gam,
I do think one has to be as flexible as possible and be prepared to
a) Wait until the right property(ies) come up
and
b) Not to give up whilst waiting.
Briefly, our story was that we went over to an area of France that we loved (The Lot et Garonne) after taking several holidays there, looking for the usual 'wreck to rennovate' and as they were all far too expensive for what they were, we (I) started looking for plots of land instead.
On the last day of a '5 day expedition' came across my 'dream plot' and to cut a long story short - bought it and built a house on it !
It was a similar story for us a few years back, in the UK - took me almost a year just to find a plot of land and then built a house on it (No I'm not a builder - had no previous experience prior to that, just seemed like a good idea at the time (it was !)
My point gam is that these things do take time. I don't know you, but you strike me as being the type that doesn't give up easily.
I'm not suggesting for one minute that you start looking to build something, just that sometimes circumstance can take you off on a different journey to the one you intended, so just, as I say, be prepared to consider 'other options'
Patience and determination are two of the main requirements in the property acquisition game.
Incidentally, we had a circular drop through our letterbox this morning
from a local estate agent.
I was surprised to read - words to the effect -
"Despite the slight fall in house prices in the last 12 months and the expectation that this may well continue........"
So time is on your side gam and property prices aren't likely to be booming again any time soon !
Stick at it gam and Good Luck