder of Stockholm.

-When was this?

That was 1252.

Stockholm is built upon islands and there is plenty of water,

so pirates were coming, there was a lot of trade coming on

and therefore they had to build a defensive tower

and that got bigger and bigger, it became a castle.

-Right, so he was sort of the king of the area?

-Yes.

-I'd like to get a sense of perspective.

-Just follow me.

'Well, I should be careful what I wish for.'

-Up there.

-'She leads tours of this historic city

'and there's a unique viewpoint

'accessible only by the most daring explorer.'

-It's the perfect way to see Stockholm.

-Right.

When we get on the roof, there's several platforms

and we have a wire that runs around the roof,

and I will attach you in the safety runner.

-It's like walking the dog.

-Yeah.

Slightly terrified now.

'Trust the adventurous Swedes to have set up Takvandring,

'or rooftop tours, that traverse the skyline of their capital.'

SHE LAUGHS

-And we emerge into the light.

-Yes.

Oh, yes. You can see how you've got a great view up here.

-Yeah, fantastic, isn't it?

-It's amazing, yes.

Over there, we see the old town. Stadsholmen, the city island.

And there you see the cathedral, the square tower

and next to it, the palace, but all these black metal sheet roofs

we see are what we now today call old town, Gamla stan.

It's like, if you look at the map of Stockholm, the old town

looks like a heart-shaped part and we can say it's the heart of the town.

-Good view! Right, I'm feeling brave, I'm feeling brave.

-Yes.

-Right!

-Here you go, here's your dog.

-Right, so that's it?

-We just want like this?

-Yes, and then you...

-Safe as houses!

-Yes.

Let's do it!

ANITA GASPS

-This is safe, is it?

-Yes, this is very safe.

-Are you sure?

Don't worry!

-You're hooked.

-I'm hooked!

OK, let's do it. Ah!

You see?

-Amazing!

-Yeah.

-This is a bit...

This is a little bit terrifying.

ANITA LAUGHS

I'm on a rooftop in the middle of Stockholm with a dog lead

keeping me safe. It's fine.

Agh!

ANITA LAUGHS

I made it!

'This viewpoint is not for the faint-hearted,

'but up here, it's easier to understand how it is that

'Stockholm became such a strategic trading post.'

Here we see the two waterways -

we see the Baltic and the lake.

That's why Stockholm became that important

because there was all this trade going on

from the Baltic area and then into the lake.

And here we can see perfectly how the city has been growing.

-Maybe you have noticed we have a very low skyline?

-Yes.

-Yes, we don't have a lot of skyscrapers.

-No, not at all.

Actually, the city has been growing like a tree.

So, it started with the old town and then this part,

it's getting bigger and bigger

and if you look, now you see all these different colours and facades.

-So, it's sort of concentric circles around...

-Yes.

And there you can see different styles in architecture.

-You get a sense of the history from seeing it up here.

-Yep.

And when you appreciate the history, you can really get an understanding

of what makes a city and a culture. So, thank you!

With all our properties now viewed,

it's time for our house-hunters to pack up from their city pad

and take stock of their time here.

Our last day in Stockholm and finally

I get to sit down with Kevin and Sarah to see what they're thinking.

My suspicion is that the speed at which the housing market

is moving here may have made them reconsider a little bit.

I just hope it hasn't put them off completely.

Let's go and find out.

-Hi!

-Hi there!

-Hi!

-This is nice, isn't it?

-Yes, very fancy.

OK, so we've had a good week together.

I've shown you a selection of properties.

Tell me which was your favourite.

I mean, there's two definites for us - two standouts -

-and that was the modern house and the mystery house.

-Yeah.

The mystery house - traditional and modern,

amazing, kind of, interior,

stunning setting and it has everything plus more,

you know, with that amazing pool and entertaining area,

but then over budget.

Tell me what was so good about the modern house.

It's pretty much got everything we need.

It's got the downstairs bedroom, a really nice kitted out bathroom.

It's a nice feel to it.

I mean, if it wasn't for the timeframe with the baby,

I think personally that the modern house,

you know, we would be putting in an offer on that.

The owners of that house, I found out,

-don't actually want to move out until after Christmas.

-OK.

Ah, that's interesting.

OK, that's quite interesting because it's that pressure of saying,

"OK, now you have to do it before you have a baby and then - aargh!"

I'm thinking that, you know, is it something we could do, is to put

-an offer in with the option of moving in whenever?

-Yeah.

You need to have a conversation with the agent

-because that house was within your budget.

-Yeah.

-You love it, so potentially, potentially...

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

..there could be something going on.

-Yeah, that changes things quite a lot.

-Yeah, definitely.

I want to wish you all the best.

-Thank you.

-I'm genuinely really excited.

-And congratulations on the baby!

-Thank you.

You've been great fun, so good luck with everything.

-Thanks.

-Thank you very much.

There is no doubt the Kevin and Sarah

have had a love affair with Stockholm.

And after our week together,

far from this just being a romantic notion,

I think the idea of them coming here is more solid than ever.

It's not about if, it's just about when.

Join me next time for another Escape To The Continent.

Kevin and Sarah went to put an offer in the modern house,

but weren't quick enough and sadly lost out.

And in the end, they felt the Mystery House

was just a little bit to rural and expensive.

However, Kevin is now talking to potential employers,

so the plan to move once their baby arrives

is still very much full steam ahead.