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Finding Paradise in Sweden
Real estate news By Ivar Ekman
September 16, 2007
With their new house, Michele Anenberg Poma and Stefano Poma have bought themselves a piece of the Swedish dream In February, when they first saw the newly renovated white wooden house, they fell in love. It was built in 1921 in Lannersta, a suburb on an island 10 kilometers (6 miles) west of central Stockholm. There was the light: the house has big windows facing south, opening up to a deck at the back. There was the location: close enough to the Swedish capital for work and amenities, yet far enough to give a true sense of the unspoilt Swedish countryside.
Above all, there was the 200-square-meter (2,153-square-foot) house and the 2,000 square meters (21,528 square feet) of land, with fruit trees, soccer goal posts and a deer family that visits almost daily, as well as a beach and a marina a three-minute walk down the hill. It had everything they had dreamt of as a family with two small children. “This is a new life for them,” said Mrs. Poma, 44, a native Californian, about Emilia, 7, and Giorgio, 6. “They can go out on their own, ride their bikes, play soccer. Neighborhoods like this, that offer a sense of safety, are difficult to find in other countries. I’m from L.A., so I know about being afraid. Here, I’m never afraid.”
The Pomas have lived in Sweden since the 1990s they met at a party there in 1996 and were both brought to Stockholm by work. Mrs. Poma spent 10 years as an executive at Disney’s Scandinavian office, but now is starting a charity Web site called kidsgivingtokids.org. Mr. Poma, 40, who comes from a small town outside Torino, Italy, came to Sweden to work for Electrolux but now is chief financial officer for the European division of Emerson, an American energy company. For many years, they lived a nomadic life in sublet apartments across central Stockholm, ready to seek new adventures in other countries. “I’ve always said I’d be here for another two years and now I’ve been here for 15!” Mrs. Poma said. Real Swedish roots began to grow when the children arrived. The couple realized that they could own their own place, most likely paying less than they were paying in expensive rentals. So in 2002, they bought an apartment in a lively area on the outskirts of Stockholm.
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