Thinking of moving to Swansea, advice please

mollymunchkin

We currently live in Narberth, Pembrokeshire and are considering moving closer to the other half's work in Swansea. Trouble is, I have no idea about living in Swansea. What are the nice areas? Areas to avoid? I've only heard of The Mumbles but I guess house prices are a bit silly down there?

We'll have about £200k max to spend on a house, preferably 3 bed semi-detached with a garden. Needs to be within 1/2 hour commute of central Swansea. Can anyone advise on suitable areas to start our seach on? We have a 1 year old son so preferably not in the city centre, a suburb or village preferably.

Thanks for any advice!

davelewis

I live in the Mumbles!!

It is really nice - but as you say house prices are ridiculous down here.

I grew up in Swansea in a place called Waunarlwydd - near Gowerton. Gowerton is really nice place to consider - good road and rail links into the city and a good school. Quite a village feel to it with modern housing estates, a few pubs, post office etc. It is at the 'start of gower' - meaning the entrance to north gower.

Give Gowerton a look!!

Happy house hunting!

mollymunchkin

Cheers for that Dave. I'll have a look round for Gowerton. A good a place as any to start

Tom_Jones

Depends on what your requirements are though, I bought a two bedroom property, a five minute walk from Oxwich beach for 160k last year, it needed about 20k in building work, and it is a wonderful place to go on the weekends. So the Gower is not out of reach with your budget.

steve_cov

Swansea exile here.

With your £200k budget, you are unlikely to find much on the popular western side (Uplands, Sketty, Killay, Dunvant) unless you are able to put in some DIY - perhaps unlikely with your young son!

You will find properties on some of the newer estates (well, they were new when I moved away in 1993...) on the north-central edge of the city in areas such as Fforestfach/ Penllergaer/ Pontarddulais/ Pontlliw, but you will find great value in the Morriston/ Ynystawe/ Birchgrove/ Glais side on the north-east edge, with post-war estates (Maes-y-gwernen and Parc Gwernfadog are popular) and some really roomy C19th and C20th semis and detacheds (Clasemont Road in Morriston has some with good views). All would be just inside your budget.

These areas are all on the M4 and so handy if you have family in Pembrokeshire whom you plan to visit often.

There are lots of agents in Morriston which cover that north-eastern edge, and some good schools (particularly primaries). I can't name any agents as that would be advertising, but a websearch should turn them up.

pavlovs_dog

im a cardiff girl at uni in swansea, and i find swansea so depressing that i would rather commute in from cardiff every day.

i think, given that a house is probably the biggets purchase you'll ever make, that you really need to come down for a long weekend, have a good look around, and get a feel for the place.

you can also use sites like fish4homes and rightmove to get an idea of prices in different parts of town.

good luck - you're braver than i am :rotfl:

steve_cov

Remember: "Ambition is critical."

At least half of my schoolteachers had studied at Swansea Uni: they had come from all over the UK and stayed.

Sounds like pavlovs_dog got in through clearing and didn't get her first choice of uni... I certainly wouldn't have studied somewhere I hated!!

pavlovs_dog

steve_cov wrote:

Sounds like pavlovs_dog got in through clearing and didn't get her first choice of uni... I certainly wouldn't have studied somewhere I hated!!

if you must know, i rejected oxbridge to take up my place at swansea, because their course (and teaching) in my chosen subject did not compare. bangor would have been my first choice location and atmosphere wise, but again, swansea had the better course..the same reason ultimately that i rejected cardiff, aber, and others.

plus the fact that i won a scholarship and they pay me to go there helps tremendously :money: . still doesnt mean i like the city though.

as far as town planning goes, the city is a painful hotch potch, yet to recover from WW2 bombing (although the new liberty stadium and swanky buildings along fabien way show some signs that 21st century architecture is on the horizon!!!). as britain's wettest city, its rainfall is unrivaled, even by wales' standards. i think the infamous twin town quote of "pretty sh!tty city" hits the nail on the head, and i am not in the least bit surprised that the place drove one of our best playwrites to alcoholism and an early grave.

its only saving point is its beaches, which rain or shine are outstanding. oh, and good links to the m4, to escape when it all gets a bit too much and, speak as i find, the people are fab - very friendly and welcoming for the most part.

so you see steve, im not studying somewhere i hate - as far as the course is concerned, i am in probably the best uni i can be, being taught by some of the best names in the field. the uni is a very exciting place to be right now with all the changes going on behind the scenes, and plans for the future.

however, swansea as a place is most definately not for me (unless you know how to make the mumbles into wales' answer to the vatican state ) and as a city/location i would pick cardiff over swansea without a second's hestitation.

and so to bring a lot of waffle back on topic and of some use to the OP, it really is vitally important that you spend some time getting to know the area before you jump in. if you already know swansea, then maybe its not so essential, but if i was to uproot my life and relocate somewhere, i would want to be certain beyond all doubts that thats the place for me, be it swansea, or sweden. it wasnt until i moved to swansea that i realised it wasnt right for me (i'd been too pre-occupied with course details rather than location). of course, if you are in rented accommodation, its easy to up sticks and move..not so easy if you have a house to sell.

on a positive note, given how good the transport links are generally, it may well be worth your while to consider a slightly wider area...for a few miles outside the city you will get a lot more house for your money (and probably much less rain )

mollymunchkin

Many thanks for the suggestions guys. Moving from a lovely rural town in Pembrokeshire to Swansea is a big move for us, hence me posting here to find the best places to live. I heard once that Swansea is the car crime capital of the UK ? So obviously I'm a bit wary.

We may go for an outlying village instead of Swansea itself but I want to take my time choosing so we don't regret it afterwards.

pavlovs_dog

hey molly

hope we haven't scared you off too much. have you had a browse on estate agent websites such as Peter Alan or darlows ? both cover the swansea area (and further afield). you can narrow your search by area, no of bedrooms, price etc...will at least give you an idea of the type of house you can expect to get for your money (plus its fun to nose at all the pictures )

bobdauilda

Molly
You could do a lot worse than trying Ammanford which is only a very short commute to Swansea and a lot safer...but then I am biased! Good schools too if you have kids.