[Hermit]

Glad you like it. If you come to Shetland pm me and I will give you a tour of my little spot to show you what I have done. Nothing fancy up here but more than folk think can be grown. An idea for an income at Brattahlid would be a campsite, we get loads of campers( tents and caravans are on the increase) and I dont think there is one at all in that area of Shetland.
 If you do decide to come and visit us a thing to check out would be prices, animal feed, diesel etc and distances to travel to get them. A lot of things on Shetland are bought via the internet as it can be easier to pay post than diesel costs! There is a shop at vidlin with diesel and a well used community hall that has farmers markets and craft fairs. Shetland is a stunning place but a massive windfarm is going to be built , I dont think it will be visible much from tucked away Brattahlid though . Brattahlid can make its own hay , a massive boost as hay is pot luck up here and straw cannot be found some years. I make my own and bed my animals on it!
Shetland is posher than a lot of folk realise there is a lot of money up here and jobs are available of all kinds. Lerwick has basic shops but if you want a spree Aberdeen is an overnight ferry away , a day shopping and back the next night. For an islander I think it is about £40.00 return with no cabin, just recliner chair in the sleep room. I dont bother , I like the simple life. Good luck whatever you decide.
There is always next year Sabrina!

[Fleecewife]

I have been following this thread with interest and I have found the replies very thoughtful and reflecting peoples experiences.
One thing no-one has touched on is your children.  You will still have to spend a lot of time rearing them and particularly as they grow they may love or hate where you end up.  You will need to think about schooling, both primary and secondary, and getting them to school.  Once they become teenagers their surroundings will be influential on their futures - this can be in either direction, for good or bad.  Being in a very rural area could hold them back from what they want to do with their lives, or they could share your dream and a smallholding could be everything they want.  There's no telling, but they need to come into your equations.

Our own experiences lead me to mention health - if your whole life depends on your being fit, you can come acropper if you are hit by a major illness - and when it happens to both of you it can mean the end of your dreams.  In our case we have adapted, and our smallholding has adapted with us, but when you are starting out it is as well to check that there is flexibilty in where you choose to settle.

In our case, when we bought our smallholding nearly 17 years ago, we bought the smallholding before we had sold our house, which was quite a risk, but we didn't want to miss the smallholding and we were fairly sure the house would sell quickly - it did, within a week, which was great, but it was a risk and we could have ended up with bridging loans and even more stress.

You have the opportunity to choose carefully where to go, and there seem to be plenty of potential smallholdings out there so you can be picky.  My main advice would be to know just what you are seeing when you look at the land - dig holes and assess the soil carefully.  The house and buildings can be changed but you are stuck with the land, and where it is.

[Hermit]

What Fleecewife says about looking at  education is true, we found small schools useless . My daughter was at a large school in England with three teachers per class . She is very smart and they kept her occupied and learning whilst able to bring the less smart children on. In a small school she was bored off her head as she was being taught with children a few years younger and had to do the same work. She went from years ahead to stagnant . She forged ahead again with top marks straight across the board in the larger secondary. So dont think small schools are always good.
 Health is a good point as well to go into.
Most folk that want to buy up here rent first or have a few holidays at all times of year. We were lucky enough to own this house and our England one so we hopped between the two for a bit before coming here permanently . You must study Shetland first and all its good and bad points or indeed wherever you go . Property up here is cheap but folk spend there profits and cant afford to move back so beware of that trap.
 

[Bullbythehorns]

Some excellent food for thought here. The camping site idea strikes a chord, Hermit, thanks for that. Something to consider when I check out Brattahild.

 Education is a very important factor for me. It was actually a key factor in returning to the UK after 12 years away in Hong Kong and the Philippines.

My brother lives in a rural area and I'm very impressed by the social life and sports opportunities his kids have in their local community. I'm hoping Shetland will tick all those boxes for me.

Do let me know if there are any other opportunities that are worth checking out during what would probably be around a three day trip up.