Malcolm Crabbe had never been one for staying put. Although originally from Amersham in Buckinghamshire, his career took him from Malawi as a safari guide to Dubai as a telecom recruitment executive.
Then in 2010, while living in Malta, he decided to look for a new and exciting venture – one that would provide him with long-term security but also flexibility. After all, he wasn’t quite ready to move back to the UK full time.
He’d already converted his town house in Malta and had a genuine interest in property. When he was put in touch Platinum Property Partners (PPP) through a franchise consultancy, he knew he wanted to join.
Over the next five years Malcolm built a successful portfolio of eight high quality Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) for young professionals in Bracknell where his parents lived, and still do. He flew back and forth between Malta and the UK to build and manage his buy-to-let portfolio before handing over the management to a property manager.
With an almost completely passive income and love of travel, Malcolm and his wife Alicia decided to up sticks and take their family on a round-the-world trip before moving back to the UK for good.
“It seemed like the perfect opportunity between leaving Malta and arriving back in UK”, said Malcolm. “The kids are young enough to not worry too much about their schooling (although we will be home schooling them on the way round) and hopefully old enough to remember and appreciate the trip! Alicia and I have both done a lot of travelling before and this felt like a natural extension.”
On February 11th the family of five flew from London to Miami to kick-start their six month trip. From there, they travelled to Costa Rica, California and the Cook Islands and are now embarking on a month-long stay in New Zealand.
They’ve been alligator spotting, zip lining through the rainforest, swimming in the Pacific, walking through National Parks and white water rafting – to name but a few exciting adventures. And there has been no five star hotel luxury for the Crabbe’s yet - they’ve stuck to AirBnB and hostels so far.
From there they’ll visit Singapore, the Philippines, South Africa and Madagascar before making their way home in August.
And it’s not all fun and adventure. Malcolm and Alicia are keen to use this trip to show their children that there are people worse off than them in the world and enable them to explore and experience different cultures. A lot of plane journeys will also be filled with school work!
So how easy is it to manage a property portfolio from various corners of the world? Quite easy according to Malcolm: “My lettings manager copes with the day to day issues and has now taken on board the quarterly maintenance checks and general portfolio management. I am still reachable and able to deal with any issues from afar, but am able to enjoy new experiences at the same time!”
