moving out of london - new area options questions!

greenmoneysaver_2

If you have that much to spend you could have a beach front 3 bed property in Whitstable/Deal etc! Why bother with St Albans! However I would avoid the majority of the rest of kent, especially faversham and that ilke, where the word chav originated! Maidstone is single mother city! There are nice villages, but they are villages, not just cute small towns!

As for not sure if ready for villages etc, the market is going nowhere in a hurry, so a good time to sell yours and rent in a new area, see if you can do the "more countryside" thing, or still need a town. Cheaper than 2 sets of buying/selling costs and gives you freedom.

wallofbeans

yeah but st albans (and greater london) has much better to and from london links (all night in fact!) hence the prices i guess... and the dodgy bits of kent are a worry! whitstable does look great though so might have a look and see!

wont we still have two sets of buying/selling costs but just more spaced out? and actually more expensive because we'll need a removal van 3 times rather than 2!?

the hardest thing about renting for us is our dog. its really hard to find places to rent that will allow pets, dogs especially!

thanks all... this stuff is amazingly helpful!

greenmoneysaver wrote: »

If you have that much to spend you could have a beach front 3 bed property in Whitstable/Deal etc! Why bother with St Albans! However I would avoid the majority of the rest of kent, especially faversham and that ilke, where the word chav originated! Maidstone is single mother city! There are nice villages, but they are villages, not just cute small towns!

As for not sure if ready for villages etc, the market is going nowhere in a hurry, so a good time to sell yours and rent in a new area, see if you can do the "more countryside" thing, or still need a town. Cheaper than 2 sets of buying/selling costs and gives you freedom.

Alizarin

Another recommendation for Harpenden here - my sister lives there and commutes to London (Holborn) every day for work. It's got some lovely green areas and a nice busy village/small town feel to it. Only issue might be the travel time into London - it's 30-45 mins on the train depending on whether you get a fast train or slow one! Also I believe the timetable has changed within the last few months and is less convenient for commuters (so my sister tells me/rants to me!) But this may not bother you if you'll only be travelling to London off peak.

greenmoneysaver_2

It isn't that bad to rent with pets, just be upfront and you may need to put down a bit more of a deposit. We have managed in London flats, and if you want to be a bit more ruralthen dogs are the norm, not the hated flat destroyers most people think they are!

I still think renting is a good idea for you, it would take months to research the areas you have listed, and although the ideas on here help, we don't know exactly what you need/dream of!

daveb975

wallofbeans wrote: »

OR if we're going even more london-ish then Kingston upon Thames - good bits? horrible bits!?

I'd stick to Surbiton rather than Kingston itself. The train service is MUCH better, and if you live in the right part of Surbiton you can actually walk to Kingston town centre quicker than from some of the residential parts of Kingston itself. You also avoid the noise and traffic from Kingston.

The problem is living in the right part is pretty expensive at almost £500k for a 2 bed terrace. The outlying parts are much cheaper and still ok, but you do lose quite a lot of the convenience.

If you do look at Kingston, avoid the area around the Cambridge Estate. The rest is pretty good.

wallofbeans

daveb975 wrote: »

I'd stick to Surbiton rather than Kingston itself. The train service is MUCH better, and if you live in the right part of Surbiton you can actually walk to Kingston town centre quicker than from some of the residential parts of Kingston itself. You also avoid the noise and traffic from Kingston.

The problem is living in the right part is pretty expensive at almost £500k for a 2 bed terrace. The outlying parts are much cheaper and still ok, but you do lose quite a lot of the convenience.

Surbiton is interesting us quite a bit actually. The posher bits (the river roads) are very expensive but other bits are cheaper and more affordable to us. Can you give me any tips on which of the outlying parts to look in and more importantly, which to avoid!!

Thanks for the advice!

ERICS_MUM

sunshinetours wrote: »

Really depends on budget and what part of London you need to get into I would say. If you come East of london into parts of Essex and Suffolk you may get lots more for your money

I agree. Come to Chelmsford - I moved here from London 15 years ago and I love it. It's not pretty but has a good shopping centre, decent night life and easy to get to country pubs and restaurants. 35 mins into Liverpool St by train and close to the A12. Good grammar schools.

Linda :beer:

wallofbeans

ERICS_MUM wrote: »

I agree. Come to Chelmsford - I moved here from London 15 years ago and I love it. It's not pretty but has a good shopping centre, decent night life and easy to get to country pubs and restaurants. 35 mins into Liverpool St by train and close to the A12. Good grammar schools.

Linda :beer:

Thanks Linda! But pretty is a BIG part of the deal for us. If we're getting out of London we really want the area immeadiatly around us to be LOVELY and convenient..

Nice coffee shops and restaurants, maybe a local cinema, my other half likes the river so that would be nice, quiet, family friendly pubs, green bits or not far from green and as few chavs and aggressive scary dogs as possible (making for a less traumatic dog walking experience)...

Too much to ask for? Probably!!

sunshinetours

wallofbeans wrote: »

Thanks Linda! But pretty is a BIG part of the deal for us. If we're getting out of London we really want the area immeadiatly around us to be LOVELY and convenient..

Nice coffee shops and restaurants, maybe a local cinema, my other half likes the river so that would be nice, quiet, family friendly pubs, green bits or not far from green and as few chavs and aggressive scary dogs as possible (making for a less traumatic dog walking experience)...

Too much to ask for? Probably!!

Hmm I think you would be better sticking to the London suburbs from your wishlist. You sound as though you have become very "London-ised" so may be best with sticking with areas you already know and have mentioned (nothing wrong with that I might add)

How about places like Chigwell on the East side of London which are pretty and green leafy suburbs although much of the property in the very nice areas will be over your budget, you should still be able to get the area you require with easy access to London

wallofbeans

sunshinetours wrote: »

Hmm I think you would be better sticking to the London suburbs from your wishlist. You sound as though you have become very "London-ised" so may be best with sticking with areas you already know and have mentioned (nothing wrong with that I might add)

How about places like Chigwell on the East side of London which are pretty and green leafy suburbs although much of the property in the very nice areas will be over your budget, you should still be able to get the area you require with easy access to London

east isnt the greatest for us.. makes it hard for family to get to us and trains get in to wrong side of london for my work..

just rightmove'd chigwell though and found places near 'grange hill' i had no idea it was a real place and not just made up for the tv show!!