City-dwellers looking to move to the country - advice/experiences?

Bossypants · 7 December 2017 at 2:11PM

Just been chatting to a colleague about their plans and mentioned this forum is often very insightful and helpful, so he asked me if I would post for him (yes, we're having a slow day).

Basically, mid-30's couple who have always lived in cities or suburbs very close to cities would like to move to the countryside (or as close to 'countryside' as one can get around here, they'd like to be within 45 minutes of both Brighton and Horsham). Both work from home in a way that is likely to be quite sustainable given their careers, no kids, no plans for kids, and no known health issues. Both are homebodies, never 'go out' so won't miss that aspect, but have always been used to having a corner shop or Sainsbury's local within a few minutes' walk. Reason for move is primarily peace and quiet, relative distance from neighbours (they don't need to be miles away from human life, but a bit more 'space to breathe' than they currently have), and easy access to good walks from the front door. They don't want a huge property or anything, just a 3-4 bed detached house surrounded by a good garden.

They're trying to do their research but are finding it a bit overwhelming, I think partly because of the lack of restrictions (no commute and no school concerns leave a pretty big area) and not knowing where to start. I suggested renting first, which is a possibility but apparently not a great one, due to practical and financial reasons.

So basically, any thoughts or experiences (esp from people who have tried this) would be most welcome!

G_M · 7 December 2017 at 2:19PM

Don't p*ss off the locals by complaining about the noise of the church bells. Or the wildlife. Or the horns of the local hunt.

Never use the horn when the road is blocked by cattle being moved beween fields.

Have a deep freezer.

Keep salted sand in tha garage for winter. And a shovel.

agrinnall · 7 December 2017 at 2:22PM

Do they already live in the area (i.e. in Brighton or Horsham, or another conurbation in that general area), or will they be moving from further away? If they already have an idea what the area is like then renting may be an unnecessary extra expense (two moves at least) but if they have little knowledge then it may well be a better idea than buying a home that they later come to hate.

Certainly the lack of nearby shops can become a bit of a drag, I lived on the edge of the Highlands where the nearest shop of any sort was 6 miles away, the nearest supermarket 17 miles, and the nearest big town 50 miles. You soon rack up a lot of mileage in your car, especially when there is no public transport.

Their age and state of health is another thing to consider, one big reason for my move to a city was easy access to healthcare - if they became ill and were unable to drive then living in the country could prove to be a huge burden.

Cakeguts · 7 December 2017 at 2:30PM

Do not complain about the cockerels crowing at dawn in the summer. If in doubt rent a holiday cottage in the summer near a farm and if you get woken up in the morning don't move to the country.

Do not complain about muck on the roads or the smell from the local farm. Do not complain about the smell from muck spreading. Farmers are running a business they have every right for their animals to make as much noise at they like and as much smell as they like.

If background noise for you includes traffic noise and noises from trains but not farm animals and wildlife do not move to the country.

vicki2221 · 7 December 2017 at 2:34PM

Perhaps they could look around the Kent/Sussex border, there are lots of lovely towns or villages that have shops but also forests and beautiful walks right on the doorstep. It's the best of both worlds. And all close enough to Horsham and Brighton.
How about Lewes? Such a pretty town. I live in Tunbridge Wells and love it there. I grew up in Crowborough which is a bit closer to Brighton and a bit sleepier than Tunbridge Wells. We are now hoping to move to Leigh, which is an almost perfectly preserved Tudor village and more remote, lots of cows :-).
Closer to Horsham, my friend has just moved to Outwood, it's lovely, like stepping back in time, but Redhill is just down the road.

JoJo1978 · 7 December 2017 at 2:41PM

Living in London? There's a website and FB group called Life After London which is geared up to helping people doing a similar move - not necessarily to the country but many are.

We're late 30s/early 40s and are relocating out of a city. We've ruled out the countryside itself to live in and have opted for a market town that is commutable of several large cities and also has walks into the countryside (which we already adore) on the doorstep, to keep our lifestyle options open if our dreams and circumstances change. We went on reconnaissance weekends trying out various towns, not necessarily house hunting to start with. We narrowed down the areas then began to look at properties.

eddddy · 7 December 2017 at 3:02PM

Are they used to using public transport and/or cycling (and/or car club etc)?

They might find that they can only get around by car in the 'countryside' - so they might need to own one or two cars. Even the nearest station might be a car journey away - and the trains might be once an hour.

And it might be a car journey to the nearest shop as well.

AND... for working from home... check there is a good mobile signal, and good broadband speeds available.

I know a few people relatively close to London who have to 'walk down the lane' or 'stand at the end of the garden' to get a mobile signal.

Bossypants · 7 December 2017 at 3:05PM

(BP writing on colleague (Dan)'s behalf here)

These are great, many thanks all!

The 'rural noises' point several people made is a really good one. I think we'd be more comfortable with that than the type of noise we're getting right now (constant traffic and people), but probably good to stay away from right next to farms (tractors are not exactly quiet!). We were thinking to avoid being right up against fields, also partly because there's always a chance they'll wind up being built on in the future.

I think those who suggested larger villages/market towns might be onto something, also because, thinking about it, there are some amenities it would be useful to have (both our jobs get very hectic at certain times of the year, and when they coincide it can be very useful to get a house cleaning service and such in. Not essential, but if we could find what we're looking for and have that kind of option available, it would be a definite plus).

Thanks again and feel free to keep 'em coming!

Lokolo · 7 December 2017 at 3:12PM

Some already noted but

- Animal noises, foxes, jesus christ. But the opposite of that is I have woken up to find a muntjac wandering down my road, beautiful

- Convenience. Just "pop to the shops" or "get a takeaway", could be a 30 minute trip

- SNOW. My goodness. Don't expect to get anywhere. Obviously snow is depending on where in the country we are talking about, but it is a bit of an annoyance

Honestly, I don't even live in the countrside and have these issues. I live in a market town in home counties, at the end of a cul-de-sac with woods behind me. I am far away enough from the town centre and main roads that I have peace and quiet. But I have neighbours around. I have shops a 15 minute walk (M&S foodhall, Tesco Express, KFC...).

What sort of property do they currently have?

Moving from a large city of maybe having a flat, do a 3-4 bed detached with a garden seems a bit OTT. No kids as well. I would try to reiterate renting somewhere first, even if it does cost them a bit more. It would be cheaper than purchasing, regretting and having to sell and move again.

Bossypants · 7 December 2017 at 3:18PM

Just answering a few of the specific questions:

- They do currently drive, although a decent bus route would be a plus.

- Currently have a 3-bed house with a small garden in Hove. Bearing in mind that they both work from home and spend a large amount of leisure time there 'pottering around', I think the type of property they're looking for would be a good fit size-wise (I'm a single person working partly from home in a 2-bed house with courtyard garden, and while it's not too small, it's definitely not too big either).

IT connections is a good one, very important, will point that one out especially!

Thanks again, really appreciate the replies!

borkid · 7 December 2017 at 3:25PM

Bossypants wrote: »

(BP writing on colleague (Dan)'s behalf here)

These are great, many thanks all!

The 'rural noises' point several people made is a really good one. I think we'd be more comfortable with that than the type of noise we're getting right now (constant traffic and people), but probably good to stay away from right next to farms (tractors are not exactly quiet!). We were thinking to avoid being right up against fields, also partly because there's always a chance they'll wind up being built on in the future.

I think those who suggested larger villages/market towns might be onto something, also because, thinking about it, there are some amenities it would be useful to have (both our jobs get very hectic at certain times of the year, and when they coincide it can be very useful to get a house cleaning service and such in. Not essential, but if we could find what we're looking for and have that kind of option available, it would be a definite plus).

Thanks again and feel free to keep 'em coming!

Lots of people in the country have hens and cockerals in their gardens.Tractors and large sugar beet lorries drive through villages so you'd still get that noise. If you want to avoid living next to a field then you will need to be in the centre of a large village.

I live in a small village about 800 pop. We have a village shop + post office so can get cash out most of the time between 6 am and 8 pm when the shop is open. Two pubs one which does takeaway, coffee shop, doctors surgery, school ( primary). We also have ekectricians, carpenters, odd job man, tree surgeon, hairdresser, 2 beauticians, at least 2 cleaners, a photographer and a carpet fitter all working from home so you wouldn't know they were there unless you'd moved in already.

I would suggest if you see a village you like then pop into the pub if it still has one and see if the locals are friendly. They'll also be able to tell you of any problems etc.

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City-dwellers looking to move to the country - advice/experiences?

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