All language subtitles for Country.House.Hunters.S03E07.720p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-BTN

From its barren
beauty to lush landscapes,...

the Australian countryside is as
beautiful as it is breathtaking.

Many Australians are discovering
rural life and making the move,

so I'm on the hunt to help everyday
Australians find their
perfect country house.

www.able.co.nz
Copyright Able 2023

Today we're in sunny Echuca,
looking at properties with
our couple, Amy and Colin.

Do you think your friends
would like this?

I'm sure they would. We won't
be able to get rid of them.

- Now, we have a really big house
with loads of space, a project home
with some kind of noisy neighbours...

- ...and country cottage that is
straight out of a fairy tale.

- This is the type of thing we were
looking to― to look at, so, no,
it definitely felt like us.

- So let's see if we can find Amy
and Colin their perfect country home.

Echuca has long been a favourite
holiday spot. People just love
the laid-back lifestyle here―

life spent on the river ―
and it gets loads of sunshine.

I think that today's couple
will absolutely love moving here.

On their wish list is a
Central Victorian town,
something that's easy to access,

good facilities, and I know that Amy
and Colin will love the Murray River.

I really do think that Echuca
will get a hook on their heart.

Now let me introduce our couple.
Actually, hold on a sec. They
can introduce themselves.

Colin Lane, aged mid-40s.

- You idiot.
- Uh, we're from Nicholson
in Victoria.

- We met in Horsham. Uh, we were
at a pub. I was there with some
friends.

He was playing pool, and I was
standing near the pool table.
He kicked me.

I grabbed his leg and made him hop,
and that's the story, really.

- That's the history. We've been
inseparable ever since, and that
was 22, 23 years ago.

- Colin's job as an area manager for
Elders Agriculture requires him
to travel all across Victoria,

so our couple are looking to move to
Echuca to be in a slightly more
centralised area.

- What drove us to looking at Echuca
was it's a thriving town, the Murray
― Amy's a Murray girl ―

and also for the kids. There's great
schooling. A lot more centralised
for my role as well.

- Amy is after a house that is great
for entertaining,

and both of them would love a little
bit of land for their children
to enjoy.

- The new house has to have enough
bedrooms so we can have family and
friends.

I would like something that has
a pool or a space to have a pool in.

- No neighbours.
- No neighbours is
a massive thing for us.

We can have the kids playing
outside, riding motorbikes,
and no one's going to be upset.

- I think once we put our roots
down, this will be, you know, for
the next 10 or 15 years of our life,

so we see ourselves really getting
into the local community here
in Echuca.

- Echuca is on the northern border
of Victoria, across the river from
the New South Wales town ofMoama.

The port of Echuca is home to
the world's largest fleet
of operating riverboats.

With a town rich in history
and a thriving community,

it's pretty easy to see why
our couple would love to live
in this magical place.

Our first property is this
five-bedroom, very secluded
home on 52 acres ―

loads of space for the kids to make
use of. Let's see what Amy and Colin
make of this one.

Hello.
- Hi.
- Hi.

Thank you for turning on
the weather.

- I can see why you love Echuca.
- It's pretty, isn't it?

- But I am curious. Everybody
has a different story. So,
why move to Echuca?

- My work takes me
all over Victoria,

and living in Nicholson, and it
takes four hours to get to Melbourne

and then four hours
to get to anywhere else.

Whereas here, in Central Vic,
I can be four hours to
anywhere in Victoria.

- Nice and central?
- Yes.
- We love that.

Uh, what exactly is your job?
- Area manager for Elders.

I look after Gippsland
and Northern Victoria for Elders.

- Right, and you love to talk
with your hands.
- Yes!

Me too. OK, so,
what is on your wish list?

- Um, space where we can run a few
cows. Just something that we can
actually deal or do ourselves.

- Part-time. We can do it part-time.
- Part-time.

- Cos you're a science teacher ―
is that right?
- Yes, I am.

- OK, and what else is on the wish
list?

- It's gotta have a nice driveway,
I think ― an entrance.
- Why is that?

- Oh, just― It goes back to, as
a kid, having a nice entrance
as you come into a house.

Um, and plenty of room for people
to come over, cos our family
all lives away.

- Mm-hm.
- We're brand-new to Echuca.

We don't know anyone, so hopefully
we can make some friends.

- Oh, that's lovely. Sad but lovely.
- So they can come and share
our house with us. Yeah.

- I― I should ask ―
what is your budget?
- Between one and two mill.

- Great.
- We don't mind if it's gonna
be renovated or whatever.

We're open to different ideas.
So it'll be interesting to see
what you can come up with.

- I think I've got three good ones,
beginning with this glorious home.
You ready to come inside?

- Absolutely.
- Let's do it. OK, let's do it.
No pressure

OK, it's quite deceiving, this house,
from the outside.
- Phew.

What are you 'phewing' about?
I just can't get over the void.

It's blowing my mind, actually.
- Really? You like that?

- What about you? How do you feel
as you're walking through here?
- I feel very small.

Do you?

It's like a giant built the place.

- But that's a good thing.
We like that.
- Yeah, there's plenty of room.

- Absolutely.

The size of the house ― that's―
that's a big surprise. It's massive.

- Yeah.
- It's probably bigger
than what we need.

- It's a wonderful entrance,
and then you come into one
of four living spaces.

We've got five bedrooms.

It's 52 acres, and I just wanna get
your thoughts. Is it a scary concept
to have that kind ofland?

- Oh, it doesn't scare us at all.
Plenty of space for the kids,

plenty of space to run a few cattle
― it sounds pretty good to me.

- Just come and check this out,...
- Beautiful.

- ...cos I know that
you'll be entertaining.
- Yep.

- I could show you any
of the four entertaining spaces,

but I just wanted to bring you into
this particular possie, cos there's
a lot going on here.

The incredible bar that's here. This
space ― you're straight out into the
entertaining area right there.

Do you think your friends
would like this?
- I'm sure they would.

- We won't be able to get rid of them.
- Oh.

There is a whole level upstairs
that could almost be like
a parents' retreat.

And then I have one final little
cherry on top outside, so when you're
ready, come and meet meoutside.

- All right.

What do you reckon, Col?
- Yeah, well, it's― it's big.

- The parent retreat
is amazing.
- Well oversize.

- Yeah.
- You could probably put a few other
families in there if you wanted to.

It's gonna take a lot of work.
There's stuff― The carpet's shagged.
Um...

- Shagged?
- The paint... There's
a few paint things you don't like.

Yeah, the― the paint's not our―
our choice, is it?

I'd change a few things,
but if we purchase this place,

we'll live in it for a while and
just work out what we need to do.

- Well, apart from showing you this
gorgeous green space, it was on the
wish list to have a pool.Is it OK?

- Yeah.
- Oh, it's perfect.
- It will― It will do the job.

- You've gone through the house.
We've got a lot on that wish list
that's working for you,

but what would you change?
- Things that we need to change
if we bought this is colours,...

- Oh yeah.
- ...and we did notice that
the carpet actually needs replacing.

OK.
- So... Apart from that, I―

I actually quite like that
it's spacious.

There's a lovely big study for me,
so...
- Yes.

And how about for you?
Is there anything you'd change?

- For me, it's the size of it. It's―
It's very, very big. I've gotta get
my head around that.

- OK. It's got a―
- Like, you're gonna tell us,

but I know it's at the top
end of our range, too.

- It's not over your budget.
Don't put the boot in just yet.

It is actually open to offers
of 1.85.

Maybe pushing it a little.
I don't know. I don't know.
How do you feel about that?

We― We'll, um,
have a look at the other ones.

- OK.
- Just see where we go.

Although we said one to two million,
it's the top end, isn't it?
- Yep. Well and truly top end.

- It's a big place.
It ticks a lot of our boxes.

Yeah, I'm going to interested to see
what― where we go to from here.
- Yeah.

- But I like this one.
- I know you do.

- Coming up, we will tour this
project home with a hobby farm.

And later on, we will see
this gorgeous cottage.

I am in Echuca in Victoria,
helping Amy and Colin find
their new home in the country.

I first took them to a huge home
on 52 acres,

but now I'd like to show them
something just a little bit
different.

It's on a lot less land and,
yes, it does still have just
as much potential.

Well, obviously, this place is quite
different to our first home on the
52 acres. This one is on seven.

It's been subdivided, but you have
the option, if you'd like,
to lease that land back.

But this is your land,
and as you can hear...

- Thank you. It's a hobby farm at the
moment. Are you OK with the 7 acres?
What do you think?

Oh, what?

- It― It's a little bit too small.
- OK.
- The house itself is quite cute.

- I just want you to know
it's way under your budget.

- We're open-minded to all things.
We're coming for a new start,
so let's have a look.

- Now, remember to
just be open-minded.

- Floors are nice.
- Yeah, look at the floors.
- You like the floors?

- Yes, I do. I love timber floors.
- Yeah, beautiful original
timber floors.

- Beautiful.
- I believe that the current owners
actually knocked a wall out...

- Yeah, right.
- ...here, and they've opened up
this space a little bit more.

Knowing that the home is under
budget, what would you do here?

You could create anything you wanted.
- Make the kitchen bigger.
- Easy.

- More― More entertaining space
for people to mingle.

- What we've done in the past
with houses is put our stamp on 'em,

and that's what we'd probably
do here if we went this way.

- Yeah, definitely. I mean, it's―
it's got some great character...

- Mm.
- ...in the house.

- They're two opposite ends of
the spectrum, this house to
the first house. Um, yeah...

- It's got a charming appeal to it.

- Well, I'll let you take a look
around this house. And when you're
ready, I will meet you outthe back.

Good luck. Have fun.
- OK, thank you.
- Thank you.

- It's small, Col.
- Yes.
- It's very little.

- I tell you what ― 20 years ago,
this is―

- This would be ideal.
- Would've been perfect.

But we could make it our own. Like,
we could do a lot to this place,

and― and it's gonna be a lot
cheaper, so it's worth considering.

- OK, you're smiling.
- It's a good thing.

OK, I'm appealing to your creative
side here. What would you do to
this beautiful outdoor space?

- You could imagine decking out to
a pool, beautiful big area here.
Happy days in summer.

- Have a guess what the price is.

- Uh... s...
- Mid-sixes?

- Yeah, I was gonna say―
- Or low sixes?
- Nah, I reckon it'll be over seven.

- 685.
- There you go.
- It's 685,

so considering your budget
is one to two, boom, let's renovate.

- Yeah, well, when you look at it
like that, you could do a lot
of stuff with not much.

- You could go on a cruise after.
I could help you out with that.

- You gonna look after the kids?
- That's not what I was thinking.

- The price definitely is appealing,
but it's a lot of work,

a lot of time, and it's― it's a lot
smaller than what we're used to
from Nicholson as well.

- I reckon we'd end up
killing each other.
- You're probably right.

- After the break, I catch up with
Jenny to learn about the town's
local ghosts.

- My favourite is― well, two of
them ― Daniel and James in the
underground bar at the StarHotel.

- And then we're off to a cottage
that's had a very interesting
addition.

People flock to Echuca for the
many paddle steamers that grace
their way down the Murray River.

So to learn more about
the region's boat tours,

I caught up with Jenny, who's been
working on the Pevensey since 1983.

It's no surprise to you that people
come here on holidays, then decide,
'I wanna stay.

'I wanna live here.' What do you
think it is that appeals
to so many people?

- I really do believe it's because
we're so friendly, and we do
sort of engage with people...

- Yeah.
- ...and help them out
as much as we can.

- Mm-hm.
- And we're only too pleased
to have them there,

because they― they keep us going,
especially with the port area,
because we love having themhere.

I've been working here on the wharf
on― on the wharf doing tours since
2013, and I just love it.

The people you meet
are just fantastic.

And then we started the ghost tours,
and I love the ghost tours.
It's right up my alley.

- Favourite ghost?
- My favourite ghost is―
well, two of them ―

Daniel and James in the
underground bar at the Star Hotel.

They're really cool. They killed
each other there. They pop up
when you go down,

and they touch you and run their
fingers up and down your spine.
It― It's really great.

It's a lot of fun.

- You're nuts.
- Yes.

- Now on to our third and final home,
which is the epitome
of country living.

Well, I'm kind of splitting the
difference with this property ―

33 acres ― and I think that
that cottage, that is really,
for a lot of people ―

that is their country-charm
fairy tale. Is it yours?
- Absolutely. It's stunning.

- I actually― I also noticed that we
ticked off your wish list ― the long
driveway.

- It's a very long driveway.
- What's the appeal of
a long driveway for you?

- I think it's just a― a grandeur.
As you're driving through, you're―
you just think it's...

I don't know what it is.
- I think that it's―
it's the illusion,

'What's― What's along that driveway?'

The sense of peace building up,
the mystery, 'What's gonna happen
at the end of this drive?'

Let's go and check out what this
little country cottage is like.
- Yeah.

- Come on inside.
- Let's do it.

- Oh wow. Have a look at this.
- Wow good?

- This is what we've been lookin'
for, isn't it?

- It is.
- Something like this.
- Really?

Yeah.
- It's got a good feeling about it.
It really has.

- In here.
- It sort of feels like home.

Like, this― this is the type
of thing we were looking to―
to look at,

so, no, it definitely felt like us.

- This is a cottage
that was moved here,...
- Oh.

- ...so I don't know
what its former life was,

but you might need a stepladder
for the cupboards.

Yes, I think I probably will.

- It's actually a funny
little kitchen, isn't it,

when you think about it.
- Yeah.
- It's in a big room,

and it's sort of half-done or
half... I don't know what you
call it.

- I need― An island bench needs
to be put in the middle so the kids
can sit and eat while you're cooking

or doing homework.
- OK, as if.

- Yeah, my kids don't do that.
- Yes, that's exactly it.

- Go and have a look through here.
I just wanna show you this bit.
- Beautiful.

- So, I should just give you a little
bit of background. This home ―
well, this cottage―

was moved here when the property
was first subdivided many,
many years ago.

A local house painter bought
the property, brought it out here,

and an architect added
this section on.
- Mm.

- So does that start to make sense?
- Mm.
- The steps, the mezzanine ―

you could tell it's not in
its original form. Is that fair?

- It's quirky.
There's quirky aspects to it.

- The light ―
that's what I like too.
- There's windows everywhere.

- Yeah.
- I'm loving the light.

- I know that we've got the long
driveway, but how about the rest
of your wish list?

- It's― It's close. There's no pool.
- And this is only three bedrooms,
yeah?

- It's only three bedrooms. However,
you could put another bedroom
upstairs if you wanted.

Would you like to go and have a look?
- Absolutely.
- Definitely.

Oh wow. Have a look at this.
- That's awesome, isn't it?

You could make it a w― a proper
bedroom. You just need to put some
wardrobes and stuff inhere.

- It's got a good feeling,
hasn't it?
- It's got an awesome feeling.

- Mm.

- Don't the birds sound lovely out
here in this country garden that
doesn't require a lot of work?

That it does.

- So, there's no pool?
- Well, clearly there's no pool.

Excuse me. There's a little creek
down the back, though.
- Yeah, that's cool. I like that.

- Yeah, that is lovely.
- And when you hear the price,
it will open the creativity level.

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

- Oh, it's under a mill, I reckon.
- 900.

- 790.
- Ooh.

- Now, look, I'll be honest with you.
This place will go very quickly.

- We could see ourselves
living here.
- Oh, definitely.

It was gorgeous. It was cute, the
typical country cottage, I guess.

Very similar to our first-ever house
that we purchased.

- It's definitely well within our
budget ― gives us a lot of scope
to put a pool in.

- Do some renovations.
- Renovate to make it our own,

put our own stamp on
the whole place.
- Stamp on it.

- I have shown Amy and Colin three
pretty darn amazing properties
in Echuca.

Now that they've had some time
to think things over,

let's catch up and see
if they have found a standout.

Come and join me.
We've got so much to talk about.
- We do.

- I'm so excited. Now,
I've organised a tasting for you.

- I can read you like a book.
- I know you're gonna love it.

But, first, you need to deliver
the goods. Tell me how you felt
about those three houses,

because I think we started very well.
What did you think of
house number one?

- Beautiful.
- Yeah, the big thing for us
is it ticked all the boxes.

We could move in there
straight away,

but it― it's the price comparison
between them and the others it's―
we're weighing up.

- Absolutely. So, the first one
was the top end, but I know how
busy you are,

and so I can understand that.
For house number two, where you
would've had to have renovated...

- Yeah, we would.
- And― And also when you go to,
particularly country towns,

how are you going to get tradesmen?
So how did you feel about number two,

where you would have had to
have done quite a lot of work?

- Oh, number two probably we
knocked out, I reckon, pretty well.
- Yeah.

A, it was too small in the―
land-wise as well...
- Too...

Too much to do, not enough land,
right on the highway, only 7 acres ―

it― it didn't tick too many boxes
at all, to be honest with you.
- OK.

What about number three?
Because I know you loved
the energy of that one.

- Loved it.
- Yeah. Oh, yeah, it was beautiful.
- Yes, I loved it too.

- Yeah.
- Yes.
- I loved it, yeah.

The long driveway. I loved
the little creek out the back

and the farmhouse sort of cottage
at the front. Yeah, very impressed
with number three.

- Fairy-tale stuff.
- Absolutely.
- So, what are you gonna do?

- Well, we― we tossed this over...
- Yeah.
- ...quite a bit,

and, really, we couldn't go past
number one. We're gonna have
a crack at number one.

- I don't blame you. That's the one
that made your heart sing?
- Yeah, it did.

- It's ticked the boxes.
Plenty of room for motorbikes.
Yeah, we can run some cattle.

- And family and friends can visit.
- You're living the dream.

Yes, that's it.

- Well, we wish you all the very
best of luck. Shall we celebrate
with a drink?

- Absolutely.
- Beautiful.
- Let's do it. OK.

- I'm gonna go the pink one.
- Yeah, well, I actually
wanted the― the purple.

- Cheers.
- To Echuca.
- Cheers.

- New beginnings.
- Cheers.
- Cheers.

- Amy and Colin put in an offer
on the big house,

and, yep, they got it.

We wish you all the very best for
your wonderful new life in Echuca.