I hate you Northerners.

caveman38

I don't really, I just wanted to get your attention. I don't think you realise how fortunate you are.
All my working life the only benefit I have seen for living in the London suburbs - apart from the weather - is £4K in London Weighting.
The downside is overpricing on everything from the price of beer, household shopping and especially house prices.
I have just read with envy of the lady whose daughter is milling over whether to offer £80K for a 3 bed bungalow in Huddersfield. I couldn't even get a 2 bed terrace for £200K even now.
I have 2 sons who have saved for years to get on the housing ladder and are at last seeing the oppurtunity arise hopefully next year. With what they need to put down as a deposit they could together buy that bungalow.
I am as I say extremely mesmerised by how we arrive at these ridiculous prices in London. No wonder when I go on holiday people from the S of England only make up 10% of the tourists as we are all b****y tied down with massive mortgages.
Can you guys up country give your slant on our house prices. Do you think we are unfortunate or feel no sympathy as one day we will realise the property value - wel my kids will.
I would much prefer 3 holdays a year and beer at £2 a pint. Can I come up there - is it really cold?

Dumyat

yeah its cold!! so prepare for big fuel bills.

I feel your pain. I often wonder how your average earner manages in south east.

I live in the kind of place you see on "escape to the country"...but there are down sides too. poor transport links, shopping can be dearer (although online shopping is great for us), we must be the last in the uk to get everything (and so we have limited choices for things like broadband, no cable round these parts and its only recently that we have been eligible for the cheap deals on Sky for example)...

is it a grass is greener thing?

Gorgeous_George

You may 'realise the property value' one day but it might be less than you paid.

There is no valid reason for the huge price differences. Most of London is pants and the house prices are hideous. There are many far nicer places to live and work. I was brought up within 20 minutes of Whitby and the North Yorkshire Moors - a truly outstanding area of natural beauty. Heartbeat country indeed.

GG

maryotuam

Why not consider retiring "up north". If you live in a northern city like Manchester, Birmingham or Liverpool you can enjoy the benefits of city life but your money goes much futher.

Millie's_Mum

I used to get £2k city weighting for working in Leeds so your £4k benefit just halved!

bryanb

Gorgeous_George wrote: »

You may 'realise the property value' one day but it might be less than you paid.

There is no valid reason for the huge price differences.GG

I believe there is a valid reason - It's where the big money is.

besonders1

I have never been a fan of over priced housing or London traffic anyway so glad I don't live there.

meester

bryanb wrote: »

I believe there is a valid reason - It's where the big money is.

was...............

caveman38

Millie's_Mum wrote: »

I used to get £2k city weighting for working in Leeds so your £4k benefit just halved!

You trying to make me feel even worse?

dmg24

If you don't like it, then why not just move?

Where have you seen beer at £2 a pint? It certainly isn't where I live!

Barneysmom

3 holidays a year? Who can afford that no matter where they live

Food shopping is the same countrywide I'm afraid. I go into London a lot (work) and visit Sainsbob and Tesco - all the stuff is level really. A loaf is a loaf..........

House prices are crazy in London but I don't know why? It's not that nice there, too overcrowded for my liking.
Though you know that saying, the further north you go, the nicer the people?
Not true at all, people are nice everywhere in Britain.

My house (I'm not really north, Stoke on Trent) is an end semi, 4 bedroooms, garage, conservatory, enough 'land' on the side to build a small extension, is worth about £160,000.
Would be worth double that in say Walthamstow, but there's no view of the peaks in Walthamstow, only more houses.

caveman, move out, the difference in lifestyles is massive?
I don't mean moneywise, but it's much calmer away from the big cities.